What’s so great about the Greeks?

The Greeks
The Greeks did not start off as a big civilisation. In fact even though
people inhabited the land way before the birth of Christ, the land was
difficult to cultivate and people started to leave. Nonetheless when the
Greeks started to learn how to better use their resources and learnt
the art of war, the Greek civilisation flourished
rapidly and remained in power for many years.

In fact the Greeks were admired considerably by

the Romans who adapted most of their customs
and made them their own (such as the architecture
style, clothing etc…). The Greek civilisation was
marked by a great sense of ‘optimism’. The Greeks always
sought means to live a ‘good life’ and this led them to be the first to make various
discoveries and inventions.

How did the Greeks govern themselves?

Greece was not one single nation. Rather, each city

was a state on in its own and it governed itself
autonomously. Thus these city states were called
‘polis’. Various forms of government existed
amongst the city-states such as – monarchies
(governed by a king), an oligarchy (governed by
some privileged members of the society), a tyranny
(in which one person dictates the law) or a
democracy.

In fact ‘Democracy’ was invented in Greece and it is

a system of government in which each valued member of the city (at the time it meant men
who came of age and above) would be called a citizen and he had a the right to vote when
decisions were made. Democracy originated in the city state of Athens but even though it
promoted equality, it still gave no say to women, children, people lacking Athenian
citizenship and slaves.

The Greek way of life!

One means by which the Greeks sought

the ‘good life’ was by staying healthy. Not
only did they practice a healthy diet (the
Mediterranean diet) but they also liked to stay fit. Thus men were encouraged to practice
various sports and to take care of their bodies. As a result in the city of Olympia, the
Olympic games were born. These sports games were held periodically every four years and
every free citizen (men only) could participate in the games. At first the disciplines were few
but they soon increased and to mention a few you had races, throwing of javelins and the
discus, boxing and wrestling. The games were held in the name of Zeus and the men usually
competed naked in order to honour their bodies. Women were not allowed to participated
and neither to watch the games. The winners would receive a wreath crown made out of
laurel leaves or olive leaves. The first ever documented Olympic game was in 776BC and a
certain Corobeus from the city state of Elis was the winner.

The Greeks believed that apart from a health body you

needed a healthy mind. Thus they also trained the mind by
creating the ever first board game of checkers (as depicted in
an ancient vase). In the Assembly palace – a square in the
middle of the city state, various discussions were held
through the day because they believed that the best source
for learning was through oracy and discussion. Being able to
speak you mind and speak in public was a very important
trait in ancient Greece. Nonetheless the Greeks had their
own alphabet and they did write things down. In fact the
word ‘alphabet; itself originates from the Greeks. Greek
children (the boys) were encouraged to go to school to learn
how to read and write.

The Greek Arts were also very tasteful. The Greeks were good
craftsmen and artists and we know thanks to the various pottery
examples that were found that not only show the great skill of the
Greeks but also show scenes from their daily life.

The Greeks were also very fond of the theatre, of poems and of
literature. The Greek theatre was very simple – it consisted of a few men
talking in dialogue and wearing masks. When the play was happy it was
called a comedy, when it was sad it was called a tragedy. The actors did
not have costumes but they did wear masks to get into the character.
Euripides and Sophocles were two famous Greek playwrights. Homer is
the most famous Greek poet who penned the epic Iliad and the
Odyssey.
 Philosophy (the love of the mind) was practiced by the Greeks
during their various discussions. Socrates and Plato are two very
influential philosophers and their works are still studied today in
various universities around the world.

Other famous Greeks were Hippocrates who is the father of

medicine. In fact doctors have to take the vow of ‘Hippocrates’
before they can start to practice their profession. Pythagoras on
the other hand was a very famous mathematician.

Plato

The Greek Religion

The Greeks did not believe in one single god, but rather they had various gods who
commanded different aspects of their life. The gods formed one big family, sometimes they
inter-married, they mingled with humans and apart from falling in love they also quarrelled
amongst each other. The gods lived on top of Mount Olympus and the Greeks built various
temples in order to honour them, offer sacrifices and show their devotion to these gods.
These gods were also the protagonists of various myths and legends of Greece and these
mythology stories popularised the Greek culture. Some gods were:

 Aphrodite The sensual goddess of Love and Beauty

 Apollo The youthful god of the Sun and the Music
 Ares The fierce god of War
 Artemis The wild goddess of the Hunt
 Athena The sophisticated goddess of Wisdom and Arts
 Demeter The natural goddess of the Harvest
 Dionysus The joyful god of the Wine
 Hades The gloomy god of the Underworld
 Hephaestus The ill-favored god of Metallurgy
 Hera The mature goddess of the Family
 Poseidon The moody god of the Seas
 Zeus The superior King of the Gods and ruler of mankind

Some other mythological creatures that are popular are: The Medusa, the Cyclops,
Cerberus, the 9 Muses, the Centaurs and the Harpies.

Some famous Myths include: Demeter and Persephone, Arcane, the myth of Icarus,
Narcissus and the story of King Midas.
The Greek Traders

The Greeks were very

good sailors and they soon
discovered trading. They
traded goods but since
they also created the first
coins, they also had the
first money economy. As
their naval power grew
(thanks to the strength of
their ships known as
Bireme and Trireme) the

Greeks also became colonisers, thus winning over various lands in the Mediterranean such
as Marseilles, Naples, Syracuse, Agrigento and Catania. All of their colonies were port cities
in order to be able to develop their trading and moor their ships.

Greek Warfare

The Greeks were also fierce soldiers. Their main soldiers

were called the hoplite who was a heavy infantryman.
While Athens was more known for its culture, Sparta
(another city state) was known for its fierce warriors. In
fact Athens and Sparta clashed many times over the course
of history such as during the Peloponnesian war.

Another popular Myth, related to Warfare is that of the Battle of

Troy. This time all the city states of Greeks joined together with
the King of Sparta Menelaus to defeat the city of Troy (in Turkey)
after its prince Paris had taken Menelaus’ bride Helen. The war
was won by the Greeks who built a wooden horse and climbed
inside it. The Trojans believing that the Greeks had fled took the
horse inside the city walls and feasted all night long. When they
were asleep and tired, the Greeks climbed out of the horse and
sacked the city.
 The Persian Empire also proved to be a very ardent Greek enemy.
In fact the Persians tried to invade Greece three times but at the
end the Greeks were victorious. In 480 BC, the Persian king Xerxes
personally led the second Persian invasion of Greece with one of
the largest ancient armies ever assembled. The Battle of
Thermopylae was spectacularly led by 300 Spartans who stood
against a vast army of Persians. The naval Battle of Salamis is also
renowned for the sever defeat of the Persian navy by the Greeks. 

One can not forget to mention that Greece gave birth to some of
the most famous generals in history such as Pericles (an Athenian
General and statesman) and Alexander the Great.

Greek Architecture
The Greek building style was famous and became a classic. Their amphitheaters were
copied by the Romans and even their temple structures. In fact the Greeks invented three
styles of columns called the – Doric, Ionic and Corinth which were used in their temples.

Two famous Greek temples are the Parthenon and the Erectheion, both of which are found
in the Acropolis which was the top part of Athens which was also the fortified section of the
‘polis’.