Today in Western Civiliation Class we took notes on two different Power Points called Germanic kingdoms Unite Under Charlemagne and The Crusades.

AD 476 – AD 1453

(from the end of the Roman Empire to the conquest of Constantinople by the Turks)

medieval Europe is fragmented= medieval period

AD 476 – AD 1453

(from the end of the Roman Empire to the conquest of Constantinople by the Turks)

medieval Europe is fragmented

This new society has roots in:

• classical heritage of Rome
• beliefs of the Roman Catholic Church
• customs of various Germanic tribes

Germanic Invaders overrun the western half of the Roman Empire

causing:

• disruption of trade
• downfall of cities
• population shifts to rural areas

Church + Frankish rulers = rise in Christianity

In 520, Benedict writes rules for monks:

• vows of poverty (live simply in monasteries) 
• chastity (no marital relations)
• obedience (listen to church superiors)

His sister Scholastica writes similar rules for nuns

they operate schools, maintain libraries, copy books

Today in Western Civilization class we learned about how Christianity grew and how the roman emperor fell.
Christianity grew because it:
Embraced all people, Gave hope to the powerless, Appealed to those who were disgusted by the imperial Rome's decadence, offered a personal relationship with God, and promised eternal life after death.
The conversion of Constantine AD 312
Roman emperor Constantine had a vision before a key battle
Saw an image of a cross with the Words: "In this sign, Conquer"
Orders troops to put a cross on their shields, and they win the battle.
Edict of Milan in AD 313
Christianity become a religion that you can practice without being prosecuted.
Continues to strengthen, but as Christianity grows, Rome becomes weaker. By 380 Christianity is the Empire's Religion
Decline of Roman Empire.
Military- too weak to protect a huge area, Economy- Taxes are too high, keeps separating rich and poor.
Social- nobody cared about public affairs, disloyalty and population decline.
Political- division of the empire, Western and eastern, Western- Roman empire falls, but the eastern- Byzantine Empire does very well and lasts for a long time.
Last True Roman Emperor was a fourteen year old boy named Romulus Augustulus.

Today in Western Civilization class we read pages 358-363 and took notes and wrote down the terms and names for pages 363+357.
From 800-1000, invasions destroyed the Carolingian Empire.  Muslim invaders from the south seized Sicily and raided Italy.  In 846, they sacked Rome.  Magyar invaders struck from the east.  The Vikings invaded from the north.  They set sail from Scandinavia a wintry, wooded region in Northern Europe.  They were a Germanic people, they worshiped war-like gods.  Magyars and Muslims attacked from the east and South after Viking invasions declined, and Europe became the new target of new assaults.  Feudalism, In 911, two former enemies faced each other in a peace ceremony.  The manor was the lord's estaste.  During the middle ages the manor system was the basic economic arrangement.
Terms and names pg. 357-
1. Middle Ages- The gradual decline of the roman Empire ushered in an era of European history, or the medieval period.
2. Franks- Germanic people from what is now France and Switzerland.
3. Monastery-  The Church built religious communities, to adapt to rural conditions.
4. Secular-  The papacy became a worldly power involved in politics.
5.  Carolingian Dynasty-  The family rule after Pepin the Short died.
6. Charlemagne-  Ruled after Pepin the Short died, and spread the empire after conquering many people.
Terms and Names on page 363-
1. lord- In exchange for military protection a landowner owner called a lord could appoint land.
2. Fief- The land someone received from a lord.
3. vassal- The people who received a fief from a lord
4. Knight- Mounted horsemen who pledged to defen their lord's lands in exchange for fiefs.
5. Serf- People who could not lawfully leave the place where they were born.
6. Manor- The manor was the lord's estate.
7. Tithe-  After all the payments were made to the lord, peasent families owed money to the village priest, a tithe is a church tax.

Today in Western civilization class we started the Power Point on the Middle Ages and learned about the backstory of Jesus, and what he actually looked like.  I was very shocked at what he looked like but it makes because of where he was born and where he lived.  I wonder what Mary really looked like since Europeans probably made her look like them as well.  Christianity in the Pax Romana- it all started with Jesus.  Most of what we know about Jesus comes from the gospels- Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John,  Gospel means Good news.  He wasn't world famous when he lived his life, he became very famous after his death.  his followers believed he was the "Messiah" who had come to end the world and bring the faithful to the Kingdom of God.  He was deemed a threat by Roman Rule and was crucified, and resurrected three days later and then ascended into Heaven.  Paul of Tarsus was a Jew who became a follower of Jesus after a miraculous conversion on the road to Damascus.

