Transcript Chapter 4 The Civilization of the Greeks

Chapters 4
The Civilization of the Greeks
and
Hellenistic Civilizations
BRONZE AGE:
 DARK AGE
 CLASSICAL AGE
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3500 – 1200 BC
1200 – 700 BC
700 – 500 BC
I. Early Greece: 3200 – 1100 BC
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Importance of geography in Greek history
Late Bronze Age Cultures
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Cycladic 3200 BC – 1100 BC
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Location:
Religion:
Political/Military:
Urban / Rural:
Economic:
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Minoan 3000-1450 B.C.
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Location:
Culture:
Religion:
Political/Military:
Urban / Rural:
– Knossus
• Economic:
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1450 B.C.
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Mycenaean 1600-11 B.C.
• Location:
– Peloponnesus
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Culture:
Religion:
Political/Military:
Urban / Rural:
Economic:
II. Greek Dark Age: 1100 - 800 B.C.
Collapse of agricultural production
 Decline in number of farmers
 Volcano
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Changes in Greek World –
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Migration east across the Aegean Sea
• Ionian
• Aeolian
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III. Greek City-States: 800 - 500 B.C. (Archaic period)
 Polis
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Citadel
Villages clustered around fortifications
Towns – ruled by monarch and oligarch
Polis is a small but autonomous political unit in which all
major political, social, and religious activities are carried
out in a central location
Citizenship to males only
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Gender and Power
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Women played little role
Greek attitudes toward women and sexuality
Isolation
property
good mothers and obedient wives
not friends or partners
Friendship existed only between members of same sex.
Women in public were usually prostitutes
No judgment or condemnation
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Myth and Reason
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Explanations!
Don’t write all names down
Lineage
• Titans
– Cronus who was de-throned by his son Zeus. Gaea, Uranus,
Rhea, Oceanus, Tethys, Hyperion, Mnemosyne (Zeus married),
Iapetus, Coeus, Crius, Phoebe, Themis (Zeus married),
Prometheus, Epimetheus, Atlas, Metis (Zeus married), Dione.
• Olympians Zeus was the head god. All the Olympians are related
in some way. They are named after their dwelling place, Mount
Olympus. Poseidon, Hades (brothers of Zeus). Hestia, Hera (Zeus
married), Ares, Athena, Apollo, Aphrodite, Hermes, Artemis,
Hephaestus.
• The Others – demi sort of: Asclepius, Demeter, Persephone,
Dionysus, Eros, Hebe, Eris, Helius, Thanatos, Pan, Nemesis, The
Graces, The Muses, The Erinyes, The Fates.
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Colonization and the Rise of Tyrants
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Colonization
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Overpopulation
Trade and commerce
Colonies founded as polis
Cultural diffusion
Tyrants
• A tyrant was someone who came to rule by unconstitutional ways in
7th and 6th centuries B.C.E. – coup d’etat. Not subject to laws.
• Support came from the new rich
• Poor peasants becoming indebted to landholding aristocrats rose up
• Power maintained by mercenaries.
• Extinguished by end of 6th century B.C.E.
IV. Tale of Three Cities
a) Sparta
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Location:
• Southwestern Peloponnesus
Lacked:
• Land
Military History:
• 740 BC - conquered neighboring Laconia and Messenia,
Military society
Citizenship
Women
Children:
Government
– Lycurgus
• Two kings share power
• gerousia (council of 28 elders over the age of 60 serving for life)
• Apella (assembly of all male citizens)
b) Corinth
Geography:
Economic:
wealthiest
Trade
Pottery
Middlemen from east and west.
Legal:
Population:
Social:
Political:
Oligarch – initially
Bacchiads 1200 -700 (Dark Ages)
650 BC Cypselus
Liked by people
Corinth was divided into 8 tribes by Cypselus
from each 10 men chosen to represent tribe
Military:
Navy – strongest navy in Aegean and Adriatic.
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Athens
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Location:
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Social:
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Legal:
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Economic:
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Political:
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Unites surrounding area of Attica into single polis
Ruled by aristocratic clan – Alcmeonids circa 630s BC
Krylon
650 – 621BC
621 BC
594 BC
• Solon
– canceled all debts, outlawed new loans based on human collateral, freed
people who had fallen into slavery for debts
– Political control opened to TWO TOP social groups instead of just those
by birthright and within certain clan
– Devised a constitution which lasted 80 years
– Did not initiate land redistribution
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Pisistratus (and son Hippias) seize power in 560 B.C.
