Ancient Greek. Ancient Greece: its history, religion, culture

The modern world owes a lot ancient Greece. This relatively small state had a huge impact on the development of all areas of human life. Take, for example, myths, which are a reflection of human life, both in those times and today. Ideas about the world - about man, medicine, politics, art, literature - on a global scale originated in Greece. This state was located in the south of the Balkan Peninsula and on the islands of the Aegean Sea. Accordingly, such a relatively small territory accommodated a small number of population, but, as Alexander the Great said, “One Greek is worth a thousand barbarians.” Greece stood out among other states - Babylonia, Egypt and Persia - and not without reason.

Map of ancient Greece

Ancient times of Ancient Greece

Territory of Ancient Greece It is customary to roughly divide it into three parts: Southern, Middle and Northern. In the southern part was Laconia, better known as Sparta. Athens, the main city of Greece, was located in the middle part of the state, along with such areas as Attica, Aetolia and Phocis. This part was separated from the North by almost impassable mountains and separated Athens and Thessaly, which today is itself a major historical center.

About the population of Ancient Greece can be judged by numerous examples of art that have been preserved almost in their original form - these are sculptures, frescoes and elements of painting. In any museum in the world you will find a hall of ancient Greek art, where you will see many images of tall, slender people with an ideal physique, with fair skin and dark curly hair. Ancient historians call them Pelasgians - the people who inhabited the islands of the Aegean Sea in the 3rd millennium BC. Despite the fact that their occupations were no different from those of other ancient peoples and included cattle breeding and agriculture, it should be noted that their land was difficult to cultivate and required the use of special skills.

The peoples of Greece and their development

Those who inhabited Greece almost five thousand years ago were expelled from their lands exactly in the same millennium in which they appeared. The reason for this was the Achaeans who invaded from the north, whose state was also located on the island of the Peloponnese with its capital in Mycenae. This conquest was epochal in nature, as it marked the beginning of the Achaean civilization, which suffered the same sad fate - at the end of the 13th century BC, just as the Achaeans invaded the Greek lands, the Dorians came to this territory. Unfortunately, the conquerors destroyed almost all the cities and the entire Akhian population, although they themselves, at the same time, were at a lower stage of development of civilization. This fact could not but affect the culture of Ancient Greece. The ancient writing created by the Pelasgians was forgotten, not to mention the fact that the construction and development of tools stopped. This period, which is deservedly called “dark,” lasted neither more nor less from the 12th to the 9th centuries AD. Among the cities, Athens and Sparta still stood out, where two antagonistic societies were located.

So, in Lakonica (Sparta) the governors were two kings who ruled, passing on their power by inheritance. However, despite this, real power was in the hands of the elders, who made laws and were involved in judging. The love of luxury in Sparta was severely persecuted, and the main task of the elders was to prevent class stratification of society, for which each Greek family received from the state an allotment of land, which it had to cultivate without the right to receive additional territories. Soon the Spartans were forbidden to engage in trade, agriculture and crafts; the slogan was proclaimed that “the occupation of every Spartan is war,” which was supposed to fully provide the population of Laconia with everything necessary for life. The morals of the Spartans are eloquently evidenced by the fact that warriors could be expelled from their troops only because he did not fully eat his portion of food at a common meal, which indicated that he dined on the side. Moreover, a wounded Spartan had to die silently on the battlefield, without showing unbearable pain.

The main rival of Sparta was the current capital of Greece - Athens. This city was a center of the arts, and the people who inhabited it were the complete opposite of the rude and tough Spartans. Nevertheless, despite the ease and carefreeness of life, it was here that the word “tyrant” appeared. Initially it meant “ruler,” but when the authorities of Athens began to engage in outright robbery of the population, this word acquired the connotation that it has to this day. Peace was brought to the devastated city by King Solon, a wise and kind ruler who did a lot to improve the lives of the townspeople.

The 6th century brought new trials to the inhabitants of Greece - the danger came from the Persians, who quickly conquered Egypt, Media and Babylonia. In the face of the Persian power, the peoples of Greece united, forgetting about centuries-old strife. Of course, the center of the army was the Spartans, who devoted their lives to military affairs. The Athenians, in turn, began building a flotilla. Darius underestimated the power of the Greeks and lost the very first battle, which is immortalized in history by the fact that a joyful messenger ran from Marathon to Athens to convey the good news of victory, and, having covered 40 km, fell dead. It is with that event in mind that athletes run the “marathon distance.” Xerxes, the son of Darius, having enlisted the support and help of the conquered states, nevertheless lost a number of important battles and abandoned any attempts to conquer Greece. Thus, Greece became the most influential state, which gave it a number of privileges, especially to Athens, which became the capital of trade in the Eastern Mediterranean.

Sparta united with Athens the next time in the face of the Macedonian conqueror Philip II, who, unlike Darius, quickly broke the resistance of the Greeks, establishing power over all areas of the state except Sparta, which refused to submit. Thus, the Classical period of development of the Hellenic states ended and the rise of Greece as part of Macedonia began. Thanks to Alexander the Great, Greeks and Macedonians by 400 BC became the sovereign masters of all of Western Asia. The Hellenistic era ended in 168 BC, when large-scale conquests of the Roman Empire began.

The role of Greek civilization in the history of the development of the world

Historians agree that cultural world development would have been impossible without the heritage that Ancient Greece left us. It was here that the fundamental knowledge about the universe that modern science uses was laid. The first philosophical concepts were formulated here, defining the basis for the development of spiritual values of all humanity. The Greek philosopher Aristotle laid the foundations for ideas about the material and immaterial world, Greek athletes became the first champions of the first Olympic Games. Any science or field of art is somehow connected with this great Ancient state - be it theater, literature, painting or sculpture. “The Iliad” is the main work that has survived to this day; it very vividly and colorfully tells about the historical events of those times, about the way of life of the ancient Eleans, and, more importantly, is dedicated to real events. The famous Greek thinker Herodotus contributed to the development of history, whose works were devoted to the Greco-Persian wars. The contribution of Pythagoras and Archimedes to the development of mathematics cannot be overestimated. Moreover, the ancient Greeks were the authors of numerous inventions, which were used primarily during military operations.

The Greek theater deserves special attention, which was an open area with a round structure for the choir and a stage for artists. This architecture meant the creation of excellent acoustics, and spectators sitting even in the far rows could hear all the cues. It is noteworthy that the actors hid their faces under masks, which were divided into comic and tragic. Reverently revering their gods, the Greeks created their statues and sculptures, which still amaze with their beauty and perfection.

Special place Ancient Greece in world ancient history makes it one of the most mysterious and amazing states in the ancient world. The progenitor of science and art, Greece to this day attracts the attention of everyone who is interested in world history.

Periods of ancient Greece. History of development

Early period (1050-750 BC)

Following the final literate civilization, the last of the glorious civilizations of the Aegean Bronze Age, mainland Greece and the islands off its coast entered an era called by some historians "Dark Age". However, strictly speaking, this term rather characterizes a break in historical information that relates to the time interval that began around 1050 BC. e., rather than the lack of knowledge or historical experience among the then population of Hellas, although writing was lost. In fact, it was precisely at this time, the time of transition into the Iron Age, that the political, aesthetic and literary features that were then characteristic of classical Hellas began to appear. Local leaders, who called themselves pari, ruled small, closely connected communities - the forerunners of the ancient Greek city-states. The next stage in the development of painted ceramics is obvious, which has become simpler in shape, but at the same time stronger; her appearance, as evidenced by vessel shown on the right, acquired new grace, harmony and proportionality, which became the hallmarks of later Greek art.

Taking advantage vague memories, Trojans and others, wandering singers composed stories about gods and mere mortals, giving poetic imagery to Greek mythology. By the end of this period, Greek-speaking tribes borrowed the alphabet and adapted it to their language, which made it possible to record many tales that had long been preserved in oral tradition: the best among them that have come down to us are the Homeric epics " 776 BC e., is considered to be the beginning of the subsequent continuous rise of Greek culture.

Archaic (Archaic) period (750-500 BC)

In the 8th century, prompted population and wealth growth Emigrants from ancient Greece spread throughout the Mediterranean in search of new agricultural land and trade opportunities. Greek settlers in foreign countries, however, became more than just subjects cities that founded colonies, but separate, autonomous political entities. The spirit of independence that possessed the settlers, as well as the need for joint action to maintain each community, gave rise to such a political unit as the polis. Throughout the Greek world there were supposedly up to 700 similar city-states. The foreign cultures with which Hellas came into contact during this period of expansion affected the Greeks in a variety of ways.

Geometric pottery painting gave way to oriental-style animal and plant designs, as well as detailed mythological scenes of the new black-figure style of vase painting (see photo gallery below). Artists working with stone, clay, wood and bronze began to create monumental human sculptures. Typical of archaic statue of Kouros(photo left) bears clear traces of Egyptian influence, but at the same time demonstrates an emerging desire for symmetry, lightness and realism. In the seventh century The first truly Greek temples appear, decorated with extended friezes and columns of the Doric order (see photo gallery below). Lyrical and elegiac poetry, deeply personal and emotionally rich, is replacing the stilted verses of the past. The development of trade contributed to the widespread spread of coinage invented by the Lydians. On the mainland at the same time Sparta introduces a political system that emphasizes strict government and discipline, and as a result becomes the largest and most powerful city-state of the period. Athens On the contrary, they change and codify laws, caring for justice and equality, open access to governing bodies to an increasing number of citizens and lay the foundations of democracy.

