Geography: Where is Greece Located: Surrounded by Mediterranean, Aegean, and Ionian seas Became skilled sailors Used seas to travel and connect with other people Adopted the Phoenician Alphabet Aegean Sea Ionian Sea Mediterranean Sea

Geography: Impact Rugged mountains, valleys, and small islands made travel and communication difficult Difficult to grow crops (small population) Unable to build a large empire Led to many small city-states (polis)

Rise of the City-States (Polis) Ancient Greece was divided into roughly 500 independent City States or “Poleis” Each polis was self-contained, self-sufficient economic and social unit Separate customs, dialects, and religious practices Naturally competitive with each other Only unique circumstances would lead to long-term cooperation

City-States Design Divided into two parts Acropolis (fortified hill top) Government buildings Marble temples and statues Flat Ground (walled in main city) Markets Theaters Public areas Homes

http://www.history.com/topics/ancient-history/ancient-greece

Types of Governments Monarchy Ruled by a monarch (King) Hereditary Claimed Divine Right Monarchs only answer to GOD

Aristocracy Ruled by small group of nobles (land owning families ) Authority comes from wealth

Oligarchy Ruled by small groups of powerful wealthy people Often from the merchant class Authority comes from control of the military

Greek Democracy Roots of representative government Ruled by the citizens Citizens have the right to vote Majority rules Limited-Direct Democracy Limited to male citizens Voted Directly on issues

Athens Builds a Limited Democracy Citizens participated directly in political decision making How did they get there? Draco, 621 B.C. developed legal code based on the idea that rich and poor were equal, harsh punishments for criminals Solon, 594 B.C. no citizens should own other citizens, 4 distinct social classes based on wealth , citizen could bring chargers against wrongdoers Cleisthenes, 500 B.C. broke power of nobility, ten groups based on where you live vs. wealth, Council of Five Hundred, citizens could submit laws for consideration Allowed citizens to participate in a limited democracy Only free adult male property owners in Athens could participate