• Clean water through terra coptta pipe system, rebuilt temple of
Athena, public halls, increased civic pride and provided work
for the poor
• Hippias expelled in 510
– REVENGE OF HIPPIAS and the Persians
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Aristocrats attempt to seize power
• Beginning of Athenian democracy (circa 508 – 450 BC)
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Cleisthenes seized power in 508 B.C.E.
• Creates Council of 500 that was responsible for the
administration of foreign and financial affairs
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Pericles - 444 B.C.
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Military:
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520 B.C. Persia completes the occupation of Ionia.
498 – 468, Persian Wars
478/477 B.C. Athens takes the lead in forming the Delos Confederacy.
The fortification of Athens are built.
468 B.C. Leading forces of the Delian confederacy
448 B.C. The Athenian Empire reaches it apex.
446 B.C. Thirty-year truce between the Athenians and Peloponnesians.
431 BC – Peloponnesian War
413 Athenian Navy defeated
404 BC – Athens falls to Sparta
Religious
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Olympic games 776 BC
Zeus
Temples – important.
V. Classical Greece
I. The Challenge of Persia
• During 2nd half of 6th century, Persian empire expanding and
absorbing, including in and around Athens.
• Unsuccessful revolt of Ionian cities – wildfire of democracy
spread to Ionia, but ill fated, even with aid from Athens and
Eretria.
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Darius (522-486 B.C.E.)
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Opposition / Revolts
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Battle of Marathon, 490 B.C.E.
• Persians 48,000. Greeks 12,000
• On 9th day of battle – 10,000 Athenians advanced on Persians.
Persians fled
192 Greeks versus over 6400 Persians killed.
• Destroyed myth of Persian invincibility
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Xerxes (486-465 B.C.E.)
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Invasion of Greece, 480-479 B.C.E.
• By 480 B.C - approximately 100,000 to 180,000 men
• fleet of nearly 600 ships
• Greek plan – fall back to Thermopylae
– Battle of Thermopylae, 480 B.C.E.
• Persians reach Athens and sack and burn it.
• Sea battles – Battle of Salamis, 480 B.C.E.
– Battle of Plataea, 479 B.C.E.
• Greeks developed skills in battle – naval and hoplite
movements during battles with Xerxes.
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By 479 –Athens emerges as leader of Greek world
II. The Athenian Empire in the Age of Pericles
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End of Persian wars marks beginning of classical period.
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Delian League formed 478-77 B.C.E.
• Aegean
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Pericles
• Expanded democracy at home and an empire abroad
• Elected to generalship 30 times
• Built the Parthenon on the Acropolis
III. The Great Peloponnesian War and the Decline of the
Greek States (431-404 B.C.E.)
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Athens stays behind its walls
Plague in 429 B.C.E.
Battle of Aegospotami, 405 B.C.E.
Surrender of Athens, 404 B.C
IV. Culture of Classical Greece
I. History
• Systematic analysis of the past
• Herodotus (c. 484- 425 B.C.E.), History of the Persian Wars
• Thucydides (c. 460- 400 B.C.E.), History of the Peloponnesian War
II. Drama
Created by the Greeks
• Tragedians
– Aeschylus (525-456 B.C.E.)
– Sophocles (c. 496-406 B.C.E.)
– Euripides (c. 485-406 B.C.E.)
• Tragedy
– Nature of good and evil
• Comedy
– Satire politicians and intellectuals
– Aristophanes (c. 450-c. 385 B.C.E.)
III. The Arts: The Classical Ideal
• Architecture
– Doric, Ionic, and Corinthian columns
– Temples – important. Open, not enclosed.
– Parthenon
• Sculpture
– Subjects of male nudity
– No longer stiff
– Proportional and life-like
VI. The Greek Love of Wisdom
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Philosophy meant “love of wisdom”
Sophists
Socrates (469-399 B.C.) (Sophist)
Plato ( 429-347 B.C.) (Student of Socrates)
• The Republic
• The Academy
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Aristotle (384-322 B.C.) (Student of Plato)
• Politics
VII.Greek Religion
Infused into their daily lives, every aspect
Ritual more important than belief.
No body of doctrine or focus on morality
Sacrifices and Festivals
Mount Olympus
Homer’s work
VIII. Daily Life in Classical Athens
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180,000 citizens, 43,000 of which were adult males who exercised political
power, 35,000 foreigners.