Today in Western Civilization class we went over our Rome test, and you handed them back.  I got a 93 on the test.  I was very surprised that I got an A because I didn't study at all and completely forgot we had the test on Monday.  I was very tired an didn't even believe that I actually got a 93.

Today in Western Civilization class we took our Rome test which wasn't that hard even though i didn't study and then we took notes on and read pages 350-357.
Germanic invasions in the fifth century eventually overran Rome and disrupted their way of life.
Disruption of trade, Downfall of Rome, and populations shifts.
The Germanic invaders could not read or write, among Romans themselves the level of learning sank when people left for rural areas.  When German speaking people mixed with Romans, Latin changed as a language.  The development of various languages helped in breaking up a once unified empire.
The concepts of government changed and germanic people had small communities that had unwritten rules and traditions.
After the Roman empire dissolved small kingdoms rose up all over Europe.  England split up into seven tiny kingdoms.  The Franks controlled the largest and strongest of Europe's kingdoms.  Charles Martel became the most powerful person in the Frankish kingdom.  He was the mayor of the palace in 719, he extended their kingdom to the north, south, and east.  After his death he passed his power on to his son, Pepin the Short.  He cooperated with the Pope and fought off the Lombards who were threatening Rome, and was named "king by the grace of God"
Pepin the Short died in 1768, and left the Frankish kingdom to his two sons Carloman and Charles.  When Carloman died a few years later, Charlemagne or Charles the Great became king.

Today in Western Civilization class we learned about the punic wars  and the Roman people.  The Punic Wars were fought between Rome and Carthage during the years 264-146 BC.  The First War was a naval war.    Fought for control over Sicily and Corsica.  Rome won.  The second war was Hannibal trying to take on Rome.  He attacks from the North instead of from the sea where Rome was expecting them to come from.  He wins many battles in Ital but never got through Rome.  Rome won again.  The third war was when Rome just absolutely destroyed Carthage so they would never have to worry about them again.  Slaves poured into Italy- 50,000 Carthaginians, 150,000 Greeks, Over 1 million slaves in Italy.  To keep Plebeians happy, the government gave people bread and entertainment for free.

Today in western civilization class we learned about roman government and plebeians.  Plebs were victims of discriminatory decisions in judicial trials.  Rome had no actual laws, just unwrittend customs.  Plebeians refused to serve in army and requested written laws.  The Law of the Twelve Tables was created.  Laws were posted in public in 450 BC.  Tribunes were elected SPQR- Roman Senate and People
Res Publica- The Republic. 3 Governments in one
Democracy- people's assembly- tribunes
aristocracy- Senate 300 members
Monarchy- consuls- 2 of them.
Roman Legion- 5,000 soldiers not in for pay
Elite heavy infantry recruited from Roman citizens
Group of 80- century, On horseback- cavalry
Equipped with shield, swords, daggers, armor and tunic.

Today In western Civilization class we went over the Rome-Rome-Rome lyrics to find out what they really meant.  The Etruscans, Greeks, and Latins were the people who settled Rome.  The Latins were the first to settle, and they were descendants of the Indo-Europeans.  Settled on the banks of the Tiber River.  7 Hills of Rome- Part of their Mythology- Remus wanted Rome to be found on the Hill Aventine, But Romelus wanted it to be founded on Palatine, and that is where it was founded.  Tarquin the Proud's grandfather built the Cloaca Maxima which was the largest ancient drain and it channeled into the Tiber River.  Lucius Tarquinias Superbus was the seventh and final king of Rome.  He was known as Tarquin the Proud and was a true tyrant.  Tarquin's son Sextus raped a highly respected woman and that was when the people had enough and they drove Tarquin and his family out of town.

Today in Western Civilization Class my group presented our PowerPoint on The Three Punic wars.  My group was me Garrett and Anthony.  The First Punic War started because Rome was worried about how powerful Carthage was getting and also wanted full control over Sicily and Corsica, which Carthage had control of at the time.  The second Punic War happened when Hannibal invaded Rome and tried to destroy it.  Instead of attacking from the ocean he attacked from the long way around.  He was never able to get to Rome but destroyed many cities in Italy.    The third Punic War happened when Rome just wanted to destroy Carthage fully and never worry about them again and destroyed them completely,

Today I missed Western civilization Class and I heard that we presented some projects.  I do not know if my group presented.  I missed class for a baseball game.  We beat Mount Saint Joe's 11-6.

