P.96-97 = Pericles speech before Peloponnesian war.

Hellenistic Age

Things go back to the way they were. Sparta tries to translate its victory into hegemony (exercise of control over other countries). It fails in part due to the limitations of Spartan society. Thebes also tries to do it, but the bottom line is no one succeeds. Greece fragments into independent city states. This makes Greece vulnerable to outside aggression. In the 4^th century, the Persian Empire was almost disintegrating because of lack of common identity. Greeks didn’t regard Macedonians as Greeks; they were Barbaros (foreigner). People in Macedonia had over the period of centuries grown to be like the Greeks through acculturation. Except, it was organized as a kingdom rather than city states. Potential to command more troops than any city states. King is Philp of Macedon from 359-336. Philp grew up knowing fighting. He was a hoplite. He knew how Greeks fought and trained, knew the battle strategy, and knew how much the Greeks hated each other. His agents do everything they can to boil the rumors and divide Greece. He also revolutionized the Macedonian Army and trains it as a Greek army. So, by 338, Philip can conquer the city states in small groups. Battle of Chaeronea was last of them in 338. Philip is like Julius Caesar, wanted to keep going. He probably wanted to do what his son had in mind. Right next door was the Persian Empire. In 336, his own army officer assassinated him. In 336, Alexander becomes the heir. Becomes heir at about 20. At time was studying philosophy under Aristotle. Alexander proved to be of great military ability. Rallies army, defeats city states, and demolishes the city of Thebes in uprisings. Then calls upon Greeks to destroy Persians. Understands military tactics and politics, so he defeats Persia. Promises liberation to Greeks and Egyptians and they buy it and help against the Persians which helps him demolish the empire. Troops mutiny in 327 “we have fought for 7 years; it is time to go home.” Marries daughter of previous Persian king and encourages soldiers to marry local women in an attempt to merge the upper classes. Dies at age 33 of some disease. Leaves behind his pregnant wife. So, the empire breaks into three chunks. The Seleucids (Mesopotamia and Persia) the Ptolemy (Egypt) and the Antigonids (Macedonia and most of Asia Minor). Greek City states return to the way they were.

Alexander the Great

Why so great? Historians have decided that he deserves title. He had a permanent impact of history. He created a new phase of civilization know as Hellenistic or Greek-like. People continue to speak Greek. Greek is a principle second language, principle for communication. Greek culture just becomes incredibly prominent. The consequence of Alexander’s conquest is unity.

Ideas

How we understand people in previous civilizations. Culture – how we express many forms ideas take in society. Culture reflects everyday life. Athenian culture – Secular, religion was polytheism, even though they regarded them as powerful, they saw them as capricious. So, the Greeks were interested in human existence that they could control. In terms of Athens, we see progression in literature. The first progression is in the theatre. Pisistratus commissioned plays. Aeschylus (7 plays) – Oresteia. Sophocles (7) – Oedipus Trilogy. Euripides (19) – Oresteia, Medea, etc. Pg. 91-92. Plays based on well known rumors. Greeks didn’t believe in progress and free will, they saw life as an endless circle (such as the metaphor of the year). Had a great belief in fate. It is not what your fate is, but how you deal with it.

Development of the Athenian constitution

Middle class is usually most active group. Have some wealth but lack the name and traditions of the aristocrats. This creation led to overthrow of dictatorship by Cleisthenes in 508. New constitution based on democracy giving power to the people to kind of sell his view. Creates large assembly with power for every citizen (locally born, free, male adults). Created Boule (assembly of 500) that was selected by lot. Separated people into ten tribes who selected 50 men at random each year. Direct election of 10 generals (Strategoi) one year terms. Anyone who refused this could be exiled for ten years from Athens. At the same time, Athens is becoming involved in the greater world because at the heart of the new economy is trade.

Persian Wars

Cyrus the Great, King of the Mees, 559-530, consolidating Middle East. Darius from 521-486. Some Greeks fell under Persian rule. They decided to fight back. This was in western Anatolia. Fairly easy to reach region by sea, but difficult by land. Greek city states in Ionia rebel against them because they get assistance from Athens, and mountains can fight off Persians. Persian empire is multi-national/multi-ethnic. Made up of people like Ionian Greeks. If Greeks were successful, Persian wealth wouldn’t change much. Darius decided if he can neutralize Athens, he can solve the problem. Best play would be to cooperate with aristocrats in Athens. “I will invade and oust the democrat gov’t, reinstate dictatorship, and then in return you will adopt a policy of benevolent neutrality to the Persian empire.” In 490, he does that. Sends Persian navy into Aegean with about 20000 troops. 10000 Athenians win because of landscape. One of the soldiers ran from Marathon to Athens with the news, 24.3 miles, gets to acropolis, says we won, and drops dead. Baby Athens beat King Persia. Xerxes decides the only thing Persia can do is annex all of Greece. Well over 100000 men fight 300 Athens in the battle of Thermopylae. So hard to cooperate because Greeks are disunited. Xerxes men tear up Greece and most of Athens is burned down. This is in 480. So in 479 they place all of their infantry under Spartan command and Battles of Plataea and Salamis defeat Xerxes. These are called the Persian Wars. This is what launched Athens on a road to Empire.

