Sumerians
o Creators of the first Mesopotamian civilization
o Origins remain unclear
o They established a number of independent cities in southern Mesopotamia
o The most prominent building in a Sumerian city was the temple
� Dedicated to the chief god or goddess of
Sargon
o Leader of the Akkadians
o Overran the Sumerian city-states
o Established an empire that included most of Mesopotamia as well as lands westward to the Mediterranean
o Was remembered as a king of Akkad who "had no rival or equal, spread his splendor over
Hammurabi
1st king of Babylonian
o First written law code
o Gained control of Sumer and Akkad, creating a new Mesopotamian kingdom
o Employed a well-disciplined army
� Copper/bronze
o Crime meant punishment
� "Eye for eye, tooth for tooth"
o Strict law system
� Fav
Nile River
o Crucial to the development of Egyptian civilization
o Egypt, like Mesopotamia, was a river valley civilization
o Beginning in the heart of Africa and coursing northward for thousands of miles
o Longest river in the world
o The "miracle" of the Nile was
Menes
o 1st pharaoh of Egypt
� "King of Upper and Lower Egypt"
o United upper and lower Egypt
Khufu
o 2nd pharaoh of Egypt
o Built the pyramid of Giza
� The largest and most magnificent of all the pyramids
Nubia
o First true African kingdom
o First emerged as an African kingdom in around 2300 BC
o Rich source of gold for the Egyptians
o Expeditions traveled into Nubia for ivory
o Some archaeologists suggest that agriculture may have appeared in Nubia first rather
Hyksos
o 1st people to successfully invade and conquer Egypt
� From western Asia
o Used horse-drawn war chariots and overwhelmed the Egyptian solders, who fought from donkey carts
o For almost a hundred years, the Hyksos ruled much of Egypt, but the conquered to
Hatshepsut
o 1st female pharaoh
o Built a great temple at Deir el Bahri near Thebes
o As pharaoh, she:
� Sent out military expeditions
� Encouraged mining
� Fostered agriculture
� Sent a trading expedition up the Nile
o Because pharaohs were almost always male, stat
Thutmosis III
o Step son of Hatshepsut
o Led seventeen military campaigns into Syria and Palestine and even reached the Euphrates River
Amenhotep IV
o Introduces sun god Aten
� God of the sun disk
o Earliest expression of monotheism
o Changed his own name to Akhenaten ("It is well with Aten")
o Closed the temples of other gods and especially endeavored to lessen the power of Amon-Re and his priesthood
Kush
o Nubia profited from the disintegration of the Egyptian New Kingdom to become the independent state of Kush
o Kushite culture borrowed extensively from Egypt
� Including religious beliefs, the practice of interring kings in pyramids, and hieroglyphics
o
Indo-Europeans
o The term Indo-European refers to people who used a language derived from a dingle parent tongue
� Languages include Greek, Latin, Persian, Sanskrit, and the Germanic and Slavic languages
o It has been suggested that the original Indo-European speaking p
Hittites
o First of the Indo-European to use iron
� Constructed weapons that were stronger and cheaper
o Indo-European
o Hattusha, capital
o Created their own empire in western Asia and threatened the power of the Egyptians
o New waves of Indo-European peoples des
Assyrian Empire
o Located on the upper Tigris River
o The capital city of Nineveh fell and the rest of the empire was divided
o Iron weapons
o Biggest army seen at that time
� Well-organized and disciplined
o Horseback warfare
o Ruled by absolute power
o Developed an eff
Phoenicians
o Lived in Palestine
o Newfound political independence after the demise of Hittite and Egyptian power helped them expand the trade that was already the foundation of their prosperity
� Number of goods
o From Phoenicia
o Inventors of the alphabet
� Most ot
Minoans
o First civilization to rise in Greece
o On island of Crete
o Not Greek, did not speak Greek, nor practice Greek culture or religion
o No one is sure where exactly they came from
Myceneans
o First "Greeks"
� Practiced Greek religion, culture, and spoke Greek
o They came from north of Greece
o Settled in central and southern Greece
o Relied on trade to survive
o Not politically unified
o Divided into dozens of independent city states
� Bigge
Homer
o Famous Greek poet
� Author of the Iliad and the Odyssey
� The Greeks regarded these as authentic history
o He didn't necessarily record history, but rather made it himself
o He gave the Greeks a single universally accepted model of heroism, honor, and n
Dark Age
o All of the Mycenean cities were destroyed
o 95% of the population was gone
� Killed, starved, fled
� Never repopulated
Hoplite
o New type of Greek soldier
o Wore iron armor and wielded iron weapons as opposed to bronze, which was much more expensive
o With the introduction of iron, many more people were able to serve as soldiers, since the soldiers themselves were responsible for
Polis
o Iron -> hoplite -> Polis
o Unique Greek city state
o By the end of the Archaic Age, around 500 BC, there were almost 1,000 Polises in Greece
o Not run by a king, nor dictator, nor elected leader
� All decisions were made by an assembly of citizens
� Cit
Sparta
o The word Spartan means "highly self-disciplined"
o Boys were taken from their mothers at age seven and put under the control of the state
� They lived in military-style barracks, where they were subject to harsh discipline to make them tough
� At twenty
Helots
o A name derived from a Greek word for "capture"
o A term used for a conquered city
� The Laconians and Messenians were helots, since they were conquered by the Spartans
Oligarchy
o Most Polises have an oligarchic system
o "Ruled by the few"
o Most famous was Sparta
o Only Hoplites had political rights (about 10%)
� Women, slaves, aliens, and poor males did not have political rights
Athens
o A large Polis
o Most famous democratic Polis
o Bema??