Classical period (500-323 BC)

The classical period in ancient Greece, when it was incredibly fast blossomed arts, literature, philosophy and politics, limited by the time of wars with two foreign powers - Persia and Macedonia. Hellenic victory over the Persians gave rise to a new spirit of cooperation between the various city-states and Athens, whose fleet played a decisive role in ensuring a favorable turnaround in the fight against the so-called barbarians. The tribute from the allies to the Athenian treasury in exchange for military protection provided the Athenians with the opportunity to increase their already significant wealth and guaranteed the city political, cultural and economic supremacy throughout the Mediterranean. Almost all citizens of Athens, regardless of financial status, were provided with access to elected positions, and they received remuneration for the performance of relevant duties. At public expense, sculptors, architects and playwrights worked on works that still remain the highest creative achievement of mankind. Shown, for example, on the right is bronze Zeus statue 213 centimeters high gives a concentrated idea of the skill of the artists of classical Hellas (ancient Greece), who reproduced the human body in their works with extraordinary dynamism. Greek philosophers, historians, and natural scientists left examples of rational theoretical analysis.

In 431, the long-standing enmity between Athens and Sparta resulted in a war that lasted almost 30 years and ended in the defeat of the Athenians. Decades of continuous fighting led to a weakening of political influence in many city-states, where brutal infighting continued. Calculating and ambitious Macedonian king Philip II managed to benefit from such chaos and soon became the master of the entire territory of ancient Greece. Philip failed to complete the construction of the empire, he was killed, and his son ascended the throne Alexander. Just 12 years later, Alexander the Great (Macedonian) died, but left behind a power stretching from the Adriatic to Media (see photo gallery below).

Hellenistic period (323-31 BC)

From the ruins of Alexander's empire, after almost 50 years of fierce struggle for his inheritance, three major powers emerged: Macedonia, Ptolemaic Egypt and the Seleucid state, stretching from modern Turkey to Afghanistan. It's amazing, that from the Macedonian capital of Pella in the west to Ai-Khanum in the east, the language, literature, political institutions, fine arts, architecture and philosophy in the cities and settlements that arose as a result of Alexander's campaigns remained unambiguously Greek after his death. Subsequent kings emphasized their kinship with Hellas, especially with Alexander: the picture on the left shows Thracian silver coin, in which he is depicted with the ram horns of Zeus-Amun - a god with roots in both the East and the West. Possessing a common language, influenced by constant trade contacts, preserving written texts and attracting numerous travelers, the Hellenistic world became more and more cosmopolitan.

Education and enlightenment flourished, libraries were created - among them was Great Library of Alexandria, which contained about half a million volumes. But the Greek ruling classes refused to allow ordinary subjects into their ranks, and the vast new kingdoms were everywhere shaken by internal turmoil. Steadily weakening and impoverished Macedonia in 168 BC. e. came under domination. One after another, the provincial governors of the Seleucid Empire declared themselves independent, forming many small states with a dynastic form of government. Of the kingdoms into which Alexander's empire broke up, Ptolemaic Egypt still stood as a bastion. Cleopatra VII, the last of this line (and the only one who learned the language of the subject population), committed suicide when the Romans were victorious at Actium. However, although they managed to subjugate the entire Mediterranean, the dominance of the Latins did not yet mean the end of Greek influence: the Romans absorbed the culture of ancient Greece and perpetuated the Hellenic heritage in a way that the Greeks themselves could not.

Ancient Greece, located in the south of the Balkan Peninsula, was divided into three parts: Northern, Middle, Southern. Northern Greece was separated from Central Greece by the Thermopylae mountain pass. Southern Greece was called the Peloponnese. The oldest state in Europe was formed in the 3rd-2nd millennia BC. south of present-day Greece on the island of Crete. Ancient Greece had their own written language, the Cretans:
engaged in agriculture and crafts;
had trade relations with Egypt, Phenicia and Babylonia;
had a strong cultural influence on the cities of Mycenae and Athens.

In the 2nd millennium BC. On the neighboring island of Crete, a volcanic eruption began, destroying the Cretan culture. In Ancient Greece 1450 BC. The Achaeans, who lived in Southern Greece (in Mycenae), captured the island of Crete. The Achaeans built the Acropolis (“Upper City”) in Mycenae. At the end of the 2nd millennium BC. Ancient Greece was invaded by Dorian tribes from the north and defeated the Mycenaean culture of the Achaeans.
In the 11th-9th centuries BC. Primitive communal relations in Ancient Greece were replaced by a slave system. In the 8th-6th centuries BC. City-states arose in Greece. The city of Athens (Athina) was founded in Central Greece, in the Attica region, in the 2nd millennium BC.
In the 8th-6th centuries BC. In Athens, the slave system was established and a slave state arose. Ancient Greece The state of Athens was ruled by a council of elders and nine rulers elected by it. There was no longer any need to convene a national assembly, and the council of elders resolved all issues itself. The noble Greeks called their rule “aristocracy” (“the power of the best”). The rest of the free population of Attica - artisans, day laborers, sailors - were called “demos”.
In Athens:
-next to the Acropolis there was an agora - a market square;
-potters made two-handled clay jugs - amphoras;
-the population planted olive trees and vineyards, artisans were engaged in metalworking and weaving;
in the 7th century BC minted silver coins;
maritime trade expanded.
In ancient Greece, the development of the economy was closely related to the increase in the number of slaves in it. An aristocrat, giving a loan to a peasant, placed a “debt stone” on his land. In case of non-payment of debt and interest: the peasant was taken away the land, and he and his family were sold into slavery.
In the 7th century BC. in Athens, all issues were decided by the council of elders. Existing laws of Ancient Greece protected the lives and property of aristocrats. The Council was guided by the ferocious “Draconian laws”, the author of which was the ruler Dragon. Under these laws, even minor offenses were met with severe punishments. They said that these laws were “written not in ink, but in blood.”
In the 6th century BC. the struggle between the aristocrats and the demos sharply intensified. Demos demanded the distribution of land to peasants and the cancellation of debts. Fear of popular uprisings forced the aristocrats to make concessions. In 594 BC. Ruler Solon, relying on the support of the people's assembly, carried out reforms according to which:

peasants' debts were cancelled;
the Athenians, who were enslaved for debts, were freed;
it was forbidden in the future to convert the debts of the Athenians into slavery;
all male natives of Attica received civil rights (a citizen was a person who enjoys the rights established by laws and has responsibilities to the state). A citizen had to serve 2 years in the army or navy. Heavily armed lightly armed infantry was formed from peasants. Those who had the means to buy a riding horse served in the cavalry. The basis of the army was the infantry:
the population was divided into four categories according to the size of their property. All citizens had the right to participate in the Athenian popular assembly.

Ancient Greece from the end of the 6th century BC. The popular assembly began to elect strategists who commanded the Athenian army and fleet.

