Unit 1: The Rise of Democratic Ideas World History Unit 1: The Rise of Democratic Ideas

Standards H-SS 10.1: Students relate the moral and ethical principles in ancient Greek and Roman philosophy, in Judaism, and in Christianity to the development of Western political thought. CCSS. ELA-Literacy. RH.9-10.4 Determine the meaning words and Phrases as they are used in text, including vocabulary describing political, social, or economic aspects of history/social science.

Section 1 Key Terms Monarchy Democracy Republic Judaism Christianity

Key Terms Cont… Ten Commandments Aristocracy Divine Right Parliament Magna Carta

Section 1

The rise of Greek City-States The Greeks built small, independent city-states The most important and powerful city-states were Sparta and Athens The government started as a Monarchy (a king or queen ruled) In some city-states, nobles became powerful and began to rule

Sparta 1) Strong Military 2)Training began at age 7 3)Women expected to give birth to Spartan men

In Athens the idea of Democracy, or government by the people, first took root This happened because ordinary people were resisting the power of the nobles Tyrants rose to power out of force and supported the merchant class and the poor In Athens, Cleisthenes broadened the role of individuals in government

Cleisthenes set up a Legislature, or law making body This helped move Athens towards Democracy

Comprehension Check! Underline the name of the Greek city-state where Democracy first took root?

Athens in the Age of Pericles After winning the Persian Wars, Athens became the most powerful city-state in Greece Pericles moved the Athenian government more towards democracy He believed that all male citizens, regardless of wealth or class should be part of government

Male citizens now served in the Athenian Assembly Men also served for a year on a Jury, or group of citizens who make the final judgment in a trial

Greek Philosophers Greek philosophers helped to develop western political ideas Socrates was a strong defender of Democracy His student, Plato, feared Democracy He argued that the state should control every aspect of its citizens lives

Plato’s student, Aristotle, believed in the rule of law He believed that even rulers should be subject to this law This principle lies at the heart of all modern constitutional governments

Section 2

Establishing a Republic The Romans set up a new government in 509 B.C. This new government was called a Republic which means “Thing of the People” A senate of 300 members ruled Rome The senators were all patricians, or landholding upper class

Senators made the laws Each year, the senators elected two consuls to supervise the business of government and command the armies When there was a war, the senate could choose a Dictator who would remain in power for a maximum of 6 months. The Dictator had complete control over the government during a war Most Romans were common people, or plebeians

Plebeians pushed to have the laws written down on 12 tablets They also were allowed to elect their own officials called Tribunes Tribunes could veto or block laws that were not in the best interest of the people

From Republic to Empire Roman armies expanded the republic’s power On the North coast of Africa, Romans destroyed the city-state of Carthage Roman power now extended from Spain to Egypt This expansion caused conflict such as civil war in the empire

The issue was over who should have the power: The senate or individual political leaders In 51 B.C. Julius Caesar took control of Rome

Caesar kept many features of the republic, but forced the senate to make him a Dictator Caesar’s enemies feared his power and stabbed him to death

Underline the name of the first emperor of Rome? Comprehension Check! Underline the name of the first emperor of Rome?

Caesar’s grand-nephew Octavian became the new emperor, now named Augustus Caesar During this time known as the Pax Romana, the empire brought peace, order, unity and wealth to the lands it ruled Trade flowed freely to and from distant lands in Africa and Asia Merchants would bring ivory, gold, spices, and silk to Rome

After the fall of the Western Roman empire, emperor Justinian in the eastern Byzantine empire formed the roman law code The greatest legacy of Rome was the establishment of justice based on the law

Section 3

The Ancient Israelites Most of what we know about ancient Israelites, or Jews, comes from the Torah, their most sacred text The story begins with a man named Abraham In Canaan, he founded what became the Israelite nation

Later, a famine forced many Israelites to move to Egypt where they were enslaved Moses later lead the Israelites out of Egypt

God’s Covenant with the Israelites To the Israelites, each event in their history reflected God’s plan for them They were monotheistic, which means the belief in one god Other societies at the time worshiped many gods Many other ancient peoples also invoked particular gods as special protectors