o Women had no political rights
� Main job, to produce male citizens
o Aliens not allowed to participate
� Someone from outside the Polis
� Maybe from another Greek Polis or outside of Greece altoget
Solon
o Near the end of the seventh century, Athens faced political turmoil because of serious economic problem
� The ruling Athenian aristocrats responded to this crisis by choosing Solon as sole archon and giving him full power to make changes
o A reform-mind
Democracy
o Ruled by the many
o Most famous was Athens
o Big navy
� If you were too poor to be in the army, you served in the navy
o All males had political rights (about 20%)
� Since all males had to serve in the military, they all had political rights
o Democrati
Cyrus II
o AKA Cyrus the Great
o Responsible for conquering a large part of Persia
o Persian responsibilities
� Pay taxes
� Serve in the army
o Fear, try to revolt, you will be crushed
o Persia was big
o One place conquered by Cyrus was Ionia
� Populated by Greeks
Darius I
Persian King
o He ruled over an empire of people who didn't like him
o He wanted to crush Athens
� Those who helped Athens were in trouble too
o The unsuccessful Ionian Revolt led him to seek revenge by attacking the mainland Greeks
� Battle of Marathon
Persian War
o Most Persian soldiers weren't Persian
o Athenians used hoplite armor
o Persians did not use armor
o Athens had home field advantage
o Darius wanted to invade Greece to conquer all of Greece
Battle of Marathon
o The Persians landed an attack on Marathon
o Athens was outnumbered 10,000 to 20,000 but still win
o Athens lost 192 men, Persians lost thousands
o Only 26 miles from Athens
o Persians wouldn't go back for another 10 years
Xerxes
o 486 BC, Darius dies, succeeded by Xerxes
� Good for Greeks since Xerxes wasn't as good of a military leader
o Xerxes gathered an army of 200,000
� The biggest army up until this time
� Also gathered navy of 600 triremes
� Standard navy ship/vessel
� Big
Battle of Salamis
o Greek navy destroys Persian navy
o They use triremes in battle
� Made of wood, except for iron/bronze beak used to ram enemy trireme
o Xerxes flees after the battle, leaving 70,000 soldiers
Battle of Platea
o End of Persian War
o Greek hoplites are victorious
o Persians killed/fled
� Never come back
Delian League/Athenian Empire
o After the defeat of the Persians, Athens took over the leadership of the Greek world by forming a defensive alliance against the Persians
o Headquarters on the island on Delos
� Chief officials were Athenian
o Pursued the attack against the Persian Empi
Pericles
o Leader of a political faction
o Young aristocrat
o Remained a dominant figure in Athenian politics for more than three decades
o The Age of Pericles
� Athenians became deeply attached to their democratic system
o Expanded the Athenians' involvement in d
Euripides
o Outstanding Athenian tragedian
o Created more realistic characters
o His plots also became more complex
� Greater interest in real-life situations
o Controversial
� He questioned traditional moral and religious values
� Ex. He was critical of the tradit
Aristophanes
o Comedic play writer
o Used both grotesque masks and obscene jokes to entertain the Athenian audience
o Comedy was used to attack or savagely satirize both politicians and intellectuals
o His opposition to the Peloponnesian War was of special importance
Socrates
o He left no writings, but we know about him from his pupils
o A stonemason whose true love was philosophy
o Taught for free because he believed that the goal of education was to improve the individual
o Questioned authority and this led him to trouble
o
Plato
o A disciple of Socrates
o Considered by many the greatest philosopher of Western civilization
o Classical Greek Athenian philosopher
o Credited as one of the founders of Western philosophy
o Wrote a great deal, unlike Socrates
o His ideas of governments
Aristotle
o Greek philosopher
o Student of Plato
o Teacher of Alexander the Great
o Wanted a better form of government
o His philosophical and political ideas played an enormous role in the development of Western thought during the Middle Ages