At the end of the 2nd millennium BC. In the southeastern part of the Laconia region, the Dorians founded the city of Sparta. They called themselves Spartans, and most of the conquered local population, turned into slaves, were called “helots”. In the 7th century BC. The Spartans also conquered the southwestern region of Messenia.
In the 8th-6th centuries BC. The slave state of Sparta arose. The laws here were adopted by the people's assembly. It also elected a council of elders, which decided the most important issues and punished the guilty. The law prohibited the Spartans from engaging in anything other than military activity. The army was commanded by two kings. In battle, the Spartans formed a phalanx.
In search of trading partners and booty, the Greeks founded permanent colonies on the shores of the Mediterranean and Black Seas. In the 7th-6th centuries BC. the colonists who lived on the coast from the Caucasus to Spain called themselves Hellenes and their homeland Hellas. The culture that arose in these territories was called Hellenism. Peasants who lost their land, artisans and merchants, people forced to leave their homeland settled in colonies. Each colony was an independent city-state. They had their own rulers, treasury, their own money and troops.
The city of Miletus had the largest number of colonies. On the shores of the Black Sea are Panticapaeum, Olbia, and Chersonesos.
At the end of the 6th - beginning of the 5th centuries BC. The power of Ancient Greece and the Achamenid state increased. Having captured Asia Minor, Iran began to set its sights on the Greek colonies. In 500 BC. The Persian king Darius I, having defeated the Greeks on the shores of the Mediterranean Sea and on the islands of the Aegean Sea, invaded the Balkans. The army of Darius I consisted of heavy ships, cavalry and infantry. The most dangerous were archers. In 490 BC. The Athenians, under the command of the strategist Miltiades, defeated the Persian army on the Marathon plain in Central Greece. One of the Greek warriors, in a hurry to bring the good news of victory to his fellow citizens, ran 42 kilometers from Marathon to Athens and, shouting “We have won,” fell and died of a broken heart.
Darius I's son Xerxes in 480 BC gathered a huge army of Egyptians, Babylonians and Greeks of Asia Minor, reached the Thermopylae Pass and sent envoys to the Spartan king Leonidas, guarding the pass, demanding that he lay down his arms.
To the ambassador’s boastful statement: “Our arrows and darts will block the sun from you,” Leonidas replied: “Well, we will fight in the shadows.” With the help of one Greek traitor, the Persians found a workaround, killed the Spartans and occupied Central Greece. In the same year, the naval battle of Salamis took place, in which fast and maneuverable Greek triremes defeated the Persian fleet. The Persians lost 300 ships. The Greek triremes were commanded by the Athenian commander Themistocles.
The Greeks were also successful in the Battle of Plataea in 479 BC. But naval battles continued for another 30 years. The Greek city-states united in the Athenian Maritime League under the representation of the Athenian strategist.
The Greco-Persian War (500-449 BC) ended in victory for the Greeks, who fought for their independence. Under the terms of a peace treaty concluded in 449 BC, Persia recognized the independence of Miletus, the Aegean islands and Greek cities in Asia Minor. The Persian fleet was prohibited from entering the Aegean Sea. The Greeks received enormous booty, most of which were prisoners of war who became slaves. Maritime trade, piracy, and prisoners of war contributed to the increase in the number of slaves. The largest slave market was on the island of Chios. Slave labor was most often used in quarries and mines. Compared to crafts in agriculture, slave labor was used comparatively less, and only for heavy work. The slaves were called “man-footed.”
In the 5th century BC. Ancient Greece was the most powerful country. Contemporaries began to call the Athenians “masters of the sea.” The port of Piraeus was built six kilometers from Athens. In Athens there was a struggle for the triumph of one of two forms of government. The upper strata of society wanted the establishment of an oligarchy (power of the minority), while the lower strata advocated democracy (power of the people). During the reign of the strategist Pericles (443-428 BC), slave-owning democracy in Athens reached its highest point of development. At this time, even a poor citizen could occupy any position. They were paid for performing the duties of their position. The highest body of the state was the people's assembly, which met 2-4 times a month. Here laws were approved, issues of war and peace were resolved, providing the city with food, reports from officials were heard and appropriate decisions were made. All citizens of Athens over 20 years of age participated in the public assembly. The highest government body was a council of 500 people.
The two most powerful states of Ancient Greece - Athens and Sparta - fought among themselves for supremacy in maritime trade, for the subjugation of neighboring states, and for production. This rivalry led to a war between Athens and Sparta for dominance in Greece. The war was called the Peloponnesian War (431-404 BC). Some Greek states supported Sparta in this war, others sided with Athens. The war ended with the victory of Sparta, and the Athenian Naval League collapsed.
Wars and conflicts contributed to the impoverishment of peasants and artisans, and eventually led in the first half of the 4th century BC. to the decline of the Greek city-states. Later, due to the betrayal of slave owners, all of Greece fell under Macedonian rule.
Macedonia, located in the north-east of the Balkans, became a powerful state under Philip II (359-336 BC). Philip II's strong regular army formed a phalanx in battle. The infantry was formed from peasants, and the cavalry from the nobility. Philip II deftly used his military strength and the treacherous policies of the Greek slave owners. The people he bribed opened the city gates for him. This gave Philip II the right to say: “A donkey loaded with gold will take any city.” Despite the active work of Demosthenes, who led the Athenians’ struggle for independence, Athens also could not withstand the competition. In 338 BC. At the Battle of Chaeronea, the Greek army was defeated. This marked the end of the independence of the Greek city-states.
The son of Philip II, Alexander, demonstrated his talent as a commander for the first time at the Battle of Chaeronea. On the eve of the campaign in Persia, Philip II was poisoned, and Alexander was proclaimed king (336-323 BC). His teacher was the great scientist Aristotle. In 334 BC. Alexander invaded Asia Minor. Phenicia and Egypt were conquered, with the Phoenician city of Tire offering serious resistance.
The Egyptian priests declared Alexander a pharaoh and a god. In three battles - at the Granik River (334 BC), at Issus (333 BC) and at Gaugamela (331 BC), Alexander defeated the army of Darius III. The troops of Caucasian Albania also took part in the Battle of Gaugamela on the side of the Persians, and this is the first historical information about them.
In 330 BC. Darius III was killed. Thus, the Achamenid Empire ceased to exist. To strengthen his power in the conquered territories, Alexander the Great built cities here, leaving garrisons of Greeks and Macedonians in them. Conquering Asia
Alexander reached India, where he met strong resistance and was forced to turn back.
As a result of Alexander's campaigns, the Macedonian Empire spread over a vast territory from the Balkan Peninsula and Egypt to the Indus River. The great commander chose the city of Babylon as the capital of this empire. Alexander died in 323 BC. and was buried in the city of Alexandria in Egypt.
After Alexander's death, his empire split into kingdoms: Macedonian, Egyptian and Syrian. His former commanders ascended to the thrones of these kingdoms. The new kings did not take away lands, property and slaves from the temples. For this, the priests called them gods and defended them before the people. Military personnel and officials were given land plots for their service.
The culture of Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome is called ancient (ancient). Two poems “Iliad” and “Odyssey”, created in the 8th century BC. The blind poet Homer tells about the campaign of the Greeks (Achaeans) in 1200 BC. to the city of Troy in Asia Minor. These poems were written down in the 6th century BC. and are pearls of world culture.
The poem “Iliad” is named so because Ancient Greece called Troy Ilion. The expressions “Trojan horse” (meaning “a gift that brings misfortune”) and “Achilles’ heel” (“The weakest point”) came into our language from the poem “Iliad”.
The poem “Odyssey” describes the adventures of the hero of the Trojan War, Odysseus, trying to return to his island of Ithaca.
According to the beliefs of Ancient Greece, the sacred Mount Olympus was inhabited by gods: Zeus - the god of the sky, Poseidon - the god of the sea, Hades - the god of the underground, Helios - the god of the Sun, Apollo - the god of light and the arts, Dionysus - the god of winemaking, Demeter - the goddess of agriculture, Hephaestus - the god of blacksmithing, Hermes - the god of trade and others. The supreme god was Zeus. The legend of Prometheus tells of the transfer of the secret of fire to people. This tragedy contrasts Zeus and the titan Prometheus, who fights for the independence of people. And Zeus, who wants to gradually destroy the human race, punishes Prometheus by chaining him to a rock in the Caucasus.
Ancient Greece created many myths and legends about the adventures of the gods, including Hephaestus, who patronized blacksmiths, and Hermes, who helped develop trade.
At the end of the 5th - beginning of the 4th centuries BC. In ancient Greek cities, theaters (“places for spectacles”) arose. The first authors of tragedies, which literally means “song of the goats,” were Aeschylus (“Prometheus Bound” and others) and Sophocles (“Antigone” and others). Monuments were erected to them in the Athens theater.
In the V-IV centuries BC. architecture in Greece reached the highest level of development. In the Athenian acropolis (upper city) stood the Parthenon, built during the time of Pericles in honor of the goddess Athena, a miracle of Greek architecture.
The architecture used Doric and Ionic columns and porticoes (canopies). To this day, the ivory and gold statue of Athena by Phidias, located in the Parthenon, and the “Discobolus” by Myron are famous.
In the 7th-6th centuries BC. the city of Miletus and other cities of Ionia were considered centers of Greek science. The great philosopher Democritus expressed a brilliant idea about the existence of the smallest particles - atoms. At the same time, the physician Hippocrates became famous. Author of the book “History”, who lived in the 5th century BC. Herodotus, nicknamed “the father of history.” Lived in the 4th century BC.
Aristotle gave names to the sciences and put forward the theory of geocentrism. Aristotle believed that the Earth is a ball located at the center of the universe, and the Sun and stars revolve around it.
In ancient Greece, the best schools were in Athens.
Pupils from the age of 7 attended school, wrote on wax tablets with a metal stick - style. Exemplary discipline reigned in schools. Students were severely punished for laziness and disobedience.
Once every four years the Olympic Games were held, all free Hellenes could take part in them. Women were prohibited not only from participating, but even from attending the games.
The Olympic Games were held in the Olympic Valley, sacred to the Greeks. The competition lasted 5 days. At this time all wars ceased. The winner was awarded a wreath of olive tree branches, and his statue was erected in his homeland. The Greek calendar counted years from the first Olympic Games, i.e. from 776 BC
The Greek language and culture spread throughout the territories conquered by Alexander. Alexandria became the third capital of Egypt. Here stood a lighthouse 140 meters high. The famous Musaeum (“sanctuary of the muses”) housed 700 thousand manuscripts. An observatory and a huge library were created. In the city of Pergamum in Asia Minor, parchment was made from carefully processed calf skin. They wrote on parchment and papyrus. Archimedes and Euclid lived and made their scientific discoveries in Alexandria. In the 3rd and 2nd centuries BC. architecture in Alexandria was at the highest level. Beautiful Corinthian columns were used in the construction. A huge monument with a relief was erected in Pergamon, the length of which was about 140 meters, the height of the figures was more than two meters. The relief depicted the victory of the Olympian gods over the giants.
The ancient Greek historian Plutarch compiled a biography of Alexander the Great.

Which, in turn, brought its culture to almost every European people. The term “Ancient Greece” itself is used to designate the Greek-speaking population during the period of antiquity and refers not only to the territory occupied today by modern Greece, but also to other regions inhabited in the past by Greek people, such as Cyprus, the Caucasus, Crimea, Ionia (west coast of Turkey), Sicily and southern Italy, known as Magna Graecia, as well as scattered Greek settlements on the shores of the Mediterranean, Black and Azov seas.

