Athens, Ancient Greek City-State, for Kids and Teachers - Ancient Greece for Kids FAQ, About Us Athens was the measuring stick. If you lived in ancient Corinth, for example, you might hear someone say: "Our schools are good as those in Athens." Several city-states were famous for their textiles, arts, sciences, drama, but most, except for Sparta and possibly Corinth, recognized that Athens was the shining star. (Corinth was a highly respected city-state. Sparta was famous for military strength. Even Athens agreed with that.) The ancient Greeks believed that each city-state had one or two gods keeping a special eye on that city-state. The god in charge of Athens was Athena, goddess of wisdom . The city of Athens was named after their special goddess. Education was very important in Athens. From their mothers, girls learned how to cook and sew and run a home, and how to be a good wife and mother. Boys went to school. They memorized poetry and learned to play a musical instrument, usually the lyre. They studied public speaking and drama and reading and writing. Sons of nobles went to high school - four more years of learning about the sciences and the arts and politics and government.

Each city-state in ancient Greece had their own form of government. Most city-states, like Corinth, were ruled by kings. Some, like Sparta, were ruled by councils, a small group of people. But for about 100 years, ancient Athens was ruled by direct democracy ! It was an experiment. It didn't last long, but the invention of democracy is one of the most important gifts we received from the ancient Greeks. Citizens of Athens had many rights, including the right to stand trial and the right (when Athens was a direct democracy) to vote. But not all people in ancient Athens were citizens. Originally, a free male would be a citizen if his father was a citizen. But Pericles changed that rule in 450 BCE. The new law stated that both father and mother be Athenians for a child to be an Athenian. Out of the Athenians, only men had full citizenship. Women had partial citizenship, which basically meant they had few if any rights. Pericles changed this rule to give Athenian women more status. It worked. Even though Athenian women had no power of their own, their status as an Athenian made them more likely to contract a good marriage.

Sparta - Ancient History - HISTORY.com Google Spartan Society Sparta, also known as Lacedaemon, was an ancient Greek city-state located primarily in the present-day region of southern Greece called Laconia. The population of Sparta consisted of three main groups: the Spartans, or Spartiates, who were full citizens; the Helots, or serfs/slaves; and the Perioeci, who were neither slaves nor citizens. The Perioeci, whose name means “dwellers-around,” worked as craftsmen and traders, and built weapons for the Spartans. Did You Know? The word “spartan” means self-restrained, simple, frugal and austere. The word laconic, which means pithy and concise, is derived from the Spartans, who prized brevity of speech. All healthy male Spartan citizens participated in the compulsory state-sponsored education system, the Agoge, which emphasized obedience, endurance, courage and self-control. Spartan men devoted their lives to military service, and lived communally well into adulthood. A Spartan was taught that loyalty to the state came before everything else, including one’s family.

The Helots, whose name means “captives,” were fellow Greeks, originally from Laconia and Messenia, who had been conquered by the Spartans and turned into slaves. The Spartans’ way of life would not have been possible without the Helots, who handled all the day-to-day tasks and unskilled labor required to keep society functioning: They were farmers, domestic servants, nurses and military attendants. Spartans, who were outnumbered by the Helots, often treated them brutally and oppressively in an effort to prevent uprisings. Spartans would humiliate the Helots by doing such things as forcing them to get debilitatingly drunk on wine and then make fools of themselves in public. (This practice was also intended to demonstrate to young people how an adult Spartan should never act, as self-control was a prized trait.) Methods of mistreatment could be far more extreme: Spartans were allowed to kill Helots for being too smart or too fit, among other reasons. The Spartan Military Unlike such Greek city-states as Athens, a center for the arts, learning and philosophy, Sparta was centered on a warrior culture. Male Spartan citizens were allowed only one occupation: solider. Indoctrination into this lifestyle began early.

Spartan boys started their military training at age 7, when they left home and entered the Agoge. The boys lived communally under austere conditions. They were subjected to continual physical, competitions (which could involve violence), given meager rations and expected to become skilled at stealing food, among other survival skills. The teenage boys who demonstrated the most leadership potential were selected for participation in the Crypteia, which acted as a secret police force whose primary goal was to terrorize the general Helot population and murder those who were troublemakers. At age 20, Spartan males became full-time soldiers, and remained on active duty until age 60. The Spartans’ constant military drilling and discipline made them skilled at the ancient Greek style of fighting in a phalanx formation. In the phalanx, the army worked as a unit in a close, deep formation, and made coordinated mass maneuvers. No one soldier was considered superior to another. Going into battle, a Spartan soldier, or hoplite, wore a large bronze helmet, breastplate and ankle guards, and carried a round shield made of bronze and wood, a long spear and sword. Spartan warriors were also known for their long hair and red cloaks.

Spartan Women and Marriage Spartan women had a reputation for being independent-minded, and enjoyed more freedoms and power than their counterparts throughout ancient Greece. While they played no role in the military, female Spartans often received a formal education, although separate from boys and not at boarding schools. In part to attract mates, females engaged in athletic competitions, including javelin-throwing and wrestling, and also sang and danced competitively. As adults, Spartan women were allowed to own and manage property. Additionally, they were typically unencumbered by domestic responsibilities such as cooking, cleaning and making clothing, tasks which were handled by the helots. Marriage was important to Spartans, as the state put pressure on people to have male children who would grow up to become citizen-warriors, and replace those who died in battle. Men who delayed marriage were publically shamed, while those who fathered multiple sons could be rewarded. In preparation for marriage, Spartan women had their heads shaved; they kept their hair short after they wed. Married couples typically lived apart, as men under 30 were required to continue residing in communal barracks. In order to see their wives during this time, husbands had to sneak away at night.

Decline of the Spartans In 371 B.C., Sparta suffered a catastrophic defeat at the hands of the Thebans at the Battle of Leuctra. In a further blow, late the following year, Thebangeneral Epaminondas (c.418 B.C.-362B.C.)led an invasion into Spartan territory and oversaw the liberation of the Messenian Helots, who had been enslaved by the Spartans for several centuries. The Spartans would continue to exist, although as a second-rate power in a long period of decline. In 1834,Otto (1815-67), the king of Greece, ordered thefounding of the modern-daytown of Spartion the site of ancient Sparta. Tags Athens: History History Athens History The cultural legacy of ancient Athens to the world is incalculable; to a great extent the references to the Greek heritage that abound in the culture of Western Europe are to Athenian civilization. Athens, named after its patron goddess Athena, was inhabited in the Bronze Age.