Today in Western Civilization class some people presented their project on Rome today.  The presentations were on the three Punic wars, Julius Caesar, and a jeopardy review game.  My group's presentation is about the three Punic wars.  Rome ended up winning all three wars, and the first was fought because Rome was getting nervous about thew growing Carthage and they wanted control of Sicily.  The Second war Hannibal tried to fool the Romans and go the long way to invade Rome, even though he lost half his men and all his elephants, he still went on in his journey.  He entered Italy and almost won, but was never able to take over Rome.  The Third Punic War consisted of Rome wanting to eliminate Carthage as a thereat for forever, they burned their cities, and just absolutely demolished Carthage.

Today in western Civilization class my group finished our Power Point on the Three Punic Wars.  The First Punic War:

• The first Punic War began in 264 BC

• It was the first of three major wars fought between Rome and Carthage

• The first war lasted from 264 BC to 241 BC
• The first war was fighting over the Mediterranean Island of Sicily

The Second Punic war:

• The Second Punic War lasted from 218-201 BC
• Between the Roman Republic and Carthaginian Empire
• Carthage (Purple)  had Northern Africa and half of Spain in their control

The Third Punic War:

• This war went on for three years, from 149 to 146 BC
• Resulted from the Roman Senate convincing their colleagues that Carthage was still a threat
• In 149 BC, Carthage broke their treaty with Rome by attacking a neighboring city

Today in Western civilization class we worked on our Roman Project.  My group did the three Punic Wars.  We didn't get a lot of work done today, but we are planning on doing the rest tomorrow.  While researching, I learned a lot of interesting facts about the three Punic wars.  I did the first punic war. Anthony did the second, and garret did the third.  The Three Punic wars were fought between Rome and Carthage, a city state on the northern end of Africa.  The first war was mainly over sicily, because Rome wanted full control over the island, but Carthage was controlling over half.

Today in Western Civilization Class we had a concert from Chi Cago, who is a very good rapper, and much better than Flop Rida.  I don't know if I want to do a rap battle for Rome because I have a feeling I wouldn't be able to come up with lyrics, and i would mess up a lot.  Chi Cago's performance today was very good, and I would like to get his autograph, that's for sure.  The videos that we heard from the play that costs too much money, were very cool and pretty interesting to listen to.  If we were able to get tickets for a cheaper price, I would like to go to that play.  It seemed very interesting and cool  how they fit historical facts, into a rap, that made snee and was even funny at times.  I would never be able to do that, even with Rome.

For Western Civilization Class today, we had to read pages 152-159, and answer question 1 on page 159.
1. Republic- form of government in which power rests with citizens who have the right to vote for their leaders.
Patricians- Were wealthy landowners held most of the power.
Plebeians- The plebeians were the common farmers, artisans, and merchants who made up most of the population.
Tribunes-  Plebeians would create their own assembly and vote for a representative called a tribune.
Consuls-Rome had two officials called consuls who commanded the army and directed the government, but their term only lasted one year, and couldn't be elected again for another ten years.
Senate- The Senate was the aristocratic branch of Rome's government.
Dictator- A leader who had absolute power to make laws and command the army.
Legions-  Large military units, where Roman Soldiers were organized.
Punic wars- The long struggle between Rome and Carthage, and between 264 and 146 BC, Rome and Carthage fought three battles.
Hannibal-  The mastermind behind the Second Punic war, who was 29 years old and wanted to avenge Carthage's defeat in the first Punic war.

Today in Western Civilization Class we watched a movie, and we watched the battle against Persia at Gaugamela.  I thought it was  very good movie, and portrayed battle back then  as to what it was actually like.  The part where one of the Greeks decapitated a Persian and swung his head around was by far the coolest part of that battle.  When King Darius III fled at the end when Alexander broke through, you got to see how much Alexander wanted to kill him.  He ran thorugh two ranks of Persians and through a spear at him.  But, being a coward King darius fled, without trying to fight him.  Know I can see why one of his officers killed him.

