Ancient Greece

Ancient Greece (Greek: Ἑλλάς, romanized: Hellás ) was a nort heast ern Medit erranean
civilizat ion, exist ing from t he Greek Dark Ages of t he 12t h–9t h cent uries BC t o t he end of
classical ant iquit y (c. 600 AD), t hat comprised a loose collect ion of cult urally and linguist ically
relat ed cit y-st at es and ot her t errit ories. Most of t hese regions were o cially uni ed only

ffi
fi
once, for 13 years, under Alexander t he Great 's empire from 336 t o 323 BC.[a] In West ern
hist ory, t he era of classical ant iquit y was immediat ely followed by t he Early Middle Ages and
t he Byzant ine period.[1]

The Parthenon, a temple dedicated to Athena,

located on the Acropolis in Athens, is one of the
most representative symbols of the culture and
sophistication of the ancient Greeks.

Three cent uries aft er t he Lat e Bronze Age collapse of Mycenaean Greece, Greek urban poleis
began t o form in t he 8t h cent ury BC, ushering in t he Archaic period and t he colonizat ion of t he
Medit erranean Basin. This was followed by t he age of Classical Greece, from t he Greco-
Persian Wars t o t he 5t h t o 4t h cent uries BC, and which included t he Golden Age of At hens.
The conquest s of Alexander t he Great spread Hellenist ic civilizat ion from t he west ern
Medit erranean t o Cent ral Asia. The Hellenist ic period ended wit h t he conquest of t he east ern
Medit erranean world by t he Roman Republic, and t he annexat ion of t he Roman province of
Macedonia in Roman Greece, and lat er t he province of Achaea during t he Roman Empire.

Classical Greek cult ure, especially philosophy, had a powerful influence on ancient Rome,
which carried a version of it t hroughout t he Medit erranean and much of Europe. For t his
reason, Classical Greece is generally considered t he cradle of West ern civilizat ion, t he seminal
cult ure from which t he modern West derives many of it s founding archet ypes and ideas in
polit ics, philosophy, science, and art .[2][3][4]

Chronology
Classical ant iquit y in t he Medit erranean region is commonly considered t o have begun in t he
8t h cent ury BC[5] (around t he t ime of t he earliest recorded poet ry of Homer) and ended in t he
6t h cent ury AD.

Classical ant iquit y in Greece was preceded by t he Greek Dark Ages (c. 1200 – c. 800 BC),
archaeologically charact erised by t he prot ogeomet ric and geomet ric st yles of designs on
pot t ery. Following t he Dark Ages was t he Archaic Period, beginning around t he 8t h cent ury BC,
which saw early development s in Greek cult ure and societ y leading t o t he Classical Period[6]
from t he Persian invasion of Greece in 480 BC unt il t he deat h of Alexander t he Great in
323 BC.[7] The Classical Period is charact erized by a "classical" st yle, i.e. one which was
considered exemplary by lat er observers, most famously in t he Part henon of At hens.
Polit ically, t he Classical Period was dominat ed by At hens and t he Delian League during t he
5t h cent ury, but displaced by Spart an hegemony during t he early 4t h cent ury BC, before
power shift ed t o Thebes and t he Boeot ian League and finally t o t he League of Corint h led by
Macedon. This period was shaped by t he Greco-Persian Wars, t he Peloponnesian War, and t he
Rise of Macedon.

Following t he Classical period was t he Hellenist ic period (323–146 BC), during which Greek
cult ure and power expanded int o t he Near and Middle East from t he deat h of Alexander unt il
t he Roman conquest . Roman Greece is usually count ed from t he Roman vict ory over t he
Corint hians at t he Bat t le of Corint h in 146 BC t o t he est ablishment of Byzant ium by
Const ant ine as t he capit al of t he Roman Empire in 330 AD. Finally, Lat e Ant iquit y refers t o t he
period of Christ ianizat ion during t he lat er 4t h t o early 6t h cent uries AD, consummat ed by t he
closure of t he Academy of At hens by Just inian I in 529.[8]
Historiography

The Victorious Youth

(c. 310 BC) is a rare, water-
preserved bronze sculpture
from ancient Greece.

The hist orical period of ancient Greece is unique in world hist ory as t he first period at t est ed
direct ly in comprehensive, narrat ive hist oriography, while earlier ancient hist ory or prot ohist ory
is known from much more fragment ary document s such as annals, king list s, and pragmat ic
epigraphy.

Herodot us is widely known as t he "fat her of hist ory": his Histories are eponymous of t he
ent ire field. Writ t en bet ween t he 450s and 420s BC, Herodot us' work reaches about a cent ury
int o t he past , discussing 6t h cent ury BC hist orical figures such as Darius I of Persia, Cambyses
II and Psamt ik III, and alluding t o some 8t h cent ury BC persons such as Candaules. The
accuracy of Herodot us' works is debat ed.[9][10][11][12][13]

Herodot us was succeeded by aut hors such as Thucydides, Xenophon, Demost henes, Plat o
and Arist ot le. Most were eit her At henian or pro-At henian, which is why far more is known
about t he hist ory and polit ics of At hens t han of many ot her cit ies. Their scope is furt her
limit ed by a focus on polit ical, milit ary and diplomat ic hist ory, ignoring economic and social
hist ory.[14]
History

Archaic period

Dipylon Vase of the late Geometric

period, or the beginning of the Archaic
period, c. 750 BC.

The archaic period, last ing from approximat ely 800 t o 500 BC, saw t he culminat ion of polit ical
and social development s which had begun in t he Greek dark age, wit h t he polis (cit y-st at e)
becoming t he most import ant unit of polit ical organisat ion in Greece.[15] The absence of
powerful st at es in Greece aft er t he collapse of Mycenaean power, and t he geography of
Greece, where many set t lement s were separat ed from t heir neighbours by mount ainous
t errain, encouraged t he development of small independent cit y-st at es.[16] Several Greek
st at es saw t yrant s rise t o power in t his period, most famously at Corint h from 657 BC.[17] The
period also saw t he founding of Greek colonies around t he Medit erranean, wit h Euboean
set t lement s at Al-Mina in t he east as early as 800 BC, and Ischia in t he west by 775.[18]
Increasing cont act wit h non-Greek peoples in t his period, especially in t he Near East , inspired
development s in art and archit ect ure, t he adopt ion of coinage, and t he development of t he
Greek alphabet .[19]

At hens developed it s democrat ic syst em over t he course of t he archaic period. Already in t he

sevent h cent ury, t he right of all cit izen men t o at t end t he assembly appears t o have been
est ablished.[20] Aft er a failed coup led by Cylon of At hens around 636 BC, Draco was
appoint ed t o est ablish a code of laws in 621. This failed t o reduce t he polit ical t ension
bet ween t he poor and t he elit es, and in 594 Solon was given t he aut horit y t o enact anot her
set of reforms, which at t empt ed t o balance t he power of t he rich and t he poor.[21] In t he
middle of t he sixt h cent ury, Pisist rat us est ablished himself as a t yrant , and aft er his deat h in
527 his son Hippias inherit ed his posit ion; by t he end of t he sixt h cent ury he had been
overt hrown and Cleist henes carried out furt her democrat ising reforms.[22]

