early civilizations of ancient greece ss.a.2.4.1-4; ss.b.2.4.1-3; ss.b.1.4.1-4
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Early Civilizations of Early Civilizations of Ancient GreeceAncient Greece
SS.A.2.4.1-4; SS.B.2.4.1-3; SS.A.2.4.1-4; SS.B.2.4.1-3; SS.B.1.4.1-4SS.B.1.4.1-4
The First Greek CivilizationsThe First Greek Civilizations
• Most city-states in ancient Greece were located in valleys and flat plains nestled between the peninsula’s many mountain ranges.
• Because of their relative isolation, these city-states developed independently of one another; with different cultures, traditions and ways of life.
Geography in GreeceGeography in Greece• The independence of Greek city-states often
lead to wars between them, in turn, devastating Greek society.
• The isolation, and small size of Greek city-states also cultivated an atmosphere of heavy civic involvement—almost everyone was interested in the politics of their city-state or region.
• Greece’s position on the coast, encouraged Greek exploration, and lead to Greeks colonizing areas across the Aegean, Mediterranean and Black seas.
Map of GreeceMap of Greece
The Minoan CivilizationThe Minoan Civilization
• 2800 B.C.: A Bronze Age civilization flourishes on the island of Crete (SE of the Greek mainland)—named after famous King Minos—with a capital at Knossos
• 2700-1450 B.C.: Minoan civilization flourishes and establishes a sea empire based on trade.
• Sudden collapse of Minoans around 1450, usually linked to a Mycenaean invasion.
The MycenaeansThe Mycenaeans
• 1600-1100 B.C.: Civilization named for city-state of Mycenae in southern Greece
• Indo-European people, who entered Greece from the north around 1900 B.C.
• Mycenaeans were a warrior culture, and held high ideals of heroism and honor
• Mycenaean city-states were monarchies
Mycenaean InfluenceMycenaean Influence
• Mycenaean influence spread, by way of trade, throughout the Mediterranean world
• Mycenaeans traded goods in places like Egypt, Syria, Sicily and Italy.
• Mycenaeans also conquered Crete and other islands in the Aegean Sea
• The Greek poet Homer, wrote about a war between Mycenae and Troy—a city-state in Asia Minor
The Trojan WarThe Trojan War
• King Agamemnon of Mycenae, leads a Greek force against the city-state of Troy
• The Trojan prince, Paris, took Agamemnon’s sister-in-law—Helen—back to Troy, and Greeks want her back
• Greeks sneak in to city, with a trick, and destroy Troy
• By 1100 B.C. Mycenae is conquered by other Greeks from the north
The Trojan HorseThe Trojan Horse
The Greek Dark AgeThe Greek Dark Age
• 1100-750 B.C.: Greece suffers from loss of population and declining agriculture
• Many Mycenaean Greeks left Greece for Ionian Greece, coastal regions of Asia Minor (today’s Turkey)
• Iron weapons replace Bronze weapons as war between remaining cities increases
• Adaptation of the Phoenician alphabet
From the Dark, Into the LightFrom the Dark, Into the Light• Two other groups of Greeks begin to
establish city-states in different regions of the Greek mainland:– Aeolian Greeks: settle in northern and central
Greece; including Athens– Dorian Greeks: settle on the island of Crete,
other Aegean islands and the Peloponnese; including Sparta
• The poetry of Homer also dates to the end of the Dark Age
The Poetry of HomerThe Poetry of Homer
• Epic Poems: long poems telling of deeds of a great hero– Homer’s two famous epics: the Iliad (tells the
story of the Trojan War) and the Odyssey (tells of Odysseus’ voyage home from war)
• Arete: the ideals of courage and honor, taught as something all young Greek men should strive for.
HomerHomer
Home LearningHome Learning
• Write three (3) paragraphs on how geography affected the development of Greek city-states, politics and culture.