Chapter 7 notes

Mainland Greece is a
mountainous peninsula, body
of land with water on three
sides.
Although Greeces rocky soil
made it difficult to farm
people could grow wheat,
barley, olives, and grapes in

 The ruins of the Minoans, the first

civilization to arise in Greece, are on the
island of Crete. Trade was an
importanteconomicactivity for the
Minoans. They built ships using the wood
from Crete's forests of oak and cedar
trees. The Minoans sailed to Egypt and
Syria. There they traded pottery and stone
vases for ivory and metals. Minoan ships
also patrolled the eastern Mediterranean
Sea to protect Minoan trade from pirates.

The first Greek kings were

Mycenean leaders, whose
people invaded the Greek
mainland around 1900 B.C.
Mycenaeans adopted features of
Minoan culture. They built ships
and worked with bronze. They
used the sun and stars to
navigate the seas. The
Mycenaeans also worshipped

 However, the Mycenaean civilization declined

over time. Mycenaean kingdoms fought one
another, and earthquakes destroyed their palace
fortresses. By 1100 b.c., the Mycenaean
civilization had crumbled.The Dorians invaded
Greece, bringing new weapons and farming
technology to the Greek people. Historians call
the next 300 years of Greek history a Dark Age.
During this difficult time, trade slowed down,
people made fewer things to sell, and most were
very poor. Farmers grew only enough food to
feed their families. Many people also stopped
writing and keeping records.
The Greeks learned about an alphabet from the

 As Greece recovered from the Dark

Age, its population increased rapidly.
By 700B.C., local farmers could not
produce enough grain to feed the
growing population. To solve this
problem, Greek communities began to
send people outside the Aegean area
to establishcolonies. A colony is a
settlement in anew territory that has
close ties to its homeland.

A polis or city-state, was like

an independent country.
An acropolis located at the
top of a hill, was the main
gathering place of the city
state.
An agora or open area,
served as a market and as a

In Greek city-states, only

free, native-born, landowning men could be
citizens.
The military of the city-states
was made of ordinary
citizens, not nobles. These
citizens were called

Sect. 2
Unhappy farmers demanding changes to the power
structure led to the rise of 1.______- people who take
power by force and rule with total authority.
Tyrants overthrew the nobles during the 600s B.C.
The Greek people eventually tired of the tyrants and
created 2._______ or 3.______.
Sparta was an oligarchy and Athens was a democracy.

Sparta
Spartans conquered and enslaved their neighbors,
calling them4.______.
Boys entered the military at 7 years old. At age 20,
men entered the regular army and lived in the barracks
for 10 years. They returned home at age 30, but served
in the army until age 60.
Sparta girls were trained in sports to become healthy
mothers and were freer than other Greek women.

Athens
Boys in Athens attended schools to learn reading,
writing, and arithmetic.
Athenian girls learned household duties from their
mothers. Some wealthy girls learned reading, writing,
and playing the lyre.
A noble named 5._______reformed the Athenian
government in 594 B.C.
6._____seized power 30 years after Solons reforms.
7._______took power in 508 B.C.. He created a
democracy in Athens.

Section 2 Answers
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.

tyrants
oligarchy
democracy
helots
Solon
Peisistratus
Cleisthenes

Sect.3
Persians were warriors and nomads who lived in Persia,
the southwestern area of what is today Iran.
1.______united the Persians.
2._____came to power and reorganized the government.
The empire under Darius was divided into 3.____each
with a ruler known as a 4.____.

 The military of Persia consisted of full-time, paid

soldiers known as5.____.
6.______the religion of Persia, was founded by
Zoroaster, who believed in one god, the freedom of
humans, and the triumph of good.

 The 7._______occurred in 490 B.C. on the plain of

Marathon, a short distance from Athens. The Persians
waited there for the Athenians. When they did not
come, the Persian commander ordered the troops back
on the boat. When the horseman were on the boat, the
Greeks charged the Persian foot soldiers and defeated
them.

 After Dariuss death, his son 8._____became king.

At the9._____, the Greeks used their faster, smaller
ships to defeat the Persian fleet. The Persians entered
Athens and burned the city.

 The Greek army won at 10._____. This was the turning

point of the wars with Persia.
The Persian empire fell for several reasons.
1.The Persians were weakened by war
2. Their rulers taxed the people and spent the money
lavishly
3. The sons of kings had little power so they killed
rulers to get power.

Section 3 Answers
1.Cyrus the Great
2. Darius
3. satrapies
4.satrap
5. Immortals
6. Zoroastrianism
7. Battle of Marathon
8. Xerxes
9. Battle of Salamis
10. Plataea

Section 4
Athens joined forces with other city states to form the
1.______. They promised to defend its members against
Persians and drive them out of Greek territories in Asia
Minor. The Athenians moved the Delian League from
2.____to Athens.
Athens had a 3._______. In a direct democracy, people
vote firsthand on laws and policies.
In a 4._________, people select smaller groups to vote
on behalf of the people.

 A general named 5._____ led Athens for more than 30

years. He promoted democracy by including more
people in the government.
6.______are people who ponder questions about life.

 Athenian men worked in the morning and exercised or

attended assembly meetings in the evening.
Athenian women had no political rights and could not
own property.
7.____was a well educated women who influenced Plato
and Pericles.

 City states joined together against Athens. The war that

broke out is known as the 8._______.
Sparta made a deal with the Persians to receive money
to build a navy. The Spartan navy defeated the
Athenian navy, which brought supplies to the
Athenians. Athenians. Athens then surrendered.

Section 4 Answers
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.

Delian League
Delos
Direct democracy
representative democracy
Pericles
Philosophers
Aspasia
Peloponnesian War