Its citizens later proudly claimed that their ancestors had lived in the city even before the settlements of Attica were molded into a single state (according to legend, by Theseus ). Early History According to tradition, Athens was governed until c.1000 B.C. by Ionian kings, who had gained suzerainty over all Attica. After the Ionian kings Athens was rigidly governed by its aristocrats through the archontate (see archons ), until Solon began to enact liberal reforms in 594 B.C. Solon abolished serfdom, modified the harsh laws attributed to Draco (who had governed Athens c.621 B.C.), and altered the economy and constitution to give power to all the propertied classes, thus establishing a limited democracy. His economic reforms were largely retained when Athens came under (560–511 B.C.) the rule of the tyrant Pisistratus and his sons Hippias and Hipparchus . During this period the city's economy boomed and its culture flourished.

Building on the system of Solon, Cleisthenes then established (c.506 B.C.) a democracy for the freemen of Athens, and the city remained a democracy during most of the years of its greatness. A Great City-State The Persian Wars (500–449 B.C.) made Athens the strongest Greek city-state. Much smaller and less powerful than Sparta at the start of the wars, Athens was more active and more effective in the fighting against Persia. The Athenian heroes Miltiades , Themistocles , and Cimon were largely responsible for building the city's strength. In 490 B.C. the Greek army defeated Persia at Marathon . A great Athenian fleet won a major victory over the Persians off the island of Salamis (480 B.C.). The powerful fleet also enabled Athens to gain hegemony in the Delian League , which was created in 478–477 B.C. through the confederation of many city-states; in succeeding years the league was transformed into an empire headed by Athens. The city arranged peace with Persia in 449 B.C.

and with its chief rival, Sparta, in 445 B.C., but warfare with smaller Greek cities continued. During the time of Pericles (443–429 B.C.) Athens reached the height of its cultural and imperial achievement; Socrates and the dramatists Aeschylus , Sophocles , and Euripides were active. The incomparable Parthenon was built, and sculpture and painting flourished. Athens became a center of intellectual life. However, the rivalry with Sparta had not ended, and in 431 B.C. the Peloponnesian War between Sparta and Athens began. The war went badly for Athens from the start. The Long Walls built to protect the city and its port of Piraiévs saved the city itself as long as the fleet was paramount, but the allies of Athens fell away and the land empire Pericles had tried to build already had crumbled before his death in 429 B.C. The war dragged on under the leadership of Cleon and continued even after the collapse of the expedition against Sicily, urged (415 B.C.) by Alcibiades .

The Peloponnesian War finally ended in 404 B.C. with Athens completely humbled, its population cut in half, and its fleet reduced to a dozen ships. Under the dictates of Sparta, Athens was compelled to tear down the Long Walls and to accept the government of an oligarchy called the Thirty Tyrants . However, the city recovered rapidly. In 403 B.C. the Thirty Tyrants were overthrown by Thrasybulus , and by 376 B.C. Athens again had a fleet, had rebuilt the Long Walls, had re-created the Delian League, and had won a naval victory over Sparta. Sparta also lost power as a result of its defeat (371 B.C.) by Thebes at Leuctra ; and, although Athens did not again achieve hegemony over Greece, it did have a short period of great prosperity and comfort. The Decline of Athens The growth of Macedon's power under Philip II heralded the demise of Athens as a major power. Despite the pleas by Demosthenes to the citizens of Athens to stand up against Macedon, Athens was decisively defeated by Philip at Chaeronea in 338 B.C.

The city did not dare dispute the mastery of Philip's son and successor, Alexander the Great. After his death Athens revolted (323–322 B.C.) against control by Macedon, but the revolt was quashed, and Athens lost its remaining dependencies and declined into a provincial city. Its last bid for greatness (266–262 B.C.) was firmly suppressed by Antigonus II , king of Macedon. Through the troubled times of the Peloponnesian War and the wars against Philip, Athenian achievements in philosophy, drama, and art had continued. Aristophanes wrote comedies, Plato taught at the Academy, Aristotle compiled an incredible store of information, and Thucydides wrote a great history of the Peloponnesian War. As the city's glory waned in the 3d cent. B.C., its earlier contributions were spread over the world in Hellenistic culture. Athens became a minor ally of growing Rome, and a period of stagnation was broken only when the city unwisely chose to support Mithradates VI of Pontus against Rome. As a result, Athens was sacked by the Roman general Sulla in 86 B.C.

Nevertheless, Athens sent out many teachers to Rome and retained a certain faded glory as a moderately prosperous small city in the backwash of the empire. It remained so until the time when the Eastern Empire began to fall to the barbarians. Athens was captured in A.D. 395 by the Visigoths under Alaric I. From Byzantine to Ottoman Rule Athens became a provincial capital of the Byzantine Empire and a center of religious learning and devotion. Following the creation (1204) of the Latin Empire of Constantinople (see Constantinople, Latin Empire of ), Athens passed (1205) to Othon de la Roche, a French nobleman from Franche-Comté, who was made megaskyr [great lord] of Athens and Thebes. His nephew and successor, Guy I, obtained the ducal title, and the duchy of Athens, under Guy I and his successors, enjoyed great prosperity while becoming thoroughly French in its institutions. In 1311 the duchy was captured by a band of Catalan soldier-adventurers who offered (1312) the ducal title to King Frederick II of Sicily, a member of the house of Aragón.

Members of the house of Aragón carried the title, but Athens was in fact governed by the "Catalan Grand Company," which also acquired (1318) the neighboring duchy of Neopatras. The French feudal culture disappeared, and Athens sank into insignificance and poverty, particularly after 1377, when the succession was contested in civil war. Peter IV of Aragón assumed sovereignty in 1381 but ruled from Barcelona. On his initiative, the devastated duchy was settled by Albanians. Athens again prospered briefly after its conquest in 1388 by Nerio I Acciajuoli, lord of Corinth, a Florentine noble. Under the Acciajuoli family's rule numerous Florentine merchants established themselves in Athens. However, the fall of the Acropolis to the Ottoman Turks in 1458 marked the beginning of nearly four centuries of Ottoman rule, and Athens once more declined. Venice, which had held Athens from 1394 to 1402, recovered it briefly from the Turks in 1466 and besieged it in 1687–88.

