Classical Greece
Chapter 5
Geography Shapes Life
• Ancient Greece consisted of
Mountainous Peninsulas going into the
Mediterranean Sea and about 2,000
Islands also in the Aegean and Ionian
Seas
• How would this geography affect the
development of Ancient Greece?
Activity
• Tell how aspects of • Geographic Features
the geography – Mountainous
impacted the Peninsulas
development of – Islands in two different
Ancient Greece. seas
What skills would – Access to the seas
these features cause – Mild climate
the Greeks to – Little inland water
develop?
• Page: 123
Early Greek Civilizations
• Mycenaean • Minoans
– Indo-Europeans – Came into contact with
migrated to Southern Mycenaean after 1500
Greece B.C.
– Dominated area from – Showed power of sea
1600-1100 B.C. trade
– Influenced by Minoans – Influenced Greek
writing, art, religion
and literature
Trojan War
• Ten year war between Troy and
Mycenaeans in the 1200’s B.C.
• Legendary War
Early Greek Civilizations
• Dorians • Homer told epic
– After Trojan War poems to pass along
Mycenaean collapsed history
– Dorians not as
advanced
Warring City States
• City-State (Polis)
– Ruled by
• Monarchy
• Aristocracy
• Oligarchy
• Tyrants
Copy chart on page: 128
Athens
• Direct Democracy
– Copy chart from page: 134
• Education
Sparta
• Strong military state
• Boys and girls learned fighting
• Life centered around strength of Sparta
– “come back with your shield or on it”
• Arts and literature suffered
Greece’s Golden Age
477-431 B.C.
Age of Pericles
• Pericles lead Athens for 32 years, he was
a skillful politician, inspiring speaker and
generals
Perciles’ Plan
• Three Goals
– Strengthen Athens Democracy
– Hold and Strengthen Empire
– Glorify Athens
Strengthen Democracy
• Increased number of Public officials paid a
salary
• Direct Democracy
Athenian Empire
• Created Delian League after defeat of
Persians
• Had strongest Navy in League of over 200
City-States
– Why would the Navy be important?
– Safety of Empire, access to waterways to
trade for needed food and supplies
Glorifying Athens
• Architecture and • Drama
Sculpture – Invented Drama
– Parthenon – Two types of Drama
– Classical Art • Tragedy
• Sculptures showed • Famous writers were
ideal beauty, harmony, Aeschylus (Oresteia);
order and balance Sophocles (Oedipus the
King)
• Comedy
• Famous writer was
Aristophanes
History
• Began writing the history, instead of
relying on stories or epics
Peloponnesian War
• 431 B.C. Sparta declared war on Athens
• Athens had a stronger Navy, Sparta Army
• Perciles wanted to keep battle on water
– Sparta attacked Athens over land
– Everyone moved inside city walls, plague
struck in second year of war, killed many
including Perciles
– 421 B.C. a truce was signed
Peloponnesian War
• 415 B.C. Athens sought to attack Sparta’s
ally Syracuse with 20,000 soldiers
• Were destroyed
• In 404 B.C. Athens and her allies
surrendered
Macedonia
• The Peloponnesian War several Greek
city states were weakened
– King Phillip began to gain power in
Macedonia
• Was a military genius, used the phalanx
• 338 B.C. defeated the Greeks
• Murdered in 336 B.C.
Alexander the Great
• Son of Phillip, took over when his father
was murdered
• Former student of Aristotle, became King
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