Chapter Summary

Homer’s epic poems, the Iliad and the Odyssey, were written several centuries after the Bronze Age beginnings of Greece. The agricultural beginnings of Greek society date to ca. 3000 B.C.E. Unlike Mesopotamia and Egypt, Greece has few fertile plains. The land of Greece is divided into small ecological niches separated by mountains and sea. The geography of Greece kept the early agricultural villages distinct and independent. Greek agriculture was not as productive as that of the other early civilizations. In these circumstances, three distinct Bronze Age cultures developed: Cycladic, Minoan, and Mycenaean.

Cycladic culture appeared ca. 3000 B.C.E. on the islands of the Aegean Sea between Asia Minor and the Greek mainland. Cycladic culture was not urbanized. The culture was highly skilled in metalworking and had established trade routes to carry metal crafts throughout the Aegean. The culture declined ca. 1550 B.C.E.

Minoan culture appeared on the island of Crete ca. 2500 B.C.E. Crete was at the crossroads of the ancient world and served as an exchange point for goods traded between Egypt, Mesopotamia, Asia Minor (the Hittites), and the Greek mainland. Like Cycladic culture, Minoan culture was neither urbanized nor militarized. At the center of the religious, economic, and political life of Minoan civilization were great temple/palace complexes, the largest of which was the palace of Knossos. From the palaces, priests and bureaucrats controlled the extensive system of collection and redistribution of goods that supported the elites. To permit the administrative organization of the economy, Minoan culture developed a form of writing called Linear A.

The palace/temple also served as the ritual center for Minoan religious practices. Much remains unknown about Minoan religious practices. Female fertility figures seem to have played a large part and may have contributed to raising the overall social status of women in Minoan society. Other rituals involved bulls as male fertility figures. There are even frescoes of a unique form of bullfighting in which the participants vaulted over the backs of the charging animals. On a darker note, some aspects of Minoan religion seem to have required human sacrifice. Minoan culture came to an end ca. 1200 B.C.E. The causes of the decline are debatable. Both natural causes and a possible invasion from the mainland may have contributed to the downfall.

Mycenaean culture appeared on the Greek mainland ca. 1600 B.C.E. Unlike the other two Bronze Age cultures of Greece, Mycenaean culture developed both walled cities and extensive militarization of society. Mycenaean kings and a military elite, rather than a priesthood, controlled the political and economic life of mainland Greece. Kings were buried in huge beehive-shaped tombs called tholoi. As a region within the Minoan trade network, the Mycenaeans adopted a form of Cretan writing that is known as Linear B.

Mycenaean culture began to decline ca. 1200 B.C.E. Rivalry and constant warfare among small city-states, overpopulation, failure of the commercial network, and the fragility of the agricultural system all may have contributed to the collapse. The decline of Mycenaean culture is contemporary with the general collapse of civilizations throughout the Middle East. With the downfall of Mycenaean culture, the kings and military elites typical of the small city-states disappeared. Greek culture entered a Dark Age that lasted from ca. 1200 to 800 B.C.E.

During the Dark Age, population migrations were common, and new groups of people—the Dorians, Ionians, and Aeolians—mingled with the remnants of the original population. Greek culture was carried throughout the Aegean and to the shores of Asia Minor. The culture of the Dark Ages was more primitive than the preceding Bronze Age cultures. Written language was lost. Art became less proficient. The loss of commercial systems led to the adoption of iron in place of bronze and to a total absence of luxury products.

The Iliad and the Odyssey, both composed during the Dark Ages, give hints of subtle changes in political structure. Petty kingship of small territories was the rule. The king’s authority was due to his personal prowess rather than vested in the office. When absent, the military aristocrats attempted to usurp his authority. By the eighth century B.C., the military aristocracy sought to eliminate the petty kings.

Between 800 and 500 B.C., a revolution in Greek culture took place. New political and social structures, artistic and intellectual traditions emerged. A significant population increase signaled the change in Greek culture. The greater population reduced the relative isolation of communities in the Dark Ages, placed new demands on the already overburdened agricultural system, and forced the development of more complex political systems to reorganize the economy of the Greek world.

