Ancient Greece

Acropolis   In the center of most city-states was a fortress on a hill.

This hill was called the acropolis (uh-KRAH-puh-luhs), which is Greek for “top city.”

In addition to the fortress, many city-states built temples and other public buildings on the acropolis.

     Around the acropolis was the rest of the city, including houses and markets. High walls usually surrounded the city for protection.

In wartime, farmers who lived outside the walls could seek safety inside.      Living in city-states provided many advantages for the Greeks. The city

was a place where people could meet and trade. In addition, the city-state gave people a new sense of identity. People thought of themselves as residents of a particular city-state, not as Greeks.

City-state -political units made up of a city and all the

surrounding lands.

ATHENS SPARTA

City state located in south eastern part of Greece

Focused on developing the mind- Knowledge

City-state located in southern part of Greece

Focused on developing the body- military city-state

Greek Architecture

Doric Type of Greek column

Ionic Type of Greek column

CorinthianType of Greek column

Types of Government Aristocracy

Oligarchy

Monarchy

Democracy

Direct Democracy

Greek Philosophers Philosophy

Socrates Plato

Artistotle

Greek Religion

Polytheism Zeus

Athena Poseidon

Mythology

Trojan War

Homer• Odyssey

Pericles Golden Age

Alexander the Great Hellenistic

Early Greek societies were heavily

influenced by the topography and available resources of the region, leading to the development of city-states and colonies rather than an expansive empire based on a particular river valley.

The Golden Age of Greece brought important advances in government, art, architecture, and philosophy. These advances are foundational components of Western civilization to this day.

Greek values were eventually spread

throughout the Mediterranean and Asia Minor by Alexander the Great.

The Greek religion was polytheistic and

portrayed gods and goddesses with human-like emotional states such as anger, jealousy, and joy. The Greeks believed that their deities took an active and constant role in their lives.

Major Olympian gods/goddesses included Zeus, Hades, Poseidon, and Athena, among others.

Greek city-states developed radically independent political and cultural systems, the most obvious example being Athens and Sparta

The war between Sparta and Athens weakened the city-states and opened them up to conquest by Alexander the Great and later by the Romans.

emocra

Ancient Greek influences in today’s

world include democracy, art, architecture, literature, philosophy, mythology and the Olympics.