Notes for LO2: The Aegean Encounter

Minoan Civilization

About 2200BC, a distinct civilization, known today as Minoan arose on the Aegean island of Crete. 

It drew its wealth from control of the surrounding seas and from thriving trade with many eastern Mediterranean lands, above Egypt.

The Arrival of the Greeks: Mycenaean Civilization

There is no way of knowing exactly when, where, or how the Greeks developed into a separate ethnic group, but at the time that they made their way into their new homeland, they seem to have been a European barbarian people much like any other

The Mycenaean Greeks were a warlike people whose leading warriors rode into battle in horse-drawn chariots and who protected their settlements with massive walls
The rivalry ended about 1400 BC, with the destruction of the Minoan towns.

The Dark Ages

Mycenaean civilization lasted until shortly after 1200BC, when it fell victim to the same regional crisis that involved the downfall of the Hittites and the attacks of the Sea People on Egypt 

"In the eighth and seventh centuries B.C., as their wealth and population grew, the Greeks joined the Phoenicians as traders, travelers, and settlers across the sea"(caption) 

"The minstrels'  listeners absorbed the traditional values that heroic songs celebrated the values of a warrior aristocracy that was at home on both land and sea."

The Renewal of Greek Civilization 

Colony- in ancient Greece, a new city-state settled in an oversea territory by a group sponsored by a city-state located elsewhere

Oracle- an priest or priestess who was believed to give answers that were inspired by a god or goddess to questions from worshipers at a temple

By about 800BC, the Aegean region, like the lands to its south and east was on the way to recovering from the crisis 

Early development of their civilization, the Greeks began by doing what the Babylonians, the Hittites, and countless other people had done before them