Greek

Civilization
Besides Asia and Africa, Europe, particularly Greece, also
became the cradle of civilization. Ancient Greece
was located in the Balkan Peninsula, in southern
Europe. Unlike Asia and Africa, where civilizations
developed in river-valleys, Greeks civilization
developed along the seacoast.
1. Compare and contrast the Greek city-states of Sparta and Athens. In what ways do they represent
the essential duality of Greek Civilization?
2. What was the polis and how significant was it?
3. What were the major schools of philosophy during the Hellenistic period?
4. What were the foundations of Greek art during the Golden age?
5. Who was Homer and why are his works so important?
6. what is the meaning behind “the face that launched a thousand ships” and what happened behind
that history?
Map of Greece
GEOGRAPHY AND LIFE IN ANCIENT GREECE

Only a fourth of its land

was arable. The climate,
however, was suitable for
cultivating crops such as
olives and grapes. It was
also for this climate that
most of the social
activities of the Greeks
were done outside their
homes and edifices.
 Ancient Greek
Civilization
The history of Greek
civilization began
at the island of
Crete around 2600
B.C.E
 1. What are the important
facts during that
Let’s have an activity! Civilization?
Group 1 – Minoans 2. What was the discoveries
Group 2 – Mycenaeans of this civilization?
Group 3 – Dark age 3. What was the way of life of
Group 4 – Hellenic period the Greeks during this
period?
4. What was the reason of
the fall of the civilization?
The Minoans
 About the Topic

The Minoans The name of the first

civilization in Greece was derived
from Minos, the mythic king of the
Minoan Kingdom. The capital of this
ancient kingdom was Knossos. It was
here that an English archaeologist
named Arthur Evans found remnants
of a palace. The palace ruins mirrors
the lavish lifestyle and progressive
culture of the Minoans.
The palace was constructed with smooth
stones. Wood and copper were also
used. It had a labyrinth or network of
passageways, 800 rooms, and
excellent indoor plumbing and
toilets. It also had a drainage system
in the basement and walls adorned
with frescoes. The frescoes showed
the Minoans' love for festivities and
competitions like bull-leaping. The
Minoans also traded overseas and
worshipped forces of nature.

The Minoan civilization reached its peak

around 1400 to 1230 B.C.E. However,
after 200 years, it collapsed; probably
because of a disaster, such as a
volcanic eruption and strong waves,
or foreign attacks.
The Mycenaeans

Around 1900 B.C.E. when the

Mycenaeans began to travel
from central Asia to Europe.
The Mycenaeans belonged
to the Indo-European race.
The Mycenaeans went to the
Balkan Peninsula until they
permanently settled in
Peloponnesus, a peninsula
in the southern part of
Greece
 The Mycenaeans
The Mycenaeans became powerful from
1400 to 1200 BC They were warriors and
were ruled by a warrior king. Their city
fortified by high walls which were 15
meters high, as a defense against
invaders. The Mycenaeans gained
territories through invasions a
conquest. They later conquered Crete.
The Mycenaeans learned the
importance of trade from the Minoans
They also preserved some of the
Minoan culture such as their writing
system and designs in sculpture.
Trojan War
 Trojan War
According to the legendary account by Homer, the Trojan War began
with Helen's abduction by Paris, prince of Troy. Helen was the wife of King
Menelaus of Sparta, brother of King Agamemnon of Mycenae who led the
Greek army against Troy. To penetrate the city of Troy, a big wooden
horse was made to hide the invading Greek soldiers. The statue was sent
to Troy. When night fell, the Greeks successfully defeated and killed the
Trojans who were tired and drunk from the day's festivities.
In 1870, a German archaeologist named Heinrich Schliemann discovered
the ruins of a city that had existed during this period. The discovery
proved that the Trojan War was based on true events.
Manfred Korfmann, a German historian, believed that the desire to seize
control of Hellespont (present-day Dardanelles) from the trading city of
Troy started the Trojan War in 1250 B.C.E. The Mycenaeans won the war.
 The Dark Age
Around 1100 B.C.E., the Mycenaean
civilization completely collapsed when it
was invaded by foreign seafarers. The
succeeding 300 years of Greek history is
known as the Dark Age.
During this period, the Dorians
migrated to Greece. They are believed
to be distant relatives of the Greeks.
Meanwhile, there were Greeks who went
to Ionia and other nearby regions in
Asia Minor.
 The Dark Age
Greece was engulfed in chaos and
violence. Trade and livelihood
collapsed. Cultural development also
stagnated. Skills such as writing, and
sculpture were also neglected.

The Dark Age ended when the Ionian

Greeks reintroduced Greek culture in
750 B.C.E. This marked the beginning of
the Hellenic Period.
A picture Is Worth a
Thousand Words
 Hellenic Period
The Hellenic Period occurred from
around 800 to 338 B.C.E. The ancient
Greeks called themselves "Hellenes,"
which was derived from the name
Helen, who was believed to be the
ancestor of the ancient Greeks.
 The Polis
This period witnessed the growth of
Greek communities brought by a
flourishing trade. This paved the way to
the formation of towns.
A polis (plural: poleis) was the typical
structure of a community in the ancient
Greek world. A polis consisted of an
urban centre, often fortified and with a
sacred centre built on a natural
acropolis or harbour, which controlled a
surrounding territory (chora) of land.
 Governance and
Defense
Only men of a certain age comprised the
citizenry. They were obliged to protect
the polis. Artisans, landowners, and
traders served as soldiers, called
hoplites, in the Greek army.
 Governance and
Defense
A military formation of the hoplites,
known as the phalanx, was feared by
their enemies.

The phalanx is a rectangular formation

wherein hoplites stood together as they
held their weapon on one hand and their
shield on the other.

The most well-known and progressive

polis were Sparta and Athens.
 Sparta, Military
state
Sparta, a Military State Sparta was a
military state in the southern part of
Peloponnesus. The Spartans
strengthened their military force to
prevent rebellions from helots who were
bigger in number. The helots were
Messenians, a group of people who were
conquered by the Spartans in their
quest to expand their territory.
The male Spartans served as warriors.
The women were commonly athletes.
Their duty was to give birth to healthy
babies.
 Sparta
The Spartans were ruled by a military
king. They had an ephor – magistrate
(judge who administer the laws) who took
charge of education and public welfare;
a council of elders who were advisers to
the king; and an assembly which voted
for government decisions.
 Athens, a
democratic State
In Attica, in northeast Peloponnesus, a
polis distinctive from Sparta also
emerged. This was Athens.
Athens became an absolute democratic
state. Its citizens wanted to live in
freedom and to generate new ideas. The
reforms proposed by Athenians as listed
in
Table 5.1 brought the development of
democracy as a political system in
Athens.
 Athens, a
democratic State
The men of Athens were groomed to
become good leaders through formal
education. They read the Iliad and the
Odyssey, and studied rhetoric, oration,
mathematics, and other disciplines.
Women, on the other hand, were not
given formal education and were only
trained to perform household activities.
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