In Spart a, a polit ical syst em wit h t wo kings, a council of elders, and five ephors developed
over t he course of t he eight h and sevent h cent ury. According t o Spart an t radit ion, t his
const it ut ion was est ablished by t he legendary lawgiver Lycurgus.[23] Over t he course of t he
first and second Messenian wars, Spart a subjugat ed t he neighbouring region of Messenia,
enserfing t he populat ion.[24]

In t he sixt h cent ury, Greek cit y-st at es began t o develop formal relat ionships wit h one
anot her, where previously individual rulers had relied on personal relat ionships wit h t he elit es
of ot her cit ies.[25] Towards t he end of t he archaic period, Spart a began t o build a series of
alliances, t he Peloponnesian League, wit h cit ies including Corint h, Elis, and Megara,[26] isolat ing
Messenia and reinforcing Spart a's posit ion against Argos, t he ot her major power in t he
Peloponnese.[27] Ot her alliances in t he sixt h cent ury included t hose bet ween Elis and Heraea
in t he Peloponnese; and bet ween t he Greek colony Sybaris in sout hern It aly, it s allies, and t he
Serdaioi.[28]

Classical Greece

Early Athenian coin, depicting the

head of Athena on the obverse and
her owl on the reverse – 5th century
BC.

In 499 BC, t he Ionian cit y st at es under Persian rule rebelled against t heir Persian-support ed
t yrant rulers.[29] Support ed by t roops sent from At hens and Eret ria, t hey advanced as far as
Sardis and burnt t he cit y before being driven back by a Persian count erat t ack.[30] The revolt
cont inued unt il 494, when t he rebelling Ionians were defeat ed.[30] Darius did not forget t hat
At hens had assist ed t he Ionian revolt , and in 490 he assembled an armada t o ret aliat e.[31]
Though heavily out numbered, t he At henians—support ed by t heir Plat aean allies—defeat ed
t he Persian hordes at t he Bat t le of Marat hon, and t he Persian fleet t urned t ail.[32]
 Map showing events of the first phases of the
Greco-Persian Wars.

Delian League ("Athenian Empire"), immediately

before the Peloponnesian War in 431 BC.

Ten years lat er, a second invasion was launched by Darius' son Xerxes.[33] The cit y-st at es of
nort hern and cent ral Greece submit t ed t o t he Persian forces wit hout resist ance, but a
coalit ion of 31 Greek cit y st at es, including At hens and Spart a, det ermined t o resist t he
Persian invaders.[33] At t he same t ime, Greek Sicily was invaded by a Cart haginian force.[33] In
480 BC, t he first major bat t le of t he invasion was fought at Thermopylae, where a small
rearguard of Greeks, led by t hree hundred Spart ans, held a crucial pass guarding t he heart of
Greece for several days; at t he same t ime Gelon, t yrant of Syracuse, defeat ed t he
Cart haginian invasion at t he Bat t le of Himera.[34]

The Persians were decisively defeat ed at sea by a primarily At henian naval force at t he Bat t le
of Salamis, and on land in 479 BC at t he Bat t le of Plat aea.[35] The alliance against Persia
cont inued, init ially led by t he Spart an Pausanias but from 477 by At hens,[36] and by 460 Persia
had been driven out of t he Aegean.[37] During t his long campaign, t he Delian League gradually
t ransformed from a defensive alliance of Greek st at es int o an At henian empire, as At hens'
growing naval power int imidat ed t he ot her league st at es.[38] At hens ended it s campaigns
against Persia in 450, aft er a disast rous defeat in Egypt in 454, and t he deat h of Cimon in
act ion against t he Persians on Cyprus in 450.[39]

As t he At henian fight against t he Persian empire waned, conflict grew bet ween At hens and
Spart a. Suspicious of t he increasing At henian power funded by t he Delian League, Spart a
offered aid t o reluct ant members of t he League t o rebel against At henian dominat ion. These
t ensions were exacerbat ed in 462 BC when At hens sent a force t o aid Spart a in overcoming a
helot revolt , but t his aid was reject ed by t he Spart ans.[40] In t he 450s, At hens t ook cont rol of
Boeot ia, and won vict ories over Aegina and Corint h.[39] However, At hens failed t o win a
decisive vict ory, and in 447 lost Boeot ia again.[39] At hens and Spart a signed t he Thirt y Years'
Peace in t he wint er of 446/5, ending t he conflict .[39]

Despit e t he t reat y, At henian relat ions wit h Spart a declined again in t he 430s, and in 431 BC
t he Peloponnesian War began.[41] The first phase of t he war saw a series of fruit less annual
invasions of At t ica by Spart a, while At hens successfully fought t he Corint hian empire in
nort hwest Greece and defended it s own empire, despit e a plague which killed t he leading
At henian st at esman Pericles.[42] The war t urned aft er At henian vict ories led by Cleon at Pylos
and Sphakt eria,[42] and Spart a sued for peace, but t he At henians reject ed t he proposal.[43] The
At henian failure t o regain cont rol of Boeot ia at Delium and Brasidas' successes in nort hern
Greece in 424 improved Spart a's posit ion aft er Sphakt eria.[43] Aft er t he deat hs of Cleon and
Brasidas, t he st rongest proponent s of war on each side, a peace t reat y was negoit iat ed in
421 by t he At henian general Nicias.[44]

The peace did not last , however. In 418 BC allied forces of At hens and Argos were defeat ed
by Spart a at Mant inea.[45] In 415 At hens launched an ambit ious naval expedit ion t o dominat e
Sicily;[46] t he expedit ion ended in disast er at t he harbor of Syracuse, wit h almost t he ent ire
army killed, and t he ships dest royed.[47] Soon aft er t he At henian defeat in Syracuse, At hens'
Ionian allies began t o rebel against t he Delian league, while Persia began t o once again involve
it self in Greek affairs on t he Spart an side.[48] Init ially t he At henian posit ion cont inued relat ively
st rong, wit h import ant vict ories at Cyzicus in 410 and Arginusae in 406.[49] However, in 405 t he
Spart an Lysander defeat ed At hens in t he Bat t le of Aegospot ami, and began t o blockade
At hens' harbour;[50] driven by hunger, At hens sued for peace, agreeing t o surrender t heir fleet
and join t he Spart an-led Peloponnesian League.[51] Following t he At henian surrender, Spart a
inst alled an oligarchic regime, t he Thirt y Tyrant s, in At hens,[50] one of a number of Spart an-
backed oligarchies which rose t o power aft er t he Peloponnesian war.[52] Spart an
predominance did not last : aft er only a year, t he Thirt y had been overt hrown.[53]

