Athens - Democracy

Question 1

What led to the rise of Athenian Democracy?

Answer 1

The conflict between aristocrats. Aristocrats offered political rights in exchange for their support.

Question 2

What were the hoplites?

Answer 2

The middle-class that could afford their own weapons and armor who wanted political rights.

Question 3

What was hoplite warfare like?

Answer 3

Infantry warfare (men on foot), in the phalanx formation (rows of soldier with their best fighter on the right corner)

Question 4

What was aristocratic culture like?

Answer 4

They gathered at the symposium to discuss political and social concerns or Athens. They had lots of free time to discuss this and wrote love poetry to students.

Question 5

What was the status of women?

Answer 5

The aristocrats only wrote love letters to males because they believed that women were not capable of feeling love. They also had an issue with homosexuality believing that they were raising boys as women. These both showed that they had such strong opinions against women in society.

Question 6

What was the rise of Tyranny?

Answer 6

Powerful aristocrats monopolized power which didnt allow other aristocrats to climb the ranks. They essentially became tyrants.

Question 7

Who was Kylon?

Answer 7

Powerless aristocrat who tried to become a tyrant but fails after surrendering down a hill. However his supporters were killed after the statue of Athena symbolically fell. Families of the dead started blood feuds on powerful aristocrats that went on for generations.

Question 8

Drakons reforms

Answer 8

To ease the blood feuds between aristocrats, he wrote his law code that emphasized homicide and its punishments. In which it failed.

Question 9

Archon Solon and his reforms

Answer 9

The aristocrats and hoplites selected him as archon. Outlawed debt slavery, encouraged the cultivation of cash crops for commercial development, and you had to be eligible to hold office based on property qualifications instead of bloodline. Too much power was given to the hoplites and it failed.

Question 10

Pesistratos’ coup d’etat

Answer 10

A tyrant who succeeded because he recruited hoplites. His political approach was democratic institutions, massive public works (buildings), and mercenaries. (soldiers for hire)

Question 11

Pesistratos’ coup d’etat’s son

Answer 11

He became the next tyrant and failed in which the Spartans showed up at Athens to put aristocrats in power then goes back to Sparta. They did this because they did not like change but failed and the hoplites rose up and took power.

Question 12

Cleisthenes

Answer 12

Became archon and has 3 reforms: reorganized the Athenians into 10 tribes to distribute power and make the politically powerful weak. Extended the machinery of democratic government to local levels throughout Attica. Gave the demos the power of ostracism. He succeeded.

Question 13

What were the political values of a democracy?

Answer 13

Equality, liberty, fraternity/nationalism. Liberty is the weakest and nationalism is the strongest.

Question 14

Who brought the idea of liberty?

Answer 14

The aristocrats

Question 15

Who were the Thetes

Answer 15

Oarsmen who are slaves. They could not turn down a position because their position in society is so low.

Question 16

Pericles

Answer 16

The champion of Thetes who was elected in exchange for reform for the Thetes: every Athenian citizen had the right to propose and amend legislation and citizens are paid a days wage to attend assembly or appeals court. This led to the Thetes being the dominant force in the democracy and Pericles was reelected yearly. In which he engaged in massive building projects to glorify Athens and Greece.

Question 17

What was the social situation of women in Athens?

Answer 17

Women were married off at the age of 14 and were expected to weave cloth all day.
Respectable women were not allowed to leave the house unless accompanied by a male member of the house.
There was also a large distinction between private and public realms where women were expected to be dolled up in both.

Question 18

What was the social situation of slaves in Athens?

Answer 18

Debt slavery was increasingly rising, since women were always inside the house, society needed slaves to fulfill other roles in society. They played a large roll in Athenian society and without them, democracy would not work.

Question 19

What three things made democracy possible?

Answer 19

Women in the house, Slaves, and Money. The women tended to the home life and children, the slaves did the outside work, and money allows the government to run and fulfill the needs of the people. It keeps the government running.

Question 20

What was the Athenian economy like?

Answer 20

They were the leading exporter of olives, olive oil and grapes.

Question 21

Oriental Disposition

Answer 21

Athenians won the battle of marathon by a landslide and this was the first time there was a distinction between East and West. Athenians had a democracy, individualism, and they were innovative. Persians had a tyranny, they were a collective, and traditional.

Question 22

Where do we see oriental disposition occur again in modern history?

Answer 22

The civil war, world war I and II. It’s evident that modernization and innovation almost always beats traditional.

Question 23

What was the battle of marathon?

Answer 23

Croessus of Lydia invented money so Cyrus the great of Persia shows up to take over Lydia over their new invention. The Athenians sent their forces to fight against Persia in which Cyrus ends up dying who is replaced by Darius the great. Athenians had 10k while Persians had 100k troops so a runner ran to Sparta for support in which they declined. Athens won however and the runner died from exhaustion after running back to Athens to deliver the news of victory.

Question 24

Who were the important figures that contributed to democracy?

Answer 24

Solon, Cleisthenes, Pericles, Drakon, and Pesistratos with their reforms

Question 25

What are Triremes?

Answer 25

A new generation of ships

Question 26

Who was Themistocles?

Answer 26

Athenian politician and naval strategist at the battle of Salamis

Question 27

What was the Battle of Salamis?

Answer 27

The Persians return under Xeres, Darius’ son and attacks the Athenians. The Athenians run away in the Thermopylae Mountains where they turn around and trap the Persians in a passage and wipe them out. However, a merchant showed the Persians another passage way to Athens in which they destroyed the statue of Athena.