Greek+City+States

__**THE GREEK CITY STATES**__
During the most advanced archaic period of life the Greeks started to live on islands that prevented them from creating a single nation, so they formed dozens of independent and competing city states called the Greek city states (often preferred as Polis). Each city state had its own personality, goals, laws, and customs, but each were loyal to Greece. The Greek city states governed themselves in a variety of ways, but most were oligarchy, in which a narrow elite of rich powerful families ruled. Sometimes they cooperated, but sometimes they fought. The Greek city states had a lot of things in common, like they spoke the same language and believed in the same gods, but they had different beliefs and did different activities. The key city states were Corinth and Thebes, but the more important was Sparta and Athens.

Athens was a culturally and politically advanced city that gained tons of wealth through trade and power. They also had great naval strength. Athens was formed for literature, poetry, drama, school, and government. Athens created what some people would call, intellectual light, because they gave so much to the world.
 * __ ATHENS __**

//**POLITICS and GOVERNMENT**// Ancient Greece’s most significant political innovation came from Athens. Athens started as a democracy in 508 B.C. and reached it’s peak under Pericles. Athens government was a democracy, and one of the firs known democracies. It was in a form where the people would vote on the executive and legislation bills for their own right. The opinion from the voters was influenced by the poets and the comic theatres. Athens had two major wars; Peloponnesian War and the Corinthian War (that led to the Second Athenian League).

//**RELIGION**// All city states believed in the same religion. The Greek gods were the religion which is referred to polytheism (the belief in multiple gods and goddesses). They believed in the Greek gods: Zeus, Poseidon, Apollo, Athena (which originated in the name of Athens), Hermes, etc. They did everything based on the Gods. They prayed to the Gods, worshiped them, slaughtered for them, and has rituals for them.

//**CULTURE**// The children of Athens started from a very young age on how to be talented and fit into the Athenian philosophy. The girls learned from there mother how to run the household. Boys were taught by their mothers from ages 6-7, and 7-14 they attended a day school. After that they learned poetry to math to reading and writing to public speaking. Then after middle school they went to a high school for 4 years and learned more government, science and math. Then at 18 they attended military school. The women were controlled their whole lives. The father controlled the woman until they were married and the husband controlled her once they were married. Women got married in their teen years and married a man in the 30s. The father chose who the husband was and marriage was usually decided from a very early age if they were from a wealthy family. The girl didn’t meet her husband until the dowry and the marriage was agreed to. Once they were married the husband controlled all of the land and had no rights. The wife was to raise the child and make the clothes, also to teach there daughter all the household jobs (sewing, cooking, cleaning). No respectable women was seen outside, but if they were talking to a female neighbor that was the only respectable time to be seen outside from their indoors chores. The men had the dominant role in the public eye. They controlled rights, they fought in wars, and got to tell their wife anything. Anytime a man was invited somewhere the wife wasn’t allowed to come (dinners and even the Olympic games). Some men met each week to discuss problems and solutions with the government (direct democracy). This is what men mainly did work, fight, drink, and control their wives. Slaves were very common they were everywhere in Athenian life. The majority of citizens at least owned one slave. Slavery according to them was not natural, but necessary.

//**TALENTS**// The Athenians had many talents. They created many buildings (which they were masters of), fine jewelry, sculptures, and pottery. They loved the theatre, even though women were not allowed to participate, and presented their favorite plays and poetry including comedies and even tragedies. They also created the worldwide event, the Olympics, where men would come to compete for their main and supreme god, Zeus. The winners were presented with olive wreaths and garlands. They also presented many things and contributions to the world like astrology, biology, physics and the theatre.

Sparta didn’t have advancements in sciences or works of art, their main goal in life was to create a strong, fit, fearless warrior, and have to greatest army in the whole entire world (which they succeeded in doing). Everyone from men to women were strong. Their armies were the best and the strongest which made for the best warriors ever to be seen at war. Sparta was a war state. Only the strong could survive while living in Sparta.
 * __ SPARTA __**

//**POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT**// Sparta’s government was very different then all the other governments in the other Greek city states. First off it was a military state and had one of the only known full time army. It was founded off of the principle of oligarchy: that every person from the exact moment of birth, belonged to the state. When the babies were born elders would inspect them, and if they were weak then they would be left to die on the moutains, this made sure that only the “physically fit” would survive and serve them. There government was head by two kings, who served as priests and leaders of war. There was some kind of cabinet that had five overseers that made laws and customs were in place (later they became into great power). The legislative power came from a group of 30 elders, including the two kings, who were considered a council or a senate, and also included in that was 28 men over the age of 60 selected by the citizens.

//**RELIGION**// All city states believed in the same religion. The Greek gods were the religion which is referred to polytheism (the belief in multiple gods and goddesses). They believed in the Greek gods: Zeus, Poseidon, Apollo, Athena, Hermes, etc. They did everything based on the Gods. They prayed to the Gods, worshiped them, slaughtered for them, and has rituals for them.

//**CULTURE**// Life for the kids was harsh and painful. Boys were taken away from their parents at the age of seven and trained by getting beaten by older children, and whipped in front of their peers as punishment and were not aloud to cry out in pain, they were barely aloud to flinch. They weren’t given much food, they taught the children how to steal and not get caught, so if you wanted more food than the little coarse food they were given, then you were to steal, and not get caught, but if you were get caught you were beaten. They slept on hard beds and were drilled in gymnastics and military exercises every day. They were taught that to retreat or lose was disgraceful. The girls training weren’t as harsh as the boys but it was still very harsh. The girls did athletics, which they didn't do any other city state. The women had it better than in any other city state in Greece. They were aloud to own businesses, go town to town, have dinners, and work. They had a lot of freedom, and didn’t even have to confide in their husband to do anything because there husband was at war, how could they? They were the "men" of their household. They weren't expected to stay inside the household for work around the house because they had slaves for that. The women were also expected to have sons, for way more warriors.The men were trained until they couldn’t sleep anymore, they were aloud to marry but they barely saw their wife, and weren’t even aloud to live with them because they were training. The only thing they were aloud to have in possession were iron bars, no gold or silver. They wanted the men no luxuries were aloud; they couldn’t even say those words. They spoke with barely any words, and if they did it was straight to the point. They were absolutely focused on what they had to do, which was war. They were taught to either win the war or die. At the age of 60 they were aloud to retire and got to be able to run for the government or teach the younger warriors.

//**WAR**// Even though the Spartan armies were small they were the most feared army ever known and were irresistible in combat. It was said that when the mother gave their son their first shield they spoke these words: “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.” IF they died at war they were taken back home on their shields. Sparta’s greatest war ever witnessed were the last men standing in the battle of the Thermopylae (Persian Wars). In the Peloponnesian War made Sparta go up and Athens go down. After thirty years of straight domination they were brought down by the Thebans. The long war with the Athens weakened a lot of the city states. Sparta was destroyed in 396 AD by the Visigoths.