During the siege the Parthenon, used by the Turks as a powder magazine, was largely blown up in a bombardment. Modern Athens Modern Athens was constructed only after 1834, when it became the capital of a newly independent Greece. Otto I , first king of the Hellenes (1832–62), rebuilt much of the city, and the first modern Olympic games were held there in 1896. The population grew rapidly in the 1920s, when Greek refugees arrived from Turkey. The city's inhabitants suffered extreme hardships during the German occupation (1941–44) in World War II, but the city escaped damage in the war and in the country's civil troubles of 1944–50. The 1950s and 60s brought unbridled expansion. Land clearance for suburban building caused runoff and flooding, requiring the modernization of the sewer system. The Mornos River was dammed and a pipeline over 100 mi (160 km) long was built to Athens, supplementing the inadequate water supply. The development of a highway system facilitated the proliferation of automobiles, resulting in increased air pollution.

This accelerated the deterioration of ancient buildings and monuments, requiring preservation and conservation programs as well as traffic bans in parts of the city. The Ellinikon airport was modernized and enlarged to accommodate increased tourism. A strong earthquake jolted the city in 1999, and in 2004 the summer Olympic games were held there again. Sections in this article: Olympia History Gods and Monsters Zeus The pantheon supreme god ruled the skies and fathered hundreds of heroes with his supernatural libido. Poseidon The god of the sea was Zeus brother and some time his greatest rival. Athena Zeus daughter was a virgin warrior goddess of wisdom and philosophy.

she was also goddess of weaving and patron of athens Apollo The handsome god and poerty presided over the muses Artemis Apollo's twin sister of the moon and the hunt and remained a virgin Aphrodite Voluptuous Aphrodite was Artemis polar opposite the temperamental goddess of love has dozens of affairs Minotaur Crete's queen pasiphae conceived this bull headed human bodied monster with a bul sen by poseidon Cyclops The most of famous of these one eyed giands in polyphemus the monster whom Odysseus blinded in the odyssey Sirens The beautyful sirens with their bewitching songs nearly lured odysseus sailors to their deaths on the rocky shore Medussa The gaze of this snake headed gorgon turned men to stone. Perseus deafeated her only with the help of athenas gleaming shield in which he could safety see his foe. Theseus king The son of Athens king Aegeus was secretly raised far from court.At 16 armed with a sword left by his father, Theseus left from athens en route slaying dozens of monsters terrorizing Attica.He became athens greatest king and hero.

Famous visitors Was Plato and Aristotle, and before them, in the 6th century BC, Thales of Miletus and Hieron of Syracusae were to compete in the games, and so was Alcibiades Alexander the Great and Nero. Thales died of sunstroke in the stadium during the games of 548 BC Spetactors Slaves and women, especially married ones, were strictly forbidden to watch the games, and if a woman was caught as a spectator, she was immediately thrown off Mt. Typaeon.Women could compete though, and besides that, the Heraia were also held here; foot races for young maids in the area. Barbarians were allowed to watch, but not to compete. A competitor had to be a free, unpunished Greek and he had to have trained for the games in his home for ten months, and for one month in Olympia. The winners did not receive any money, but were greatly honored Winners The prize was an olive wreath from Zeus holy tree, and the winner was allowed to raise a victory statue.

In his hometown he would usually be given free meals for the rest of his life, and it is said that a town with a champion would tear down its wall since they no longer needed one with such an athlete as a citizen. The prize wreath at Olympia was symbolic, but home cities rewarded Olympic victors substantially with cash bonuses, free meals, and more. In the sixth century Solon legislated rewards of 500 drachmas (more than $200,000) for Athenian Olympic victors. Pheidias Was and is considered the greatest sculpturer of the divine. He was also an architect and a painter. Phidias made the statue of Zeus in Olympia, by his time considered his masterpiece. It was made of gold and ivory, and the people regularly oiled it so the materials would not crack. It was said that anyone who had seen the God's smile could nevere be truly unhappy again. Further more, he made an Aphrodite in Elis and an Athena in Plataiai. He was very productive, and had many disciples working for him.

3000 BC The fertile region of olympia was first settled during the 3rd millenium BC.It was then that the earliest structures were built at the southern foot of the hill of cronus.They were built of uncut stone and had one apsidal wall. The pottery shards found here establish tha these buildings served as residences. The side does not appear to have yet been used for cult activity. 1400 BC The iavish Mycenean discovered at the site of the new museum have led scholars to believe that an important Mycenean city still lies buried near olympia. This may be Pisa the city ruled by the legendary king Oenomaus. This entire section of the western Peloponnese, know in antiquity as pisatis was densely populated Mycenaenan sites that have been found within a large radius of olympia. Despite this archeologists have yet to un earth ancient pisa the most important city of the region. 1100 BC The destruction of the Mycenean palaces and the sub sequent decline of Mycenean civilization were accompanied by the appearance of new tribes on greek territory.

Legend has it that the region of olympia was settled by the Aetolians founded elis the ancient city state that for many years contended with the older pisa for domination over the olympia sanctuary. The first evidence of cult activity in the altis dates from around 900 BC By the 9th century BC olympia was already a popular sanctuary as evidenced by the many bronze votive offerings that were brought by pilgrims from all over Greece and left at the site. The temenos or sacred precinct still must have consisted of a simple wall enclosing the sacred grove and the initial altars. The faithful hung their offerings from trees or laid them at the altar. The sanctuary attracted pilgrims based on the reputation of the polemic god zeus and the oracle of olympia which specialized in military matters. Emmisaries came from all parts of Greece to ask for counselor for the god s blessing in battle. 776 BC is said to be the year of the fist olympic games. Regard less of whether or not this information can be corroborated by what we know today.