Geography

The territorial core is the southern part of the Balkan Peninsula (Balkan, or mainland, Greece), as well as the adjacent islands and the western coast of Asia Minor.

Map showing the main regions of mainland Ancient Greece and the surrounding "barbarian" lands.

In the northwest it bordered with Illyria, in the northeast with Macedonia, in the west it was washed by the Ionian (Sicilian) and in the east by the Aegean and Thracian seas. Included three regions - Northern Greece, Central Greece and Peloponnese. Northern Greece was divided into western (Epirus) and eastern (Thessaly) parts by the Pindus mountain range. Central Greece was delimited from the North by the mountains of Timfrest and Eta and consisted of ten regions (from west to east): Acarnania, Aetolia, Locris Ozole, Doris, Phocis, Locris Epiknemidskaya, Locris Opunta, Boeotia, Megaris and Attica. The Peloponnese was connected to the rest of Greece by the narrow (up to 6 km) Isthmus of Corinth.

The central region of the Peloponnese was Arcadia, which was bordered on the west by Elis, on the south by Messenia and Laconia, on the north by Achaea, on the east by Argolis, Phliuntia and Sicyonia; in the extreme northeastern corner of the peninsula was Corinthia. Insular Greece consisted of several hundred islands (the largest are Crete and Euboea), forming three large archipelagos - the Cyclades in the southwest of the Aegean Sea, the Sporades in its eastern and northern parts and the Ionian Islands in the eastern part of the Ionian Sea. Balkan Greece is mainly a mountainous country (it is pierced from north to south by two branches of the Dinaric Alps) with an extremely indented coastline and numerous bays (the largest are Ambracian, Corinthian, Messenian, Laconian, Argolid, Saronic, Mali and Pagasian).

Natural conditions

Mountain ranges divide Greece into many narrow and isolated valleys with access to the sea. There are few vast fertile plains here, except in Laconia, Boeotia, Thessaly and Euboea. In the ancient Greek period, three-quarters of the territory was pasture and only one-eighth was arable land. Both the plant (oak, wild walnut, cypress, chestnut, fir, spruce, myrtle, laurel, oleander, etc.) and animal world (bears, wolves, foxes, wild boars, fallow deer, deer, roe deer, hares) were rich and diverse ; in ancient times lions), but the sea gave especially a lot. The subsoil concealed significant deposits of minerals, primarily iron (Laconia, many islands), as well as silver (Attica, Thasos, Sifnos), copper (Eubea), gold (Thessaly, Thasos, Sifnas), lead (Keos), white marble ( Attica, Paros), dark blue clay (Attica)

Periodization

In historical science, it is customary to distinguish the following stages in the history of Ancient Greece:

Creto-Mycenaean (late III-II millennium BC). Minoan and Mycenaean civilizations. The emergence of the first state formations. Development of navigation. Establishing trade and diplomatic contacts with the civilizations of the Ancient East. The emergence of original writing. For Crete and mainland Greece at this stage, different periods of development are distinguished, since on the island of Crete, where the non-Greek population lived at that time, statehood developed earlier than in Balkan Greece, which underwent at the end of the 3rd millennium BC. e. conquest of the Achaean Greeks.
1. Minoan civilization (Crete):
  1. Early Minoan period (XXX-XXIII centuries BC). The dominance of tribal relations, the beginning of the development of metals, the beginnings of crafts, the development of navigation, a relatively high level of agrarian relations.
  2. Middle Minoan period (XXII-XVIII centuries BC). Also known as the period of "old" or "early" palaces. The emergence of early state formations in different parts of the island. Construction of monumental palace complexes in several regions of Crete. Early forms of writing.
  3. Late Minoan period (XVII-XII centuries BC). The heyday of the Minoan civilization, the unification of Crete, the creation of the maritime power of King Minos, the wide scope of Crete’s trading activities in the Aegean Sea basin, the heyday of monumental construction (“new” palaces in Knossos, Mallia, Phaistos). Active contacts with ancient Eastern states. Natural disaster of the mid-15th century. BC e. becomes the cause of the decline of the Minoan civilization, which created the preconditions for the conquest of Crete by the Achaeans.
2. Hellenic civilization (Balkan Greece):
  1. Early Helladic period (XXX-XXI centuries BC). The dominance of tribal relations among the pre-Greek population in Balkan Greece. The appearance of the first large settlements and proto-palace complexes.
  2. Middle Helladic period (XX-XVII centuries BC). The settlement of the first waves of Greek speakers - the Achaeans - in the south of the Balkan Peninsula, which was accompanied by a slight decrease in the overall level of socio-economic development of Greece. The beginning of the decomposition of tribal relations among the Achaeans.
  3. Late Helladic period (XVI-XII centuries BC) or Mycenaean civilization. The emergence of an early class society among the Achaeans, the formation of a productive economy in agriculture, the emergence of a number of state entities with centers in Mycenae, Tiryns, Pylos, Thebes, etc., the formation of original writing, the flourishing of Mycenaean culture. The Achaeans subjugate Crete and destroy the Minoan civilization. In the 12th century. BC e. a new tribal group invades Greece - the Dorians, the death of the Mycenaean statehood.
Polisny(XI-IV centuries BC). Ethnic consolidation of the Greek world. The formation, flourishing and crisis of polis structures with democratic and oligarchic forms of statehood. The highest cultural and scientific achievements of ancient Greek civilization.
1. Homeric (prepolis) period, “dark ages” (XI-IX centuries BC). The final destruction of the remnants of the Mycenaean (Achaean) civilization, the revival and dominance of tribal relations, their transformation into early class ones, the formation of unique pre-polis social structures.
2. Archaic Greece (VIII-VI centuries BC). Formation of policy structures. Great Greek Colonization. Early Greek tyrannies. Ethnic consolidation of Hellenic society. The introduction of iron into all areas of production, economic growth. Creation of the foundations of commodity production, the spread of elements of private property.
3. Classical Greece (V-IV centuries BC). The flourishing of the economy and culture of Greek city-states. Reflecting the aggression of the Persian world power, raising national consciousness. The growing conflict between trade and craft types of policies with democratic forms of government and backward agrarian policies with an aristocratic structure, the Peloponnesian War, which undermined the economic and political potential of Hellas. The beginning of the crisis of the polis system and the loss of independence as a result of Macedonian aggression.
Hellenistic (IV-I centuries BC). The short-term establishment of the world power of Alexander the Great. The origin, flourishing and collapse of the Hellenistic Greek-Eastern statehood.
1. First Hellenistic period (334-281 BC). The campaigns of the Greek-Macedonian army of Alexander the Great, the short period of existence of his world power and its collapse into a number of Hellenistic states.
2. Second Hellenistic period (281-150 BC). The flourishing of Greek-Eastern statehood, economy and culture.
3. Third Hellenistic period (150-30 BC). Crisis and collapse of Hellenistic statehood.

Creto-Mycenaean period

The early stage of the history of Ancient Greece is called Crete-Mycenaean, or Aegean: the civilizations of the Bronze Age (from 3,000 to 1,000 BC) on the islands of the Aegean Sea, on Crete, as well as on the territory of mainland Greece and Anatolia, received the common name Aegean civilization, which, in turn, is divided into the Cretan-Mycenaean period (late III-II millennium BC), which includes the Minoan and Mycenaean civilizations. In the III-II millennia BC. e. The first states arise in the Aegean Sea basin - on the island of Crete and the Peloponnese peninsula (the cities of Mycenae, Pylos, Tiryns). These were states of a monarchical type, similar to ancient Eastern despotisms, with an extensive bureaucratic apparatus and strong communities.

The impetus for the beginning of the research of the English archaeologist Arthur Evans in Crete was the plots of the ancient Greek myths about the master Daedalus, who built a labyrinth palace in Knossos for King Minos, and about the hero Theseus, who defeated the inhabitant of the labyrinth, the Minotaur, and found the way back with the help of “Ariadne’s thread”. Mycenae was discovered by Heinrich Schliemann after excavations in Asia Minor, where he found the legendary Troy.

At the end of the 3rd - beginning of the 2nd millennium BC. e. the most powerful was the Cretan kingdom - a thalassocracy, which occupied an exceptionally advantageous geographical position and possessed a strong fleet. Cretan craftsmen finely processed bronze, but did not know iron; they made and painted ceramic dishes with images of plants, animals, and people.

Red Colonnade of Knossos Palace

To this day, the ruins of the royal palace at Knossos amaze. It was a multi-story building, most of the rooms of which were connected by a complex system of passages and corridors that never had external windows, but were illuminated through special light shafts. The palace had a ventilation and water supply system. The walls are decorated with frescoes. One of the most famous is “Parisian Woman” (currently in the collection of the Archaeological Museum of Heraklion) - this is what Arthur Evans called the image of a young woman with dark curly hair.

The palace was the center of the political and religious life of the state of Minos. The Cretans worshiped the goddess Demeter, she was served by the high priestess - the daughter of Minos, who can be depicted by large and small statuettes of the Goddess with snakes. Other artifacts indicate that the cult of the bull was central in religious ideas as the personification of Poseidon, the thunder god (Crete and the surrounding islands often suffered from earthquakes): the roof of the palace was decorated with monumental images of horns, ritual vessels were made in the shape of a bull’s head, on one of The frescoes depict acrobats playing with a bull - Taurocatapsia. Knossos was destroyed by a volcanic eruption on the island of Thira, and Crete lost its dominant position.

