Classical Civilizations

Question 1

What civilizations lived in the Classical Era?

Answer 1

Ancient Greece, Roman Empire/Republic.

Question 2

What kind of land did Greece have?

Answer 2

Greece was hilly so not ideal for farming, led to them becoming a seafaring culture that dominated Aegean sea and to a large extent, the Mediterranean.

Question 3

How did Greece’s seafaring nature affect their lifestyle?

Answer 3

Because they were such seafaring people, it showed in their literature (greek literacture such as The Iliad and the Odyssey)

Question 4

What type of religion did the Greeks have?

Answer 4

they were Polytheistic- complex mythology surrounding their gods.
Think Greek Gods, Olympian Gods.
-Zeus, Apolla, Athena, Aphrodite, Hades, & Ares
-defeated the Titans (giants who ruled the earth)

Zeus: king of the Gods- Son Apollo and daughter Athena (goddess of wisdom)
Aphrodite- love
Hades- god of underworld.
Ares- god of war
not perfect gods, petty and human in ways.

Question 5

What were two Early Civilzations in Greece?

Answer 5

Minoans and Myceneans
Minoans= trade based
Mycenaeans= war conquest based society.

Question 6

What were the two most powerful city-states in Classical Greece?

Answer 6

Athens and Sparta

Question 7

What was the Acropolis?

Answer 7

Temple to Athena- a dedicated building in Athens, Greece.

Question 8

What kind of Government/lifestyle was Athens, Greece?

Answer 8

Athens was a democracy whose influence on modern politics, art,and architecture would be difficult to overestimate.

• its democracy formed the foundations for Europe, US, and the western world.
• One of the first where the PEOPLE have the power in the government.

Question 9

What did Athens place great value on?

Answer 9

• learning and intellectual discourse, and gave us philosophers such as Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle.
• Athens influenced our architecture, Art, and government.

Greece also had lots of trade, very cosmopolitan.

Question 10

Important Greek/Athen Philosophers

Answer 10

Socrates
Plato
and Aristotle.
Socrates—> teacher of Plato —> Plato teacher of Aristotle —> teacher of Alexander the great.

Question 11

What did Socrates teach?

Answer 11

gave the idea of dialectics. Arrive at different truths by debating different viewpoints.

Question 12

Dialectics

Answer 12

dialectical method is dialogue between two or more people holding different points of view about a subject, who wish to establish the truth of the matter by dialogue, with reasoned arguments.

Question 13

Plato

Answer 13

there’s a “perfect form” for each thing, you have to understand something by studying its perfect form.

Question 14

Aristotle

Answer 14

• Poetry, influenced writing.

- Idea of final cause- use something for it’s ideal purpose, what it’s for, it’s final cause.

Question 15

What kind of society was Sparta?

Answer 15

• totalitarian city-state ruled by a king (government control)
• spartan culture was highly militaristic and emphasized physical and mental strength, practicing Engenics (trained at a young age to fight, good genes( to ensure physical superiority.
• Spartans did however, give greater rights to women- could own property, could divorce, honored for giving birth to warriors.

Question 16

Persian War

Answer 16

Athens, Sparta, and other Greek city-states united to defend Greece against invading Persian armies.
-several attempts made by Persia to invade Greece ~ lead by different leaders ~never really able to conquer Greece.

Question 17

What was the Battle of Thermopoly?

Answer 17

Important battle in the Persian War. Spartans won. (Lots of different battles)

Question 18

What happened after defeating Persia?

Answer 18

Athens and Sparta turned against each other, dividing the other city states along the allegiance and for 13 years, fought the Peloponnesian War. (a conflict which devastated Greek Society)

Question 19

What was the Peloponnesian War?

Answer 19

Sparta and Athens turning against each other and fighting for 13 years. dividing other city states along the allegiance.
-devastated Greek society.

Question 20

Who won the Peloponnesian War?

Answer 20

Sparta, but sadly the society they ended up with was not the same. Mass destruction.

Question 21

Hellenic Age

Answer 21

• Alexander the Great of Macedonia conquered and united the Greek and Persian worlds.
• Took Greek armies and went into Persia.

Question 22

Roman Republic (500-27 BC)

Answer 22

incorporated Greek society, and emerged as the dominant world power after the Punic Wars with Carthage.
(Carthage leader was Hannible. Place in Northern Africa, powerful and successful. Battled with Romans for a long time, but eventually Romans were able to conquer them. After several Punic Wars- solidified Roman control.

Question 23

Roman society

Answer 23

contained/incorporated lots of Greek society- such as their gods, (borrowed gods w/ different names), architecture columns (Doric/simple, Ionic/more complex, Corenthian/most complex)

ex: Greek name/Poseidon = Roman name/Neptune
Greek name/Zeus = Roman name/Jupiter

Question 24

Roman Republic was divided into…

Answer 24

Patricians (upper-class, nobility)
Plebeians (commoners)
Slaves (well… slaves)

• Under the Republic, the seat of Roman government was the Senate. Representatives represent the people (by district)
• In order to be a senator you had to be from the Patrician class. However the Plebeians DID get representation (middle class)

Question 25

Who was the first emperor of the Roman Empire?

Answer 25

After the assassination of Julius Caesar (A famous Roman Emperor), AUGUSTUS became the first emperor of the “Roman Empire.”

Question 26

Julius Caesar

Answer 26

• Roman
• when he first came in, he was a general and inserted himself into power in the ROMAN REPUBLIC. (they do call it “the republic” because their was no Emperor, he inserted himself into it) and ruled alongside the existing senate.

Question 27

What architectural achievements did Rome have?

Answer 27

1. Coliseums- held games, gladiatorial contests.

2. Aqueducts- moving water around cities.

Question 28

What happened in 286 A.D.?

In 313 AD?

Answer 28

• the empire was divided into the East and West.

- Constantine made Christianity legal. Jewish and Chrisitian were once persecuted.

Question 29

**What were the reasons for the fall of the (western) Roman Empire?

Answer 29

1. Overexpansion (didn’t have enough soldiers to protect all the land.)
2. Political instability (rulers were murdered, generals fought back)
3. Mercenary armies
4. Inflation
5. Excessive taxation (in order to pa for armoes
6. Decreased agricultural production
7. Division of Christianity
8. Barbarian invasions (Africa, Middle East, Germanic regions piece by piece torm Rome Apart).

-They might have been able to handle most of these factors, but the political instability made it impossible.

Question 30

When did the Fall of Rome occur. What did it symbolize?

Answer 30

The late 400’s AD. marked the end of an Ancient civilization, and the beginning of Medieval times (Middle Ages)

Question 31

What was the Byzantine Empire?

Answer 31

The Eastern Roman empire. Beginning of the Middle Ages. Continued to exist for many centuries after the fall of the Western Empire.

Question 32

What was one of the most LASTING influences of the Romans?

Answer 32

their Law, which was collected in the Justinian Code.

Question 33

What was the Justinian Code?

Answer 33

Forms the legal system of today (in Western society) One of the most lasting influences of the Romans.