The ethne were large political units consisting of many agricultural villages and settlements united by a common religious temple or site. Ethne were governed by an oligarchy made up of a small group of major landowners. The polis was a new form of political organization devised after the Dark Ages. The origins of poleis were fortified centers often built on hilltops (called an acropolis) and dedicated to specific gods. Marketplaces and settlements clustered around the poleis. After the population growth of the eighth century, these nodal points of settlement became towns. The towns were dominated by kings or a small group of wealthy landowners. The poleis controlled the surrounding agricultural hinterlands, and the farmers became citizens of the poleis. At times of crisis the ruler would call an assembly of the free men to participate in the decision making.

The polis may have been copied from the political organization of the Phoenicians. The Greeks definitely adopted the Phoenician writing system. Gradually political participation within the polis expanded due to the democratization of warfare. During the Bronze Age and the Dark Age, warfare was the prerogative of the military aristocracy who engaged in single, champion combat. In Archaic Greece, warfare passed to heavily armed infantry, the hoplites, who fought in close formations called phalanges. Service in the military brought political rights to the increasing number of warrior/citizens. Strictly aristocratic rule was undermined in the poleis and replaced by various new constitutions.

Colonization and the political institution of tyranny were two responses to the political turmoil of the seventh century B.C.E. Between the eleventh and eighth century B.C., the population growth spurred migrations of Greeks to the Aegean islands and the coastline of Asia Minor. While the first colonization efforts were directed to the east, by 750 B.C.E. Greeks began the process of establishing colonies in the western Mediterranean in southern Italy and Sicily. Colonists were often single males who left their homes because of political or social disabilities. Newly established colonies retained some cultural ties with the home governments, but were otherwise politically independent. Tyrants arose as political leaders to overthrow established aristocratic elites within the poleis. Often tyrants sprang from the military organization of the phalanges. Tyrants were regarded as reformers who extended the franchise, undertook public projects, and in some cases protected small farmers against the depredations of great landowners. Tyrants stood outside the normal constitutions of the poleis, although they did not always overthrow the original political structure. Tyrannies could seldom be sustained beyond a single generation, because the tyrant’s position was dependent on his personal appeal rather than a constitutional office.

While the general political tendency in Archaic Greece was to broaden the political franchise within the poleis, the trend to democratization did not extend to women. The Greek household was patriarchal, and most women were denied a public political role. The prevalence of bisexuality in Greek culture tended to accentuate male dominance. The only women in Greece who enjoyed a public life were prostitutes.

Greek religion was polytheistic. Greek gods were peculiarly anthropomorphic and shared in the full range of human foibles. There were no priesthoods in Greek society comparable to those of Egypt or Mesopotamia. Ritual worship of the deities was often controlled by lay leaders. Temples were public buildings that reflected the wealth and prestige of the polis in which they stood. There were two religious sanctuaries that attracted the devotion of all Greeks. Olympia was honored as the main sanctuary of Zeus, the patriarch of the gods. Every four years all political affairs in Greece were put on hold so that athletes could compete in honor of Zeus at the Olympic games. The second Panhellenic religious site was at Delphi, the location of the shrine to Apollo. Although Delphi also held festivals devoted to athletic participation, the real popularity of the shrine was due to the location of the oracle there. The oracle received divine, if cryptic, messages from Apollo to all questions.

One of the things that held the politically diverse Greek population together was a shared store of mythic stories. Some described political origins, others the basic causes of the natural universe. One of the most common sources for Greek mythology were the Homeric epics. So prominent did myth become an aspect of Greek culture that the mythical traditions followed colonists as they moved about the Mediterranean.

In curious contradiction to their fascination with myth, the Greeks also sought rational explanations for the world that surrounded them. The Greeks believed that the natural universe could be reduced to reason or laws of behavior. Some of the early Greek philosophers who sought a natural explanation for the world were Anaximander of Samos, Anaximenes of Miletus, Thales of Miletus, and Heraclitus of Ephesus. With some exceptions, Greek society embraced this variety of nonreligious and rational teaching.

Greek art was at first derivative of Egyptian and Near Eastern styles, but developed an innovative and identifiable style of its own by the eighth century B.C.E. Greek art concentrated on the human form and the traditional heroic myths. In the Archaic Age, Greek pottery painting passed from simple geometric forms to “black figure style,” black silhouettes on red clay backgrounds. In sculpture, Greek artists passed from the kouros—a male nude copied from Egyptian models—to increasingly more ideal forms of the human body. Public buildings, particularly temples, gave opportunities to Greek sculptors to portray heroic legends in the new style.

Various political forms were introduced into the Greek poleis by the end of the sixth century B.C.E. Three cities serve as examples of the types of political constitutions: Corinth, Sparta, and Athens.