So from the middle of the 2nd millennium BC. e. Mycenae, inhabited by Achaean Greeks, became the center of Greek civilization. It was surrounded by powerful defensive walls made of huge, roughly hewn stone blocks. The main Lion Gate was decorated with a triangular stele with a relief image of two lionesses. Heinrich Schliemann also found the golden tomb of the Mycenaean kings - the tomb of Atreus, which consists of underground structures with domed vaults arranged in a circle. Mycenae led the Achaeans in the Trojan War, celebrated in the Iliad, which is attributed to the authorship of Homer.

The disappearance of Mycenaean culture in the 12th century BC. e. associated with the invasion of Dorian tribes from the north of the Balkan Peninsula, among which the clan system still dominated. The enslavement of the indigenous people by the Dorians led to the decline of Greek cities and their culture, in particular to the loss of early Greek writing (the so-called Cretan script).

Polis period

Dark Ages

Already in the 6th century BC. e. The struggle of the demos against the aristocracy, in whose hands the land was concentrated, unfolds. In Athens, Archon Solon introduced a number of reforms, including the abolition of debt slavery, which laid the foundations of Athenian democracy. However, the resistance of the aristocracy was so stubborn that only weapons could curb it. Thus, a special form of tyranny was formed in Greek cities, which was aimed at protecting peasants and artisans: in Corinth - the tyranny of Cypselus and Periander; in Athens - the tyranny of Pisistratus and further reforms of Cleisthenes, in Samos - the tyranny of Polycrates, as well as the tyranny of the cities of Sikyon, Miletus, Ephesus, etc.

At the end of the Archaic period, slavery spread in many poleis, regardless of the form of organization of the polis, including democratic Athens. At the same time, in oligarchic Sparta, Crete and Argos, certain features of the clan system were preserved, and in the communities of Aetolia, Acarnania and Phokis - subsistence farming. Against the background of such diversity in both political and economic indicators, Greek cities begin to compete, and the Peloponnesian League arises, led by Sparta - a military alliance of the cities of the Peloponnese to jointly wage wars and suppress helot uprisings.

Classical period

The classical period is the time of the highest flowering of ancient Greek society and culture, which occurred in the V-IV centuries BC. e. The most influential political and cultural center after the victory in the Greco-Persian wars was Ancient Athens, which stood at the head of the Delian League among the poleis of the islands of the Aegean Sea, its western, northern and eastern coasts. Athens reached its maximum power and cultural flourishing when the outstanding political figure, commander, and supporter of the democratic party, Pericles, who was elected strategist 15 times, became the head of the state. This period is known in historiography as the "Golden Age of Pericles", although it was relatively short-lived.

The transfer of the treasury of the Delian League from Delos to Athens, the collection of payment - foros - from the allies, the restriction of free trade at sea, punitive expeditions, cleruchia - all this caused indignation among the allies and a desire to free themselves from obligations. At the same time, conflicts outside the union were also brewing: the economic struggle between Athens and Corinth in the field of trade, and with Sparta for supremacy in Greece. In 431 BC e. The largest war in the history of Ancient Greece began - the Peloponnesian War, which ended with the crushing defeat of Athens, the loss of possessions and privileges, and Sparta established its hegemony.

The “crisis of the polis” was growing: intrapolis antagonism between the poor and the rich grew; meteks (foreigners in the polis) were glorified, the spread of slavery did not make it possible to find hired labor, and the only means of subsistence remained waging war (therefore, Greek mercenaries often fought in the Persian army). Frequent internecine wars further weakened the policies; they were no longer able to protect their citizens. Eventually 395 BC. e. The Corinthian War broke out, as a result of which Persia imposed the humiliating Peace of Antalcides on the Greeks, the implementation of which was to be enforced by Sparta. Thus, she became the main enemy, and the Second Athenian Naval League was created to fight Sparta. Although Thebes defeats Sparta at Leuctra, Athens' attempt to impose its will leads to another Allied War and the alliance falls apart.

During the period of weakness of the Greek city-states, Macedonia began its rise. King Philip II of Macedon successively conquers Thessaly, Phocis, Chalkis and Thrace. The anti-Macedonian coalition, whose ideologist was Demosthenes, suffered a crushing defeat at the Battle of Chaeronea in 338 BC. e. By 337 BC e. The Corinthian Union of Greek states was created, led by Macedonia, Macedonian garrisons were introduced everywhere and oligarchic regimes were established.

Hellenistic period

Culture of Ancient Greece

Mythology

Mythology played a unifying, formative role for the entire ancient Greek culture. It began to take shape back in the Cretan-Mycenaean period. The most ancient deities were the ones who embodied the forces of nature. From the union of Gaia - earth and Uranus - sky, the titans appeared, the eldest was Ocean, the youngest was Kronos. According to mythology, Kronos decided to take revenge on his father for imprisoning his Cyclops brothers in Tartarus. While Uranus was sleeping, Kronos dealt a heavy blow to him and became the king of all gods. The children of Kronos - the gods led by Zeus, in a fierce battle with the titans, won and shared power over the world.

Humane, harmonious images of Greek mythology became the basis for the development of ancient Greek art. The mythology of the ancient Greeks had a decisive influence on the formation of ancient Roman mythology and religion. During the Renaissance, it was actively included in the European cultural process. Until now, scientific, educational, and aesthetic interest in it has not waned.

The science

Main article: Ancient Greek science

Already in ancient Greek mythology, the desire to give a comprehensive picture of the world, to find an explanation for everything that exists was clearly visible. The same searches, but at a different ideological level, were continued by scientists of Ancient Hellas. It was in ancient culture that science emerged as an independent sphere for the first time in human history. There is every reason to talk not just about the accumulation of scientific knowledge (which was, as a rule, in the hands of priests), but about the development of professional science.

Ancient philosophy is of enduring importance. In Ancient Greece, philosophy was born as a scientific theory, a system of concepts developed, and the main philosophical problems were posed and received their original solution. One of the most important achievements of ancient Greek philosophy is the development of cosmological questions - about the origin of the Universe, about the nature of man.

A distinctive feature of the philosophical works of the Hellenistic time, when the rather closed world of the Greek city-states was broken, is the increased attention to the individual person and his problems. The philosophy of Epicurus saw as its task the liberation of man from the fear of death and fate; he denied the intervention of the gods in the life of nature and man, and proved the materiality of the soul. The life ideal of the philosophical school of Stoicism was equanimity and calm, which a person must maintain in contrast to the changing world. The Stoics considered the main virtues to be understanding (that is, knowledge of what is good and evil), courage and justice.

The historical science of Ancient Greece is primarily associated with the name of Herodotus. He traveled a lot: he visited Asia Minor, Ancient Egypt, Phenicia, various cities of Balkan Greece, the Black Sea coast, where he collected, in particular, information about the Scythians. Herodotus's main work is “History,” which is dedicated to the most important political event in Greek history - the Greco-Persian Wars. Despite the fact that “History” is not always distinguished by its integrity and complete scientificity, the facts that are given in it are mostly reliable. It was Herodotus who gave the first systematic description of the life and everyday life of the Scythians in ancient literature.

Medical knowledge began to be generalized quite early. One of the Olympian gods, Apollo, was considered the supreme patron of medicine, the healer god. Asclepius became the god of medicine itself, and many scientists now believe that this mythological character had a historical prototype, a real, skilled doctor. Several scientific medical schools have developed in Greece, the most famous are Knidos (city of Knidos) and Kos (on the island of Kos). The representative of the latter was Hippocrates, who lived in the classical era. His discussions about the causes of diseases, about the four temperaments, about the role of prognosis in treatment, about the moral and ethical requirements for a doctor had a great influence on the further development of medicine. The Hippocratic Oath is still the moral code of doctors around the world today. The first systematic textbook on animal anatomy was compiled by Diocles. The cities of Magna Graecia were major medical centers, the most prominent representative of which was Philistion.

The era of successful development of science was Hellenism. This stage is characterized by the successful development of many new scientific centers, especially in the Hellenistic states in the East. The synthesis of the mathematical knowledge accumulated by that time can be considered the work of Euclid, who lived in Alexandria, “Elements” (or “Principles”). The postulates and axioms set out in it and the deductive method of proof have served as the basis of geometry for centuries. The name of Archimedes from Syracuse on the island of Sicily is associated with the discovery of one of the basic laws of hydrostatics, the beginning of the calculation of infinitely large and small quantities, and a number of important technical inventions. Pergamon became the center for the study of Greek philology, and here Dionysius of Thracia created the first grammar.

Based on the works of Babylonian scientists, astronomy was further developed. For example, Seleucus of Babylon tried to substantiate the position that the Earth and planets revolve around the Sun in circular orbits. The campaigns of Alexander the Great significantly expanded geographical ideas. Dicaearchus made a map of the world. Eratosthenes of Cyrene calculated the length of the Earth's equator, obtaining a result close to the correct one (the scientist proceeded from the hypothesis of the spherical shape of the Earth). Volcanic and meteorological phenomena were studied, monsoons and their practical significance were discovered. The study of man has made significant progress. Herophilus discovered nerves and established their connection with the brain; he also suggested that human mental abilities are connected with the brain. Erasistratus studied the anatomy of the heart, research into veterinary medicine was developed, and Zopyrus and Philo of Tarsus made major contributions to pharmacology.

