Greek City States

Greek City States

Our Constitution is called a democracy because power is in the hands not of a minority but of all the people. When it is a question of settling private disputes. Everyone is equal before the law. When it is a question of putting one person before another in positions of public responsibility, what counts is not membership of a particular social class but the actual ability which the person has.

Bellwork- Sourcing

Democracy- A democratic System where people rule and make the decision by voting	Minority- a group with smaller numbers	Disputes: disagreements	Public- For Everyone
Constitution:	Pardon:	Oligarchic: Government by a few people	Notice: Being seen

​Source: Pericles, (2009) “Pericles’s Funeral oration.” Daily life through World History in Primary Documents. David Matz, Greenwood Press, pp189-190

Open Ended

1 .Analyze: From reading the Previous slide what is the author's claim?

2. Identify: Who is the author of the document ?

Learning Goal/Learning Targets

W.3.2 Investigate the democratic concepts (polis, civic participation and voting rights, legislative bodies, written constitutions, rule of law)

Identify the forms of government developed in Greece, including democracy.

​So What is Democracy?

The word democracy is defined as a form of government (a political system that allows individuals that have power to make and apply rules to different communities and different areas around a region)

This word comes from two greek words, which means to rule by the people.

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​Click The link Below to Start the activity

Greek city-states formed at the end of the Dark Age. Nobles who owned and ran large estates overthrew the Greek kings. These nobles became rulers of towns and the areas surrounding them. A city-state, also called a polis, was almost an independent country, much like the city-states of ancient Mesopotamia.

​Greek City States

What Did a Polis Look Like?

A polis was the center of Greek civilization. At each polis a fort called an acropolis was built on a hilltop. People could take refuge in an acropolis if enemies invaded a polis. Each acropolis had a space called an agora. An agora could be used as a marketplace or an open space where people could gather. The city’s neighborhoods surrounded the acropolis and agora. The polis also included villages and farmland.!

​Greek city-states grew, and the rule of local kings came to an end. Wealthy nobles threw the kings out and ruled the people for a short time. Small farmers, however, resented their power. Nobles often loaned the farmers money to buy land. When the farmers could not repay the loans, the nobles seized the land. Farmers were then forced to work for the nobles again or quit farming altogether

​A New Beginning

​In some city-states, tyrants took over the government. A tyrant is someone who seizes power and rules with total authority. Although most tyrants who commanded city-states were fair, some were cruel. The word tyranny still has a negative meaning because of these cruel tyrants. As a result of the selfish actions of the nobles, tyrants gained support from hoplites, the citizen soldiers. They also built new temples, fortresses, and marketplaces

​THE change

Open Ended

Turn and Talk, with your group

Analyze: Based off of the previous slide why did the nobles and farmers not have a great relationships? How could this relationship be fixed

For The Remainer of the Period

​You Will be Using Your Cornell Notes Paper

​What Did Citizenship Mean to the Greeks?

​The ancient Greeks influenced many of our ideas about citizenship. In most Greek city-states only free, land-owning men who were born in the polis could be citizens. Male citizens could vote, hold office, own property, and defend themselves in court. They were obligated to serve in government and to fight for the polis as soldiers. Eventually, men did not have to own land to be citizens. Women and children did not possess the rights of citizenship.

​In contrast, ancient Mesopotamian and Egyptian people were subjects of their rulers. They had no voice at all in the government. They had to obey the commands of the ruling class.

Oligarchy Vs Democracy

​Eventually, most city-states became either oligarchies or democracies. An oligarchy is made up of a few wealthy people who control the larger group. In a democracy, the citizens share in running the government. Sparta and Athens were two large city-states that were ruled very differently. As a result, life was very different for Spartans and Athenians.

Open Ended

What government has a single ruler that inherits the throne

Open Ended

A government in which a small group of wealthy people are in control

Citizen Soldiers

​City-states had armies of citizen soldiers. These soldiers, who were called hoplites, fought on foot. In battle, they fought shoulder to shoulder in a formation called a phalanx. Each soldier carried a shield, a sword, and a spear. Hoplites were brave, proud warriors who showed exceptional loyalty to their polis. While soldiers were loyal to their citystate, Greece as a whole was divided. This meant they were vulnerable to invasion. Small communities like city-states were much easier to conquer than unified countries or empires

Open Ended

Exit Ticket

If you were a citizen in a Greek City State, would you refer to be ruled by tyrants or in a democracy? What is one rule you feel all citizen should follow.

Poll

Based on the Learning Goal/Learning Target:

Finish this sentence: By the end of Class

• 1- I need assistance because I didn't understand anything

• 2- I understand the Learning goal, however, I forgot some of the vocabulary words

• 3- I understand the learning goal and can inform my peer

• 4- I understand the content and I can see the Contection from the Greek city States to Today