-
The people of these villages between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers learned how to farm using the rivers water and irrigation, which is a way of moving river water to farmlandsa
-
In 7000 BC, according to evidence, the first cities to appear were in between the Tigris & Euphrates rivers due to the fertile farmland.
-
This civilization is said to be one of the earliest civilizations on earth. These civilizations formed near rivers because they provided food and water.
-
The farming community thrived and they soon gathered a surplus,(More than enough) so that people could have other jobs than just farming (Like being a barber)
-
Ancient Egypt was one of the longest-lasting ancient societies of all time, lasting from 4500 BC, to 400 AD. While Kush, it's lesser known successor did not have such a reputation
-
Around 4000 BC, Cities started to appear due to the food surplus, with other jobs available. Even though cities developed, society was still heavily based on agriculture.
-
Groups of people moved to the Nile valley in about 4000-3000 BC. These people used the Nile to grow into villages, which grew into cities, then a civilization.
-
In Nubia, Africa, civilization developed along the Nile River, like the Egyptians, a while after, in about 2000 BC, a leader took over the entire region, calling himself King over what was now called the Kingdom of Kush.
-
The civilization of Kush developed in about 3500 BC farther up the Nile River than Egypt.
-
The earliest evidence of Egyptian writing dates back to about 3300 BC. This form of writing used characters called Hieroglyphs to represent sounds, which had meanings.
-
The first king to unify Egypt was Menes, Though he wasn't the first king, he was first to unify upper and lower Egypt. Menes was also the first pharaoh, meaning, "Great house".
-
In southern Mesopotamia, People developed one of the world's first civilizations. This civilization consisted of many City-states. Most of the people were farmers, leading to the quick growth of this civilization.
-
-
The old kingdom started when the third dynasty (a line of rulers from the same family) took power. It lasted from about 2700 BC to 2200 BC, not bad.
-
Eventually, another society developed in Northern Mesopotamia. They were not Sumerians, and they even spoke a different language. This civilization was called the Akkadian civilization. Their emperor was called Sargon.
-
This civilization grew along the Indus river in India, like all ancient civilizations, it used the river for resources. Archaeologists believe that it thrived around 2300 and 1700 BC.
-
These two Civilizations were two of the most advanced ancient civilizations of history. China established a great Empire, where the Indian civilization stayed in one area.
-
The Harappans developed around 2300 BC along the Sarasvati River, located southeast of the Indus.
-
The Nomad Aryans are thought to have arrived in India in the 2000's BC. Archaeologists believe that they came from the northwest mountain passes. They arrived in India then over time, they spread down into central and south India.
-
The early Hebrews came from the Israelites and Jews. What is know about them has been gathered by archaeologists. Their civilization grew around the dead sea, like many other civilizations, they depended on it's resources to survive.
-
Before Greece, there was the Minoans, they had built an advanced civilization by 2000 BC on the Greek island of Crete. In the 1600's BC, a huge volcano erupted, leading to the end of the Minoan civilization in mid-1400's BC.
-
The Hebrews came from the area around Mesopotamia. Though they were desert Nomads, the established a kingdom called Israel.
-
Ancient Greece has been considered one of the most advanced Ancient Cultures. They improved government, literature, philosophy, and more. This civilization is where many western ideas have been considered to come from.
-
-
Babylon had been it's own government, but when Hammurabi became monarch, he expanded the Babylonian empire to envelop almost all Mesopotamia.
-
The old kingdom fell due to government instability and rulers being in debt. After about 160 years of Nobles quarreling, The Middle Kingdom began when Mentuhotep II defeated his rivals, which was in 1750 BC
-
The first to speak the Greek language and to be considered Greek were the Mycenaeans. While the Minoan Civilization was trading on Crete, The Mycenaeans were building fortresses on the Greek mainland. When the Minoan civilization declined, the Mycenaeans were able to take over Crete and become the major trading force in the Mediterranean.
-
-
After a Egyptian named Ahmose drove out rivals from Egypt in the mid 1500s BC, he declared himself King, beginning the New Kingdom, a golden age for Egypt. It lasted from 1550 BC to 1050 BC
-
Kush was growing in wealth and military power. Egypt was afraid of Kush becoming a threat. Egypt attacked Kush in about 1500 BC. This attack succeeded, so Kush became part of the Egyptian empire.