Today in Western Civilization Class, we had to come up with questions that we would like to see on the test.
1. At what age did Alexander the Great die, and where did he die?
Answer: He died at the age of 32, and in Babylon.
2.  How did Alexander the Great die?
Answer: He either died of typhoid fever, malaria, too drunk, murdered from poison, but historians really do not know how he actually died.
3.  what empire did Alexander conquer, but let them keep their kingdom?
A. India
B. Gaza
C. Tyre
D. America
Answer: A
4.  Who was Alexander's PR Man, his own "Homer", to pass on Alexander's legend?
Answer: Calisthenes, Alexander wanted his own Iliad
5.  Who was Alexander's model for wanting his own "Homer"?
Answer: Achilles, the hero of the Trojan
6.  Who ended up killing King Darius III?
Answer: His own officer killed him, because he kept backing out of the battle when it started to go downhill.
7. Describe two of Alexander's role models?
Answer: Alexander's teacher- Aristotle who taught Alexander. About the Iliad, Achilles.
Mother- Taught him the compassion, and that he is half god, Zeus is his father
Father- Taught him war tactics, very successful general.
Achilles- Hero of the Trojan War
8.  Who did Alexander kill while he was drunk one night?
Answer- One of his military officers who fought under King Phillip II and he saved Alex's life, and Calisthenes- Alexander's PR Man, who wrote down everything that Alexander did.
9. Who were the war tanks of ancient wars, and who introduced them into battle against Alexander?
Answer: The Indians introduced elephants that were the tanks of battle.

Today in Western Civilization class we watched more of the movie- Alexander the Great- The Man Behind the Legend.  Alexander is relentless a forces his troops to cross through the Himalayan Mountains which are 20,000 feet high.  One night, Alexander got drunk, and killed someone who saved his life, and someone who had fought under is father.  He also killed Calisthenes, because he refused to worship Alex as a god.  turning point of Alexander.  His empire covered 2,000 sq. miles.  It stretched from Greece to Afghanistan.  He marches on to India where he is meant by 50,000 men, and about 200 war elephants which were the tanks of ancient wars.  Alexander defeats the Indians, but he lets them keep their empire.  Alexander wants to go further, but his men can't go any longer, and he his forced to go home, and he takes a hard route, where two-thirds of his men die.  Alexander wants to make Babylon his new headquarter to make it easier to rule his kingdom, but after 11 feverish days, he dies at the age of 32.  It is unknown what he died of maybe typhoid fever, malaria, murdered, poisoned, or even too drunk.  After Alexander died, he was moved around, and now it is unknown where his remains are today.

Today in Western Civilization class we watched more of the movie Alexander The Great- The Man Behind the Legend.  Alexander fought the Persians- he used a phalanx, which scared the Persians.  Alexander realized the Persians had a lot of archers, which means their ground soldiers were probably not the greatest.  They Screamed, "Allalalalalaaaaa" as they moved forward, and when Alexander broke through their lines, and got to King Darius III, he fled in fear.  At the end the Persians had 50,000 casualties.  Tyre- Alexander conquered after several long months.  As a message to other cities not to fight Alexander crucified, and brutally murdered thousands of people.  Then Alexander moved to Gaza, where he killed every single man in the city, left woman and children to spread the story.  He then went to Egypt, where they surrendered without a fight, and he let them practice their own religion.  Hellenistic culture started to form.

For Western Civilization class we read pages 146-149, and took notes.  Hellenistic Culture in Alexandria.  As a result of Alexander's policies, a vibrant new culture emerged.  Greek culture blended with Egyptian, Persian, and Indian Influences.  This blending became known as Hellenistic Culture.  Alexandria, Egypt became the foremost center of commerce and Hellenistic culture.  Aristarchus of Samos, reached two scientific conclusions: He estimated the sun to be 300 times the size of Earth.  Although he was way off, he disproved the belief that the sun was smaller than Greece.  He also came to a conclusion that Earth and the other planets revolved around the Sun.  But it was not accepted.  Astronomers accepted Ptolemy's view of the solar system that the earth was at the center for 14 centuries.  Archimedes, studied at Alexandria, and accurately estimated the value of pi, the ratio of the circumference of a circle to it's diameter.  Aristotle and Plato also played a huge role in philosophy and teachings back then.

