A HISTORY OF ANCIENT GREECE

The following history is adapted from;

http://www.museum.upenn.edu/Greek_World/Index.html

Sub-Mycenaean Period and the Early Iron Age

(Protogeometric Period)

Circa 1100 - 900 B.C.

The final collapse of the Mycenaean civilization around 1100 BC marked the end of the Aegean Bronze Age. A period of severe economic and cultural depression followed. The depths of this depression occurred from circa 1100 to 1050, in what is known as the Sub-Mycenaean (on the Greek mainland) or Sub-Minoan period (on Crete). Crude, simplified versions of the old Mycenaean and Minoan pottery were produced. Metal craftsmanship was mostly rudimentary, although the new technology of iron working was adopted, perhaps from Cyprus.

The next century and a half (ca. 1050 to ca. 900 BC), known as the Protogeometric period from its pottery, represented a time of ever-increasing recovery. Colonies from mainland Greece and the nearby islands settled on the west coast of Asia Minor and the north coast of the Aegean. Strong trade links with the Near East were again established, and there was a gradual increase in wealth. Craftsmanship again became skilled, as is seen in both pottery and metalworking.

Geometric Period Circa

900-700 B.C.

The Geometric period was a time of startling innovation and transformation in Greek society. The population dramatically increased and proto-urban life re-emerged, bringing with it overcrowding and political tensions. The Greeks moved to new lands to the east and west where they founded commercial trading posts and colonies.

Written language, lost with the passing of the Mycenaean civilization, re-emerged with the adoption of the Semitic alphabetic script, encountered through contacts with the Phoenicians. It is probably in this same period that the epic poems of Homer, such as the Iliad, became widely known and were recorded.

Sanctuaries, sacred zones devoted to the worship of deities, developed. As the worship of the gods became formalized, so the need arose for temples to house the deities´ statues.

Early Archaic Period

Circa 700 - 600 B.C.

During this period, the concept of the polis, the Greek city-state, became well developed. Tyrannical political figures seized control of many of these city-states in the 7th and 6th centuries.

Greek colonies abroad continued to flourish and new settlements were established, particularly in the region of the Black Sea. Colonies were founded at Mediterranean sites such as Cyrene on the North African coast and Massilia (Marseilles) in southern France. Highly developed commercial contacts continued in Egypt, Anatolia and the Levant. These contacts stimulated an influx of eastern imports and the manufacture of Greek objects with an "oriental" appearance or featuring "oriental" motifs.

Coinage was invented by the East Greeks or by the Lydians, the neighbors of the Greeks on the coast of Asia Minor, and was systematically adopted by the Greek city-states. The first Greek monumental stone sculpture appeared. The Doric and Ionic architectural orders were born and the Greek temple reached its developed form.

Archaic Period

Circa 600 - 479 B.C.

The city-states continued to flourish during the Archaic period, in spite of internal political and social unrest. By the 6th century BC a majority of the most important and powerful city-states were ruled by tyrants. Commerce and the arts flourished under the auspices of these more or less benevolent dictators. Corinth especially prospered. Athens undertook a massive building program, and the region of Attica dominated the pottery market for about a century and a half with its high-quality pottery.

The origins of democracy can be traced to Athens in the years following the fall of the tyrannical Peisistratids (560-510 BC). By the beginning of the Archaic period large statues of nude males (kouroi ) and draped females (korai ) were produced as dedications for sanctuaries and as markers for graves. Colossal marble temples to house huge cult images of the gods were built in various parts of the Greek world.

Classical Period

Circa 479 - 323 B.C.

The end of the Persian Wars marked the beginning of the Classical period. In this period Athens reached its greatest political and cultural heights: the full development of the democratic system of government under the Athenian statesman Pericles; the building of the Parthenon on the Acropolis; the creation of the tragedies of Sophocles, Aeschylus and Euripides; and the founding of the philosophical schools of Socrates and Plato.