The largest scientific center of the Hellenistic world was the Alexandria Museion and the Library of Alexandria, which contained more than half a million books. Outstanding scientists, poets, and artists from all over the Mediterranean came here to work.

Education

Gymnasium (palestra) at Olympia

In the course of the development of ancient spiritual culture, the ideal of a person was gradually developed, which presupposes harmony, a combination of physical and spiritual beauty. The entire system of upbringing and education, unique for its time, correlated with this ideal. It was in the policies of Hellas that for the first time in history the task of educating the children of the entire free population (we were talking primarily about boys) arose. Moreover, attention was paid both to the acquisition of scientific knowledge and to physical development, to the assimilation of the moral code of a free citizen.

There were private and public educational institutions. The structure of education was affected by political differences between policies. In the recognized center of education - Athens - with its democratic republican system, the following education system took shape. The first school laws were drawn up by the ancient Greek poet and statesman Solon. They stipulated that a schoolteacher must pass examinations from time to time to confirm his right to teach others. Classes in schools were held only in daylight. If a father did not send his son to school, then the son might not support his father in old age. The school teacher made sure to show the children the basic gymnastic exercises that would be taught in the gymnasium. Competitions were held among Athenian teachers in recitation and various types of athletics.

After home education, boys from the age of seven began to study at a lower school, which was called didaxaleon(from the Greek “didaktikos” - teaching). Here they taught literacy, literature, starting with Homer, music, arithmetic, and drawing. A more in-depth study of subjects with the addition of the principles of astronomy and philosophy continued at the second level of primary schools - grammar school (from 12 to 15 years). Physical education training was carried out simultaneously, in a special complex - the palaestra. All of these types of educational institutions in Athens were owned by private individuals. But the Athenians taught, at public expense, those children whose parents died on the battlefield defending the Fatherland.

General education was completed at the gymnasium, where young men aged 16-18 improved in the sciences, which included rhetoric, ethics, logic, geography, as well as gymnastics. The state was in charge of the gymnasiums, and monumental buildings were built for them. Wealthy citizens considered it an honor to take the elected position of head of the gymnasium, despite the fact that it was associated with large personal expenses. Gymnasiums were the centers of intellectual life in the polis; there were several of them in Athens. Every gymnasium had a library. The most famous were Plato's Academy, where Plato held conversations with his students, and the Lyceum, founded by Aristotle. After the gymnasium, one could become an ephebe - a student of a higher educational institution, who in the polis era were military, and in the Hellenistic era they radically changed and became civilians. Circles that were grouped around prominent scientists can be considered a unique form of higher education.

In Sparta, state control over personal development was quite strict. According to legend, newborns were examined by members of the gerusia (city council of elders) and only healthy children were selected. The weak and sick were thrown into the abyss of the Taygetos ridge. There was a public school system, compulsory for every Spartan from 8 to 20 years of age. Unlike Athens, both boys and girls studied in schools, but in Sparta the child was torn away from his family. Children, starting from the age of 12, were divided into squads, at the head of each squad was a pren (the oldest and most authoritative boy). The main elements of training were: hunting, religious and military dances, and various physical exercises. Mental development was a personal matter for every Spartan.

Art of Ancient Greece

Main article: Ancient Greek art

Literature

Ancient Greek artistic culture occupies a special place in the history of world civilization. Hellenic art achieved a deep humanity of images, imbued with a sense of harmony of the world and man, which consciously embodies the beauty of natural existence.

The very early formation of the ancient Greek literary tradition is associated with mythology, its plots and images. The development of individual spheres of culture does not always occur evenly. Thus, in Ancient Greece, the heights of poetic creativity were reached much earlier than classical science, education and art took shape. Around the 8th century BC. e. Homer wrote his epic poems - the Iliad and the Odyssey. Most scientists believe that Homer lived in Asia Minor and was a rhapsodist - the so-called poets who recited their poems. Opinions differ about the time of writing of the poems: some believe that the first records were made during the life of Homer, others - that this happened later - in the 6th century BC. e. Both versions relate to the history of Greek writing. The alphabet (phonetic writing) was borrowed by the Greeks from the Phoenicians just in the 8th century BC. e. The Greeks wrote, like the Phoenicians, from right to left and without vowels, and in the 6th century BC. e. The letter took on a form that is already familiar to us.

Homer's poems are closely related to the folk heroic epic dedicated to the Trojan War, which intertwined real historical events (the military campaign of the Achaean Greeks against Troy, which they called Ilion), and fantastic stories (“Apple of discord” as the cause of the war, the participation of the gods in conflict, "Trojan horse"). However, Homer does not translate myths, but creates artistic images, depicts the inner world of heroes, the clash of characters. The Iliad is dedicated to one episode of the last, tenth, year of the war - the anger of the strongest and bravest of the Greek warriors, Achilles, who was offended by the leader of the Greeks, the Mycenaean king Agamemnon. Achilles refuses to take part in the battle, the Trojans break through to the ships, and Achilles's best friend, Patroclus, dies. Achilles changes his mind, enters into a duel with the main defender of Troy, the son of King Priam, Hector, and kills him. The scene of the meeting between Achilles and Priam is striking, when the king, kissing the hands of the winner, asks to give him the body of his son for burial with all honors.

“The Odyssey” tells about a long, full of incredible fabulous adventures, the return home of one of the main participants in the war - the king of the island of Ithaca, the cunning Odysseus. The Greeks not only knew them by heart, rewrote them many times, loved Homer’s poems, but worshiped them. They were made the basis of upbringing and education. An accurate and figurative assessment of the meaning of the Iliad and Odyssey was given by the medieval Byzantine writer Michael Choniates in the 13th century, who wrote: “Just as, according to Homer, all rivers and streams originate in the Ocean, so all verbal art has its source in Homer."

Hesiod continued the epic tradition of Homer. In the poem “Theogony” he outlined mythological ideas about the origin of the gods and the structure of the world. In “Works and Days,” for the first time he introduced personal assessments and a description of the circumstances of his own life into the epic poem. Subsequently, lyric poetry developed in Greece. The names of the poetess Sappho (sapphic stanza - a special poetic meter), Anacreon (anacreontic - lyrics glorifying the joy of life and worldly pleasures) became famous. However, the poems of these and other ancient Greek authors have survived only in fragments.

Drama has emerged as an independent genre of literary creativity.

Drama and theater

Main article: Ancient Greek theater

The emergence of the ancient Greek theater is associated with holidays in honor of the god of viticulture Dionysus - Dionysia. Participants in the processions wore goatskins and sang and danced (the word “tragedy” is translated from Greek as “song of the goats”). The historical origin of the theater is indicated by the obligatory participation in tragedies of the choir, with whom at first a single actor entered into dialogues; later the number of actors increased to three. Combining with the literary tradition, theater in the classical era transformed from religious and folk performances into an independent art form. Theatrical performances have become an integral part of public holidays - Dionysius and Lenya. For them, grandiose stone theaters were built, designed for thousands of spectators (the Theater of Dionysus in Athens, the best preserved amphitheater in Epidaurus).

City authorities found a chorega (a person who provided financing), selected productions and, at their own discretion, determined the order of showing comedies and tragedies. Poor people received money for admission. The actors were exclusively men; they played in special masks. The masks reflected the character and mood of the character being portrayed. The director was the poet himself. After the end of the performances, which lasted for several days from morning to evening, special judges determined the best and awarded prizes in the form of a cash prize to the playwright and choreographer, a laurel branch and a monument in honor of the choreographer.

The most famous playwrights were the tragedians Aeschylus, Sophocles and Euripides. Aeschylus wrote 90 plays and won dramatic competitions 13 times. His historical play "The Persians" glorifies the victory of the Greeks in the war against the invaders. Aeschylus himself took part in major battles. Most ancient Greek plays use mythological themes, which the authors freely interpreted to express their own views. Aeschylus in “Prometheus Bound” admires the courage and love of freedom of the titan. Sophocles appears to have a psychological motivation for the actions of the heroes. For example, in “Antigone” the main character sacrifices herself, but fulfills a moral obligation: contrary to the king’s prohibition, she hides her dead brother. It is in this tragedy that the chorus sounds with the famous refrain: “there are many great forces in the world, but there is nothing stronger in nature than man.” Most of the dramatic works have been lost. Only seven plays by Aeschylus have been completely preserved, seven by Sophocles (123 were written, 24 of them won competitions), a little more - 17 by Euripides. Euripides already lived in an era of crisis, civil wars, and external danger that was growing from Macedonia. All this was reflected in his work (“Medea”, “Hippolytus”), Aristotle called Euripides “the most tragic among poets.” Aristophanes (“Clouds,” “Wasps,” “Frogs”) was deservedly considered a master of comedy. Dramatic works of the ancient Greeks still remain in the repertoire of many theaters; they have been filmed several times.

