Topic 0 Lesson 5 The Ancient Greeks

Intro: The Greek civilization is seen as

the birthplace of European civilization.
(go to map). The Greeks developed
different types of political and legal
systems and laid the foundation for
many social and cultural practices of
Western (European) society. Although
the different city-states were Greek,
they were not united. Each city-state
had its own laws and customs and was
independent of each other. (Highly
decentralized, unlike the Assyrians and
Persians in the Mesopotamia area or the
dynasties of China).
1. Define the following terms: Polis,
Oligarchy, Democracy, Aristocracy,
Monarchy, Homer, Trojan War,
philosophers/philosophy.
2. Why was Athens not a true
Democracy?
3a. What were the two most dominant
Greek city-states?
3b. What were they famous for?
4. What were the Persian wars?
5. What did these wars (refer to # 4)
force the Greeks to do?
6. What was the Peloponnesian war?
7. Who was Philip ll?
8. Who were Socrates, Plato and
Aristotle?
9. What was the Hellenistic age and who
was the person most responsible for this
period? Time period after Alexander the
Great’s rule when Greek culture was
spread throughout the Mediterranean.
10. Who was Alexander the Great and
how far east did he extend his empire?
The empire extended from Greece to
Egypt, to Mesopotamia eastward to
India. The largest empire in the world up
until that time.
11. What was the legacy of the Greeks to
western civilization?
12. Identify: Pythagoras, Archimedes,
Hippocrates.

Your name date

Topic 0 Less. 6
Ancient Rome and the Origins of
Christianity
Intro: The Roman civilization was started
in present day Italy on the Tiber River.
The Romans were able to unite almost
all of Italy in a short time. Latin became
the official language and was the base
for several Western European languages.
The Roman Republic and subsequent
Empire lasted from approximately 500
B.C.E. to about 476 C.E. The Romans were
one of the first ancient civilizations to
establish a Republican form of government.
What is a Republican form of government?
1. Which two groups founded Rome and
started a Republic?
2. What was the make-up of the Roman
Republican form of government?
2b. What is an Aristocratic Oligarchy?
3. Which two groups made up Rome’s class
system?
4. What present day countries/areas were a
part of the Roman empire?
5. Identify: Dictator, veto, tribunes,
imperialism,
6. Identify Tiberius and Gaius Gracchus:
Why were they killed?
7. What other problems/troubles occurred
in Rome which led to civil wars?
8. Who were Pompey, Crassus, Julius
Caesar?
8b. What did these leaders cause to
occur in Rome?
9. Who was Octavian and what title was
he given by the Roman senate?
10. Identify: Hadrian, Pax Romana,
Roman Legions, Diocletian, and
Constantine?
11. What was the main reason why the
Roman empire ended and what year is
given for the “fall’ or end of the Roman
empire?
12. What was Carthage and why did the
Romans fight them in the Punic wars?
The main Phoenician city-state located in
Northern Africa. (Maritime)
13. What were some of the most
important contributions of the Romans
to Western Civilization? Concrete,
aqueducts (water), In art and
architecture-- Frescoes-paintings on
plaster and: Mosaics-pictures made from
chips of colored stone or glass: and laws
and government.
14. Why is the Western World (Europe)
refer to as the Greco-Roman
foundation?
15. Which new religion began to spread
throughout the Roman Empire in the
third century c.e./a.d. ?
16. How was this new religion (refer to
question 15) similar to Judaism?
17. Who’s teachings started Christianity?
18. What Christian concepts shaped the
values of Western civilization? Charity,
humility and love.
19. What is the meaning of the term
Messiah?
20. Who are gentiles?
21. Which of the apostles/disciples is most
responsible for the spreading of
Christianity?
22. What is the Christian holy book called?
23. Identify: heresy/heretics, martyr
Summary: The Roman Empire is
generally regarded as the greatest of all
ancient empires. The Romans conquered
areas/countries in Western Europe that
later became Portugal, Spain, France,
England, part of what became Germany
and Italy, and in the east Greece and the
Byzantine empire. The Romans
introduced Laws, concrete, aqueducts,
and the idea of a Republic.
(republican/democratic form of
government).
The structure or hierarchy of the Roman
Catholic Church
Pope
College of Cardinals
Main functions are to advice the pope and
select a new pope when the existing pope
dies or retires. (recently)
Archbishops
Bishops
Priests

There are two types of Clergy.

a. Secular clergy- those who deal with
people of the world. (worldly) (sex) drinking
alcohol, wearing jewelry, pleasure.
Example: Priests, bishops, etc.

b. Regula clergy- those who abstain from

worldly affairs. Example Monks, and later
Nuns. Dedicate themselves to a life of
prayer, serving God and helping people.
1. Where do Monks live? Monastery. The
leader of the Monks is called an Abbott.
2. Where do Nuns live? Convents. The
leader of the nuns is called an Abbess.
3. The pope lives in Vatican City in Rome.
4. The pope’s office is called the papacy.
5. The territories around Rome were called
the Papal States.
6. The church’s laws were called Canon
laws, which were drawn up by the Council
of Bishops- these were rules for clergy
members as well as lay people under the
church’s jurisdiction.
The laity as opposed to the clergy.
The term laity refers to regular people in
the church audience. From this term, we
get lay-people or lay-persons. People who
are not official members of an organization
or profession.