Peloponnesian War
o During the forty years after the defeat of the Persians, the Greek world came to be divided into two major camps: Sparta and its supporters and the Athenian empire
o They both created different forms of society and neither could tolerate the other's sys
Macedonia
o Always divided and weak
� Government contributed to its weakness
o Heroic monarchy
� No fancy outfits, crown, palace, nor throne
� People didn't have to bow down to the king
� People enjoyed many freedoms, ex. Speech
� No automatic succession to throne
Philip II
o He would rule until Amyntas was old enough to rule
� Perdiccas' son
o Kicked Amyntas off of throne and declared himself as king
o Had challengers from within his own family
� Three half brothers and two cousins
� Believed they should be king
� A civil w
Battle of Chaeronea
o Philip and Macedonia vs coalition of Greek poleis
o Philip won
� Bigger and better infantry/cavalry
o
Greece was unified under Philip's rule
o Philip treats the defeated Greeks well
� Demands two things:
� Poleis to stop fighting with themselves
� All G
Alexander III
o Alexander the Great
o King Philip's second son
� Not only nor oldest
o Everybody believed he would be the next king
� Had already demonstrated great abilities
� Battle of Chaeronea - in charge of cavalry that won in battle
� At 13 years old he would be
Battle of Issus
o Persia vs Alexander
o Battle located between mountains and sea
� Persians couldn't spread out to destroy Macedonia
� Had to hit Macedonian army head on, which was an advantage to the Macedonians (18 foot spears)
o Macedonian army was greatly outnumbered
Battle of Gaugamela
o Repeat of Issus
� Alexander charges, and Darius flees again
o Third and decisive battle for Alexander over Persia
� Darius was assassinated by his own officers
o Victory made Alexander the king of Persia
� Age 25, he ruled the largest empire known in hi
Darius III
o Persian king
o Attempts to stop Alexander the Great
� Battle of Issus
� Battle of Gaugamela
o Eventually killed by one of his own men
Etruscans
o Two of the last three kings of Rome were Etruscan
o People who lived north of Rome in Etruria
o Rome fell under the influence of the Etruscans for about a hundred years during the period of he kings
o By the beginning of the sixth century, under Etrusca
Republic
o Lasted almost 500 years
o This is when Rome got its start
o Like a Greek Polis in many ways
� Hoplite army in Rome
� All male citizens had right to citizenship, assembly, and voting
� Appeared to be a Roman democracy
� In reality, it was a very narrow o
Senate
o All aspects of power were run by the Senate
� The senate ran Rome
o Made by 300 wealthy men who controlled the state
o Rome had elected city officials, Senators
� Controlled assemblies, courts, Roman religion (priests were Senators)
o Ran the army
o Sen
Consuls
o The chief executive officers of the Roman Republic
o Two elected to serve a one year term
o Administered the government and led the roman army into battle
o Top of the Roman political power
o They possessed imperium, "the right to command
Tribal Assembly
o Sempronius Gracchus went to tribal assembly
o Ran Rome without senate
o Democratic assembly of Roman citizens
Tribunes
o Elected official
Patricians/Plebians
o Patricians were wealthy Romans
� Consisted of families descended from the original senators appointed during the period of the kings
� Great landowners
� Only they could be consuls, other magistrates, and senators
o Plebians were poor Romans
� Constitut
Carthage
o Founded on the coast of North Africa by Phoenicians
o Largest and richest state in the area
o They got into a struggle for control of the western Mediterranean with the Romans
� Punic Wars
o Gave up all rights to Sicily and had to pay an indemnity to Ro
Punic Wars
o In the first Punic War, the Romans determined on the conquest of Sicily
� The Romans defeated other the Carthaginian navy off Sicily and the war quickly came to an end
o The Romans encouraged one of Carthage's Spanish allies to revolt against Carthage,
