Ancient Greece Part One
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The heart of Ancient Greece was found in the Aegean Sea between modern
Greece and Turkey.
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This civilization was heavily dependent and oriented to the sea.
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Greece has nearly 3200 km coastline.
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The mainland was marked by mountains and rugged landscape, which made
civilization difficult.
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The mountains made Greece very difficult to conquer but they also
separated the Greek communities creating independent city-states that were
often at war with one another.
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Located on the island of Crete.
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Named after king Mines.
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Information comes from the writing of Thucydides.
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Palace had 800+ rooms interconnecting.
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Toilets and baths were located in the living quarters.
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They piped water into the palace and had an advanced drainage system.
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Interior walls covered in frescoes.
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Worshipped a mother goddess who after appeared in snakes.
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Historians believe the Minoans were peaceful and were more occupied
with nature than war.
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Had two written languages.
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Natural destruction of palace
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Centers.
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Lived in small simple farming communities.
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Invaders slowed development.
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Language of Achaen became basis of Modern Greek.
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Peloponnese was the main political center, which flourished for 500
years.
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Trade and piracy was the means to gain wealth for most kings.
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Famous expedition was to attack Troy.
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Homer’s epic poems Iliad and Odyssey, together with archeological
discoveries are the bases of our knowledge.
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Mycenaean kings ruled each city.
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Agamemnon was most important.
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At the beginning of the 5th century BC, the Greek
city-states faced invasion by the powerful empire of Persia.
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The city-states were small, scattered units weakened by fighting on
another and were ill prepared to defend themselves.
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The city-states fought for many years to regain their independence.
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Athens is famous for the development of democracy, but this political
system did not develop over night.
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The development of government began with the polis or city-state.
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Each polis had its own independent form of government and protected its
individuality fiercely.
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Citizens were adult males born in the polis joined the army during
wartime.
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Women, children, foreigners and slaves had no political power.
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There was no nation state or country, Greeks were united only through
religion, language and the Olympic games.
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The city-state was ruled by a monarch who was either a ruler by birth
or an elected ruler (Athens)
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Elected rulers were assisted by a council of elders who assisted in the
daily operation of the government.
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The ruler was seen as the chief priest, judge and general but never
view as gods.
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Over time the monarchs began to loose power to the local land holding
aristocrats.
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The aristocrats profited with the new trade industry and thus had great
economic power.
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The position of archon was created when the king of Athens lost his
power.
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An archon was a land holding aristocrat who was responsible to
supervise government administrations.
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By 682BC it became the practice for a citizen assembly of landowners to
elect the archons for a term of one year.
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Colonization and the expansion of trade led to the rise of a middle
class of wealthy merchants and artisans
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A feud developed between the new middle class and the aristocrats over
trade routes and agricultural holdings
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The feud intensified as the middle class demanded greater influence in
government
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The lower class also suffered from oppression by the aristocrats and
had no political rights, they supported the middle class
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Tyrants, a power base who championed the cause of the middle class were
able to seize power by 650 BC
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Once a tyrant seized power, they often managed to keep it in their
family for two or three generations
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Most tyrants were good administrators who encouraged naval development,
promoted trade and carried out public works projects
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The current meaning of tyrant comes from the seizure of power by force
and the memories of the tyrants who were cruel and unjust
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Four men helped to bring about the transition from an aristocratic form
of government to a democracy; Draco, Solon, Pisistratus and Cleisthenes
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Developed a code of Athenian law that would apply to all citizens
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Although the code favoured the interests of wealthy merchants and
aristocrats over farmers and the poor, it offered the common people some protection
and pointed the way to universal legal rights
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Gained wealth and prestige as a merchant and was elected archon in 594
BC
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Solon grew concerned for the plight of farmers who were indebted to
wealthy landowners and often were sold into slavery
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He cancelled the debts and freed the enslaved farmers
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Solon also changed the criteria for holding political office
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All wealthy men, aristocrats or not, were now eligible for public
office
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This gave the landless a voice in the citizen assembly
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Solon increased the number of archons from three to nine, giving the
six new archons the responsibility of enforcing Athenian law
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He also set up the Council of Four Hundred, which drafted legislation
for the citizen council to vote on
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Ruled from 546 to 527 BC and seized power with the help of a mercenary
army and the support of the nobility
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Pisistratus drove many wealthy landowners out and divided their land up
among the landless
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He established a system of state loans for small farmers and encouraged
the large scale expansion of commerce
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He created thirty circuit judges who supervised the authority of local
aristocracies
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Made significant changes in the organization of the assembly
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He created a new arrangement based on ten tribes which included precincts
from different areas
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This division ensured that each tribe contained a cross section of
Athenian society, allowing for fair representation of all classes of people in
the assembly
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He gave all citizens membership in the assembly regardless of whether
or not they owned land
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This assembly passed laws, served as a supreme court and elected ten
generals to run the armed forces
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He continued to weaken the power hold of noble families by increasing
the Council to Five Hundred, and ensured that fifty members from each tribe
were chosen randomly each year by lot
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The Council of Five Hundred proposed and administered laws, organized
religious festivals, controlled state finances, public works, shipping and
foreign affairs
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Cleisthenes instituted measures to safeguard citizens from tyrants or
anyone who sought to abuse their power
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The conduct and expenditures of all officials, even the generals, were
held accountable to the assembly
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Ostracism, the practice of banishing a
citizen by popular vote without trial or formal accusation was introduced
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A vote of 6000 would have you, the mistrusted member banished into
exile for ten years
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By the 5 century BC, Direct Democracy had been established in Athens
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Every adult male over eighteen could speak and propose resolutions in
the assembly, vote directly on every piece of legislation and stand for public
office
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The assembly was the most important government institution, which
elected a number of executive officers who met to debate and decide matters of
domestic and foreign policy
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Public servants, jurors, members of the Council, military employees and
all magistrates received a small salary
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This allowed even the poorest of citizens the opportunity to take time
from work to serve in the government
Government – rule or authority over a
country, province or district
Debt – something owed to another,
liability or obligations
Archon – chief magistrate; ruler
Tyrant – uses power cruelly or
unjustly; absolute power and control
- in Ancient Greece, tyrants were more often good
and concerned for the welfare of
the common people