The legend of the sacred truce concluded by the three kings Iphitus of Elis, Lycourgos of Sparta and Cleostenes of Pisa is very appealing. In force for all participating Greek city states the sacred truce ensured the cessation of hostilities amongst them and a suspension of executions for the duration of the games.The olympic games gradually became panhellinic in scope and the sanctuary evolved into an important center. From the lists of the olympic victors we know that athletes came from many Greek city states as far away as magna greecia.southern italy, Sisily, the black sea , and the northern Africa. The great festival of the god Zeus seems to have provided Greeks from distant colonies with the opportunity to maintain close contract with their homeland. 680 BC Virtually the entire altis was transformed during the early 7th century BC. The area south of the hill of cronus was leveled and reconfigured using the sacrificial ashes from the altars and many of the older votive offerings. The end of the 7th through the early 6th century BC marked the start of a period of intensified construction the continued almost without a break until the end of antiquity.

By 668 BC the control of the century had already passed into the hands of the Pisatans. The Hereum the first temple in the altis was build around 600 BC with funding from the inhabitants of scillus allies of the pisatans in Triphylia. The importance that olympia acquired as a panhellinic sanctuary is reflected in the care with with the Greek city states build their treasuries. These miniature temple like structures housed the city states offerings to olympian Zeus and testified to their political power. The custom whereby olympic victors offered statues of thanks to the sanctuary also began at this time 572 BC The inhabitants of Elis with the help of the Spartans managed to subjugate the Pisatans and regain control of olympia. They maintained this positions until the end of antiquity 490 BC Olympia reached its pinnacle in the 5th century BC. The allied forces of the Greek city states successfully repelled the Persians invaders. Greeks were empowered with a new sense of unity and the panhellinc sanctuaries were endowedwith new prestige.

at the 476 BC Olympiad the assembled crowds acclaimed Themistocles as the liberator of Greece. There are indications that democracy was established in Elis in the early 5th century and that this change was associated with certain physical alterations in the sanctuary and in the organizational structure of the games. In 472 BC two days were added to the olympic games increasing the period to five days. Two years later construction commenced on the enormous temple of Zeus and the other monumental buildings in the altis 430 BC The temple of Zeus was complete in 456 BC. Two decades later the gold and ivory statue of Zeus. a work by the famous ancient sculptor Phidias was erected in the cela. The statue was 12.4 metter tall and was one of the seven wonders of the world 364 BC An unprecedented event occurred during the 104th olympiad. A battle broke out in the sacred precinct between the Eleans and Arcadians. The Arcadiants had taken over the sanctuary and were helping their allies the Pisatans to organize their own olympic games. The Eleans managed to regain control of the sanctuary but lost some other portions of their domain.

338 BC After the battle of Chareonea Philip II of Macedonia began erecting the building know as the Philippaeum during Hellinistic times the sacred grove underwent further reconfigurations. The stadium which in the 4th century BC had been moved outside the altis was mow separated from it by the long narrow Echo Colonnade. The olympic sanctuary also attracted the wealthy sovereigns of the hellenistic era who embellished it with elaborate offerings. There were also hoards of pilgrims arriving from major hellenistic centers including the Greek cities of Egypt and Asia Minor. 146 BC The Roman conquest of Greece did not affected the holding of the olympic games or the functioning of the sanctuary in fact after his 146 BC victory against the Achaean league in corinth the Roman general Lucius Mummius gave the 21 shields he took as war booty in an offering of thanks to the sanctuary of Olympia. This was in keeping with the Greek custom of dedicating war plunder of olympian Zeus. 85 BC While the Romans factions were at war with one another the politician Sulla sacked the sanctuary. And in 80 BC the olympic games were held in Rome.

31 BC The pax romana and the period of the roman empire marked the beginning of new greatness for olympia. Roman emperors were benefactors of the sanctuary and embellished it with new buildings. Most of the auxillary structures in the sanctuary such as hostels and baths were either constructed or expanded during the period of the roman empire. The cult of the roman emperors was introduced in the metroum the temple of meter mother of the gods. Emperor Nero himself visited olympia in 67 BC and that year the olympic games were postponed for two years so that he could compete in theme before returning to Rome. During these late years olympia not only served as a religious center but also attracted visitors with scholarly interests in ancient history. One of these scholars was the traveler pausanias who visited olympia between 160 and 173 AD. Since the old customs were no longer alive there were special guides or exigites at olympia th show visitors around the monuments and explain the legents. 267 AD During the turbulent years when the heruli invaded Greece a fortification wall was hastily erected to protect the gold and ivory the statue of Zeus from the invaders.

Many of the sanctuary buildings were dismantled at that time so that their architectural ements could be used in the construction of this wall. 300 AD A powerful earthquake caused extensive damage to already beleguered buildings at Olympia. 330 AD Constantine the great removed the gold and ivory statue of Zeus to Constantinople where it was later destroyed in a fire. 393 AD The olympic games were held for the last time in 393 AD. That year the emperor Theodosius issued a ban on all pagan cults and sanctuary activity. The early Christians subsequently destroyed many of the buildings in the altis. A small Christian cummunity settled on the site building their homes on top of the ruins of the sanctuary. Phidias workshop was converted into a christian basilica. The site was completely abandoned following the two catastrophic earthquakes of 522 and 551. 600 AD A community of slavs that settled here in the 6th century was the last to inhabit Olympia. After the 7th century the area was abandoned and gradually became submerged under the silt of the Alpheus and Cladeus rivers.

1776 AD There was nothing left to testify to olympias former opulence when the english archeologist Richard Chandler came here in 1766 and discovered that this indeed was the site of the acclaimed sanctuary. Later a French expedition arrived in olympia during the Greek war of independence against the Turks 1821-29. The french team conducted a small exploratory excavation that brought to light the first relics of the temple of Zeus. Major excavations began in 1875 under the directions of the German archeological institute. 1896 AD The Philhellene and visionary Baron Pierre de Coubertin made a proposal that resulted in the formation of the international committee and the revival of the olympic games. That same year the first games were held in Greece as tribute to the birthplace of the olympic movement. >> History Ancient Ilida Ilida was the capital of the prefecture Ilia as well as the organizing city of the Olympic Games. More The Pan-Hellinic idea The political organization of the Greek peoples into city states fostered competition amongst them.