The first half of t he fourt h cent ury saw t he major Greek st at es at t empt t o dominat e t he
mainland; none were successful, and t heir result ing weakness led t o a power vacuum which
would event ually be filled by Macedon under Philip II and t hen Alexander t he Great .[54] In t he
immediat e aft ermat h of t he Peloponnesian war, Spart a at t empt ed t o ext end t heir own
power, leading Argos, At hens, Corint h, and Thebes t o join against t hem.[55] Aiming t o prevent
any single Greek st at e gaining t he dominance t hat would allow it t o challenge Persia, t he
Persian king init ially joined t he alliance against Spart a, before imposing t he Peace of
Ant alcidas ("King's Peace") which rest ored Persia's cont rol over t he Anat olian Greeks.[56]

By 371 BC, Thebes was in t he ascendancy, defeat ing Spart a at t he Bat t le of Leuct ra, killing
t he Spart an king Cleombrot us I, and invading Laconia. Furt her Theban successes against
Spart a in 369 led t o Messenia gaining independence; Spart a never recovered from t he loss of
Messenia's fert ile land and t he helot workforce it provided.[57] The rising power of Thebes led
Spart a and At hens t o join forces; in 362 t hey were defeat ed by Thebes at t he Bat t le of
Mant inea. In t he aft ermat h of Mant inea, none of t he major Greek st at es were able t o
dominat e. Though Thebes had won t he bat t le, t heir general Epaminondas was killed, and t hey
spent t he following decades embroiled in wars wit h t heir neighbours; At hens, meanwhile, saw
it s second naval alliance, formed in 377, collapse in t he mid-350s.[58]

The power vacuum in Greece aft er t he Bat t le of Mant inea was filled by Macedon, under Philip
II. In 338 BC, he defeat ed a Greek alliance at t he Bat t le of Chaeronea, and subsequent ly
formed t he League of Corint h. Philip planned t o lead t he League t o invade Persia, but was
murdered in 336 BC. His son Alexander t he Great was left t o fulfil his fat her's ambit ions.[59]
Aft er campaigns against Macedon's west ern and nort hern enemies, and t hose Greek st at es
t hat had broken from t he League of Corint h following t he deat h of Philip, Alexander began his
campaign against Persia in 334 BC.[60] He conquered Persia, defeat ing Darius III at t he Bat t le
of Issus in 333 BC, and aft er t he Bat t le of Gaugamela in 331 BC proclaimed himself king of
Asia.[61] From 329 BC he led expedit ions t o Bact ria and t hen India;[62] furt her plans t o invade
Arabia and Nort h Africa were halt ed by his deat h in 323 BC.[63]

Hellenistic Greece

Alexander Mosaic, National

Archaeological Museum, Naples.
The period from t he deat h of Alexander t he Great in 323 unt il t he deat h of Cleopat ra, t he last
Macedonian ruler of Egypt , is known as t he Hellenist ic period. In t he early part of t his period, a
new form of kingship developed based on Macedonian and Near East ern t radit ions. The first
Hellenist ic kings were previously Alexander's generals, and t ook power in t he period following
his deat h, t hough t hey were not part of exist ing royal lineages and lacked hist oric claims t o
t he t errit ories t hey cont rolled.[64] The most import ant of t hese rulers in t he decades aft er
Alexander's deat h were Ant igonus I and his son Demet rius in Macedonia and t he rest of
Greece, Pt olemy in Egypt , and Seleucus I in Syria and t he former Persian empire;[65] smaller
Hellenist ic kingdoms included t he At t alids in Anat olia and t he Greco-Bact rian kingdom.[66]

The major Hellenistic realms included the Diadochi

kingdoms:
Kingdom of Ptolemy I Soter
Kingdom of Cassander
Kingdom of Lysimachus
Kingdom of Seleucus I Nicator
Epirus
Also shown on the map:
Greek colonies
Carthage (non-Greek)
Rome (non-Greek)
The orange areas were often in dispute after 281
BC. The Attalid dynasty occupied some of this area.
Not shown: Indo-Greek Kingdom.

In t he early part of t he Hellenist ic period, t he exact borders of t he Hellenist ic kingdoms were

not set t led. Ant igonus at t empt ed t o expand his t errit ory by at t acking t he ot her successor
kingdoms unt il t hey joined against him, and he was killed at t he Bat t le of Ipsus in 301 BC.[67]
His son Demet rius spent many years in Seleucid capt ivit y, and his son, Ant igonus II, only
reclaimed t he Macedonian t hrone around 276.[67] Meanwhile, t he Seleucid kingdom gave up
t errit ory in t he east t o t he Indian king Chandragupt a Maurya in exchange for war elephant s,
and lat er lost large part s of Persia t o t he Part hian Empire.[67] By t he mid-t hird cent ury, t he
kingdoms of Alexander's successors was most ly st able, t hough t here cont inued t o be
disput es over border areas.[66]

During t he Hellenist ic period, t he import ance of "Greece proper" (t he t errit ory of modern
Greece) wit hin t he Greek-speaking world declined sharply. The great capit als of Hellenist ic
cult ure were Alexandria in t he Pt olemaic Kingdom and Ant ioch in t he Seleucid Empire.

The conquest s of Alexander had numerous consequences for t he Greek cit y-st at es. It
great ly widened t he horizons of t he Greeks and led t o a st eady emigrat ion of t he young and
ambit ious t o t he new Greek empires in t he east .[68] Many Greeks migrat ed t o Alexandria,
Ant ioch and t he many ot her new Hellenist ic cit ies founded in Alexander's wake, as far away as
present -day Afghanist an and Pakist an, where t he Greco-Bact rian Kingdom and t he Indo-Greek
Kingdom survived unt il t he end of t he first cent ury BC.

The cit y-st at es wit hin Greece formed t hemselves int o t wo leagues; t he Achaean League
(including Thebes, Corint h and Argos) and t he Aet olian League (including Spart a and At hens).
For much of t he period unt il t he Roman conquest , t hese leagues were at war, oft en
part icipat ing in t he conflict s bet ween t he Diadochi (t he successor st at es t o Alexander's
empire).

The Ant igonid Kingdom became involved in a war wit h t he Roman Republic in t he lat e 3rd
cent ury. Alt hough t he First Macedonian War was inconclusive, t he Romans, in t ypical fashion,
cont inued t o fight Macedon unt il it was complet ely absorbed int o t he Roman Republic (by
149 BC). In t he east , t he unwieldy Seleucid Empire gradually disint egrat ed, alt hough a rump
survived unt il 64 BC, whilst t he Pt olemaic Kingdom cont inued in Egypt unt il 30 BC when it t oo
was conquered by t he Romans. The Aet olian league grew wary of Roman involvement in
Greece, and sided wit h t he Seleucids in t he Roman–Seleucid War; when t he Romans were
vict orious, t he league was effect ively absorbed int o t he Republic. Alt hough t he Achaean
league out last ed bot h t he Aet olian league and Macedon, it was also soon defeat ed and
absorbed by t he Romans in 146 BC, bringing Greek independence t o an end.