Confederation of Delos

After war, great rivalry between Athens and Sparta. Spartans are still pretty weird. They didn’t really want to become leading city state, so they withdraw to Peloponnesus. Athens and Ionian cities aren’t sure things are safe, because Persian Empire is still huge. So they formed a military confederation. The Confederation of Delos centered on island of Delos which is center of Aegean. Island was where Apollo was born, no one lived there, it was a sacrosanct location. Build a treasure to build and maintain permanent fleet. Great navy. Athens was leader of the league. Greek politician Pericles turns army more towards Athens. Elected as strategoi in 461. Reelected for next 30 years. What do voters want? Reforms. Patriotism. Pericles appeals to patriotism and greed. Institutes reforms such as abolishing areopagus, reduces property qualification for office, pay for jurors, council members, soldiers, sailors. After Persians burned city, Pericles build it back up. Parthenon, Phidias, Erectheion, etc. Reconstructs the Agora and builds long walls to protect city. Did all of this without raising taxes. How? In 454 moved treasury to temple of Athena in Athens. Allies decide to withdraw. Pericles says they can’t withdraw. And he has a navy. Uses military to force cities into a political alliance with Athens. Opposes common weights and measures. Athens was uniting Greece. Everyone looks to Sparta for help. They form Peloponnesian league and a sort of cold war begins. In 431 a war begins. The Peloponnesian war. In 430 Athens was hit by the plague and Pericles died. Sparta gets naval power from Persians in 404 and Athens falls. Temporary oligarchy and restoration of democracy.

1/18/08

The Rise of Sparta

Abandoned children if unhealthy. Age of 7 they began 13 years of training. Marry Spartan females at 20. Maintained network of spies among slaves, and one day a year they declared war on slaves and arrested/killed any slaves under suspicion. Helots – slaves. Perioikoi - frontier village trade people…mildly normal. Sparta was only greek city state with kings, yet they had two kings. No political role, all military, leaders of army. Gerousia – 28 elders over 60. Conservative. Led their whole life being obedient getting power at 60. Assisted by five ephors, or magistrates. Apella – male citizens over 30. Ephors. Apella was a forum for debate. Oligarchy government but is based on age. Gerontocracy. Did what it was supposed to do. To prevent slave revolt. Does this for about 300 years. History of Sparta written by Sparta’s enemies.

Athens

Located in province of Attica, which is a peninsula jutting into Aegean sea. Largest in terms of territory of all city states. Begin with higher base of resources. Located a few miles inland to the sea. Early Athens was structurally like Greece. Aristocratic oligarchy. Translated control over land to political power. Power of Athens was areopagus. Magistrates – archons. Debt slavery. Couldn’t go bankrupt, so if you couldn’t pay you had to become a slave. Fell into debt to landlords and became enslaved. Then slaves were sold overseas causing a lot of social stress among Athenians. Broken up families. Produces displeasure and pressure and lower classes revolt. In 621 BC the aristocrats agree to write down the laws so that they are fixed. Draco, an archon, writes the laws down. They were harsh. Solon in 594 reforms ago and abolishes debt slavery, establishes assembly of all citizens (council of 400) opens juries but not magistracies, secludes women. To keep the peace, aristocrats resort in 6^th century to dictatorship. Ordered by tyrants. Most important was a man named Pisistratus. 546 – 527. He was the voice of the aristocracy to maintain that control over society. Athens needed fundamental changes and he knew this. He used his power to impose two kinds of changes: economic and social. Encourages farmers to switch crops, encourages them to focus on grapes and olives. No fertile soil needed, both have long taproots. Thrive in rugged terrain. This helped develop viniculture. Promotes the colonies near the Dardanelles. These would grow wheat and trade with Athens for oil and wine. To do this you need ship building, sailors, merchants. More diversified economy. Partly commercial, partly agriculture. Socially he did like gatherings. Greeks were making competitions between city states. Pisistratus holds Panathenaic Games in Athens every four years to draw community together. Established annual festival of Dionysius. His success was also his undoing. Middle class people become disgruntled that they were denied power because magistracies were still in hands of the rich families. Middle class plot revolution and replace government with a democracy. In 508 Cleisthenes leads a revolution creating new constitution and democracy. Creates a society in which the people will rule, there is an assembly of citizens called the Ecclesia. Assembly was on hillside across from acropolis. The Pinacs, the ecclesia met forty times a year. Every nine days. Nothing could be done without ecclesia approval. The people attended most likely lived close by. Nonetheless, big meetings controlled by? Boule - council of 500. meet when ecclesia wasn't meeting. boule was a civic duty, and people were chosen like juries. Strategoi. Ostracism - exile anyone for ten years if they were trouble makers. Social Reorganization - Athens was were family loyalty trumped everything else.