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Family the central institution
Women
Males - Paterfamilias
Slavery
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IX. Rise of Macedonia and the Alexander
• Philip II (359-336 B.C.E.)
– Greeks crushed in 338 B.C.E. at the Battle of Chaeronea
– The freedom of the Greek cities had already come to an end during
the Third Sacred War (354-346).
X. Alexander the Great
Born:
356. Philip II and Olympias
Educated:
Sciences, Homer, Herodotus, Xenophon,
Aristotle – taught physics, meteorology, geography, theology
Military:
336 BC – Philip stirred anti Persian sentiment from 150 yrs prior
Alexander crowned - 336
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Attacks the Persian Empire
• Battle of Granicus River, 334 B.C.E.
• Battle of Issus, 333 B.C.E.
• 332 - reached Egypt – welcomed as liberator, took title of Pharoh.
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Battle of Gaugamela, 331 B.C.
Persepolis, 330 B.C.
India, 327 B.C.
Battle of Hydaspes River, 326
B.C.
• Soldiers refuse to go on
Death June 11, 323.
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Philip Arridaeus.
Perdiccas
323 -320 – War between generals,
revolts.
Settlement:
Ptolemy
Seleucus
Peithon
Arridaeus
Antigonus Monophtalmus
Antipater
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The Legacy of Alexander
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Hellenistic Age (“to imitate Greeks”)
Empire divided
Greek autonomy
Wealth used for cities and infrastructure
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Policies remained similar if not same, while faces
changed.
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Monarchy
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Culture
• Art, architecture, language, literature
• Cities
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New military technology (brought from Sicily) spear
(2) Wide use of bribery on friendly parties in Greek poleis
(3) The League Against the Persians revived by King Philip (338/7) as a way of 'uniting' the Greeks
under himself (as 'hegemon': commander-in-chief) to fight the Persians (at least that's what he said).
Forced Greek unity in violation of eleutheria ('liberty').
(4) Crusade of Hellenes against Asia (Philip and Alexander): expands the idea of what is Greek and
brings Greeks into contact and gives them dominion over many other (older) civilizations
(5) Colonies of military veterans: urbanization
(6) New religious cults and attitudes change the basic ideas of the Greek polis religion, as well as the
meaning of life and death, reward and punishment (dualism of Mesopotamian Zoroastrianism)
7) Alexander's policy of intermarrying himself and his chieftains with members of the Iranian
aristocracies of the Persian empire (e.g. Alexander himself and Roxane from Bactria/Afghanistan)
(8) Alexander's policy of founding new cities (32 ALEXANDRIAS): Greek language, Greek
architecture, Greek gymnasium culture, Greek political institutions, but very mixed and mostly nonGreek citizens. The definition of 'Hellene/Greek' is no longer racial, ethnic, national-family, or even
cultural in a natural develomental sense. 'Hellene' is a cultural term thereafter, but anybody can be a
Hellene by adapting.
(9) Appearance in Greek cities of new artifacts, ideas, habits from other civilizations: new interpretations
of reality (Aristotle)
XI. The Hellenistic Kingdoms
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New dynasties created
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Macedonia under the Antigonid dynasty
Syria and the east under the Seleucids
Attalid kingdom of Pergamum in western Asia Minor
Egypt under the Ptolemies
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Hellenizing an urban phenomenon
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Economic:
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Agriculture (80% devoted to farming)
Money Economy
Wealth in hands of few
Forests stripped of wood
Trade Routes
Industry spread
Textile centers
Glass and silver crafts
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Religion:
• Still had gods BUT decline in vitality of the myths and faith
• Mystery religions impacted Greeks
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Women:
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Opportunities increased – upper class women
Managed slaves
Sold property
Contracted loans
More independent
XII. Culture in the Hellenistic World
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Literature, Art, Sciences, philosophy
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Pergamum and Alexandria
• Library at Alexandria – largest in ancient times (1/2 million
scrolls)
Golden Age of Science
 Archimedes (287-212 B.C)
Philosophy
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Headquartered at Athens.
• Epicurian:
– Epicurus (341-270 B.C.)
• Stoic:
– Zeno (335-263 B.C.)
XIII. Conclusion and Summary
 New cities arose
 New religions arose
 New ideas about space, literature and our place in
universe
 Greek culture spread