In the late 5th century, the Peloponnesian Wars between Athens and Sparta caused turmoil throughout the Greek world. After the surrender of the Athenians, democracy was restored. Meanwhile, in Sicily and Italy a conflict was being played out between the Carthaginians and the Greeks of the region. By the end of the 5th century the Carthaginians and their main adversary, the Syracusans, arrived at a truce.

During the 4th century Athens, Sparta and Thebes vied for political dominance of Greece. Peace was finally established when Sparta, backed by Persia, won control. In the second half of the 4th century, a divided Greece and the decline of the polis gave rise to the powerful Macedonian state under Philip II and his son, Alexander the Great. After bringing all of the eastern world to the continent of India under his control, Alexander died in Babylon at the age of 32 (323 BC). By the time of his death Hellenism had reached much of the known world and the Classical period was over.

Hellenistic Period

Circa 323 - 31 B.C.

Following the death of Alexander the Great, his kingdom was split into three by his generals. The Antigonid dynasty maintained control of mainland Greece. The Seleucids governed the entire eastern empire, the largest portion of the territory, while the Ptolemies ruled the land of ancient Egypt.

The Hellenistic period was an international, cosmopolitan age. Commercial contacts were widespread and peoples of many ethnic and religious backgrounds merged in populous urban centers. Advances were made in various fields of scientific inquiry, including engineering, physics, astronomy and mathematics. Great libraries were founded in Alexandria, Athens and the independent kingdom of Pergamum. The old beliefs in Olympian gods were infused with foreign elements, especially from the east; "Oriental" ecstatic cults, such as those of Cybele, Isis, and Mithras, become popular in the Hellenized world.

The 3rd century BC saw the rise of ancient Rome. After securing most of the Italic peninsula, Rome entered into a protracted conflict with the Carthaginians for control of Sicily, Spain and the other regions of Punic domination in the Punic Wars. The former empire of Alexander was taken steadily and methodically into Roman hands. The great city of Corinth was destroyed (146 BC), Athens captured (86 BC), and Cleopatra and Mark Antony defeated at the Battle of Actium (31 BC). Their defeat marks the end of the Hellenistic Age.

Portal Pages for Greek History

http://www.webcom.com/shownet/medea/grklink.html

http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/ancient/asbook07.html

http://dir.yahoo.com/Arts/Humanities/History/By_Time_Period/Ancient_History/Greek/

http://www.westernculture.com/ancientgreeks.html

http://ancienthistory.about.com/cs/greecehellas1/

http://www.historyforkids.org/learn/greeks/history/history.htm

http://users.drew.edu/~jlenz/grkhist.html

http://www.worldhistorycompass.com/greece.htm

Ancient Greek Literature and Poetry

The great British philosopher-mathematician Alfred North Whitehead once commented that all philosophy is but a footnote to Plato. A similar point can be made regarding Greek literature as a whole. Over a period of more than ten centuries, the ancient Greeks created a literature of such brilliance that it has rarely been equaled and never surpassed. In poetry, tragedy, comedy, and history, Greek writers created masterpieces that have inspired, influenced, and challenged readers to the present day.

To suggest that all Western literature is no more than a footnote to the writings of classical Greece is an exaggeration, but it is nevertheless true that the Greek world of thought was so far-ranging that there is scarcely an idea discussed today that was not debated by the ancient writers. The only body of literature of comparable influence is the Bible. The language in which the ancient authors wrote was Greek. Like English, Greek is an Indo-European language; but it is far older. Its history can be followed from the 14th century BC to the present. Its literature, therefore, covers a longer period of time than that of any other Indo-European language.

THE CLASSICAL PERIOD

There are four major periods of Greek literature: preclassical, classical, Hellenistic-Roman, and Byzantine. Of these the most significant works were produced during the preclassical and classical eras.