Today in Western Civilization Class talked about the Holocaust, and did not talk about Alexander the Great.  During the Holocaust, Germans, and Nazis, led by Hitler persecuted, and successfully escorted and killed 6 Million Jews.  Even though we have so many historical records, sowing that the Holocaust was real, people still say that it never happened.   It is amazingly horribly, how the rest of the world let Hitler, successfully take, and kill millions of Jews, and the outcasts.  The Holocaust Museum is located in DC, and is five floors which has millions of facts based on the Holocaust, and what happened.

For homework for Western Civilization we had to read, and take notes on Alexander the Great.  Alexander became the King of Macedonia in 336 BC.  Because of his accomplishments over the next 13 years he became known as Alexander the Great.  He became King when he was 20 years old, but was well prepared because he had learned science, geography, and literature from Aristotle.  In 334 he led 35,000 soldiers across the Hellespont into Anatolia.  By 326 BC Alexander and his army had reached the Indus Valley.  After winning a relentless battle, Alexander agreed to turn back because his soldiers were so tired.  By Spring of 323 BC Alexander organized plans to unify his Kingdom with new cities, and roads.  He became seriously ill with a fever, and died at just 32 years old.  He never carried out his plans.

Pericles was a ruler of Ancient Greece from 460-429 BC.  In charge during the golden age of Athens.  One of the best Greek statesmen, and in 443 he was elected strategos.  A stratego was a leading general of Athens.  He was the head of Athens and the Delian League.  Born into a leading family in Athens, and he was son of Xanthippus, his father was a hero during the Persian War.  In 429 Pericles died of the Plague.  Aspasia- Pericles girlfriend- educated in philosophy, history, politics, and science, art and literature. Pericles could not marry her because she was not a citizen.  Sparta invaded Attica, near Athens.  The Athenians gathered withing the walls of Athens, and people from Attica.  A plague hit Athens and killed many people.

Today in class we worked on our part of a large Power Point, which was about Ancient Greek Art.

• Instead of creating realistic works, Greek sculptors made statues that they felt reflected real beauty.
• The established artistic standards that the Greeks created, strongly have influenced the Western World today. Statues would show more cleavage than we Americans are used to.
  It would be in great detail to the point where it looks like the sculpture was real.
  Also the statues would be a great size. Some statues were 40 feet tall! That’s very impressive knowing that they didn't have any technological machines. They were very impressive. Greek life was dominated by religion and so it is not surprising that the temples of ancient Greece were the biggest and most beautiful. They also had a political purpose as they were often built to celebrate civic power and pride.
  • A Greek sculptor of the High Classical Period, Polykleitos (Polyclitus) is considered one of the most important and greatest sculptors of classical antiquity, along with Phidias (488-431) and Myron (480-444). He created mainly bronze sculpture and his most famous works, none of which survive today except in replica, include his Canon of Polykleitos and his Amazing figure.

Today's test was not very hard, and I felt prepared from studying my blogs and the PowerPoint.  After the test we had to read pages 134-136, and I took notes on these pages.  Pericles dominated Athens from 461 to 429 BCE.  He had three goals: 1. To strengthen Athenian democracy.  2. to hold and strengthen the empire.  3. to glorify Athens.  To make a stronger democracy Pericles increased the number of public officials who were paid salaries.  Since before Athenian public officials were unpaid which meant that only the rich could spare to cut the paycheck, but now that the job pays poorer Athenians can have that job.  After defeating the Persians Athens helped to organize the Delian League.  In time Athens took dominated all the city states in the League.  Pericles used the money from the league's treasury to make Athens' navy the strongest in the Mediterranean.  Pericles also used the money to beautify Athens and buy gold, ivory, and marble.