Despite many commonalties (common, language, common religion, etc.) the Greeks felt a sense or unity only against the barbarians. Although the 5th century BC began with the joint action of the Greek cities against the Persian foe, in the end it wasmarked by one of the greatest civil wars. The consept of the Greeks as a unifiednatio took shape mutch later in th 4th century BC when the institution of the city state was alredy showing its first sign of crisis. The Pan-Hellinic sanctuaries and athletic competitions functioned to promote the idea of unity among the Greek cities. The olympic sanctuary and the games in particular which open only the Greek athletes was an ideal forum for 4th century BC thinkers and orators (such Gorgias, Lysias and Isokrates) who were alredy espousing the political unification of all Greeks to present this idea to a large audiense. This Olympia became the birthplace of the Pan-Hellinic Idea. Mythology Olympia is connected to many gods and myths, and there are different versions on how the Olympic Games got started.

According to one version, this was where Zeus struggled with his father Cronus, finally beating him and seizing the throne. As a memory of his victory, Zeus made the games. Another myth tells us that it was the five brothers that brought up Zeus on Crete that started them. They raced in Olympia, and the oldest brother Heracles (not the hero) crowned the winner with an olive wreath. Rise of City-States: Athens and Sparta [ushistory.org] 5a. Rise of City-States: Athens and Sparta The Acropolis played an integral role in Athenian life. This hilltop not only housed the famous Parthenon, but it also included temples, theaters, and other public buildings that enhanced Athenian culture. Geography plays a critical role in shaping civilizations, and this is particularly true of ancient Greece. The Greek peninsula has two distinctive geographic features that influenced the development of Greek society. First, Greece has easy access to water. The land contains countless scattered islands, deep harbors, and a network of small rivers. This easy access to water meant that the Greek people might naturally become explorers and traders.

Second, Greece's mountainous terrain led to the development of the polis (city-state), beginning about 750 B.C.E. The high mountains made it very difficult for people to travel or communicate. Therefore, each polis developed independently and, often, very differently from one another. Eventually, the polis became the structure by which people organized themselves. Athens and Sparta are two good examples of city-states that contrasted greatly with each other. Athens: The Think Tank Life was not easy for Athenian women. They did not enjoy the same rights or privileges as males, being nearly as low as slaves in the social system. The city-state of Athens was the birthplace of many significant ideas. Ancient Athenians were a thoughtful people who enjoyed the systematic study of subjects such as science, philosophy, and history, to name a few. Athenians placed a heavy emphasis on the arts, architecture, and literature. The Athenians built thousands of temples and statues that embodied their understanding of beauty. Today the term "classical" is used to describe their enduring style of art and architecture. Athenians also enjoyed a democratic form of government in which some of the people shared power.

Sparta: Military Might Life in Sparta was vastly different from life in Athens. Located in the southern part of Greece on the Peloponnisos peninsula, the city-state of Sparta developed a militaristic society ruled by two kings and an oligarchy, or small group that exercised political control. Ares Borghese, 420 B.C.E. Photo © Maicar Förlag — GML Ares, the Greek god of war, was a particularly fitting patron for Sparta, which was known to be a rather warlike society. When they weren't fighting another city-state, Spartans were honing their military skills in preparation for the next battle. Early in their history, a violent and bloody slave revolt caused the Spartans to change their society. A Spartan, Lycurgus, drafted a harsh set of laws that required total dedication to the state from its people. The laws' goal was to train citizens to become hardened soldiers so that they could fight off potential enemies or slave revolts. The result was a rigid lifestyle unlike any seen in Greece at the time. The devotion of Spartans to developing a military state left little time for the arts or literature.

A Spartan baby had to be hardy and healthy. To test a baby's strength, parents would leave their child on a mountain overnight to see if it could survive on its own until the next morning. By age seven, Spartan boys were taken from their families and underwent severe military training. They wore uniforms at all times, ate small meals of bland foods, exercised barefoot to toughen their feet, and were punished severely for disobedient behavior. Boys lived away from their families in barracks until the age of 30, even after they were married. Men were expected to be ready to serve in the army until they were 60 years old. Women, too, were expected to be loyal and dedicated to the state. Like men, women followed a strict exercise program and contributed actively to Spartan society. Although they were not allowed to vote, Spartan women typically had more rights and independence than women in other Greek city-states. Winning by Losing The differences between Athens and Sparta eventually led to war between the two city-states.

Known as the Peloponnesian War (431-404 B.C.E.), both Sparta and Athens gathered allies and fought on and off for decades because no single city-state was strong enough to conquer the others. The whole of Hellas used once to carry arms, their habitations being unprotected, and their communication with each other unsafe; indeed, to wear arms was as much a part of everyday life with them as with the barbarians. [2] And the fact that the people in these parts of Hellas are still living in the old way points to a time when the same mode of life was once equally common to all. [3] The Athenians were the first to lay aside their weapons, and to adopt an easier and more luxurious mode of life; indeed, it is only lately that their rich old men left off the luxury of wearing undergarments of linen, and fastening a knot of their hair with a tie of golden grasshoppers, a fashion which spread to their Ionian kindred, and long prevailed among the old men there.

Thuycidides, The Peloponnesian War, (1910 translation by Richard Crawley) With war came famine, plague, death, and misfortune. But war cannot kill ideas. Despite the eventual military surrender of Athens, Athenian thought spread throughout the region. After temporary setbacks, these notions only became more widely accepted and developed with the passing centuries. Ancient Greek City-States for Kids and Teachers - Ancient Greece for Kids FAQ, About Us There are no city-states left in Greece today. But long ago, there were hundreds of city-states in ancient Greece, some really small ones and some really big ones with large populations. Each ancient Greek city-state had its own form of government and its own army, and even sometimes its own navy. Each city-state certainly its own way of doing things. Still, the city-states of ancient Greece had many things in common. They all spoke the same language; they all believed in the same gods; they all worshiped in the same way; they all thought of themselves as Greeks. But they were loyal to their city-state. If you asked someone in ancient Greece where they were from, they would not say they were from Greece, because Greece at that time was not a country.

