1. Chapter 5 Notes
Ancient Greece

2. 5.4-Alexander the Great The Rise of Macedonia
Alexander the Great-Alexander formed a huge empire that stretched from Egypt to India, spreading Greek culture to these areas
The Rise of Macedonia
Many people considered Macedonians backwards
King Philip reorganized the army and made it more effective
Most Greek city-states did not realize the threat Philip posed
Following the Peloponnesian War the Macedonians, under the rule of Philip II seized control of the old Athenian Empire and all other city-states other than Sparta
King Phillip was assassinated allowing Alexander to take the throne and continue building an empire- 336BC

3. 5.4-Alexander the Great Alexander’s Conquest
Alexander was trained from birth to be a ruler, learning warfare and politics from his mother and father and the philosopher Aristotle
Alexander became king at 20
When Alexander became king revolts broke out – Alexander dealt swiftly and harshly with rebellions which solidified his control
Thebes rebelled and Alexander crushed their army, sold the people into slavery and burned the city
In 334 BCE Alexander quickly led his armies against Persia and quickly conquered them.
He then led his army Egypt and Phoenicia (both had been ruled by Persia) They celebrated him as liberator and named him the new Pharaoh
He then went deeper into Persia’s empire by now Iraq and defeated the Persian Army and made the Persian Emperor Darius III flee and his men killed him
Alexander the Great burnt the Persian capital as a sign of their victory

4. 5.4-Alexander the Great
Following the defeat of the Persian empire Alexander led his armies deeper into Asia
He led his army into the Indus intending on conquering India, determined to grow his empire
Alexander’s soldiers war-weariness and home-sick inhibited his ability to continue expanding and he was forced to turn west and go back home– despite this event Alexander’s empire was the largest empire ever seen.
He did not rule the empire very long. While in Babylon he grew sick and died days later in 323 BCE. He was only 33 years old.
He had no heir and did not name one
His military generals began fighting for power – this led to the empire being divided into three kingdoms
Antigonus- King of Macedonia and Greece
Seleucus- King of the Persian Empire
Ptolemy- King of Egypt

5. Knowledge Checkpoint How old was Alexander when he began his reign?
What cause Rebellion in Greece?
Why do you think The Egyptians viewed Alexander the Great as a liberator?
Why do you think Alexander The Great not name an heir?

6. 5.4- The Hellenistic World
Blending Cultures
During his conquests Alexander ruled over many different people with different cultures
The blending of Greek culture with cultures from Egypt, Persia, and Asia led to a new culture called Hellenistic (Greek-like)
Alexander purposefully blended cultures
He married two Persian Princesses and encouraged others to marry Persians
He had leaders from many different cultures
He built great cities throughout the empire (most named Alexandria) and encouraged Greeks to move there
Alexandria, Egypt was one of the most famous and a hub for trade
Trade help bring in money and develop the cities throughout the empire (esp. Alexandria Egypt)
Many of these cities became centers of culture and trade – trade included goods as well as ideas
Traders from the empire went to Africa, Arabia, and India.
They carried and spread the ideas of Judaism which influenced societies throughout the hellenistic world

7. 5.4- The Hellenistic World
Life in the Hellenistic world
saw many drastic changes
There was a change in how people were governed – the city-states was replaced by the kingdom
Democracy had changed to monarchies
Women had few rights in ancient Greece, but during the Hellenistic age they could be educated and own property, however, they still weren’t considered equals to men.

8. 5.4- The Hellenistic Achievement
Exchanges of ideas led to advancements in philosophy, literature, and science
Philosophy – 3 new schools of thought
Cynicism – reject pleasure, wealth, social responsibility
Live according to nature
Gave away all possessions
Begged for food
Epicurean – seek pleasure (good) – avoid pain (evil)
Develop close relationships who shared similar ideas
Stoicism – emphasis on reason, self-discipline, emotional control
Identify their proper role in society and strive to fulfill it

9. 5.4- The Hellenistic Achievement
Art and literature
Women became more common subjects of art and literature
Still depicted movement and emotion through sculpture
Love stories were popularized
Focus on common events in people’s everyday lives
Science and Technology
Major advancements in science and technology
Euclid (Yoo-kluhd) – lived in Egypt and developed methods of geometry that we still use today
Eratosthenes (er-uh-thas-thuh-neez) – calculating size of world – very close
Other scientist developed movements of the stars and studied the human anatomy
Archimedes – inventor – devices made life easier – levers/pulleys, mechanical screw
Used his levers and pulley to pull a ship clear out of the water

10. Knowledge Checkpoint
Why might women have appreciated changes in Hellenistic world?
What new type of literature genre became popular in the Hellenistic period?
What was the source of significant change in the Hellenistic society?
Which ancient scholar contributed basic ideas of geometry?
Why was Archimedes the most significant person in scientific and technological advancement in the Hellenistic period?