Ancient Greece & Greek Mythology Notes by GRAPES

Geography
1. Mountains isolated many of the inland Greek communities.
2. Ancient Greece included many islands and a mainland peninsula.
3. The Greeks began creating new colonies around the Aegean Sea to provide
more food for Greece.
4. Alexander's empire extended all the way to the Indus River in the east.
5. After the death of Alexander the Great, the Greek empire was divided up into
separate kingdoms.

Religion
1. Many Greeks visited an oracle to find out about the future.
2. Most city-states chose a god as their protector and celebrated them in public
festivals.
3. The Olympians beat the Titans in the Titanomachy and ruled Greece from Mt.
Olympus.
4. Many Greek myths still penetrate our language and literature today.
5. The purpose of Greek myths was to explain the natural world and teach moral
lessons.
6. Zeus is the king of the Olympian gods.
7. Apollo is Zeus' son.
8. Prometheus is the Titan god who gave mankind fire.
9. Dionysus is the god of wine.
10. Aphrodite is the goddess of love and beauty.

Achievements
1. The Greek alphabet was based on the Phoenician alphabet.
2. Aristotle's writings had a large effect on the U.S. Constitution.
3. Socrates was sentenced to death for his teachings.
4. Plato thought governments should be headed by philosopher kings.
5. The columns of the White House show the influence ancient Greek architecture
had.
6. Alexander the Great's conquests led to the spread of Greek culture throughout
Southwest Asia and Egypt.
7. Hellenistic sculptors were different from Greece's Golden Age sculptors because
Hellenistic sculptors showed people realistically.
Politics
1. Macedonia gained power in the ancient world during the reign of King Philip II.
2. Even though King Cyrus of Persia had many conquests, he never controlled
Athens.
3. In most city-states, land-owning men were considered Greek citizens.
4. Sparta had an oligarchy as their form of government.
5. In the democracy of Athens, all citizens could debate and vote on laws.
6. Aristotle's ideas influenced the U.S. government because no one person or group
has too much power.
7. The Greeks tried to stop Rome from gaining control of Greece's mainland by
supporting Rome’s enemies in wars.

Economics
1. Colonies were first established in Greece around 700 B.C.E. to supply food.
2. Trade was a major factor in the growth and success of the Greek civilization and
empire.
3. The Peloponnesian War left the Greek city-states weak and unable to defend
themselves.

Social Structure
1. Spartan boys began military training at age 7.
2. Spartan women had more rights than women in other civilizations at the time.
3. Athenian girls were educated at home.
4. Athenian boys were educated at schools, with academics in the morning and
athletics in the afternoon. The Greeks believed in training both the body and
mind.