Midterm 2 Lecture cards Flashcards
What Happened 1000-800 BCE?1.)Traditional Argument/Pomeroy:
2.) why it’s wrong
1.) The traditional argument
Greece developed rapidly due to population expansion in the 9th and 8th centuries BCE
Politics was organized around a king (generally the largest land holder) and his retinue (a band of armed warriors).
Because of population growth, elites came to have a certain amount of trouble retaining pasture lands, leading to larger social and economic changes.
2.) why it’s wrong:
The Greeks have nothing to do with this.
They are again a periphery of near eastern development
Population growth is not the causal factor
Rather, trade is what ultimately creates population growth (though not on the scale envisioned by some).
Scholars conjecture a population growth rate of 66% over a century, 8th to 7th century BCE
This is not possible in pre-modern societies.
No vaccines, no antibiotics, no antiseptics.
The average female is not fertile until 20 in this period and most are infertile by 35.
To create 66% population growth, Greek women would have need to produce at minimum six children in this span, 40-50% of whom died before age 6. While theoretically possible, this assumes a total absence of warfare, epidemic disease and other factors limiting population growth.
What REALLY Happened 1000-800 BCE (prof’s argument)
Core-State Periphery.
As the Itinerary of Wenamun reveals, new polities had become powerful by the 11th century.
The Phoenician lead the resurgence of trade and expansion through colonization.
Phoenicians
-Solidly Monarchical
-Developed Religion
-Worship of El, Baal, and Astarte and Hadad
Agriculture
Plant Grafting
Exportation of Viticulture and Olive Cultivation
Colonization: Phoenician Colonies appear on Cyprus c. 1000 BCE (Kition)
Phoenician Colony in Greece
- Thasos: on Greece. Guys living in Thatch huts sitting on gold
a. Phoenicians arrive 950. Built temple to Melqart (TYRE GOD)
b. THis place has lots of timber, access to black sea, and gold veins. super good spot for trade colony
c. Viticulture is old, but Phoenicians create new growth and huge local demand
i. eventually locals break phoenician monopolies on wine
d. evidence for core-state periphery interaction
Phoenicians and Wine
- Viticulture is old, but the Phoenicians managed to create new markets with huge local demand.
- Colonies became the center of native and indigenous interaction.
- Begin on islands and expand inland in lots of cases
characteristics of Phoenician Colonies
- Were independent city-states. Generally began with 1000-2000 members
- In many places, they blended ultimately with nearby native populations
- This allowed for trade increases and huge wealth.
- Coastal land, due to piracy was unsettled, so the Phoenicians took advantage.
- Phoenician Colonies go all the way West in Europe and North Africa (Carthaginians are Phoenicians)
Phoenician Script & currency:
g. LANGUAGEL north-west semitic canaanite
i. circa 800: group of Phoenicians separate off as jews, We worship Yahweh not Baal. Oldest Jewsih scripts written in Phoenician/Canaanite script
iv. NOT LIKE LINEAR B redistribution, but rather TRADER tablets. Specialization of labor within small colonies.
v. NO MONEY: but bullion exists. its a coin-like thing
Phoenician effects on Greece:
- Unlike Sicily, Sardinia or Iberia, Greece had more developed institutions.
- The arrival of the Phoenician reignited trade and specialization.
- Proto- Geometric and Geometric pottery indicate the recovery of lost skills.
- Pottery techniques only matter if you have something to trade
- apparently Greek wine is shitty but they traded it anyway
- Phoenicians Ultimately have to abandon their colonies in the area by 850 BCE.
- More Greeks in Italy than Greece by 650
State formation V1 (Sparta):
characteristics and development process
Defensive Agricultural, Territorial, Domestic (Sparta):
Step 1: A group of local Basileis agree to unite their various holdings under a central government.
Step 2: The Basileos with the most land becomes the highest official. The other basileis agree to his JUDICIAL rule in order to establish Private Property holdings
Step 3: Retainers and dependents of the basileis form the original demos of the new state.
Step 4: Any nearby groups not agreeing to unite become subjected to the power of the newly united state and will be acquired violently.
Step 5: New city-state grows as neighbors are subjugated.
Step 6: A dominant class of original members of the city-state rules over those who join later.
State formation V2 (Corinth):
- ) Formation
- ) Political Developments
- Trade, Overseas, International (Corinth)
FORMATION
- Certain areas of Greece are not large agricultural territories.
- Although there may be large land possessors, there are not enough of them to unite interests over land.
- In these places, a merchant class develops over the 9th century BCE.
- Merchants and Land possessors ultimately work out a mutually beneficial deal.
- Land owners need exports to deal with any surplus, merchants need products and safety.
- A third class of skilled laborers develops to support the exchanges between these classes.
- Corinth has a cool Canal (shore of peloponnese very dangerous, easier to cut through Corinth)
2.) POLITICAL DEVELOPMENTS
Begin similarly to agricultural states.
Basileos is retained, etc…
However, the class of skilled laborers and merchants grew quickly.
Puts pressure on elite to open up,
Aristocracies displace hereditary kings quickly
Eventually will lead to democracy in many of these states.
Boule
An aristocratic tool of control and consensus building. Characteristic of Trade and International Greek polities (IE Corinth model). Especially pre-stasis.
In the 8th century, it ruled many Greek states
Often accompanied by an annual series of magistrates, who have designated powers that we once all exercised by a single basileos.
Property restrictions prohibit anyone not rich from joining the club BUT also provide a method for the newly rich to be heard if enrolled.
annual magistrates
-after they get rid of the basileus and set up boule, one guy will be general, one chief priest, one ruleer of year, one in charge of weights & measures all for a year
Stasis
- A particular condition of Greek city-states.