Music

Music occupied an important place in the life of the Hellenes. Images of musicians are presented in ancient Greek mythology (Orpheus, Pan, Marsyas); images of musicians are preserved on Greek vases and in the form of sculptures. In Greece there were special colleges (associations) of singers, musicians, and dancers; music sounded during celebrations, rituals, games, and accompanied theatrical performances. The musical instrumentation was represented by plucked strings (kifara, lyre) as well as wind instruments (avlos, Pan flute).

Ancient Greek thinkers studied the most important acoustic patterns (Pythagoras, Aristoxenus), developed a detailed modal system and notation system, at the same time, a significant place in the works of philosophers was given to musical-aesthetic and musical-ethical problems (Plato, Aristotle). The musical culture of the ancient Greeks preceded the cult music of Christian Europe in the following centuries (Byzantine music, Gregorian chants) and largely determined the further development of European music, giving most European languages the term “music” (from the muses).

Architecture

Under slave-owning democracy, an integral environment of city-states is created. A system of regular city planning is developing (the Hippodamian system), with a rectangular grid of streets, a square - the center of trade and public life. The cult and architectural-compositional core of the city was the temple, which was built on the top of the acropolis - an elevated and fortified part of the city. The Hellenes developed a completely different type of temple than in the ancient Eastern civilization - open, bright, which glorified a person, and did not inspire awe. It is characteristic that architecture contains a human metrical principle. A mathematical analysis of the proportions of ancient Greek temples showed that they correspond to the proportions of the human figure. The classical Greek temple was rectangular in plan, surrounded on all sides by a colonnade. The roof was gable. The triangular planes formed from the facades - pediments - were usually decorated with sculptural images.

Greek architecture is distinguished by purity and unity of style. Three main architectural orders were created (“order” - translated from Greek as “order”) - they differ in the types of columns and ceilings, proportions, and decorative decoration. The Doric and Ionic styles arose during the polis period. Corinthian order - appears in the Hellenistic era.

The most perfect architectural ensemble of classical Greece was the Acropolis of Athens. It was built in the second half of the 5th century BC. e. during the period of greatest power of Ancient Athens. Acropolis Hill, which rises 150 m above sea level, has long been a fortress, and then the site of the main religious buildings. However, during the Persian attack they were all destroyed. Pericles, who achieved the transfer of the treasury of the Athenian Maritime League, which included many ancient Greek policies, to Athens, initiated a grandiose reconstruction of the Acropolis. The work was supervised by Pericles' personal friend, the outstanding sculptor Phidias. A distinctive feature of this complex is its extreme harmony, which is explained by the unity of design and the short construction period for such a scale (about 40 years).

The main entrance to the Acropolis - Propylaea - was erected by the architect Mnesicles. Later, a small Temple of Nike Apteros (Niki the Wingless) was built in front of them on an artificially enlarged rock ledge - a symbol that the goddess of victory would never leave the city. The main temple of the Acropolis is the white marble Parthenon - the temple of Athena Parthenos (Virgin Athena). Its architects - Iktin and Kallikrates - conceived and designed a structure so proportionate that, while standing out as by far the most majestic structure of the complex, its size does not weigh on others. In ancient times, in the center of the Acropolis, on a pedestal, in golden armor, stood the grandiose figure of Pallas Athena (Warrior Athena) by Phidias. The Erechtheion is a temple dedicated to Poseidon, who in mythology competed with Athena for the right to patronize the city. The portico of the caryatids is famous in this temple. A portico is a gallery that is open on one side and supported by columns, and in the Erechtheion the columns are replaced by six marble figures of caryatid girls. The Roman historian Plutarch wrote about the construction of the Acropolis: “...their eternal novelty saved them from the touch of time.”

The architecture of Hellenistic city-states continued Greek traditions, but along with the construction of temples, more attention was paid to civil engineering - the architecture of theaters, gymnasiums, and palaces of Hellenistic rulers. The interior and exterior design of buildings has become richer and more diverse. The construction of such famous “wonders of the world” as the tomb of King Mausolus in Halicarnassus and the Pharos lighthouse at the entrance to the Alexandria harbor, the Temple of Dionysus in Teos - the creation of Hermogenes - dates back to this time.

art

Sculpture was the favorite art form of the Hellenes. Statues of gods were built in temples and city squares, and were placed for the winners of the Olympic Games and major playwrights. The acquisition, very gradual, of perfection in this art form dates back to archaic times. Archaeologists have found dozens of very similar archaic statues of two types: kouros - statues of naked youths and kora - draped female statues. These figures still look very constrained; you can only see attempts to convey living movement.

The era of ancient Greek classics gave the world masterpieces of sculpture that humanity never tires of admiring. Contemporaries were the great masters Phidias, Myron, and Polykleitos the Elder. Phidias was called by his contemporaries “the creator of the gods.” To this day, his main works have not survived; they can only be judged by enthusiastic descriptions and Roman copies. The statue of Zeus, lined with gold and ivory, which was located in the main temple of Zeus at Olympia, was rightly ranked by contemporaries as one of the seven wonders of the world. He also created outstanding bas-reliefs and sculptures of the Parthenon, including the main statue - Athena Parthenos (Athena the Virgin).

Myron reached heights in his desire to convey human movement in a sculptural image. In his famous Disco ball For the first time in art, the problem of conveying the moment of transition from one movement to another was resolved, staticity was overcome. At the same time, in accordance with the general aesthetic ideal, the sculptor depicts the athlete’s face as absolutely calm. Polycletus owns a series of statues of athletes - winners of the Olympic Games. The most famous figure is Doryphoros (young man with a spear). Polykleitos theoretically summarized the experience of his mastery in the treatise “Canon”. The most famous creator of female sculptural images was Praxiteles. His Aphrodite of Knidos evoked many imitations. The proportionality of classical sculptures became a model for masters of many eras.

The era of the conquest of Alexander the Great, the subsequent collapse of his empire, full of passions, ups and downs of the human destinies of entire states, brought a new atmosphere to art. If we compare the sculptures of the Hellenistic era with the previous, classical period, then their appearance has lost equanimity and calm. Artists (

Map of ancient Greece

Ancient times of Ancient Greece

The peoples of Greece and their development

The role of Greek civilization in the history of the development of the world

Periods of ancient Greece. History of development

Early period (1050-750 BC)

Archaic (Archaic) period (750-500 BC)

Classical period (500-323 BC)

Hellenistic period (323-31 BC)

One Greek is worth a thousand barbarians. (Alexander the Great).

Modern European (and not only European) civilization owes much of its development to ancient Greece. This relatively small state has made a huge contribution to global culture: medicine, politics, art, literature, theater. To this day, ancient Greek myths serve as a source of inspiration for many people, being studied and retold. And the famous ancient Greek theater, which became the prototype of modern theater, is now being reconstructed again, modern people are trying to revive a piece of ancient Greece through theatrical art. And all this is just a small part of the great Greek heritage.

History of Ancient Greece

Many people associate the phrase “ancient Greece” with high ancient culture, wise Athenian philosophers, brave Spartan warriors and majestic temples. In fact, ancient Greece is not one, but several civilizations that developed and transformed over the centuries. Among them are:

The Minoan civilization, which existed in the early period of the development of ancient Greece, is associated with it, for example, the famous legend of Theseus and the Minotaur, which probably has some real historical basis.
The Achaean civilization, it is about this period that Homer writes in his epic poems “Iliad” and “Odyssey”.
Hellenic civilization, actually the period of the highest flowering of ancient Greek civilization.

Also, the territory of ancient Greece itself is conventionally divided into three parts: Northern, Middle and Southern. In Southern Greece there was the warlike and harsh Sparta, the heart of ancient Greece - Athens, located in Central Greece, and in the North were Thessaly and Macedonia. (The latter, however, was not considered “true Greek”; the Macedonians were rather half-Greeks, half-barbarians, but it’s true that in the history of ancient Greece they had a significant role, but look further on this).

As for the history of ancient Greece, historians conditionally divide it into several periods, and then we will consider in detail the main periods of ancient Greece.

Early period

The emergence of ancient Greece dates back to ancient times, at a time when the ancient Greeks themselves were just as barbaric. Pelasgian tribes inhabiting Greek territory in the 3rd millennium BC. That is, they were expelled from there by Achaean tribes who came from the north. The Achaeans, who created the Achaean civilization, in turn, were destroyed by the Dorian tribes, who were at a culturally lower level of development. After the death of the Achaean civilization, the so-called “dark age” of the ancient world begins. Like the other “dark age” that came after the crash, it is characterized by the decline of culture, the lack of written sources that can tell us about this historical period.

Only Homer shed some light on it; however, for a long time, serious historians considered the events described in the Iliad about the Trojan War to be only the poet’s invention, until someone, the German archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann, unearthed the real Troy. True, debates about the reliability of the Troy he excavated are still ongoing, we have a separate interesting one on this topic on our website, but for now we are returning to the history of Greece.

Archaic period

It is also the Archaic period of ancient Greece, characterized by a new flourishing of Greek civilization. It was during this period that Greek city-states began to appear - independent city-states, among which Athens, Thebes and Sparta gradually rose. Athens became the greatest cultural center of ancient Greece; it was here that many outstanding philosophers, scientists, and poets subsequently lived. Athens was also the stronghold of ancient Greek democracy, the power of the people (“demos” means “people” in Greek, “kratos” means power) and the birthplace of this form of government.