Roman Greece
The Greek peninsula came under Roman rule during t he 146 BC conquest of Greece aft er t he
Bat t le of Corint h. Macedonia became a Roman province while sout hern Greece came under
t he surveillance of Macedonia's prefect ; however, some Greek poleis managed t o maint ain a
part ial independence and avoid t axat ion. The Aegean Islands were added t o t his t errit ory in
133 BC. At hens and ot her Greek cit ies revolt ed in 88 BC, and t he peninsula was crushed by t he
Roman general Sulla. The Roman civil wars devast at ed t he land even furt her, unt il August us
organized t he peninsula as t he province of Achaea in 27 BC.
Greece was a key east ern province of t he Roman Empire, as t he Roman cult ure had long been
in fact Greco-Roman. The Greek language served as a lingua franca in t he East and in It aly,
and many Greek int ellect uals such as Galen would perform most of t heir work in Rome.

Geography

Regions

Map showing the major regions of mainland

ancient Greece and adjacent "barbarian" lands.

The t errit ory of Greece is mount ainous, and as a result , ancient Greece consist ed of many
smaller regions, each wit h it s own dialect , cult ural peculiarit ies, and ident it y. Regionalism and
regional conflict s were prominent feat ures of ancient Greece. Cit ies t ended t o be locat ed in
valleys bet ween mount ains, or on coast al plains, and dominat ed a cert ain area around t hem.

In t he sout h lay t he Peloponnese, consist ing of t he regions of Laconia (sout heast ), Messenia
(sout hwest ), Elis (west ), Achaia (nort h), Korint hia (nort heast ), Argolis (east ), and Arcadia
(cent er). These names survive t o t he present day as regional unit s of modern Greece, t hough
wit h somewhat different boundaries. Mainland Greece t o t he nort h, nowadays known as
Cent ral Greece, consist ed of Aet olia and Acarnania in t he west , Locris, Doris, and Phocis in t he
cent er, while in t he east lay Boeot ia, At t ica, and Megaris. Nort heast lay Thessaly, while Epirus
lay t o t he nort hwest . Epirus st ret ched from t he Ambracian Gulf in t he sout h t o t he Ceraunian
Mount ains and t he Aoos river in t he nort h, and consist ed of Chaonia (nort h), Molossia (cent er),
and Thesprot ia (sout h). In t he nort heast corner was Macedonia,[69] originally consist ing Lower
Macedonia and it s regions, such as Elimeia, Pieria, and Orest is. Around t he t ime of Alexander I
of Macedon, t he Argead kings of Macedon st art ed t o expand int o Upper Macedonia, lands
inhabit ed by independent Macedonian t ribes like t he Lyncest ae, Orest ae and t he Elimiot ae
and t o t he west , beyond t he Axius river, int o Eordaia, Bot t iaea, Mygdonia, and Almopia, regions
set t led by Thracian t ribes.[70] To t he nort h of Macedonia lay various non-Greek peoples such
as t he Paeonians due nort h, t he Thracians t o t he nort heast , and t he Illyrians, wit h whom t he
Macedonians were frequent ly in conflict , t o t he nort hwest . Chalcidice was set t led early on by
sout hern Greek colonist s and was considered part of t he Greek world, while from t he lat e 2nd
millennium BC subst ant ial Greek set t lement also occurred on t he east ern shores of t he
Aegean, in Anat olia.

Colonies

Ancient Greek colonies in the archaic period.

The Temple of Concordia, Valle dei

Templi, Magna Graecia, in present-
day Italy
During t he Archaic period, t he Greek populat ion grew beyond t he capacit y of t he limit ed
arable land of Greece proper, result ing in t he large-scale est ablishment of colonies elsewhere:
according t o one est imat e, t he populat ion of t he widening area of Greek set t lement
increased roughly t enfold from 800 BC t o 400 BC, from 800,000 t o as many as 71⁄2-
10 million.[71] This was not simply for t rade, but also t o found set t lement s. These Greek
colonies were not , as Roman colonies were, dependent on t heir mot her-cit y, but were
independent cit y-st at es in t heir own right .[72]

Greeks set t led out side of Greece in t wo dist inct ways. The first was in permanent
set t lement s founded by Greeks, which formed as independent poleis. The second form was
in what hist orians refer t o as emporia ; t rading post s which were occupied by bot h Greeks and
non-Greeks and which were primarily concerned wit h t he manufact ure and sale of goods.
Examples of t his lat t er t ype of set t lement are found at Al Mina in t he east and Pit hekoussai
in t he west .[73] From about 750 BC t he Greeks began 250 years of expansion, set t ling colonies
in all direct ions. To t he east , t he Aegean coast of Asia Minor was colonized first , followed by
Cyprus and t he coast s of Thrace, t he Sea of Marmara and sout h coast of t he Black Sea.

Event ually, Greek colonizat ion reached as far nort heast as present -day Ukraine and Russia
(Taganrog). To t he west t he coast s of Illyria, Sout hern It aly (called "Magna Graecia") were
set t led, followed by Sout hern France, Corsica, and even east ern Spain. Greek colonies were
also founded in Egypt and Libya. Modern Syracuse, Naples, Marseille and Ist anbul had t heir
beginnings as t he Greek colonies Syracusae (Συράκουσαι), Neapolis (Νεάπολις), Massalia
(Μασσαλία) and Byzant ion (Βυζάντιον). These colonies played an import ant role in t he spread
of Greek influence t hroughout Europe and also aided in t he est ablishment of long-dist ance
t rading net works bet ween t he Greek cit y-st at es, boost ing t he economy of ancient Greece.
Politics and society

Political structure

Marble bust of Pericles with a

Corinthian helmet, Roman
copy of a Greek original,
Museo Chiaramonti, Vatican
Museums; Pericles was a key
populist political figure in the
development of the radical
Athenian democracy.[74]

Ancient Greece consist ed of several hundred relat ively independent cit y-st at es (poleis ). This
was a sit uat ion unlike t hat in most ot her cont emporary societ ies, which were eit her t ribal or
kingdoms ruling over relat ively large t errit ories. Undoubt edly, t he geography of Greece—
divided and sub-divided by hills, mount ains, and rivers—cont ribut ed t o t he fragment ary nat ure
of ancient Greece. On t he one hand, t he ancient Greeks had no doubt t hat t hey were "one
people"; t hey had t he same religion, same basic cult ure, and same language. Furt hermore, t he
Greeks were very aware of t heir t ribal origins; Herodot us was able t o ext ensively cat egorise
t he cit y-st at es by t ribe. Yet , alt hough t hese higher-level relat ionships exist ed, t hey seem t o
have rarely had a major role in Greek polit ics. The independence of t he poleis was fiercely
defended; unificat ion was somet hing rarely cont emplat ed by t he ancient Greeks. Even when,
during t he second Persian invasion of Greece, a group of cit y-st at es allied t hemselves t o
defend Greece, t he vast majorit y of poleis remained neut ral, and aft er t he Persian defeat , t he
allies quickly ret urned t o infight ing.[75]

Thus, t he major peculiarit ies of t he ancient Greek polit ical syst em were it s fragment ary
nat ure (and t hat t his does not part icularly seem t o have t ribal origin), and t he part icular focus
on urban cent ers wit hin ot herwise t iny st at es. The peculiarit ies of t he Greek syst em are
furt her evidenced by t he colonies t hat t hey set up t hroughout t he Medit erranean, which,
t hough t hey might count a cert ain Greek polis as t heir 'mot her' (and remain sympat het ic t o
her), were complet ely independent of t he founding cit y.