A single aristocratic clan, the Bacchiads, dominated Corinthian political life until the middle of the seventh century B.C.E. Confronted with social and economic problems associated with population increase, the clan was unable to respond effectively. As was common throughout Greece, the crisis was resolved by the overthrow of the Bacchiads and the establishment of a tyranny supported by those outside the Bacchiad clan. The tyrants were Cypselus (ca. 655-627 B.C.) and his son, Periander (ca. 627-586 B.C.). The tyrants fostered colonization, encouraged public works, and sought to shift the financial burden away from the small farmers.

A new constitution was created to destroy the oligarchic hold of the Bacchiads. Cypselus divided all Corinthian citizens into eight fictive tribes and three geographical regions. Ten representatives from each tribe were selected as a council of eighty to advise the tyrant. Following the rule of Periander, the tyranny was ended. The new Corinthian constitution established a council of eight who also served in the old council of eighty. The council tended to be self-perpetuating, and government in Corinth remained the province of the few. Corinth is an example of an oligarchic polis.

The basis of the Spartan constitution was military organization. The Spartan form of government emerged in the seventh century B.C.E. in response to crisis. In the midst of an attempt to take land from another city-state, the small farmers of a previously conquered territory, Messenia, rebelled. At the same time, the poorer soldiers in the Spartan army also mutinied against the aristocratic military leaders. The threat to Spartan survival was resolved by the legendary Spartan lawgiver, Lycurgus. Lycurgus promised land redistribution to the Spartan soldiers. The reunified army then crushed the rebellion of the small farmers. The defeated Messenians were reduced in status to helots who worked the land for the benefit of the Spartan citizens.

Lycurgus also reorganized the Spartan constitution. At the head of the government were two kings advised by an aristocratic council of elders, the gerousia, who held office for life. The kings served as military commanders of the state army. The gerousia served as the state court, composed the laws, and directed the daily affairs of the polis. The executive branch of government was the board of ephors. After the constitutional reform, all Spartan male citizens were required to undergo military training from age seven to age twenty. Young trainees were paired with seasoned soldiers as advisors and lovers. At age twenty, Spartan trainees joined the krypteia, or secret police force, under the command of the ephors. Only at age thirty did Spartan men of sufficient wealth and property achieve full citizenship as homoioi or equals. Spartan women also underwent a course of training for childbearing. Spartan society required complete dedication to martial activities. As a result, Spartan culture was lacking in artistic and intellectual development. The Spartans also refused to participate in the commercial system connecting the Greek city-states.

Until the seventh century B.C., the aristocratic clan of Alcmaeonids dominated the polis of Athens. The executive functions of the polis were carried out by a board of nine archons advised by an aristocratic council called the Areopagus. By the late-seventh century B.C., Athens also experienced conflict between the aristocratic clans and the poorer citizens caused by overpopulation and deteriorating economic conditions. Around 630 B.C.E. an attempted tyranny failed, and a civil war ensued. In 621 B.C.E. the first of a series of reforms was initiated. Draco revised the Athenian codes to restore order, but failed to address the underlying political, social, and economic problems. In 594 B.C.E. the archon Solon abolished slavery for debt, although he did not radically redistribute land as had been done in Sparta. He also revised the Athenian constitution by dividing Athenians into four classes based on wealth. Service in office was opened to the two wealthiest classifications. When Solon’s reforms proved insufficient to curb the oligarchy of the aristocratic families, the Athenians turned to a tyrant, Peisistratus.

Peisistratus governed from 545 to his death in 527 B.C.E. He was briefly succeeded by his son Hippias. The tyrants redistributed land, initiated public works, and sought to strengthen the agricultural economy. Hippias eventually alienated a sufficient number of aristocratic clans that he was driven from power in 510 B.C.E. Although the aristocrats attempted to restore the oligarchy, they were not successful. Cleisthenes enacted the final reform of the Athenian constitution. As at Corinth, Cleisthenes attempted to break down the traditional clan political affiliations by dividing the Athenian city-state into 30 geographical units, each of which was in turn divided into ten subdivisions. Each year the citizens in the new political districts elected all public officials of the polis. He created local governing councils called demes to administer the villages. Thus Cleisthenes’ reforms established a true democracy in Athens. Greek experimentation resulted in the creation of innovative political, artistic, and intellectual forms.