In this blog I will put a sum of the blogs on Ancient Greece. Draco 621 BCE-
All Athenians were equal under the law, rich or poor
death was a punishment for most crimes
debt slavery is OK(being a slave for someone to pay off your debt
Solon's Reform 594 BCE-
outlaws debt slavery
All Athenian citizens can speak at assemblies
any citizen can press charges against wrongdoers
Hippias- tyrant who ruled from 527- 510 BCE
Brother was murdered by his enemies
eventually he was ostracized from Athens
in revenge, he began working with the Persians to invade Marathon.
Isagoras and Cleisthenes(both were aristocrats)
Isagoras had support from fellow aristocrats, and Sparta.  Cleisthenes had support from most Athenian citizens.  Isagoras becomes a tyrant, and he ostracizes Cleisthenes.  Cleisthenes had support from Athenian citizens so when he was ostracized the citizens revolted in 508 BCE,  Cleisthenes began to realize the talents of ordinary citizens, and started the first democracy.  In 1400 BCE the Mycenaeans invaded Crete.  When Greeks invaded other places, instead of wiping the place's culture they incorporate their own.  The Trojan War was fought in 12th or 13th century BCE.  It was debated if the war was actual fought because it was said that gods and goddesses were actively fighting in the war.  Troy- City where it was fought."Sea People"- 1200 BCE the mysterious "Sea People" began to invade Mycenae, burned everything.  Dorians moved into the warzone dominatig 1150- 750 BCE.  They were far less advanced. Trade based economy collapsed.  Writing disappeared for 400 years.

Today, in western civilization class we learned about a new type form of government.  What Cleisthenes did was a huge step forward-getting regular folks involved in government.  Citizens could participate- but only one fifth of the population were citizens(free adult male property owners born in Athens.  After several years, Athens, practiced a direct democracy. A direct democracy is where the state is ruled by its citizens. The rule is based on citizenship. Majority decides vote.  In the agora citizens argued and made speeches then voted with white stones for yes and black stones for no.  First practiced under Cleosthenes around 500 BC.  Persian Empire vs. Greece.
Greeks   Vs.      Persians
Greeks had iron weapons, ordinary citizens could arm themselves, foot soldiers with spears shields swords, and home field advantage. Persians had archers cavalry that disrupted generals and soldiers. Lightly armed infantry with spears and swords. Huge numbers and long way from home.

• What is the Greek Acropolis? A rock formation that rises 400 feet.
• What was the Acropolis used for? Ancient Athenians would go there to pray, or for protection during invasions.
• When and why was the Parthenon built?  It was built over 2,500 years ago as a temple for the goddess Athena.
• Who ordered the Parthenon to be built?  Pericles
• When was the Parthenon constructed? 447 BC
• What is the Parthenon made of? The finest White marble
• What do we mean by “Doric-style” construction? Simple, unadorned style characterized by simple columns
• What can be found inside the Parthenon?  The centerpiece of the Parthenon is a forty foot statue of Athena
• When was the Parthenon damaged, and by whom? The building was severely damaged in 1687 when the Venetians attacked Athens.  After this the building fell into disuse.

Page 139 Questions 3,4,5
3.  What steps did Pericles take to strengthen democracy in Athens?
Pericles increased the number of public officials who were paid salaries.  Now poorer people could take office, because before the jobs didn't pay so only the rich had time for a job that doesn't pay.  He introduced direct democracy, a form of government where citizens rule directly and not through representatives. He also used money from the Delian League to beautify Athens.
4. What were the battle strategies of Athens and Sparta in the Peloponnesian War?
Pericle's strategy was to avoid land battles with the Spartan army, and wait for an opportunity to attack Sparta and its allies from the sea.  The Spartans eventually marched into Athenian territory.
5.  Why do you think some of Athenians found the teaching of Socrates so disturbing?
Because most Athenians back then praised and worshiped their gods, so if someone when Socrates was going around, and talking against the gods, some Athenians got angry about him disrespecting their gods.

Today in class we learned about how war-like the Greeks were, even against other city-states.  Spartans were known for their tough, ruthless infantry: people who fought on the ground.  Spartan boys were often taken away for training at the age of seven.  Athens had a great infantry, too, but nothing compared to their navy.  Their most effective weapon was the trireme.  It was a technological marvel, fastest ship in the world at the time,  rowed by up to 170 men, on all three levels.  The ship could be used as a battering ram, and it was agile and fast.  The phalanx was a war strategy that involved a close-rank defense grouping of warriors armeed with long spears and interlocking shields.  Soldiers would advance slowly toward the enemy, until they broke through their ranks.  The Athenians used this strategy first.