At the beginning of Greek literature stand the two monumental works of Homer, the `Iliad' and the `Odyssey'. The figure of Homer is shrouded in mystery. Although the works as they now stand are credited to him, it is certain that their roots reach far back before his time. The `Iliad' is the famous story about the Trojan War. It centers on the person of Achilles, who embodied the Greek heroic ideal. While the `Iliad' is pure tragedy, the `Odyssey' is a mixture of tragedy and comedy. It is the story of Odysseus, one of the warriors at Troy. After ten years fighting the war, he spends another ten years sailing back home to his wife and family. During his ten-year voyage, he loses all of his comrades and ships and makes his way home to Ithaca disguised as a beggar. Both of these works were based on ancient legends. The stories are told in language that is simple, direct, and eloquent. Both are as fascinatingly readable today as they were in ancient Greece.

The other great poet of the preclassical period was Hesiod. He is more definitely recorded in history than is Homer, though very little is known about him. He was a native of Boeotia in central Greece, and he lived and worked in about 800 BC. His two works were `Works and Days' and `Theogony'. The first is a faithful depiction of the dull and poverty-stricken country life he knew so well, and it sets forth principles and rules for farmers. `Theogony' is a systematic account of creation and of the gods. It vividly describes the ages of mankind, beginning with a long-past golden age. Together the works of Homer and Hesiod made a kind of bible for the Greeks. Homer told the story of a heroic past, and Hesiod dealt with the practical realities of daily life.

HELLENISTIC-ROMAN PERIOD

By 338 BC all of the Greek city-states except Sparta had been conquered by Philip II of Macedon. Greece was not independent again until the early 19th century, a period of more than 2,000 years. Philip's son Alexander the Great extended his father's conquests greatly. In so doing he inaugurated what is called the Age of Hellenism. The Greek word for Greece was Hellas. Hellenism, therefore, signifies the spread of Greek language, literature, and culture throughout the Mediterranean world.

Alexander 's conquests were in the East, and Greek culture shifted first in that direction. Athens lost its preeminent status as the leader of Greek culture, and it was replaced temporarily by Alexandria, Egypt. After the rise of Rome, all the Mediterranean area was brought within one far-flung empire. Greek civilization then spread westward as well. Educated Romans learned to speak and write Greek, and they looked to Greece's golden age for inspiration in philosophy, poetry, and drama. So dependent did Roman writers become, in fact, that they produced very little that was not based upon Greek works, especially in drama and philosophy.

Hellenistic Prose

The Septuagint:

One of the most valuable contributions of the Hellenistic period was the translation of the Hebrew Bible into Greek. The work was done at Alexandria and completed by the end of the 2nd century BC. The name Septuagint means "seventy," from the tradition that there were 72 scholars who did the work. Since the language of the early Christian community was Greek, the Septuagint became its Bible. Other books not in the Hebrew Bible were also written in Greek and included what is called the Apocrypha.

History:

The significant historians in the period after Alexander were Timaeus, Polybius, Diodorus Siculus, Dionysius of Halicarnassus, Appian of Alexandria, Arrian, and Plutarch. The period of time they cover extended from late in the 4th century BC to the 2nd century AD. Timaeus was born in Sicily but spent most of his life in Athens. His `History', though lost, is significant because of its influence on Polybius.

In 38 books it covered the history of Sicily and Italy to the year 264 BC, which is where Polybius began his work. Timaeus also wrote the `Olympionikai', a valuable chronological study of the Olympic Games. Polybius was born about 200 BC. He was brought to Rome as a hostage in 168. At Rome he became a friend of the general Scipio Aemilianus. He probably accompanied the general to Spain and North Africa in the wars against Carthage. He was with Scipio at the destruction of Carthage in 146. The history on which his reputation rests consisted of 40 books, five of which have been preserved along with various excerpts. They are a vivid recreation of Rome's rise to world power.