Inevit ably smaller poleis might be dominat ed by larger neighbors, but conquest or direct rule
by anot her cit y-st at e appears t o have been quit e rare. Inst ead t he poleis grouped t hemselves
int o leagues, membership of which was in a const ant st at e of flux. Lat er in t he Classical
period, t he leagues would become fewer and larger, be dominat ed by one cit y (part icularly
At hens, Spart a and Thebes); and oft en poleis would be compelled t o join under t hreat of war
(or as part of a peace t reat y). Even aft er Philip II of Macedon "conquered" t he heart lands of
ancient Greece, he did not at t empt t o annex t he t errit ory or unify it int o a new province, but
compelled most of t he poleis t o join his own Corint hian League.

Government and law

Inheritance law, part of the Law Code

of Gortyn, Crete, fragment of the 11th
column. Limestone, 5th century BC

Init ially many Greek cit y-st at es seem t o have been pet t y kingdoms; t here was oft en a cit y
official carrying some residual, ceremonial funct ions of t he king (basileus ), e.g., t he archon
basileus in At hens.[76] However, by t he Archaic period and t he first hist orical consciousness,
most had already become arist ocrat ic oligarchies. It is unclear exact ly how t his change
occurred. For inst ance, in At hens, t he kingship had been reduced t o a heredit ary, lifelong chief
magist racy (archon) by c. 1050 BC; by 753 BC t his had become a decennial, elect ed
archonship; and finally by 683 BC an annually elect ed archonship. Through each st age, more
power would have been t ransferred t o t he arist ocracy as a whole, and away from a single
individual.

Inevit ably, t he dominat ion of polit ics and concomit ant aggregat ion of wealt h by small groups
of families was apt t o cause social unrest in many poleis . In many cit ies a t yrant (not in t he
modern sense of repressive aut ocracies), would at some point seize cont rol and govern
according t o t heir own will; oft en a populist agenda would help sust ain t hem in power. In a
syst em wracked wit h class conflict , government by a 'st rongman' was oft en t he best solut ion.

At hens fell under a t yranny in t he second half of t he 6t h cent ury BC. When t his t yranny was
ended, t he At henians founded t he world's first democracy as a radical solut ion t o prevent t he
arist ocracy regaining power. A cit izens' assembly (t he Ecclesia ), for t he discussion of cit y
policy, had exist ed since t he reforms of Draco in 621 BC; all cit izens were permit t ed t o
at t end aft er t he reforms of Solon (early 6t h cent ury), but t he poorest cit izens could not
address t he assembly or run for office. Wit h t he est ablishment of t he democracy, t he
assembly became t he de jure mechanism of government ; all cit izens had equal privileges in
t he assembly. However, non-cit izens, such as met ics (foreigners living in At hens) or slaves, had
no polit ical right s at all.

Aft er t he rise of democracy in At hens, ot her cit y-st at es founded democracies. However,
many ret ained more t radit ional forms of government . As so oft en in ot her mat t ers, Spart a
was a not able except ion t o t he rest of Greece, ruled t hrough t he whole period by not one, but
t wo heredit ary monarchs. This was a form of diarchy. The Kings of Spart a belonged t o t he
Agiads and t he Eurypont ids, descendant s respect ively of Euryst henes and Procles. Bot h
dynast ies' founders were believed t o be t win sons of Arist odemus, a Heraclid ruler. However,
t he powers of t hese kings were held in check by bot h a council of elders (t he Gerousia ) and
magist rat es specifically appoint ed t o wat ch over t he kings (t he Ephors ).

Social structure
Only free, land-owning, nat ive-born men could be cit izens ent it led t o t he full prot ect ion of
t he law in a cit y-st at e. In most cit y-st at es, unlike t he sit uat ion in Rome, social prominence did
not allow special right s. Somet imes families cont rolled public religious funct ions, but t his
ordinarily did not give any ext ra power in t he government . In At hens, t he populat ion was
divided int o four social classes based on wealt h. People could change classes if t hey made
more money. In Spart a, all male cit izens were called homoioi, meaning "peers". However,
Spart an kings, who served as t he cit y-st at e's dual milit ary and religious leaders, came from
t wo families.[77]

Slavery

Gravestone of a woman with her slave

child-attendant, c. 100 BC

Slaves had no power or st at us. Slaves had t he right t o have a family and own propert y, subject
t o t heir mast er's goodwill and permission, but t hey had no polit ical right s. By 600 BC, chat t el
slavery had spread in Greece. By t he 5t h cent ury BC, slaves made up one-t hird of t he t ot al
populat ion in some cit y-st at es. Bet ween 40–80% of t he populat ion of Classical At hens were
slaves.[78] Slaves out side of Spart a almost never revolt ed because t hey were made up of t oo
many nat ionalit ies and were t oo scat t ered t o organize. However, unlike lat er West ern cult ure,
t he ancient Greeks did not t hink in t erms of race.[79]

Most families owned slaves as household servant s and laborers, and even poor families might
have owned a few slaves. Owners were not allowed t o beat or kill t heir slaves. Owners oft en
promised t o free slaves in t he fut ure t o encourage slaves t o work hard. Unlike in Rome,
freedmen did not become cit izens. Inst ead, t hey were mixed int o t he populat ion of metics ,
which included people from foreign count ries or ot her cit y-st at es who were officially allowed
t o live in t he st at e.

Cit y-st at es legally owned slaves. These public slaves had a larger measure of independence
t han slaves owned by families, living on t heir own and performing specialized t asks. In At hens,
public slaves were t rained t o look out for count erfeit coinage, while t emple slaves act ed as
servant s of t he t emple's deit y and Scyt hian slaves were employed in At hens as a police force
corralling cit izens t o polit ical funct ions.
Spart a had a special t ype of slaves called helots . Helot s were Messenians enslaved en masse
during t he Messenian Wars by t he st at e and assigned t o families where t hey were forced t o
st ay. Helot s raised food and did household chores so t hat women could concent rat e on
raising st rong children while men could devot e t heir t ime t o t raining as hoplit es. Their mast ers
t reat ed t hem harshly, and helot s revolt ed against t heir mast ers several t imes. In 370/69 BC,
as a result of Epaminondas' liberat ion of Messenia from Spart an rule, t he helot syst em t here
came t o an end and t he helot s won t heir freedom.[80] However, it did cont inue t o persist in
Laconia unt il t he 2nd cent ury BC.

