Early people of the Aegean

• The Greeks were a polytheistic society
• The Gods explained the world in human reaction
• They believed in having a God called the unknown God.
• Homer was the writer of the Trojan War
• They had a direct democracy were everybody gets to vote. Indirect means that only a representative gets to vote.
• The concept of the Olympics started in Ancient Greece

            Victory and defeat in the Greek world

• 490 BC- Persians attack the Athenians
• 461-Pericles, father of the democracy
• Peloponnesian war- 431 BC
• 490 BC- Persians attack Athens
• Greeks eventually defeat the Persians (Bloody battles) Defeated them with battery bands
• The Athenian army was the best army in the world.
• The Persians are the people from Iran
• 461 BC- the Athenians are going to enjoy the golden age. Under Pericles democracy flourishes.
• Women had no rights in this culture. No land rights whatsoever. This democracy was participated by men.
• Pericles points out that in a direct democracy, people have special responsibilities.  In a direct democracy you vote everyday.
• Athens prospered with pericles.
• Many thinkers and writers participated in the culture.
• Sparta resents the Athenians. Sparta is the antithesis of Athens. The Sparta’s are everything the Athenians aren’t.
• The Spartans are a militaristic police state. When women have a child, your son is taken away at 5 years old and taught to be a killer. The Spartans believed that democracy is weak.
• The Athenians believed in thought and dialogue
• Oligarchy in Sparta- where a few people rule the nation.
• Peloponnesian war- 431 BC (27 year bloody battle)
• Winning the war weakens Sparta.
• Sparta fell to the Thebes (Greek city state)
• Athenians Democracy declines

Ancient Greece

·        Pericles- The wisest leaders in history of Greece

·        He got elected year after year because he understood what Athens needed

·        He had three goals- Strengthen democracy- Build empire-Glorify Athens. He strengthened the navy and made Athens a beautiful place.

·        Hellenism- where you take Egyptian people who marry Greek people. They take the two cultures and mix them together. This is where you get Alexandria.

·        Art in Athens- put on plays; Greeks could care less about entertainment. They wanted the plays to be educational. Citizens went to these plays. They were excited to get info.  So they could make smart decisions

·        Athens in the Golden Age- Shop owners and artisans (skilled craftsmen). There were about 100,000 slaves. In this culture they didn’t view slavery as we do. Slaves accept their position. High percentages of these slaves were Caucasian. They would work side by side with free men. Slavery was accepted.

·        Women had very few legal rights.

·        Sparta defeats Athens- they lost because they got wiped out by a plague (1/3 of population) The Spartans were just better fighters. The Spartans were good at the land wars. Spartans didn’t have freedom.

·        Peloponnesian War- Battle between Sparta and Athens

·        Athenian Persian Wars- Athens and Persians

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