history of ancient greece
TRANSCRIPT
HISTORY OF ANCIENT GREECE
Peter Erik HansenMay 2016
MAJOR PERIODS• 3650 – 1100 BC Early Civilizations• 1100 – 750 BC Greek Dark Ages• 750 – 500 BC Archaic Greece• 500 – 338 BC Classical Greece• 338 – 146 BC Hellenistic Greece
Early Civilizations3650 – 1100 BC
CYCLADIC CIVILIZATION• Cycladic Civilization on Delos, Naxos and
Paros built houses and temples of finished stone.• Marble sculptures are characteristic from
this period.
Ca. 3200-1100 BC
Marble seated harp player2800-2700 BC
MINOAN CIVILIZATION• Minoan Civilization was named
after King Minos, and developed a writing system and became the dominant sea power in the region.• It was possible destroyed by a
volcano eruption at Thera in 1450 BC.
ca. 2000-1450 BC
Knossos Palace, Creteca. 1900 BC
MYCENAEAN GREECE• Mycenaean Civilization originated from
Mycenae in Peloponnese and extended through Crete and the Cycladic Islands.• They build large palace complexes and
art of fresco, pottery and jewellery.
1900-1100 BC
Terracotta chariot kraterca. 1375-1350 BC
Greek Dark Ages1100 – 750 BC
GREEK DARK AGES• The Greek Dark Ages is so named because of the absence of
written documentation.• The collapse of the Mycaneans yielded little cultural progress or
growth.
1100-800 BC
Archaic Greece700 – 500 BC
THE OLYMPIC GAMES• The Olympic Games was one of four major
panhellenic games, and first celebrated in 776 BC in Olympia in honour of the god Zeus.• The sports included running, wrestling,
boxing, pankration, equestrian and pentathlon, and there could only be one winner.• A crown of olive branches was awarded to
the winner, who became the hero of his hometown.
776 BC
Ancient Olympic Games
Olive branch
HOMER• Homer composed two major works, ‘the
Iliad’ and ‘the Odyssey’ about the time of the Trojan War.• His works acts as a great pool of information
for the Greeks about their gods, and has a great influence on Greek culture.
ca. 750 BC
Homer
DEMOCRACY IN ATHENS• Laws by Draco (622/621 BC) was the
first written-down laws in Athens.• Solon (ca. 594 BC) gave a lower
classes a fairer chance, and democracy began to develop.• Cleisthenes (508/507 BC) introduced
isonomia (equal laws) in Athens, and is called the father of democracy.• Democracy in Athens allowed all
male citizens over 20 a voice in government.
622-508 BC
Democracy in Athens
Classical Greece500 – 323 BC
PERSIAN WARS• The Greek colonization of Asia Minor
prompted the Persian Empire to invade Greece, but failed at the ‘Battle of Marathon’ in 490 BC, and finally lost at Plataea in 379 BC.• The wars meant the sacking of the
Athenian Acropolis and Agora.
490-379 BC
Battle of Marathon490 BC
ATHENS• The victory over the Persians gave peace
and prosperity to Athens providing the city to flourish.• Athens was with its powerful navy able
to demand tribute from other city states and formed a defensive alliance, the Delian League (477 BC).• Under Pericles the Athenian Empire
dictated the laws, customs and trade of all neighbours in Attica and the islands of the Aegean.• Great thinkers, writers and artists
flourished the city.
Athens city-state
Pericles
SPARTA• Sparta was famous for its military prowess
with the best most feared fighters in Greece.• Sparta doubted Athenian sincerity and
formed the Peloponnesian League (ca-. 505-365 BC), and preceived Athens as a bully and tyrant, while Athens viewed Sparta with growing distrust.• Rivalry with Athens at the Peloponnesian
Wars (431-404 BC) and Corinth at the Corinthian Wars (396-387 BC).• Sparta joined the Achaean Confederacy
(195 BC) and came under Roman rule.
Sparta city-state
GREEK ARCHITECTURE• The Greeks build Doric and Ionic temples
like the Parthenon in Athens (447-432 BC) and the Temple of Zeus at Olympia (472-456 BC). • The temples housed statues of Greek gods
and was symbolic buildings to be admired from far afar.• The Greek theatre was used for
presentation of plays and hosted poetry recitals and musical competitions.• Famous stadiums were built at Olympia
and Nemea holding up to 45,000 spectators.
GREEK THINKERS• Socrates (469-399 BC) is considered the father of
western philosophy. Known for creating the ‘Socratic method’, which is based on asking questions to stimulate critical thinking.
• Plato (428-348 BC) was a student of Socrates, and founder of the ‘Academy of Athens’, traditionally considered as the first university of the western world.
• Aristotle (384-322 BC) pioneered systematic, scientific examination in many areas including biology, politics, metaphysics, litterature, botany and etnics.
PELOPONNESIAN WARS• Athens and Sparta and their respective
allies were the two major powers in Greece.• Athens encourage an arrogance that was
intolerable to its neighbours provoking the Peloponnesian Wars between Athens and Sparta (460-446 BC and 431-404 BC). • Athens was defeated by Sparta, and its
empire and wealth was gone, but Sparta was dragged into conflicts against Thebes at the Corinthian Wars (396-387 BC) and ended bankrupt.
434-404 BC
Peloponnesian War
Hellenistic Greece338 – 146 BC
ALEXANDER THE GREAT• The fall of Athens and Sparta was filled by Philip
II of Macedon who beats the Athenian forces at the Battle of Chaeronea (338 BC), and Athens came under Macedonian rule.• His son Alexander took over after his death (336
BC), and as Alexander the Great he conquered Persia, Egypt, Asia Minor and India (336-323 BC) and spread the ideals of Greek civilization through his conquests.
338-323 BC
Alexander the Great
ROMANS CONQUER GREECE• After the death of Alexander the Great
his empire was divided between four of his generals.• The Roman Republic became interested
in Greece, and defeated Macedon at the Battle of Pydna (168 BC).• Greece became a Protectorate of Rome
(146 BC), and part of the Roman Empire.
168-146 BC
Roman Empire