Ancient Greece Geography Athens vs. Sparta The Persian War

TIMELINE 2000 BC - Crete – Minoans rule 1600 BC – Greece – Mycenaean Kings rule 1450 BC – Crete – Mycenaeans invade Crete 1400 BC – Crete – Minoans disappear 1200 BC – Anatolia – Trojan War Dorian Age

Review of Geography Part of the Balkan Peninsula Greece is mountainous Development of independent city-states The soil is rocky and therefore unfertile Seas were important for communication but also for trade

Review of Geography Because so little farmland and freshwater Never able to support a large population Diet based on staple crops such as grains, grapes, and olives Desire for additional resources and adequate farmland probably the motivation to establish colonies

Review of the City-State Polis – Greek version of the city-state Divided into two levels Acropolis – located on the hilltop Agora – located on the flatter land, the walled city, the marketplace, and public buildings

The Two Main Greek Powers Athens and Sparta

Athens Eventually create a limited democracy Only free adult males counted as citizens Foreigners gain citizenship Women had no say in public life (imperfect) Council of 500 Prepared laws and supervised work of the government

Athens (cont’d) Education Boys attended school if families could afford it Studied to become skilled public speakers (orator) Also studied music and poetry, received military training Girls received little or no formal education Stronger navy than army

Sparta Government Ruled by a pair of kings Advised by a council of elders Assembly – consisted of all male citizens over 30 Citizenship – male, native-born Spartan, over 30 Approved major decisions Ephors – five selected overseers Held the real power and ran day-to-day affairs

Sparta (cont’d) Women Treated and fed like boys. Trained in various sports Married at age 19 More personal freedoms than women of other city-states, but no political rights Important Role – producing strong men for military

Sparta (cont’d) The Training of Soldiers Examined at birth Age 7 – boys taken for military training Age 20 – men become soldiers, get married Age 30 – men become citizens and part of assembly Age 60 – men could retire from military Obviously men were groomed to be strong soldiers throughout their lives

Sparta (cont’d) Story of Example About a young boy in military training who followed the Spartan code of conduct. The boy had captured a fox which he intended to eat but shortly after catching it he noticed soldiers coming and hid the fox in his shirt. He was confronted by the soldiers and as they spoke to the boy the fox began to chew on his stomach. Instead of confessing, he allowed the fox to continue to chew on his side without expressing any sign of pain. Eventually, the boy collapsed and the soldiers discovered the fox inside his shirt. The boy had allowed the fox to eat his side which resulted in his death.

Persian Wars

The Persian Wars Conflict began in Ionian Greece in Anatolia These self-governed Greek city-states which were under Persian rule would rebel Ask for aid from the Greek mainland, Athens comes to their aid Persians are slow to mobilize but finally arrive. Rebellion ended quickly by naval battle

Persian War (cont’d) Aristagoras is killed and the city-state of Miletus is destroyed. Persian emperor Darius (Father of Xerxes) vows to punish Athens for its involvement