-
According to stories, the origin of China is with a series of kings in about the 200's BC, the first Dynasty with clear evidence is the Shang Dynasty, which started in about 1500's BC. This is where we say Ancient China began
-
The Vedas, (Religious texts) have been the basis of Indian Religion for centuries. These ideas began to be blended with other cultures, the result of this blending created a religion called Hinduism, a polytheistic religion worshiping different parts of one god called Brahma.
-
About 850 BC Kush was ready to attack Egypt after being taken over. Earlier, the Egyptian New Kingdom had ended, so Kush was independent. In about 751 BC, Upper Egypt was conquered. The Kushite king established relations with lower Egypt. The kings son, Piankhi, decided to take over ALL of Egypt which he accomplished in 716 BC.
-
Sparta was a military society that developed between 900 and 600 BC by a man named Lycurgus after a slave revolt. He developed a stronger military to prevent more revolts. Life in sparta reflected this belief.
-
The Athenians were the only rival to Sparta in ancient Greece. Athens had a strong army, but had a much stronger focus on knowledge, philosophy, and literature. Even though the lower, poorer parts of society knew how to read and write at least a little.
-
In the late 500's BC, a young man Siddhartha Gautama searched for an answer for suffering. As the story goes, he meditated under a tree for a few months, he found enlightenment, hence the religion Buddhism, which he spread throughout India.
-
The Persian empire developed in the east while the Athenians were developing democracy. The skills of leaders like Cyrus the great and Darius 1 helped Persia to become one of the mightiest of the ancient world.
-
In about 500 BC, the people wanted a new government not ruled by nobles. They created Democracy. In democracy, everyone votes on who is the leader or how to resolve issues. This is considered to be one of the greatest Greek achievements.
-
After the decline of the Zhou Dynasty in 771-481 BC, powerful groups of warlords began to fight, starting a Civil War.
-
After fighting for a while after the Persians invaded Greece twice, the Greeks defeated the Persians at Plataea, ending the Persian Wars.
-
Sparta and Athens did work together to defeat Persia, but Sparta and Athens later started fighting. This is because Athens was growing too powerful and wealthy. Sparta declared war to stop Athens from growing any more, starting a war that would end with Athens being defeated in 404 BC.
-
In 360 ish BC, Philip II Became king of Macedonia, a year after becoming king, he attacked Greece. After defeating Athens and Thebes because Greece had been torn apart by civil war, the rest of Greece surrendered and was given to King Philip II.
-
In the mid 330's BC, Athens was conquered by the Macedonians from the North. Athens kept it's democratic government, but the ruler was more like a dictator than anything else. in the 320's BC, a new king took over and Athenian democracy ended forever.
-
In the 320's BC a military ruler named Candragupta Maurya gained control of the entire northern part of India, creating the Mauryan Empire. The Mauryan throne passed down though the generations, until Candragupta's grandson Asoka extended his rule over all of India, creating his own empire.
-
-
In about 221 BC, the first Emperor, Shi Huangdi, claimed all power over China, calling the united provinces of China, China.
-
After their King Solomon's death in 930 BC, conflict arose as to who should rule Israel. This tore the Kingdom apart into Israel and Judah. A few centuries later, both kingdoms were conquered by the Assyrians in 722 BC.
-
The Jews had been under foreign rule for a while now. A group of Jews called Zealots rebelled against Roman rule. Romans attacked the temple of Jerusalem and destroyed it in 70 AD. In 73 AD, 15,000 Roman soldiers were sent to Masada. Masada sat on a hill, so they built a massive ramp of stones and earth to reach it. When they did, they broke the walls, and the Jews took their own lives, refusing to be captured for Roman slaves.
-
In 270 BC, Candragupta's grandson gained control of the Mauryan throne, extending his rule to all of India, creating his own empire. Asoka later decided to convert to Buddhism, ceasing all conquests. However, he still continued to help his people with his wealth.
-
After the fall of the Asokan/Mauryan empire, India remained divided for about 500 years. Buddhism rose, while Hinduism fell. Candra Gupta 1 was the first emperor of the Guptan empire. He took over India in about 320 AD. Candra Gupta promoted Hinduism, so it's popularity rose.
-
Because of the ancient civilizations developing civilizations near rivers, food surpluses occurred, which led to division of labor, which stayed, so we don't have to all be farmers.
-
It goes without saying that the people of ancient times learned many things that helped modern civilization develop the way it has.
-
Ancient civlizations have developed multiple forms of government that have been used in our modern society. Namely the Athenians developing democracy.
-
Over time, people learned that noone liked being a slave, this eventually led to slavery being abolished in modern society, giving us all freedom.