1/16/08

Mycenaean

Minoan ends about 1500 due to some natural calamity, north survive and take over Aegean sea. These are the Mycenaean. No direct evidence, just literary and archaeological. Heinrich Schliemann dug and uncovered the city of Mycenae. City Homer spoke of in the Iliad (King Agamemnon). Schliemann found death mask in Mycenae and assumed it to be the death mask of King Agamemnon. City on hilltop surrounded by walls, which tells us they were afraid of invasion. Polytheistic. Giant conflict between wife of King of Sparta kidnapped by Paris, Prince of Troy. Shows that women were considered property. Why else would Greeks attack Troy? Troy was a gateway to Black Sea, more fertile, more wood, more rainfall. End of Trojan war, Mycenaean period ends. Lost because they won. So warlike that they beat each other off and then collapsed. Around 1000 BC was period of migration towards Mediterranean.

The Dorians migrate in, Mycenaean towns disappear (except Athens), and people go back to a rural existence. This can be found in the Odyssey. Low level agri, hunter gatherer society. Cities begin to reappear, probably because of population increase. Centers of this were built around to focal points, the first was the Acropolis (high point of the city – place for protection, security). At the foot, they built an Agora, or a center of exchange. These settlements are called Polis. Start as market towns, have jurisdiction over urban core and surrounding country side because of the countries dependence of protection. These are called City-States. Greek is little peninsulas and landmass is divided by mountains. Geography carves Greece into pockets of population, leaving a city state to be formed. These city states are governed by aristocratic oligarchy. Wealth is power. Wealth here s equal to land ownership. Land is dominated by a few families, so most Greeks are tenant farmers (leasing land to farm), so landlords assume positions of political leadership. Greek word for best is Aristos. Economy is not of abundance but of scarcity, leading the way for conflict between the haves and have nots. All under attack, all need to be armed. Defense was in hand of militia, greek infantry soldiers called Hoplites. To deal with surplus, they export.

The Peloponnesus. Two most famous city states are Athens and Sparta. Yet neither are typical of the city state. They both became unusually powerful. Culminating event of the era is the Great war between Athens and Sparta in which Sparta wins. Also in politics, they represent the extremes. Sparta being the most authoritarian while Athens is the most free, creating democracy. Development of Athens and Sparta in archaic age and their interactions in the Golden Age.

Sparta is in southern most region of Balkan Peninsula. To get from Sparta to sea would take like a two day walk, so fishing etc was not there for them. They were Agrarian. In 9^th century, Sparta begins to grow. They begin to run out of room because of surplus population. Because of their distance to the sea, they can’t really immigrate. They cant trade because they were inland. “Where can we get resources to maintain population?” Go to war. They saw Messenia on the windward side of Balkan Peninsula that catches the rainfall. Somewhat more fertile, and a denser population, higher volume of food. Let’s feed ourselves by becoming a conquering people. Lets start slavery around the year 700. Attack Messenians. 700 – 650 BC. Learn that it is one thing to conquer the country, another thing to effectively occupy it. Want a peaceful occupation so Messenians can farm for them. 10 Messenians for every Spartan. Never-ending circle of conquest. Goes on for about 50 years, until Lycurgus (about 650 BC) decides to either withdraw or figure out a way from revolting year after year by intensifying troops, a surge! A permanent surge of troops in Messenia. Every able man must be a soldier. They become a militant society. Inspected at birth for defects and abandoned. Betweeb 7-20 they go to military school. 20-30 active soldiers. 30-60 serve in reserves. Messenians become slaves.

January 14th

History notes

1/14/08

What is history? It is a study of the past. It is the story that has survived. When does it begin? You need proof, records, etc. 4000-5000 BC. River valleys. Fertile soil, moisture, utilize irrigation which leads to society. Civilization spreads through trade acculturation – less complex societies imitate more complex to become that way.

The Greeks and Hellenic civilization

Greece is part of the Mediterranean. It is a large sea that divides three continental masses Europe, Africa, and Asia. The Mediterranean is an important node of civilization because of transportation and food. The Aegean sea is at the center of the Greek world. The vast majority of the islands in the sea are Greek. So Greek civilization starts as an Aegean civilization. Chronology – from chronos and logos, time in a sequence. Events take place sequentially. In order to understand history, we must understand sequence of events.

Minoan Period – 2000-1500

Mycenaean Period – 1500-1200

Homeric Age/Dorian Invasions – 1200-800

Age of the Polis – 800-300

Archaic – 800-500

Golden - 500-300

Hellenistic - 300-150

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minoan_civilization

Minoans – Centered on Crete. We don’t know what they are called. Their language is called Linear A. we have archaeological knowledge of them, but that is about it. Also have Greek mythology, what was said about Minoans. There is the myth of Minos. It is the story of the labyrinth and the minotaur. Historian dug in Knossos. Labeled in the palace of Minos. So Minoan civilization begins on Crete. Art shows prominence of women. Prevalent theory was it ended because of natural disaster in Mediterranean, resulting in tidal waves and volcanic ash.