It was a collection of city-states, each with its own personality and way of doing things. They would say they were from Athens, or Sparta, or Corinth, or Argos. The Greeks were very proud of their own city-state. The city-states banded together to fight outsiders. They also banded together to fight each other. Athens Greece,information and facts about Athens Athens Information and facts about Athens Greece Most people have a love-hate relationship to Greece's capital. On one hand it is a city with a wide variety of things to see and do. From here you can also get to most places in Greece: by air, train, boat or bus. On the other hand it is a huge, busy place with about half of Greece's population living there (close to 5 million). There are places you do not want to be alone at night, and Athens has a big problem with traffic jams and pollution, especially the smog. It is a fascinating place, though. It is one of the oldest cities in the world, and walking through its ancient Agora or on the Acropolis, it does make you feel you are walking on, if not sacred, very important ground.

The Athenians are now living better after the Olympic games many things have been improoved. This means that a lot of buildings have been renovated, and big projects have been carried out. The infrastructure of the city has been modernized with new highways (Attiki odos) that circulating Athens from Aspropyrgos to the new Airport at Spata and goes until the western suburbs of Athens. Many historic areas of Athens have been made for pedestrians only like the whole Area around Acropolis from Dionysiou Areopagitoy street until Thission and Keramikos.Plaka is also 90% pedestrianised as well as the Ermou street the main shopping street of Athens. The port of Piraeus has been modernized as well with parking areas around the port and new docks for the Greek ferries and Cruise ships. History Athens is often mentioned in Greek mythology. The ancient Athenians believed that they originally came from Attica and were not an immigrated people. To support this, they would refer to their first king, Cecrops , who was a man-snake born out of the earth.

He had been the ultimate judge, when the goddess Athena and the sea god Poseidon competed in becoming the patron of the city, a competition Athena was to win, naming the city. The greatest hero of Athens was Theseus , whose wicked stepmother was the infamous Medea , hated by the Athenians and forced to flee. The hero had managed to stop the yearly tribute of youngsters to king Minos of Crete by killing the Minotaur , and his bones were kept in a special monument here. Oedipus died in Athens, and Orestes was brought before the Aeropagus here after revenging his murdered father Agamemnon . Many historical personalities were also born here, and even more lived and worked here. Socrates wandered the streets, discussing philosophical questions with those he met. Demosthenes preached against the Macedon-ians, and Plato and Aristotle taught here. Pericles made his time a golden one, and Alcibiades was admired and hated. Later on, St. Paul was to preach a new religion called Christianity. The list could go on forever... There are evidence of ancient settlements in Athens from the 7th millennia BC.

Athens was not always the most important city of Greece, and its greatest rival in antiquity was Sparta and the Persians. The great orator Demosthenes warned the people of Athens about the Macedonians, and he was right: in 322BC Athens was conquered by them. The Turks invaded Athens in 1456, and the city stayed under Turkish rule for about 350 years. In 1834 Athens was declared capital of Greece - then, only about 6000 people lived there. In 1941 the Germans occupied Athens and during the two months the Greeks resisted and over 300 000 people died of starvation. The old film footage of Hitler walking on the Acropolis is a bitter memory of this time. Athens was also a battlefield during the civil war 1946-1949. The junta took over in 1967 and Greece was a dictatorship until 1974. In 1981 Greece joined the EU. What to See The first place you should visit when in Athens is of course the Acropolis.

Standing up there, on the sacred rock as the Greeks call it, you can practically feel the magnificence of ancient Greece. Don't think you'll be alone there though. Other archaeological sites are the agora, the market, with the temple to Hephaistos still in quite good shape, as well as the temple to Zeus and the arch of Hadrian. Museums of interest are, amongst others, the Acropolis museum, the National Archeological museum , the Folklore museum, the Ceramics museum (Keramikos), the Byzantine museum, the Music museum, the War museum, the Benaki museum etc. All in all, there are about 50 museums in Athens. A popular place for shopping or food and drink is Plaka, just below the Acropolis. It is considered quite a touristy area, but the fact is that you here can get an idea of old Athens, with low buildings and little streets. In Monastiraki there is a bazaar which is quite incredible, in Hephaestou street and around the small square of At the Syntagma Square you can visit the Tomb of the Unknown soldier.

Here you can see the guards in their impressing uniforms, the Evzones, and if you are lucky you will see the slow and complicated change of guards. You can also feed pigeons here. Interestingly, there used to be a tomb to the unknown hero in ancient Athens The opera, Megaron Mousikis, holds many wonderful performances, but even lovelier is the Herodes Atticus theatre just below the Acropolis. What to do Athens Greece has such a wide variety of things to do that it almost is no idea to write it all down. For example, you have all the sights and the museums, concerthalls and theatres. Then, there are many cinemas, a great nightlife, bazaars , fashion shops and super modern shopping malls. Go up to the Lycavitos hill and get a wonderful view. You can go to Athens Riviera from Paleon Faliron up to Kalamaki ,Alimos ,Glyfada ,Vouliagmeni and Varkiza for some sun and sea. You can visit as well the National gardens that are located next to the Parliament at Syntagma square.

Beaches There are several beaches at Athens Riviera The most popular ones are in Glyfada, Vouliagmeni, Varkiza, Nea Makri, Crysi Akti (Golden Coast ), Lagonisi, Kavouri and Alimos. Most of the beaches in Athens are organize and you have to pay a small entrance fee to these beaches - this is to keep them clean since it has millions of visitors every summer. Nightlife Jazz bars, discos, bouzoukia clubs, heavy metal bars - it's all here. There are places all over Athens, but the most frequented areas are Syntagma, Kolonaki and Glyfada. Almost in every square in all Athenian suburbs there are Cafeterias and bars that during the night are becoming music bars with professional DJ's.. Food and restaurants Just like the bars, the restaurants and taverns are everywhere in Athens. The Plaka area is probably the most picturesque, but also the most visited by tourists. Keep a lookout for the places with lots of Greeks in them - that applies all over Greece.

In Syntagma and Kolonaki there are also many places, and in Glyfada and Vouliagmeni you are close to the sea, and the atmosphere is usually a little bit more sophisticated. The area Psiri not far from Acropolis is very expensive with lots of lovely places with live music day and night. In Athens you will find a plethora of fast food like Mc Donald's ,Wendy's the Greek chain of Goody's ,Pizza hut ,Starbucks , and many other famous chains but the most typical fast food in Greece is the souvlaki .But as I said, there is a place in every corner and you can get absolutely anything you want. Shopping Being Greece's capital you can find everything if you for shopping in Athens . The big shopping street is Ermou, just off Syntagma square, Glyfada and Kolonaki are the exclusive quarters with many boutiques and shops. In Plaka you'll find lots of souvenirs from all over Greece, and the biggest department store is Vassilopoulos. In Monastiraki there is a great flea market every day and many antiquity shops. These are just a few example though, there are shops just about everywhere.

