Greek and Persian Empires

  • Era of Greek City-States
    750 BCE

    Era of Greek City-States

    Allowed varying degrees of popular participation in social life.
    Each city-state was independent.
    Frequently in conflict with neighbors.
  • Zoroaster/Zarathustra
    700 BCE

    Zoroaster/Zarathustra

    Was a Persian prophet.
    He reformed the traditional Persian polytheism into a vision of a single god named Ahura Mazda. This religion being named Zoroastrianism.
  • Emergence of Greek rationalism
    600 BCE

    Emergence of Greek rationalism

    Coinciding with the flourishing of Greek city-states (Athens).
    Growth of its artistic, literary, and theatrical traditions.
    Emphasis on argument, logic, questioning, and confidence in human reason without much reference to the gods.
    Socrates helped kick-start it.
  • Achaemenid dynasty in Persia; state support for Zoroastrianism
    558 BCE

    Achaemenid dynasty in Persia; state support for Zoroastrianism

    Zoroastrianism had many supporters throughout Persia as a whole and had some influence in Mesopotamia, Egypt, and Anatolia.
    The religion didn’t spread out after that since Alexander the Great invaded Persia to plunder the temple, priests were killed, and certain writings that were sacred were burned.
    According to their religion their god, Ahura Mazda, gave the power to rule to the kings of Persia.
  • Persian Achaemenid
    553 BCE

    Persian Achaemenid

    Constructed an imperial system based on Babylonian and Assyrian empires.
    Monarchy.
    Cyrus and Darius are Monarchs.
    35-50 million people under their single state.
    Because so many people it was diverse containing different people, languages,and cultural traditions along with states.
  • Aristotle
    500 BCE

    Aristotle

    Aristotle was the student of Plato and also one of the teachers of Alexander the Great.
    He wrote almost everything he saw and was able to document the constitutions of 158 Greek city-states, classified hundreds of species of animals, and wrote about logic, physics, astronomy, weather, and many other things.
    He wanted a government that combined the principles of monarchy, aristocracy, and democracy.
    He was famous for talking about reflections on ethics.
  • Major Battles between Persians and the Greeks
    490 BCE

    Major Battles between Persians and the Greeks

    The Greco-Persian Wars.
    Confrontation came from their respective patterns of expansion
    Many Greek settlements came under Persian control. In 499, some of the cities revolted and found support from Athens.
    Twice in 10 years, the Persians launched major military expeditions to punish the Greeks.
    The Greeks beat the Persians at the Battle of Marathon in 490 B.C.E.
  • Golden age of Athens
    479 BCE

    Golden age of Athens

    The beginning of the Greek empire.
    In the Greco-Persian wars athen led more than 30 Greek city-states because of its naval power.
    Athenian leadership in the struggle of Persians aggression created an imperialism of its own.
    In the end Athens effort to solidify control led to a civil war where the spartans took control this was known as the Peloponnesian war.
    Magnified distrust between the Greeks.
  • Socrates
    469 BCE

    Socrates

    Was a Athenian philosopher who asked questions that challenged conventional ideas about the importance of wealth and power in living well, And urged them to pursue wisdom and virtue.
    He was critical of the Athenian democracy and on occasion had positive things to say about Sparta, the enemy of his city.
    Because of the previous statement, he was in conflict with city authorities, where he was sentenced to death.
  • Plato
    469 BCE

    Plato

    Sketched out in The Republic a good design for society. Being it will be ruled by a class of highly educated “guardians” led by a “philosopher-king.” Such people being able to penetrate the many illusions of the material world and were the only people fit to rule according to Plato.
  • Peloponnesian War
    431 BCE

    Peloponnesian War

    Civil war between the Greek city-states of Athens and Sparta.
    Sparta won taking control defending the traditional independence of Greek city-states.
    This war led to more distrust between the different Greeks.
  • Reign of Alexander the Great
    336 BCE

    Reign of Alexander the Great

    Alexander united greek city-states by making a proposal of taking vengeance against Persians.
    10 year expedition accomplished while he was in his twenties.
    Among the greatest military feats of the ancient world.
    Created a Greek empire that spanned from Egypt and Anatolia to India and Afghanistan.
    Persian empire was thoroughly defeated its capital Persepolis was looted and burned.
    He was hailed as the “King of Asia” & anointed as a pharaoh.
    Declared to be “the son of the gods”.
    Died in 323 B.C.E.