A lost book, `Tactics', was on military matters. Diodorus Siculus lived in the 1st century BC, the time of Julius Caesar and Augustus. He wrote a universal history, `Bibliotheca historica', in 40 books. Of these, the first five and the 11th through the 20th remain. The first two parts covered history through the early Hellenistic era. The third part takes the story to the beginning of Caesar's wars in Gaul, now France.

Dionysius of Halicarnassus lived late in the 1st century BC. His history of Rome from its origins to the First Punic War (264 to 241 BC) is written from a Roman point of view, but it is carefully researched. He also wrote a number of other treatises, including `On Imitation', `Commentaries on the Ancient Orators', and `On the Arrangement of Words'. Appian and Arrian both lived in the 2nd century AD.

Appian wrote on Rome and its conquests, while Arrian is remembered for his work on the campaigns of Alexander the Great. Arrian served in the Roman army. His book therefore concentrates heavily on the military aspects of Alexander' s life. Arrian also wrote a philosophical treatise, the `Diatribai', based on the teachings of his mentor Epictetus.

Best known of the late Greek historians to modern readers is Plutarch, who died about AD 119. His `Parallel Lives' of great Greek and Roman leaders has been read by every generation since the work was first published. His other surviving work is the `Moralia', a collection of essays on ethical, religious, political, physical, and literary topics.

BYZANTINE LITERATURE

Constantine the Great moved the capital of the empire from Rome to Byzantium (now Istanbul) in about AD 330 and renamed the city Constantinople. The Eastern, or Byzantine, Empire lasted until it was destroyed by the Ottoman Turks in 1453 (see Byzantine Empire ). The civilization of this empire was Greek in language and heritage, but it was Christian in religion. In religion the crowning literary achievement was considered to be the New Testament portion of the Christian Bible. This, coupled with a reverence for the great literary traditions of the past, combined to make Byzantine literature very conservative. The written language had to preserve the forms of speech of the New Testament and the Church Fathers. Being heirs to such a great literary tradition excluded any interest in outside ideas. This undue emphasis on form smothered any likelihood of originality and invention. The literary creations of the period have, therefore, bequeathed few memorable works to the present. Much of the writing was necessarily religious: sermons, hymns, theological works, and descriptions of the lives of the martyrs and saints.

Of the few authors who are still read may be mentioned Eusebius (died 340), who wrote the first church history; St. Basil the Great (died 379), who organized Eastern monasticism; his brother Gregory of Nyssa (died 394), who wrote many works in which he combined Platonic philosophy with Christian teaching; and Gregory of Nazianzus (died 389), who is noted for his poems, sermons, letters, and writings on theological controversies. The writings of the historians, geographers, philosophers, scientists, and rhetoricians are read today largely as curiosities or as sources of historical information. A work such as `Byzantine History', a 37-volume study by Nicephorus Gregoras (died 1360), for example, constitutes a valuable primary source for the 14th century. In philosophy only Proclus (died 485) deserves mention. He was the last major Greek philosopher and was influential in spreading the ideas of Neoplatonism throughout the Mediterranean world. The only literature that showed any real originality was that written in the vernacular, the language of the common people. This literature--including poems, romances, and epics--was only written from the 12th century onward. Of the epics, the most memorable is the story of Digenis Akritas, based on a historical figure who died in about 788. It presents Akritas as the ideal medieval Greek hero. After the capture of Constantinople by the Turks, Greek national life and culture ended for centuries, as did literary production. It was only revived when Greece became independent in 1829.

http://www.crystalinks.com/greekliterature.html

Greek Literature in Translation

http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cache/perscoll_Greco-Roman.html

Articles on Greek Literature

http://www.bartleby.com/65/gr/Greeklit-a.html

http://www.factmonster.com/ce6/ent/A0866430.html

Links for Greek Literature

http://directory.google.com/Top/Arts/Classical_Studies/Greek/

http://www.historywiz.com/greeklit.htm

http://bubl.ac.uk/link/g/greekliterature.htm

http://eawc.evansville.edu/grpage.htm