1. The Ancient Greeks Daily Life and Culture Major Contributions
Athens vs. Sparta
The Olympics
Hellenistic Period

2. Daily Life and Culture There was no single Greek Religion
* Each city state worshiped its own “gods”
* Prayed with their families (Sacrifices)
The Greeks:
Served as Oracles (Priests who could talk to the gods)
Most people feared their gods
Built temples to honor their gods

3. Major gods/goddesses Major gods/goddesses
Zeus- ruler of Mount Olympus (King)
Aphrodite- goddess of love and beauty
Apollo- god of sun/ truth and medicine
Ares- god of war
Artemis- goddess of the moon
Athena- goddess of wisdom/daughter of Zeus
Hermes- guide to the underworld/ son of Zeus
Poseidon- god of the sea and earthquakes
Hades- god of the underworld
Hera- goddess of women and marriage

4. Theatre Theatre grew from large festivals in honor of Dionysus
* Stories were told about the gods/goddesses
* Tragedies- stories about suffering
* Comedies- plays with a happy ending
** Plays were given at open air theatres

5. Philosophy
** Greeks placed such an importance on learning and philosophy
Socrates- philosopher (thinking process)
* Interested w/ how the mind works
* Socratic Method- questioning method
Plato- philosopher that worked w/ Socrates
* Learned from Socrates
* Wrote the Republic (book on government)
Aristotle- philosopher that worked / Plato
* Known as “The Master of them that Know”
* Developed both the Scientific Method and Hypothesis

6. Science and Math Major Contributions
Thales- first known Greek Scientist
* 1st 2 steps of Scientific Method
* Predicted eclipses
* Basic substance of matter
2. Pythagoras- sought to explain the nature of all
things using mathematics
* Pythagorean Theorem- a2+b2= c2
3. Hippocrates- founder of science and medicine
* Hippocratic oath- all DR’s today must say this

7. City States Polis- Greek city state
* Acropolis- raised area in the city
* Agora- open area used for a marketplace
Each City State had:
Its own government and laws
Between 5,000 and 10,000 citizens
Temples, government buildings in the center
** 2 of the greatest Greek City States
(ATHENS AND SPARTA)

8. Map of Athens and Sparta

9. Sparta
Quick Facts
Sparta was located in the south central region of Greece
By 500 BC it was the military leader in Greece
Aristocrats- group of nobles that ruled Sparta (2 Kings that ruled together)
* Kings had little power
* Only Aristocrats could be citizens
The Assembly- All citizens over 20 years old were
Members (could vote, discuss important matters)

10. Spartan Ways of Life Helots- were enslaved people owned by the
City States
* Spartans used them for farming
* Gave ½ their crops to the Aristocrats
Perioeci- merchants that lived in the city
* Spartans used them for business and trade
** Both the Helots and Perioeci worked while the Aristocrats trained for war

11. More Spartan Ways of Life…
Key Facts About Spartan Life:
Boys were sent to live in military camps (7)
Spartan men were to be married by 20
Spartan men could retire from military by 60
Spartan women had plenty of freedoms
Spartans believed that new ideas were weak
* Tried to avoid change
* Too dependant on slaves and military
Main goal was to be military strong
Conquered in 371 BC

12. Athens Very different philosophy about living that the Spartans
Athenian Government
Oligarchy- few people have ruling power
Constitution- set of principles or rules for governing
Democratic- favoring equality for all people

13. Athenian Citizenship 18 Years Old (Males) Became citizens
Took an Oath of Citizenship
Promised to be honorable in battle, follow the constitution and respect the gods
** Chose council members by lot (chance/random)
* Did not want to favor the rich or educated
* Believed all people were able to hold office

14. The Persian Wars
In 545 B.C. the Persian empire was spreading throughout Greece
* Asia Minor and the Aegean Islands
* Ionia was also conquered
20 Years Later- Ionia revolts and asks the Greeks for help
* Years of back and forth fighting
* Darius (King of Persia) wanted to punish the Greeks for helping the Ionians

15. Darius Responds…
Sends 600 Warships and a big army to Greece (lands in Marathon)
* Tried to sail to Athens
* Were attacked by the Athenians
* Defeated
A runner spreading the news of victory cried out “NIKE!!!!”- Greek goddess of Victory
More Naval Battles throughout Greece
The Persians were eventually defeated at the Battle of Plataea

16. The Delian League
Greece defeated the Persians but Persia still controlled Ionia
* Greece needed protected
Set up a Defensive League:
Delian League- protective group of city states joined together for defensive reasons
* Common navy, fought together
* Could not withdrawal unless other countries allowed it
* Sparta DOES NOT join the league

17. Downfall of Athens The Delian league works for a while
Athens begins to gain more and more power
Pericles was the strong leader of Athens
* Built much of the Architecture
* Art, Literature and Philosophy
Athens Downfall
The more powerful Athens became the more jealous the other city states became
Athens attacked one of Sparta’s allies (Sparta declares WAR)
Peloponnesian Wars- Athens vs. Sparta
30 Years of fighting between the two city states
Sparta wins and takes control of Athens
Athens is never the same after the war
* Plague and sickness hurt their population
* Lost ¼ of their total population (never recovered totally from the war)

18. Hellenistic Period By 338 BC Greece had a new ruler
* Philip of Macedonia
Philip of Macedonia
1. Loved Greek Culture
2. Tried to unite all the city states together
3. Eventually gained control over Greece
4. Killed in 336 BC- Son Alexander took over

19. Alexander the Great Took over Philips throne at age 20
Was taught by Aristotle
Easily crushed the Persian army
Alexander the Great- Empire
Wanted peace between the Persians, Macedonians and the Greeks
Conquered 70 cities- 16 of them he named Alexandria
Alexandria- one located at the Nile Delta
* Center of trade and learning
* Two great harbors/Museums/Libraries

20. Alexander the Great: His Death
323 BC- Alexander became ill and died
* Buried at Alexandria in Egypt
* Became a legend (Only 33 years old)
After His Death
Fights broke out about who would rule next
Most of Empire went back to original rulers
Three Generals divided the rest of Empire
1. Ruler of Macedonia
2. Ruler of Egypt
3. Ruler of Persia
** Athens and Sparta become independent city states

21. Life After Alexander the Great
Life After Alexander’s Death
1. Trade and influence grew
* Africa and Asia trading
* Currency developed (Alexander pic)
* Wheat, olive oil, pearls, spices, ivory
2. Everything became Greek in that region
** Never the same “Power” (Military)
* Were weaker after Alexander’s death
* Economy began to struggle
* Population of the city states fell (Greeks moved)
* Less people = Less power
** By 146 BC- most city states were under Roman Control