Greek City-State Formation

• Sea Peoples, known as Peleset in Egypt and Philistines in the Bible, emerged amidst political, economic, and social changes that spurred organizational innovations.
• Early Greek society was patriarchal, with free adult males holding power.
• Violent upheavals and new migrations destabilized existing structures.
• Borderland societies formed in the Northern Levant, Anatolian coast, and Aegean/Mediterranean islands.

New City-State Formation

• Order was restored in the 9th and 8th centuries BCE, leading to independent, self-governing city-states.
• Examples of city-states include Corinth (which founded Syracuse, Sicily), Thebes, Sparta (which founded Thera, which in turn founded Cyrene), and Athens.
• Athens, though small, possessed significant wealth and power, centered in the agora.
• Plato's Republic envisions a perfect city ruled by enlightened philosopher-kings, developed during the Peloponnesian War amid societal decline.
• Plato believed the imperfections of the real world are reflections of a perfect, ideal world.
• Aristotle, Plato's student, emphasized using facts and deductions to understand the world, contrasting Plato's abstract universal forms.
• Aristotle's philosophy was affected by outside influence and included his concept of 5 elements.

New Philosophies

• Alexander the Great's eastern conquests introduced Buddhism.
• Pyrrho of Elis preached that life is full of suffering, advocating for renouncing passion to achieve ataraxia, a state of calm contentment.
• This evolved into Epicurean philosophy, which aimed to achieve happiness through simple living.

Alexander the Great and the Hellenistic World

• In the 4th century BCE, Alexander the Great led a long military campaign to the Indus River Valley.
• Mahayana Buddhism developed in Northern South Asia during this period, and the Silk Road began, stretching 5,000 miles from East Asia to the Mediterranean.
• Hellenism refers to shared Greek culture, including language, art, academic disciplines, entertainment, and politics.
• Philip II's military included the sarissa (18-22 ft spear), companion cavalry, and elite Royal Hypaspists infantry.
• Philip II defeated Athens and Thebes at the Battle of Chaeronea, gaining control over Greece.
• In 336 BCE, Philip II died (by Persians), and Alexander the Great became king at age 20.
• Alexander's parents were Olympias and Philip II; Olympias claimed Alexander was of divine birth (Zeus).
• Alexander admired Greek hero stories and supported intermarriage between Macedonians and foreigners, promoting cultural diffusion.
• Alexander attempted to take India, but his army refused, stopping at the Indus River Valley.
• Hephaestion was Alexander's "partner," and Alexander mourned deeply after his death.
• In 330 BCE, Alexander promoted Hephaestion to Chiliarch (commander of 1,000 men), making his role second only to Alexander.

Battles/ Wars/ Rebellions:

• Alexander crushed the Theban rebellion and sold the survivors into slavery
• Alexander invaded Persia to avenge his father.
• At the Battle of Issus (333 BCE), Alexander defeated Darius III of Persia using strategic maneuvers (Darius fled).
• The Battle of Gaugamela (331 BCE) saw Alexander achieve a decisive victory with feigned retreats against a Persian army of 250,000 on flat terrain.
• Darius fled and was later killed by his cousin.
• Alexander gained Persian trust by dressing in traditional Persian style and practicing proskynesis (respect for the ruler by kissing limbs), though Macedonians disliked this.
• After conquering Persia, Alexander seized wealth from Persian palaces and redistributed it, leading to economic expansion.
• Alexander died in 323 BCE in Babylon.

Successors/ Succeeding Kingdoms

• Alexander's empire was divided and led by his military generals, resulting in constant warfare involving threats, alliances, treaties, and diplomacy.
• Seleucus (Seleucid) ruled Iran, Iraq, Syria, Turkey, etc.
• Antigonus (Antigonid) ruled Macedonia, the smallest kingdom.
• Ptolemy (Ptolemaic) ruled Egypt and Judea (His wife, Berenice ruled in his place. This line ended with Cleopatra VII).
• Lysimachus also became a successor.

Hellenistic Culture

• Hellenistic culture involved:
  • Philosophic/Political Thinking
  • Secular/Academic Disciplines
  • Social Life
  • Art
• Koine Greek, or Common Greek, became the lingua franca for diplomacy and business, facilitating commercial and cultural exchanges.
• Cultural syncretism blended gods, especially in Egypt with demi-gods.
• Cosmopolitan cities were multi-ethnic with diverse backgrounds.
• A new political style emerged with distant, charismatic, godlike kings.
• New religious beliefs and rituals were practiced such as baptism and being saved.
• Philosophies reflected people’s concerns and ideas.

New Philosophies

• Cynicism (Diogenes): Rejection of social norms, doubt information, follow wants.
• Epicureanism (Epicurus): called The Garden, is accepting of all. Detach from worry, maximize pleasure and minimize pain.
• Stoicism (Zeno of Cyprus): Perceive and accept the natural rules of the universe.

Outside of Greece

• Cult of Isis: Revived in the pharaonic days & infused with Hellenism
• Eleusinian Mysteries: Ancient Greek religion in Eleusis dedicated to Demeter and Persephone offering personal salvation, spiritual enlightenment, and a blessed afterlife.
• Plantation slavery was lucrative, led to displacement of marginalized peasants, and saw enslaved people launch revolts.

Wealth

• Goods and services were commodities and cities minted coins of gold, enabling widespread trade.

Hellenism Acceptance/Rejection

• Benefits of embracing Hellenism included greater economic ability and communication.
• Ptolemaic Egypt worshipped Greek gods, integrated Greek art and architecture, and used Greek scribes.
• Jews in Judea largely rejected Hellenistic culture, leading to a revolt by the Maccabee family to remove Seleucids from the temple in Jerusalem.
• Rome adopted elements of Hellenistic culture.
• Carthage fused Hellenism with North African culture and pursued Athenian education.