Latifundia
o Large estates that used slave labor, Roman empire
o The rise of Latifundia contributed to a decline in the number of small farmers
o Number of men available military service declined
o Small farmers drifted to the cities, especially Rome, forming a larg
T. Sempronius Gracchus
o Elected tribune
o Believed Rome needed to be fixed
� Not enough soldiers
� Draft dodging
� Growing number of poor people
o Took his ideas to the Senate
� His idea was to take all the land in Italy owned by the State and give to the poor
� The poor would
C. Marius
o Elected consul
� One of two
� Top of the Roman political power
o Made it to the top without being from a noble family
o Fought war in North Africa
� Won
� Not enough soldiers for army
� Offers citizens to volunteer
� State provided armor and weapons
� Q
Spartacus
o Thracian gladiator
o Led a revolt on the Italian peninsula
o Managed to defeat several Roman armies before he was finally trapped and killed in southern Italy
o Six thousand of his followers were crucified, the traditional form of execution for slaves
1st Triumvirate
o Senators formed alliances
o Comprised of three members
� Pompey Magnus
� Julius Caesar
� Licinius Crassus
o Pulled resources to get Caesar elected consul
� They believed he could get things done
M. Licinius Crassus
o Wealthiest man
o Successfully put down a major slave rebellion
o Captured and killed
Cn. Pompeius Magnus
o Most popular famous general
o Jealous of Caesar
� Caesar gained popularity through the Gallic War
C. Julius Caesar
o Elected consul
o Passed laws favorable to Pompey and Crassus
o Wanted military glory
o Appointed government two Roman provinces
� Northern Italy
� Southern France
o Became Rome's most popular general
� Great Propagandas, wrote an account of campaigns
o
Gallic War
o Caesar invaded Gaul
� Stayed there for eight years until 50 BC
� Conquered all of Gaul
Julia
o Caesar's daughter
o Died
� During childbirth with baby
o Married to Pompey Magnus
� Fell in love with each other
2nd Civil War
o Roman generals leading Roman armies against themselves
o Julius Caesar vs Pompey and Senate
� Caesar had one army compared to Pompey's/Senate's four armies
o Pompey and Senate forced to flee
� Went to Greece
o Caesar captures Rome without a fight, 49BC
Battle of Pharsalus
o Caesar army defeated Senate/Pompey
� Fled south to Egypt
� No one knows why
Cleopatra
o Replaced Ptolemy appointed by Caesar
o Sister of Ptolemy
o Caesar stayed with Cleopatra for a year after he reaches Egypt
o Had a son with Caesar
� Caesarion
o Queen of Egypt, age 19
M. Junius Brutus
o Senator
o Fought vs Caesar
o Created a conspiracy towards Caesar
C. Cassuis Longinus
o Senator
o Fought vs Caesar
o Created a conspiracy towards Caesar
� Stabbed Caesar to death
M. Antonius
o Caesar's second in command
o Served with Caesar during the Gallic/Civil Wars
o When Caesar is killed, supporters (soldiers) go over to Antonius
� Becomes very powerful very quickly
C. Octavius
o Later known as Augustus
o Only 18 years old
� No political nor military experience
o Caesar's closest male Roman relative
� Great nephew
o 1st emperor
o Caesar's will had almost everything going to Octavius
� Officially adopted as Caesar's son through h
M. Tullius Cicero
o The best exemplar of the literary and intellectual interests of the senatorial elite of the late Republic
o Greatest prose writer of his time
o Oratory was brought to perfection in a literary fashion by Cicero
� Oratory - the ability to persuade people
Battle of Philippi
o Octavius and Antonius vs Brutus and Cassius
� The armies of Antonius and Octavius are victorious
� Brutus and Cassius commit suicide
o Empire remains divided, with Antonius in the east and Octavius in the west
� Octavius wants to rule the whole thing
�
Battle of Actium
o Antonius becomes madly in love with Cleopatra
� So in love that he divorces Roman wife and marries Cleopatra
� Roman wife was Octavia, sister of Octavius
� Cleopatra gives birth to twins, a boy and a girl
� Giving birth to twins was supposed to be good