World history

• The Aegean Sea, located between Asia Minor and the Greek peninsula, is considered the cradle of Western civilization, where ideas that influenced politics, art, and thought originated
• Early civilizations like the Minoan and Mycenaean civilizations thrived in this region, with the Minoans dominating the Aegean Sea around 1700 B.C.
• Minoan civilization


  An early civilization that grew up on the island of Crete, reaching its height between 1700 B.C. and 1450 B.C.
• Minoan civilization


  • People on Crete were working with bronze and gold and developing a system of writing
  • Built magnificent palaces that housed royal families, priests, and government officials
  • Began to decline about 1450 B.C., soon afterward Greeks from the mainland invaded Crete
• Mycenaean civilization


  The civilization of Greek-speaking Indo-European tribes who had moved into the mountainous Greek peninsula about 1900 B.C.
• Mycenaean civilization

  • Warrior-kings ruled walled cities built around their palaces
  • Borrowed much from the Minoan civilization
  • Took over the Minoans' sea trade, sending their ships to Egypt, Phoenicia, Sicily, and southern Italy
  • Rival Mycenaean kingdoms were often at war with one another
• About 1300 B.C., the ruler of Mycenae may have brought several kingdoms together in an empire that controlled the Aegean region
• Frequent warfare among the kingdoms caused a decline in Mycenaean civilization after 1200 B.C.
• With the collapse of Mycenaean civilization (about 1100 B.C.), Greece entered a dark age that lasted until about 800 B.C.
• During the early part of the dark age, a tribe of Greeks called Dorians moved into the southern part of the peninsula
• The Dorians spoke Greek, but they were illiterate, and the art of writing was forgotten
• By about 800 B.C., the great age of Greek civilization, known as the Hellenic Age, began to take shape
• Hellenic Greeks


  • Inherited skills such as pottery making and metalworking from their Mycenaean ancestors
  • Followed some of the same religious practices and told many of the same myths and legends
  • Became fishermen and traders, shipping wool, wine, olive oil, marble, and pottery all over the Mediterranean
  • Adopted the Phoenician alphabet for writing their own language
  • Learned the Lydian practice of using coins and gained knowledge of geometry from the Egyptians
• Minoan art


  • Wall paintings, octopus vase, gold and silver inlay work on daggers
• Greek religion

  • Believed in many gods who lived on Mount Olympus and experienced joy and sorrow like human beings
  • Myths showed the gods living the way wealthy Greeks lived and taking part in the everyday lives of the Greek people
• Important Greek gods


  • Zeus
  • Hera
  • Poseidon
  • Ares
  • Apollo
  • Athena
  • Aphrodite
  • Demeter
  • Hades
• The Greeks built temples to the gods and honored them with many festivals
• The most famous athletic games were held every four years at Olympia to honor Zeus
• Homer


  A blind poet who lived in Asia Minor and wrote the epics Iliad and Odyssey, which helped shape Greek outlook and character
• The Iliad tells the story of the Trojan War, a struggle between the Mycenaean Greeks and warriors from the city of Troy in Asia Minor
• The Odyssey describes the adventures of the hero Odysseus on his way home to Greece after the Trojan War
• Between about 800 B.C. and 750 B.C., the Greeks began to establish colonies - settlements in other lands
• The settlers carried Greek traditions and ways of living to their new homes, spreading Hellenic culture to many areas of the Mediterranean world
• The transition from the dark age to the Hellenic Age marked a significant period of cultural and intellectual growth, where Greek city-states flourished, engaging in trade, agriculture, and the arts
• The rich tapestry of Greek mythology, with its pantheon of gods and epic tales, provided a unique insight into the values and beliefs of the ancient Greeks
• The establishment of colonies further spread Hellenic culture, extending Greek influence across the Mediterranean world
• During the Hellenic period, independent city-states developed in Greece, growing out of earlier villages built in the rugged mountains and on scattered islands
• City-states (polis)


  • Erected forts on hills or mountaintops to protect against frequent wars
  • Typically comprised around 5,000 male citizens
  • Sparta covered about 3,200 square miles, Athens had approximately 35,000 male citizens in the fifth century B.C.
  • Served as the hub of community life, featuring open marketplaces for business and political discussions, often accompanied by shrines or temples on hilltops
  • Each polis valued independence, self-sufficiency, and its unique way of life
• Sparta


  A city-state founded by Dorians in the Peloponnesus, which expanded its influence by subjugating neighboring regions and employing helots (agricultural laborers) who greatly outnumbered Spartans
• Sparta


  • Established a robust military-centric government to counter the constant threat of helot uprisings
  • Meticulously planned upbringing with rigorous military training beginning at age seven and lasting until the attainment of full citizenship at thirty
  • Women also underwent physical conditioning, and while marriage was encouraged, family took a backseat to the state
  • Spartan men devoted their time to military pursuits, even during leisure hours, and continued to serve the polis beyond retirement
• Athens


  Became the commercial and cultural center of Greece, where the Athenians came to look upon themselves as the teachers of all Greece
• Athens

  • Athenians valued the development of many abilities, believing that a man's life was empty if he failed to use his mind and develop all his talents
  • Athenian women were educated only in the skills needed to run a household
• Democracy


  A system of government where free citizens govern themselves, pioneered by the Greeks, initially starting with a monarchy and later transitioning to rule by wealthy landowners called nobles, who appointed archons to govern the city-state
• As the archons tended to favor the elite, discontent grew among merchants, artisans, and farmers, leading to protests against the oligarchy
• Greeks


  • Proud of their political freedom
  • Boasted of their artists, playwrights, poets, and thinkers
  • Believed a man's life was empty if he failed to use his mind and develop all his talents
• Athenian women were educated only in the skills needed to run a household
• Monarchy


  System where kings were revered as gods or divine representatives
• Democracy


  Rule by the people
• Evolution of government in Athens

  1. Monarchy

  2. Rule by wealthy landowners called nobles

  3. Archons appointed to govern the city-state
• Archons tended to favor the elite, leading to discontent among merchants, artisans, and farmers