Of course, ancient Greek democracy differed from modern democracy, for example, slaves and women could not take part in voting and public meetings (it was not long before the advent of feminism). Otherwise, Athenian democracy was exactly what real democracy is in its traditional understanding; any free citizen had not only the right, but also the obligation to participate in public assemblies, the so-called ecclesias, at which all important political and economic decisions were made.

People's Assemblies in Athens.

Sparta was the complete opposite of Athens, a military state where, of course, there could be no talk of any democracy. Sparta was ruled by two kings at once, one of whom commanded the army and went on military campaigns at the head of the army, the second was in charge of the economy in his absence . Every Spartan man was a professional warrior who spent all his time improving his military skills; as a result, the Spartan army was the strongest in Greece at that time. And the feat of the 300 Spartans, who held back the advance of a large army, has been glorified more than once both in art and in cinema. The economy of Sparta rested entirely on slaves - helots, who often rebelled against their masters.

Thebes, another great city of ancient Greece, was also a significant cultural and economic center, and also had great political influence. Power in Thebes belonged to a group of wealthy citizens, the so-called oligarchs (yes, this is a familiar word of Greek origin in our everyday life), who, on the one hand, were afraid of the spread of Athenian democracy, but on the other hand, the severity of the Spartan way of life was also not acceptable to them. As a result, in the constant conflicts between Athens and Sparta, Thebes supported one side or the other.

Classical period

The classical period of ancient Greece is characterized by the highest flowering of its culture, philosophy, art, it was during this period that such outstanding personalities as Solon and Pericles (outstanding political figures who strengthened democracy in Athens), Phidias (creator of the Parthenon in Athens and many other great buildings), appeared. Aeschylus (a talented playwright, “the father of drama”), Socrates and Plato (we think these philosophers need no introduction).

However, with the highest development of culture during this period, ancient Greece also faced great trials, namely the invasion of the Persians, seeking to enslave the freedom-loving Greeks. In the face of a formidable enemy, even such previously irreconcilable rivals as Athens and Sparta united and presented a united front, pan-Greek patriotism prevailed over local squabbles. As a result, after a series of outstanding victories (the Battle of Marathon, the Battle of Thermopylae) over the superior forces of the Persians, the Greeks managed to defend their independence.

True, after the victory over the Persians during the Greco-Persian wars, the Greeks again returned to their old quarrels, which soon escalated so much that they resulted in the Great Peleponian War, between Athens and Sparta. On both sides, the two policies were supported by their allies, lasting 30 years, the war ended with the victory of Sparta. True, the victory did not bring much joy to anyone, the brilliant Greek civilization again fell into decay and desolation during the years of the war, and the Greek city-states themselves weakened so much during the war that soon the energetic Macedonian king Philip, the father of the great conqueror Alexander the Great, conquered all of Greece without much difficulty .

Well, his son, as we know, having rallied all the Greeks, himself attacked Persia, and so successfully that he reached with his invincible at that time Greek phalanxes right up to . From this moment the Hellenistic period of the history of ancient Greece begins.

Hellenistic period

It is also the final period of the heyday of Greek civilization, the moment of its greatest zenith, when the power (and at the same time the culture) of the Greeks, thanks to the energy of one Macedonian, stretched from Greece proper to distant India, where a unique Greek-Indian culture was even created, manifested, for example, in statues Buddha, made in Greek style, antique sculpture. (such amazing cultural syncretism).

The Bamiyan Buddha statue, made in the ancient style, unfortunately, has not survived to this day.

After the death of Alexander the Great, his vast empire collapsed as quickly as it was conquered; Greek influence nevertheless continued to persist for some time, but over time gradually began to decline. The situation was complicated by the invasion of Greece itself by warlike Galatian tribes.

And finally, with the rise of Rome and the appearance of Roman legionaries on Greek soil, came the final end of Greek civilization, which was completely absorbed by the Roman Empire. The Romans, as we know, largely adopted Greek culture and became its worthy successors.

Culture of Ancient Greece

It was in ancient Greece that the first philosophical concepts were formulated, which laid down the fundamental knowledge about the universe that modern science uses.

The Greek historian Herodotus literally became the “father of history”; it was his historical works that serve as models for the works of subsequent generations of historians. The Greek physician Hippocrates became the “father of medicine”; his famous “Hippocratic Oath” to this day expresses the moral and ethical principles of a doctor’s behavior. The playwright Aeschylus, already mentioned by us, became the creator of theatrical drama; his contribution to theatrical art and the development of theater is simply enormous. Just like the enormous contributions of the Greeks Pythagoras and Archimedes to the development of mathematics. And the philosopher Aristotle can generally be called the “father of science” in the broad sense of the word, since it was Aristotle who formulated the fundamental principles of scientific knowledge of the world.

This is what the ancient Greek theater looks like, which emerged from religious mysteries; it soon became one of the favorite places of entertainment for the ancient Greeks. The theater buildings themselves in ancient Greece were an open area with a round structure for the choir and a stage for the actors. All ancient Greek theaters had excellent acoustics, so even spectators sitting in the back rows could hear all the lines (there were no microphones yet).

The Ancient Greek Olympic Games, during which all wars were even interrupted, became, in fact, the foundation for the development of modern sports and the modern Olympic Games, which represent precisely the revival of the ancient Greek sports tradition.

The Greeks also had many interesting inventions in military affairs, for example their famous phalanx, which represented a close-knit combat formation of infantry. The Greek phalanx could easily win (and did win) victories over the numerically superior but unorganized Persians, Celts and other barbarians.

Art of Ancient Greece

Ancient Greek art is represented, first of all, by beautiful sculpture and architecture, painting. Harmony, balance, orderliness and beauty of forms, clarity and proportionality, these are the basic principles of Greek art, which considers man as the measure of all things, representing him in physical and moral perfection.

The famous Venus de Milo, the creation of an unknown Greek sculptor. Depicting the goddess of love and beauty Venus, she first of all conveys the pristine beauty of the female body, this is the whole sculpture of ancient Greece and all its art.

The architecture of ancient Greece became especially famous thanks to Phidias, a sculptor and architect, the Parthenon, a temple dedicated to the patroness of Athens, the goddess of war and wisdom, Athena, his greatest creation.

But besides the Parthenon, the Greeks built many other equally beautiful temples, many of which, unfortunately, have not survived to this day or have been preserved in the form of ruins.

As for painting, in ancient Greece it was represented in skillful drawings on Greek vases, in the form of vase painting. The ancient Greeks achieved great skill in decorating and painting vases and amphorae.

Painted Greek amphora. It is worth noting that the ancient Greeks painted a variety of types of pottery. And the inscriptions on vases left by some vase painters became an additional source of historical information.

Religion in Ancient Greece

The religion of ancient Greece and its mythology are perhaps the best studied, and the names of many Greek gods and goddesses, led by the supreme god Zeus, are well known to many. Interestingly, the Greeks endowed their gods with completely human qualities and even vices characteristic of people, such as anger, envy, vindictiveness, adultery, and so on.

Also, in addition to the gods, there was a cult of demigod heroes, such as, for example, Hercules, the son of the supreme god Zeus and an ordinary mortal woman. Often, many Greek rulers declared that they traced their ancestry to one or another semi-divine hero.

What’s interesting is that, unlike many other religions, the ancient Greeks were not at all characterized by religious fanaticism (“If Alexander so wants to be a god, then let him be,” the Spartans once calmly remarked in response to Alexander the Great’s claim to be divine origin), nor special reverence for the gods. When communicating with their gods, the Greeks never knelt, but talked with them as if with equal people.

And Greek temples dedicated to this or that god, in addition to their ritual functions, had another very important purpose: they were the real banks of antiquity, that is, places where various Greek oligarchs and nobles kept their values acquired by hook or by crook.

The familiar word “idiot” is of ancient Greek origin. The ancient Greeks called an idiot a citizen of the polis who did not take part in public meetings and voting, that is, a person who is not interested in politics in our modern understanding, who removed himself from political vicissitudes.
In ancient Greece, there was a special institution of hetaeras, which should in no case be confused with prostitutes. Hetaeras, like Japanese geishas, were beautiful and at the same time educated women, capable of maintaining an intellectual conversation, and versed in poetry, music, art, with a broad outlook, serving for the pleasure of men not only in the physical sense, but also in all other conceivable ways meanings. Many Greek hetaeras gathered around them philosophers, poets, scientists, a striking example of this is the hetaera Aspasia, who was the mistress of Pericles; at one time, even young Socrates was in love with Aspasia.
The ancient Greeks called all other representatives of, so to speak, less cultured peoples “barbarians” and it was they who introduced this term into use (“barbarian” is translated from ancient Greek as “foreigner, foreigner”). Later, the Romans also became infected with this Greek xenophobia.
Although the Greeks treated all Scythians and Germans with disdain, calling them “barbarians,” in turn, they themselves learned a lot from the more developed ancient Egyptian civilization and culture. For example, Pythagoras in his youth studied with Egyptian priests. The historian Herodotus also visited Egypt and talked a lot with Egyptian priests. “You Greeks are like little children,” the local priests told him.

Ancient Greece, video

And in conclusion, an interesting documentary about ancient Greece.