Education

Mosaic from Pompeii depicting

Plato's Academy

For most of Greek hist ory, educat ion was privat e, except in Spart a. During t he Hellenist ic
period, some cit y-st at es est ablished public schools. Only wealt hy families could afford a
t eacher. Boys learned how t o read, writ e and quot e lit erat ure. They also learned t o sing and
play one musical inst rument and were t rained as at hlet es for milit ary service. They st udied
not for a job but t o become an effect ive cit izen. Girls also learned t o read, writ e and do
simple arit hmet ic so t hey could manage t he household. They almost never received
educat ion aft er childhood.[81]

Boys went t o school at t he age of seven, or went t o t he barracks, if t hey lived in Spart a. The
t hree t ypes of t eachings were: grammat ist es for arit hmet ic, kit harist es for music and dancing,
and Paedot ribae for sport s.
Boys from wealt hy families at t ending t he privat e school lessons were t aken care of by a
paidagogos , a household slave select ed for t his t ask who accompanied t he boy during t he
day. Classes were held in t eachers' privat e houses and included reading, writ ing, mat hemat ics,
singing, and playing t he lyre and flut e. When t he boy became 12 years old t he schooling
st art ed t o include sport s such as wrest ling, running, and t hrowing discus and javelin. In At hens,
some older yout hs at t ended academy for t he finer disciplines such as cult ure, sciences,
music, and t he art s. The schooling ended at age 18, followed by milit ary t raining in t he army
usually for one or t wo years.[82]

Only a small number of boys cont inued t heir educat ion aft er childhood, as in t he Spart an
agoge. A crucial part of a wealt hy t eenager's educat ion was a ment orship wit h an elder, which
in a few places and t imes may have included pederast y. The t eenager learned by wat ching his
ment or t alking about polit ics in t he agora , helping him perform his public dut ies, exercising
wit h him in t he gymnasium and at t ending symposia wit h him. The richest st udent s cont inued
t heir educat ion by st udying wit h famous t eachers. Some of At hens' great est such schools
included t he Lyceum (t he so-called Peripat et ic school founded by Arist ot le of St ageira) and
t he Plat onic Academy (founded by Plat o of At hens). The educat ion syst em of t he wealt hy
ancient Greeks is also called Paideia.

Economy
At it s economic height in t he 5t h and 4t h cent uries BC, t he free cit izenry of Classical Greece
represent ed perhaps t he most prosperous societ y in t he ancient world, some economic
hist orians considering Greece one of t he most advanced pre-indust rial economies. In t erms of
wheat , wages reached an est imat ed 7–12 kg daily for an unskilled worker in urban At hens, 2–3
t imes t he 3.75 kg of an unskilled rural labourer in Roman Egypt , t hough Greek farm incomes
t oo were on average lower t han t hose available t o urban workers.[83]

While slave condit ions varied widely, t he inst it ut ion served t o sust ain t he incomes of t he free
cit izenry: an est imat e of economic development drawn from t he lat t er (or derived from urban
incomes alone) is t herefore likely t o overst at e t he t rue overall level despit e widespread
evidence for high living st andards.
Warfare

Greek hoplite and Persian warrior

depicted fighting, on an ancient kylix,
5th century BC.

At least in t he Archaic Period, t he fragment ary nat ure of ancient Greece, wit h many
compet ing cit y-st at es, increased t he frequency of conflict but conversely limit ed t he scale
of warfare. Unable t o maint ain professional armies, t he cit y-st at es relied on t heir own cit izens
t o fight . This inevit ably reduced t he pot ent ial durat ion of campaigns, as cit izens would need
t o ret urn t o t heir own professions (especially in t he case of, for example, farmers). Campaigns
would t herefore oft en be rest rict ed t o summer. When bat t les occurred, t hey were usually set
piece and int ended t o be decisive. Casualt ies were slight compared t o lat er bat t les, rarely
amount ing t o more t han five percent of t he losing side, but t he slain oft en included t he most
prominent cit izens and generals who led from t he front .

The scale and scope of warfare in ancient Greece changed dramat ically as a result of t he
Greco-Persian Wars. To fight t he enormous armies of t he Achaemenid Empire was effect ively
beyond t he capabilit ies of a single cit y-st at e. The event ual t riumph of t he Greeks was
achieved by alliances of cit y-st at es (t he exact composit ion changing over t ime), allowing t he
pooling of resources and division of labor. Alt hough alliances bet ween cit y-st at es occurred
before t his t ime, not hing on t his scale had been seen before. The rise of At hens and Spart a as
pre-eminent powers during t his conflict led direct ly t o t he Peloponnesian War, which saw
furt her development of t he nat ure of warfare, st rat egy and t act ics. Fought bet ween leagues
of cit ies dominat ed by At hens and Spart a, t he increased manpower and financial resources
increased t he scale and allowed t he diversificat ion of warfare. Set -piece bat t les during t he
Peloponnesian war proved indecisive and inst ead t here was increased reliance on at t rit ionary
st rat egies, naval bat t les and blockades and sieges. These changes great ly increased t he
number of casualt ies and t he disrupt ion of Greek societ y.
At hens owned one of t he largest war fleet s in ancient Greece. It had over 200 t riremes each
powered by 170 oarsmen who were seat ed in 3 rows on each side of t he ship. The cit y could
afford such a large fleet —it had over 34,000 oarsmen—because it owned a lot of silver mines
t hat were worked by slaves.

According t o Josiah Ober, Greek cit y-st at es faced approximat ely a one-in-t hree chance of
dest ruct ion during t he archaic and classical period.[84]

Culture

Philosophy

The carved busts of four ancient

Greek philosophers, on display in the
British Museum. From left to right:
Socrates, Antisthenes, Chrysippus,
and Epicurus.

Ancient Greek philosophy focused on t he role of reason and inquiry. In many ways, it had an
import ant influence on modern philosophy, as well as modern science. Clear unbroken lines of
influence lead from ancient Greek and Hellenist ic philosophers, t o medieval Muslim
philosophers and Islamic scient ist s, t o t he European Renaissance and Enlight enment , t o t he
secular sciences of t he modern day.

Neit her reason nor inquiry began wit h t he ancient Greeks. Defining t he difference bet ween t he
Greek quest for knowledge and t he quest s of t he elder civilizat ions, such as t he ancient
Egypt ians and Babylonians, has long been a t opic of st udy by t heorist s of civilizat ion.

The first known philosophers of Greece were t he pre-Socrat ics, who at t empt ed t o provide
nat uralist ic, non-myt hical descript ions of t he world. They were followed by Socrat es, one of
t he first philosophers based in At hens during it s golden age whose ideas, despit e being known
by second-hand account s inst ead of writ ings of his own, laid t he basis of West ern philosophy.
Socrat es' disciple Plat o, who wrot e The Republic and est ablished a radical difference
bet ween ideas and t he concret e world, and Plat o's disciple Arist ot le, who wrot e ext ensively
about nat ure and et hics, are also immensely influent ial in West ern philosophy t o t his day. The
lat er Hellenist ic philosophy, also originat ing in Greece, is defined by names such as
Ant ist henes (cynicism), Zeno of Cit ium (st oicism) and Plot inus (Neoplat onism).