At Athinas street you will find many interesting shops that sale herbs and many shops that sale dry fruits and nuts also at the same street located the main fish and meat market of Athens both are worth visiting Getting Around In Athens while the overcrowded buses usually just pass the bus stops, leaving you there with a long face, the new Athens Metro is an excellent way to get around (it is also very beautiful, worth a visit just to see it). There are also electric trams and trolleys that are quite efficient to take you all the way to the Athens coasts. You can rent cars and bikes but it is not recommended - the people in Athens drive like absolute madmen ,read about driving in Athens to see what I mean. Taking a taxi can also be quite a horrific experience and there has also been reports of taxi drivers trying to overcharge foreigners. Make sure the taximeter is on and running properly and you won't have a problem. In general, be careful when crossing the streets - green lights does NOT mean that you can cross the road without looking!!!.. Getting There In March 2001 the new airport Eleftherios Venizelos at Spata was opened.

It is hypermodern and with the new road connections through the Attiki odos and Metro, suburban rail . Without traffic jams it takes about 45 minutes to get there from the centre of Athens by the express buses (X 95 Airport Syntagma square ) (X 96 Airport Piraeus) , but unfortunately sometimes especially on weekdays pick hours, traffic jams are more rules than exceptions. But with the new extensions you can use the Suburban train (Proastiakos) until Neratziotisa station and continue with the Athens Metro that goes to Syntagma (blue line) or to Omonoia from Doukissis Plakentias station (green line) . If you are coming from the islands the ferry boats will stop at Piraeus, Port Rafina (Cyclades Andros) or Agios Konstantinos from the Sporades islands. Train (OSE) runs through the whole of Greece - starting in Thrace, through Thessaloniki , Larisa to Athens, and is also connected with the Peloponnese.

Facts about Athens Sparta: The City That Was Better Than Athens | Sparta Sparta: The City That Was Better Than Athens A report on the culture in Sparta, and why it was a greater city than its rival, Athens. There are various topics discussed throughout the paper. Copyright: Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC) by Sean Joudry Sparta was the greatest Greek polis in ancient times. For reasons why, read thefollowing. Once you are done reading, you too will agree.The Spartans trained their whole life to become military soldiers and fight. Somemay criticize them for this, saying that they focused too much on military rather than theintellectual side of life. The ancient times was a very tough period of life. You had todefend yourself or risk being destroyed. Instead of wasting time writing, the Spartanstrained, so that they could both defend themselves, and attack others. If Athens invented anew popcorn machine, and the Spartans wanted it, all they would have to do is marchover, fight them, and then seize it. The mind may be power today, but back then, strengthcould get you anything that you wanted.

And that is why Spartan society thrived.Whatever Athens had, Sparta could get through military strength.In all of Greece, women were treated with no respect, except for Sparta that is. If you went to Athens, women would be at home, cleaning the house, doing whatever their husbands told them to do. In Sparta, young girls went to school to learn how to read andwrite. And they also had a mind of their own. No, they would not get into large fightswith their husbands, but they did say something if they had a statement on their mind.Women were also psychically trained to that they would stay in shape, they did this bylearning gymnastics. In other Greek states, women had to stay indoors at all times, unlessthey were specifically told to go outside by their husband. That was no the case in Sparta,where women had much more freedom to go where they wanted to. Sparta was one of thefirst societies to give treat women with a fair amount of respect.Homosexuality was very common in Sparta.

Many believe that this was the samecase for all of Greece, but it was only widely spread in a small number of Greek states.The men of ancient Sparta were largely homosexual, or bisexual. This may be becausemen grew up with the same group of males throughout their entire life. From when theystarted training at the age of 7, to when they died in battle alongside of them in war.Bisexuality was also fairly common between women. Females would commonly haveaffairs with unmarried, young women.Sparta was a big stickler for perfection, especially when it came to their militaryand soldiers. They believed that if a soldier died in training, that it was for the best because they would never make a good soldier. To separate the strong from the weak,soldiers were trained for over 10 years in sometimes very dangerous tasks. When a childwas born, he or she was check out by a council of advisors. They would look for physicalimperfections on the baby. If they found any, then they would take the child and leavehim in the woods or the mountains. Both men and women were physically trained to havea perfect body. Obesity was not allowed and was rare in Sparta.

To be Spartan meant to be perfect. In modern times such as present day, the Spartan government would be greatlycriticized. This is mainly because the people of the Sparta did not have a lot of say of what happens. Because of the grip that the leaders of Sparta had over their polis, theywere able to counteract a rebellion constructed by the helots. The Spartan leaders realizedthat they needed a new reputation, they needed to be taken seriously. So Sparta turnedinto somewhat of a warlike boot camp. Here young men were trained at a young age tofight. These men then became legendary fighting machines. Even though the Spartanarmy was not much bigger than other polis’s armies, they were more feared. The Spartanshad a reputation of being ruthless enemies and city-states feared that they would beattacked by the great Spartans. The Spartans gained respect throughout Greece throughtheir dedication to the art of war, and their skill in it. The Spartan form of governmentmay not be a good form in present day, but in ancient Greece, their government wasmuch more efficient than the Athenian democracy. It was a time of war back then, and theworld was still new.

If you were not taken seriously and looked on with respect, youwould perish.The word “Spartan” means ‘bare bones’, or ‘minimal’. This same word can beused to describe the ancient city of Sparta, along with their people. Spartans did not needfood on a regular basis, they did not need a strong iron sword, they made due with whatthey had. It helped that they were trained to do this at such a young age. Athens may still be around present day, but Sparta had enough influence over the world to create its onadjective.The Spartans were descendants of the ‘Dorians’. They were a very warlike race back in their time. The Spartans were very proud of their heritage, and were a stickler for having Dorian blood flowing through them, and this was for a good reason. The Dorianswere reckless and great soldiers. These characteristics are shared among all Spartans. TheSpartans came from a great warriors, what about the Athenians?It was important in Spartan society to produce a son. If a man did not have a son,actions were taken in order to pressure the man into doing so.