- A form of internal civil war, though not always violent.
- Occurs regularly in most Greek city-states, particularly during times of rapid economic or political development.
- Can become dangerous: Massacres, expulsions, mercenary armies.
Colonization
2.) boule and colonization
- Movement of the rich.
- More than one son.
- Not enough land/material wealth to divide and maintain status.
- Colonization is a pressure valve/opportunity for these men, not some great mass of population, as envisioned by your textbook.
BOULE &
- Allows domestic aristocracy to preserve their positions while trying to provide for descendants. (IE dont have to split up your land if you send your sons to a colony. Thereby your family can stay in Boule indefinitely)
- allows development of a wider governing class.
Why travel to a colony?
risky, but if successful, you have a chance of getting really rich nd really influential in new colonies
-for rich men interested in preserving family status/boule land reqs. Not just preservation. Also the hope of advancing your family even further! Get riches in foreign lands and rule those lands
Corinth as Colonizing power
Corinth
Founds Corcyra
Founds Syracuse
Dominates trade with Italy.
Corinthian Pottery: 730-600 BCE (black figure). Dominant in Meditteranean by 630
(Athenian Pottery comes to life c. 650) red figure not until later though. Black figure dominant hella
Corinth is Real spark that ignites the rest of the Greek mainland
Developed rapidly
United trade across the Eastern and Western Mediterranean.
Sparta Formation:
- Developed in the 9th century BCE
- Four villages, later a fifth
- Two Kings (Basileis)
- Example of V.1 of Greek State Formation
- Driven by agriculture
- pottery (like athens) by 650 in black figure style
Sparta Empire Formation
-Sparta landlocked so in conflict with south for sea access
-9th century conflicts over access to the sea caused the villages at the top of the Laconian Plain to synoikize into Sparta.
-The newly formed city-state was vastly more powerful than those city states in its vicinity.
This led to a series of military campaigns against its neighbors, hardening its army but also establishing imperial control over defeated city-states in its vicinity.
-Any remaining free city-states choose to make a deal with Sparta to accept Spartan dominance in exchange for protection. These people become the Perioeci (those who live around).
Perioeci
- 8th century
- The Perioeci constitute a dependent class that provides certain functions to the new state.
- Most likely this is a form of agricultural tax in the earliest period. In exchange, the perioeci gain freedom from invasion as Sparta provides a professional and permanent army.
- It is essentially a mafia-type power dynamic and thus mutually beneficial
- Greeks like any others. Live in their own cities, conduct their own local business.
- May act as retainers to Spartan warriors.
- Most are Craftsman and Agriculturalists.
- Eventually form their own military units and serve in Spartan Army
First Messenian War & resultant class
- (740-720 BCE)
- Helots
- The sources allege that it was continuation of the Dorian Invasion (BS)
- Most likely it has to do with a need for land for exports. Messenia is very fertile as well.
- It is in this moment that Sparta becomes a true Empire.
- Messenia had city-states, Messene being the primary example.
- These are obliterated.
- WAR DID NOT HAPPEN DUE TO POP GROWTHRather, Empires acquire land because they have the ability.
- All Empires are nothing more than supremely aggressive states that successfully prosecute wars and learn how to manage subject populations.
Spartan Kings and Senate(spartan name?)
- The Spartans had dual kingship.
- This was mediated by a -Gerousia -(the Greek version of Senate).
- Kings were expected to command in war and be judicial officials. The Gerousia acted as their advisors and were elected by citizens to the office. In reality, there could have been very few men over sixty (so it was almost a fait accompli).
- However, the Spartans also always seem to have possessed an ekklesia. If you were a Spartan citizen, you had a responsibility to attend.
- Spartan Ekklesia
2. Spartan “Dining halls”
- ASSEMBLY OF ALL CITIZENS decide war and invasion decisions by shouting suggestions basically
- Because decisions were mediated by the demos at large, decisions about war and peace were collective from a early period.
- This breads military unity and a military ethos amongst soldiers (organically at first).
- Success in war then reinforces institutional design and leads to entrenchments.
- Thus the early Spartan warriors likely met for dinner because they were professional soldiers and these were their drinking buddies. - SYSSITION: -Over time this became the formal SYSSITION or all male dining club
Other Spartan Institutions
- ) Govern children
- ) State land structure
- ) State police
SPURRED BY RESOURCES ACQUIRED 740-720 in FIRST MESSENIAN CONFLICT
Agoge to govern children
Kleros structure of state land
Krypteia or secret police.
-AGOGE: Spartan system of raising children
-formal system of military education. all that matters is military discipline!
-for a phalanx to succeed “everybody has to be a big boy” lol
kleros/kleroi: state laand. Spartans extract a percentage of kleros surplus
-After completing AGoge and getting assigned to Sysstition you get a parcel of kleros rights
Klepteia: secret police
Slave class in sparta (name and description)
HELOTS:
-Fully subjugated Greeks.
-Destruction of urbanization
Division of land
-Assignment of state slaves and land to individual Spartans.
-Supervision by state police and also the owners.
-No justice, just violence (hence the crazy myths about killing helots).
-Did have families, could have stuff but not land.
Spartan Empire by 700 and only colony name
- Fully developed around 700 BCE
- Seventh Century is a period of expansion.
- Colonization in Italy and the -Foundation of TARENTUM occurs around 700
- It is the only colony, and clearly a tool of the perioeci to expand their economic horizons.
- Its also a reward for the help in the Messenian War. Tarentum allowed those who wished to escape the Perioeci status. (I.e. not the myth).