Literature and theatre

The ancient Theatre of Epidaurus, 4th

century BC

The earliest Greek lit erat ure was poet ry and was composed for performance rat her t han
privat e consumpt ion.[85] The earliest Greek poet known is Homer, alt hough he was cert ainly
part of an exist ing t radit ion of oral poet ry.[86] Homer's poet ry, t hough it was developed around
t he same t ime t hat t he Greeks developed writ ing, would have been composed orally; t he first
poet t o cert ainly compose t heir work in writ ing was Archilochus, a lyric poet from t he mid-
sevent h cent ury BC.[87] Tragedy developed around t he end of t he archaic period, t aking
element s from across t he pre-exist ing genres of lat e archaic poet ry.[88] Towards t he
beginning of t he classical period, comedy began t o develop—t he earliest dat e associat ed
wit h t he genre is 486 BC, when a compet it ion for comedy became an official event at t he Cit y
Dionysia in At hens, t hough t he first preserved ancient comedy is Arist ophanes' Acharnians ,
produced in 425.[89]
 A scene from the Iliad:
Hypnos and Thanatos
carrying the body of
Sarpedon from the
battlefield of Troy; detail
from an Attic white-ground
lekythos, c. 440 BC

Like poet ry, Greek prose had it s origins in t he archaic period, and t he earliest writ ers of Greek
philosophy, hist ory, and medical lit erat ure all dat e t o t he sixt h cent ury BC.[90] Prose first
emerged as t he writ ing st yle adopt ed by t he presocrat ic philosophers Anaximander and
Anaximenes—t hough Thales of Milet us, considered t he first Greek philosopher, apparent ly
wrot e not hing.[91] Prose as a genre reached mat urit y in t he classical era,[90] and t he major
Greek prose genres—philosophy, hist ory, rhet oric, and dialogue—developed in t his period.[92]

The Hellenist ic period saw t he lit erary cent re of t he Greek world move from At hens, where it
had been in t he classical period, t o Alexandria. At t he same t ime, ot her Hellenist ic kings such
as t he Ant igonids and t he At t alids were pat rons of scholarship and lit erat ure, t urning Pella and
Pergamon respect ively int o cult ural cent res.[93] It was t hanks t o t his cult ural pat ronage by
Hellenist ic kings, and especially t he Museum at Alexandria, t hat so much ancient Greek
lit erat ure has survived.[94] The Library of Alexandria, part of t he Museum, had t he previously
unenvisaged aim of collect ing t oget her copies of all known aut hors in Greek. Almost all of t he
surviving non-t echnical Hellenist ic lit erat ure is poet ry,[94] and Hellenist ic poet ry t ended t o be
highly int ellect ual,[95] blending different genres and t radit ions, and avoiding linear narrat ives.[96]
The Hellenist ic period also saw a shift in t he ways lit erat ure was consumed—while in t he
archaic and classical periods lit erat ure had t ypically been experienced in public performance,
in t he Hellenist ic period it was more commonly read privat ely.[97] At t he same t ime, Hellenist ic
poet s began t o writ e for privat e, rat her t han public, consumpt ion.[98]
Wit h Oct avian's vict ory at Act ium in 31 BC, Rome began t o become a major cent re of Greek
lit erat ure, as import ant Greek aut hors such as St rabo and Dionysius of Halicarnassus came t o
Rome.[99] The period of great est innovat ion in Greek lit erat ure under Rome was t he "long
second cent ury" from approximat ely 80 AD t o around 230 AD.[100] This innovat ion was
especially marked in prose, wit h t he development of t he novel and a revival of prominence for
display orat ory bot h dat ing t o t his period.[100]

Music and dance

In Ancient Greek societ y, music was ever-present and considered a fundament al component
of civilisat ion.[101] It was an import ant part of public religious worship,[102] privat e ceremonies
such as weddings and funerals,[103] and household ent ert ainment .[104] Men sang and played
music at t he symposium;[105] bot h men and women sang at work; and children's games
involved song and dance.[106]

Ancient Greek music was primarily vocal, sung eit her by a solo singer or a chorus, and usually
accompanied by an inst rument ; purely inst rument al music was less common.[107] The Greeks
used st ringed inst rument s, including lyres, harps, and lut es;[108] and wind inst rument s, of which
t he most import ant was t he aulos , a reed inst rument .[109] Percussion inst rument s played a
relat ively unimport ant role support ing st ringed and wind inst rument s, and were used in cert ain
religious cult s.[110]
Science and technology

The Antikythera mechanism was an

analog computer from 150 to 100 BC
designed to calculate the positions of
astronomical objects.

Ancient Greek mat hemat ics cont ribut ed many import ant development s t o t he field of
mat hemat ics, including t he basic rules of geomet ry, t he idea of formal mat hemat ical proof,
and discoveries in number t heory, mat hemat ical analysis, applied mat hemat ics, and
approached close t o est ablishing int egral calculus. The discoveries of several Greek
mat hemat icians, including Pyt hagoras, Euclid, and Archimedes, are st ill used in mat hemat ical
t eaching t oday.

The Greeks developed ast ronomy, which t hey t reat ed as a branch of mat hemat ics, t o a highly
sophist icat ed level. The first geomet rical, t hree-dimensional models t o explain t he apparent
mot ion of t he planet s were developed in t he 4t h cent ury BC by Eudoxus of Cnidus and
Callippus of Cyzicus. Their younger cont emporary Heraclides Pont icus proposed t hat t he
Eart h rot at es around it s axis. In t he 3rd cent ury BC, Arist archus of Samos was t he first t o
suggest a heliocent ric syst em. Archimedes in his t reat ise The Sand Reckoner revives
Arist archus' hypot hesis t hat "the fixed stars and the Sun remain unmoved, while the Earth
revolves about the Sun on the circumference of a circle". Ot herwise, only fragment ary
descript ions of Arist archus' idea survive.[111] Erat ost henes, using t he angles of shadows
creat ed at widely separat ed regions, est imat ed t he circumference of t he Eart h wit h great
accuracy.[112] In t he 2nd cent ury BC Hipparchus of Nicea made a number of cont ribut ions,
including t he first measurement of precession and t he compilat ion of t he first st ar cat alog in
which he proposed t he modern syst em of apparent magnit udes.

The Ant ikyt hera mechanism, a device for calculat ing t he movement s of planet s, dat es from
about 80 BC and was t he first ancest or of t he ast ronomical comput er. It was discovered in an
ancient shipwreck off t he Greek island of Ant ikyt hera, bet ween Kyt hera and Cret e. The
device became famous for it s use of a different ial gear, previously believed t o have been
invent ed in t he 16t h cent ury, and t he miniat urizat ion and complexit y of it s part s, comparable
t o a clock made in t he 18t h cent ury. The original mechanism is displayed in t he Bronze
collect ion of t he Nat ional Archaeological Museum of At hens, accompanied by a replica.