These men who did nothave sons were called “Agamoi”. These men were excluded from a main Spartan festivalcalled “Gymnopaidai”. This was an important event that the soldiers looked forward to.They were also treated with little respect in society. At public gatherings, they would beforced to give their seats to both younger men, all because they did not have a child. Thiswas good for the Spartan polis, because if men did not continue to have children, theywould soon run out of soldiers. Athens did not have a rule such as this, allowing men toslack off and not contribute to Athenian society if they wished not to.The most important fact about the Spartans is that without them, Greece would bea dead civilization. Back in ancient times when the Persians attacked Greece, Spartafought off around a million troops from Asia. With their immense training, they destroyedthe oncoming Persian threat. If it was not for them, all of Greece would have been About Greece, A History of Ancient Greece, Sparta A History of Ancient Greece Sparta In ancient Greece, the great rival of Athens was Sparta. The city-state and its surrounding territory were located on the Peloponnesus, a peninsula southwest of Athens.

Sparta (also called Lacedaemon) was the capital of the district of Laconia. From the vigorous iron-hearted warriors of this city-state has come the adjective Spartan. Sparta prided itself not on art, learning, or splendid buildings, but on its valiant men who "served their city in the place of walls of bricks." Athens, with its beautiful temples and statues, its poetry and philosophy, dominated the intellectual life of the world. In the end, however, Sparta wrested temporary political supremacy from its cultured opponent. The Spartan government was founded on the principle that the life of every individual, from the moment of birth, belonged absolutely to the state. The elders of the city-state inspected the newborn infants and ordered the weak and unhealthy ones to be carried to a nearby chasm and left to die. By this practice Sparta hoped to ensure that only those who were physically fit would survive. The children who were allowed to live were brought up under a severe discipline. At the age of 7, boys were removed from their parents' control and organized into small bands. The strongest and most courageous youths were made captains. The boys slept in dormitories on hard beds of rushes. They ate black broth and other coarse food.

They wore the simplest and scantiest clothing. Unlike the boys of Athens, they spent little time learning music and literature. Instead they were drilled each day in gymnastics and military exercises. They were taught that retreat or surrender in battle was disgraceful. They learned to endure pain and hardship without complaint and to obey orders absolutely and without question. They were allowed to feel the pinch of hunger and were encouraged to supplement their fare by pilfering food for themselves. This was not done to cultivate dishonesty but to develop shrewdness and enterprise. If they were caught, they were whipped for their awkwardness. It is said that a Spartan boy, who had stolen a young fox for his dinner, allowed the animal he had hidden under his cloak to gnaw out his vitals rather than betray his theft by crying out. Girls were educated in classes under a similar system, but with less rigor. Discipline grew even more rigorous when the boys reached manhood. All male Spartan citizens between the ages of 20 and 60 served in the army and, though allowed to marry, they had to belong to a men's dining club and eat and sleep in the public barracks.

They were forbidden to possess gold and silver, and their money consisted only of iron bars. War songs were their only music, and their literary education was slight. No luxury was allowed, even in the use of words. They spoke shortly and to the point--in the manner that has come to be called laconic, from Laconia, the district of which Sparta was a part. There were three classes of inhabitants in Laconia. Spartan citizens, who lived in the city itself and who alone had a voice in the government, devoted their entire time to military training. The peroikoi, or "dwellers-round," who lived in the surrounding villages, were free but had no political rights. They were tradesmen and mechanics--occupations that were forbidden to the Spartans. The Helots were serfs, little better than slaves, bound to the farms and forced to cultivate the soil for the citizens who owned the land. These Helots, whose marriages and children were not so strictly controlled by the state, were the most numerous class and bitterly hated their masters. Only the amazing organization and fighting powers of the Spartan state kept them under control.

Another strange feature of Sparta was its government, which was headed by two kings who ruled jointly. They served as high priests and as leaders in war. Each king acted as a check on the other. There was a sort of cabinet composed of five ephors, or overseers, who exercised a general guardianship over law and custom and in later times came to have greater power. The legislative power was vested in the assembly of Spartan citizens and in a senate, or council, of 30 elders consisting of the two kings and 28 other men chosen from the citizens who had passed the age of 60. Sparta at War The Spartan armies, though usually quite small, were well-disciplined and all but irresistible in combat. Each citizen soldier was inspired by the resolve to win or die. The Spartan mother, when she gave her son his shield, would say: "Bring back this shield yourself or be brought back upon it," referring to the manner in which the dead were carried on their shields from the battlefield.

Among Sparta's most heroic achievements was the stand taken by its fighting men at the battle of Thermopylae in 480 BC, during the Persian Wars The Spartan constitution is said to have been founded by Lycurgus in the 9th century BC. Under the rigid discipline of its laws, Sparta extended its conquests over the neighboring states until it gained control of most of the Peloponnesus. Sparta's prowess naturally brought rivalry with Athens, the leader of the northern states and for a time of all Greece. This rivalry culminated in the Peloponnesian War (431-404 BC), which resulted in Athens' ruin and Sparta's supremacy (see Peloponnesian War). But the tyranny of the Spartans aroused hatred and rebellion among those who had been conquered, and the jealous limitations on citizenship gradually reduced the number of specially trained warriors until only a few hundred remained. After about 30 years of Spartan domination, the Thebans under Epaminondas defeated Sparta in 371 BC and ended its power. The long war with Athens had weakened many of the city-states.

Their weakness and disunity left them prey to a greater power that was emerging in the north--Macedonia and its King Philip II. He came to the throne in 359 BC, and within a year he was already waging a war of expansion. By 339 he had achieved control of Greece, including Sparta. In the 2nd century BC Sparta was absorbed by Rome's legions. The ancient city of Sparta was destroyed by Visigoths in AD 396. The modern town, called New Sparta locally, was built in 1834 after the War of Greek Independence. It occupies part of the ancient site near the Eurotas River, about 15 miles (24 kilometers) from the Gulf of Messenia. Population (1981 census), metropolitan area, 14,388.

Question: Which city-state was Athens's greatest rival?
Answer: Sparta