The Israelites believed that God made a covenant, or promise, with Abraham God promised to protect the Israelites and give them a homeland in exchange for obeying God’s laws The Torah set many of these laws, including the 10 commandments

The first 4 commandments stress religious duty One duty is to keep the Sabbath, a holy day for rest and worship The remaining commandments set out rules for how people should behave toward one another

Teachings on Law and Morality Prophets interpreted God’s will They warned that failure to obey God’s law would lead their people to disaster Other prophets preached codes of ethics, or standards of behavior Jews believed their leaders must also obey God’s law

Comprehension Check! Underline What the Israelites believed would happen if they disobeyed God’s laws

The Scattering of the Jews In 586 B.C. the Babylonian Captivity marked the start of the diaspora, or scattering of the Jews When the captivity ended, not all Jews returned to Canaan (later called Palestine) Jews and their culture spread through the Middle East & Europe In 63 B.C. Rome conquered Jerusalem, the capital city of Palestine

Section 4

Jesus of Nazareth During the early years of the Roman empire, Christianity emerged Their leader was a man named Jesus Almost all that we know about the life of Jesus comes from the Gospels in the New Testament

The Gospels say that Jesus traveled and taught ideas throughout Israel with 12 close followers, or Apostles Jesus’ teachings were rooted in Jewish law but in new ways He emphasized God’s love and the need for justice, morality, and service to others

Jewish leaders were worried Jesus would cause a revolt and a breakdown of Roman Power He was later arrested and crucified

Christianity Spreads After Jesus’ death, his apostles and other followers spread his teachings Paul, a Jew from Asia Minor, brought the teachings to Gentiles (non Jews) The main difference between Christianity and Judaism is Christians focus on Jesus as the Messiah, or savior

Underline Who spread Jesus’ teachings? Comprehension Check! Underline Who spread Jesus’ teachings?

Rome had a long history of tolerance, or acceptance, of different religions The emperor was not tolerant of Christians however Christians refused to make sacrifices to the emperor and would not honor the Roman Gods The Romans persecuted the Christians, but Christianity continued to spread

Comprehension Check! Underline the reason why did the Romans not accept, or tolerate, Christianity?

The Christian Church Gradually, the scattered Christian communities organized a structured church hierarchy It was made up of a clergy such as priests and bishops During the middle ages, the Christian church became the most powerful force in Europe

The Judeo-Christian Tradition In the west, the shared heritage of Jews and Christians is known as the Judeo-Christian tradition This contains moral and ethical principles in the Bible These principles are the basic ideas behind many Western beliefs… including fair treatment, or justice

Comprehension Check! Underline What was the main difference between Christianity and Judaism?

Section 5

Growth of Royal Power During the early Middle Ages, a new system of rule known as feudalism developed Lesser lords pledged loyalty to greater lords The greatest lord, the King, sat at the top of the feudal pyramid

When William the Conqueror of England became king, he built a tax collecting system Later, King Henry II reformed the legal system He had judges travel throughout England to enforce the laws The decisions made by these judges became English common law

Evolving Traditions of Government English rulers, nobles, and the church each wanted to dominate and control England From these struggles, new traditions emerged

The Magna Carta contained two important principles Citizens had certain rights Even a monarch must obey the law

Triumph of Parliament In 1625, when Charles I became king, he ruled as an absolute monarch He tried to rule without parliament or any group representing the people

The struggle between Charles and Parliament broke into civil war Parliament’s forces, lead by Oliver Cromwell, defeated the King’s troops After a trial, Charles I was executed This sent a clear signal that no English ruler was above the law

Parliament offered the crown to William and Mary of Orange, however they had to accept the English Bill of Rights

Comprehension Check! Underline the name of the document that William and Mary had to accept before they could rule England?

It also upheld the principle of habeas corpus The document stated the rights of English citizens (this ended cruel or unjust punishments) It also upheld the principle of habeas corpus No person could be jailed without being charged with a specific crime

This bill set up a government called a limited monarchy, where a constitution or legislative body limits the monarch’s power