The ancient Greeks also made import ant discoveries in t he medical field. Hippocrat es was a
physician of t he Classical period, and is considered one of t he most out st anding figures in t he
hist ory of medicine. He is referred t o as t he "fat her of medicine"[113][114] in recognit ion of his
last ing cont ribut ions t o t he field as t he founder of t he Hippocrat ic school of medicine. This
int ellect ual school revolut ionized medicine in ancient Greece, est ablishing it as a discipline
dist inct from ot her fields t hat it had t radit ionally been associat ed wit h (not ably t heurgy and
philosophy), t hus making medicine a profession.[115][116]

Art and architecture

The Temple of Hera at Selinunte,

Sicily

The art of ancient Greece has exercised an enormous influence on t he cult ure of many
count ries from ancient t imes t o t he present day, part icularly in t he areas of sculpt ure and
archit ect ure. In t he West , t he art of t he Roman Empire was largely derived from Greek
models. In t he East , Alexander t he Great 's conquest s init iat ed several cent uries of exchange
bet ween Greek, Cent ral Asian and Indian cult ures, result ing in Greco-Buddhist art , wit h
ramificat ions as far as Japan. Following t he Renaissance in Europe, t he humanist aest het ic and
t he high t echnical st andards of Greek art inspired generat ions of European art ist s. Well int o
t he 19t h cent ury, t he classical t radit ion derived from Greece dominat ed t he art of t he
West ern world.
Religion

Mount Olympus, home of the Twelve

Olympians

Religion was a cent ral part of ancient Greek life.[117] Though t he Greeks of different cit ies and
t ribes worshipped similar gods, religious pract ices were not uniform and t he gods were
t hought of different ly in different places. The Greeks were polyt heist ic, worshipping many
gods, but as early as t he sixt h cent ury BC a pant heon of t welve Olympians began t o
develop.[118] Greek religion was influenced by t he pract ices of t he Greeks' near east ern
neighbours at least as early as t he archaic period, and by t he Hellenist ic period t his influence
was seen in bot h direct ions.[119]

The most import ant religious act in ancient Greece was animal sacrifice, most commonly of
sheep and goat s.[120] Sacrifice was accompanied by public prayer,[121] and prayer and hymns
were t hemselves a major part of ancient Greek religious life.[122]

Legacy
The civilizat ion of ancient Greece has been immensely influent ial on language, polit ics,
educat ional syst ems, philosophy, science, and t he art s. It became t he Leitkultur of t he Roman
Empire t o t he point of marginalizing nat ive It alic t radit ions. As Horace put it ,

Graecia capta ferum victorem cepit et

artis / intulit agresti Latio (Epistulae
 2.1.156f.)
Captive Greece took captive her
uncivilised conqueror and instilled her
arts in rustic Latium.
Via t he Roman Empire, Greek cult ure came t o be foundat ional t o West ern cult ure in general.
The Byzant ine Empire inherit ed Classical Greek-Hellenist ic cult ure direct ly, wit hout Lat in
int ermediat ion, and t he preservat ion of Classical Greek learning in medieval Byzant ine t radit ion
furt her exert ed a st rong influence on t he Slavs and lat er on t he Islamic Golden Age and t he
West ern European Renaissance. A modern revival of Classical Greek learning t ook place in t he
Neoclassicism movement in 18t h- and 19t h-cent ury Europe and t he Americas.

See also

Ancient
Greece
portal
Civilizations
portal
History
portal

List of ancient Greek writers

Outline of ancient Greece
 Outline of ancient Egypt
Outline of ancient Rome
Outline of classical studies
Classical demography
Regions in Greco-Roman antiquity
Science in classical antiquity
Modern influence of Ancient Greece

Notes

a. Though this excludes Greek city-states

free from Alexander's jurisdiction in the
western Mediterranean, around the Black
Sea, Cyprus, and Cyrenaica
References

Notes

1. Carol G. Thomas (1988). Paths from

ancient Greece (https://books.google.co
m/books?id=NAwVAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA2
7) . Brill. pp. 27–50. ISBN 978-90-04-
08846-7.

2. Maura Ellyn; Maura McGinnis (2004).

Greece: A Primary Source Cultural Guide
(https://books.google.com/books?id=N69
iOTtVHGYC&pg=PT8) . The Rosen
Publishing Group. p. 8. ISBN 978-0-8239-
3999-2.
3. John E. Findling; Kimberly D. Pelle (2004).
Encyclopedia of the Modern Olympic
Movement (https://books.google.com/bo
oks?id=QmXi_-Jujj0C&pg=PR23) .
Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 23.
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P.E.; Knox, Bernard M.W. (eds.). The
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Classical Age of Greece". In Hose, Martin;
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Mori, Anatole (2016). "Literature in the

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Further reading

Shanks, Michael (1996). Classical

Archaeology of Greece (https://www.acade
mia.edu/4032788) . London: Routledge.
ISBN 0-203-17197-7.
Brock, Roger, and Stephen Hodkinson, eds.
2000. Alternatives to Athens: Varieties of
political organization and community in
ancient Greece. Oxford and New York:
Oxford Univ. Press.
Cartledge, Paul, Edward E. Cohen, and Lin
Foxhall. 2002. Money, labour and land:
Approaches to the economies of ancient
Greece. London and New York: Routledge.

Cohen, Edward. 1992. Athenian economy

and society: A banking perspective.
Princeton, NJ: Princeton Univ. Press.
Hurwit, Jeffrey. 1987. The art and culture of
early Greece, 1100–480 B.C. Ithaca, NY:
Cornell Univ. Press.
Kinzl, Konrad, ed. 2006. A companion to the
Classical Greek world. Oxford and Malden,
MA: Blackwell.
Morris, Ian, ed. 1994. Classical Greece:
Ancient histories and modern archaeologies.
Cambridge, UK, and New York: Cambridge
Univ. Press.
Pomeroy, Sarah, Stanley M. Burstein, Walter
Donlan, and Jennifer Tolbert Roberts. 2008.
Ancient Greece: A political, social, and
cultural history. 2d ed. New York: Oxford
Univ. Press.
Rhodes, Peter J. 2006. A history of the
Classical Greek world: 478–323 BC.
Blackwell History of the Ancient World.
Malden, MA: Blackwell.
Whitley, James. 2001. The archaeology of
ancient Greece. Cambridge, UK, and New
York: Cambridge Univ. Press.
External links

Wikimedia Commons has media

related to Ancient Greece.
Wikivoyage has a travel guide for
Ancient Greece.

The Canadian Museum of Civilization—

Greece Secrets of the Past (http://ww
w.civilization.ca/cmc/exhibitions/civil/
greece/gr0000e.shtml)
Ancient Greece (http://www.ancientgre
ece.co.uk) website from the British
Museum
Economic history of ancient Greece (ht
tps://web.archive.org/web/200605022
01333/http://eh.net/encyclopedia/artic
le/engen.greece) (archived 2 May
2006)
The Greek currency history (http://ww
w.fleur-de-coin.com/currency/drachma
-history)
Limenoscope (https://web.archive.org/
web/20110511090038/http://www.lim
enoscope.ntua.gr/index.cgi?lan=en) ,
an ancient Greek ports database
(archived 11 May 2011)
The Ancient Theatre Archive (http://ww
w.whitman.edu/theatre/theatretour/ho
me.htm) , Greek and Roman theatre
architecture
Illustrated Greek History (http://people.
hsc.edu/drjclassics/lectures/history/hi
 story.shtm) , Janice Siegel, Department
of Classics, Hampden–Sydney College,
Virginia

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