Today in class we learned about some of the Greek gods and goddesses.  The gods and goddesses interfered with mortal life, and even had love affairs with mortals, and even had kids with them.  Greeks made myths about their gods and goddesses t make them seem like greater gods, and to mkae them very interesting.
Zeus- ruler of heaven and Earth. Father of Athena. God of the sky, and father of the Greeks.
Athena- goddess of wisdom and skill and warfare. Special patron of heroes
Apollo- God of music, Son of Zeus, and twin of Artemis, who is related with the moon.
Poseidon- Brother of Zeus, and god of the sea.
Aphrodite- goddess of love.
The Persian wars between Greece and the Persian Empire began in Ionia on the coast of Anatolia.
After the Athenians won their battle against the Persians their casualties was fewer than 200, and the Persian casualties was 6,000.
Thermopylae and Salamis-
In 480 BC, Darius the Great's son and successor, Xerxes, planned to invade Athens and crush it.  Greek was heavily divided, and some city-states wanted to fight Xerxes, and some wanted to let him destroy Athens.  When Xerxes was pushing through Greece, he came to a pass called Thermopylae that was blocked by 7,000 Greeks, with 300 Spartans.  Even though the odds were heavily against the Greeks they held the Persians off for days, when finally everyone retreated except the Spartans, who gave their life, all 300.

Today in class we learned about early Greek government, and how it finally led to a democracy.
Draco 621 BCE-
All Athenians were equal under the law, rich or poor
death was a punishment for most crimes
debt slavery is OK(being a slave for someone to pay off your debt
Solon's Reform 594 BCE-
outlaws debt slavery
All Athenian citizens can speak at assemblies
any citizen can press charges against wrongdoers
Hippias- tyrant who ruled from 527- 510 BCE
Brother was murdered by his enemies
eventually he was ostracized from Athens
in revenge, he began working with the Persians to invade Marathon.
Isagoras and Cleisthenes(both were aristocrats)
Isagoras had support from fellow aristocrats, and Sparta.  Cleisthenes had support from most Athenian citizens.  Isagoras becomes a tyrant, and he ostracizes Cleisthenes.  Cleisthenes had support from Athenian citizens so when he was ostracized the citizens revolted in 508 BCE,  Cleisthenes began to realize the talents of ordinary citizens, and started the first democracy.

Today in class we learned about the Mycenaeans influencing Greek culture and about the Trojan War.  In 1400 BCE the Mycenaeans invaded Crete.  When Greeks invaded other places, instead of wiping the place's culture they incorporate their own.  The Trojan War was fought in 12th or 13th century BCE.  It was debated if the war was actual fought because it was said that gods and goddesses were actively fighting in the war.  Troy- City where it was fought."Sea People"- 1200 BCE the mysterious "Sea People" began to invade Mycenae, burned everything.  Dorians moved into the warzone dominatig 1150- 750 BCE.  They were far less advanced. Trade based economy collapsed.  Writing disappeared for 400 years.  

In Western Civilization class today we read about Greek city states and the war between Athens and Sparta.  Greek city-states had many different forms of government.  The different forms of government were Monarchy, Aristocracy, Oligarchy, and Direct Democracy.  Unlike the different states in the U.S in Greek these city states weren't s close as our states our.  We also have one type of government and theirs varied for different city states.  Athens built a type of limited democracy.  Which means their government was mainly ruled by the people.  The first step towards their democracy was when a nobleman named Draco took power.  He developed a law code in which every Athenian person were equal to each other under the law.  Mostly, only sons of wealthy families received an education in Athens.  The schooling mainly started around age 7.  Sparta, on the other hand built more of a military state.  Sparta's government had several branches.  An assembly which included all Spartan citizens gathered to meet, and vote on issues.  Boys were supposed to grow up in the military until the age of 60.  Boys left their home at the age of 7, and moved into army barracks until they were 30.  Girls and Men were both expected to put lover for Sparta over love for their family.

Today in Western Civilization class we learned about ancient Greece and civilization. The world's greatest civilization, are all located on water, usually rivers.  Mesopotamia/ Tigrus and Euphrates river. Egypt/ Nile River. India/ Indus River. China/ Hounghe.  Water uses: Drinking, bathing, irrigation, transportation. Ionian Sea- South Part in between Italy and Greece.  Adriatic Sea- North Part in  between Greece and Italy.  Aegean Sea- Sea in between Greece and Asia Minor.  The people in ancient Greece knew how to use metal: iron, bronze- to make swords, armor, and spears.  20% of the total land of ancient Greece was arable back then.  Greek Diet- Grains, Grapes, wine, Olives.
Healthy diet and active people led to the invention of the Olympics.  The climate back then was no warmer than 80 degrees in summer, never got colder than 40 degrees.  The Greeks were able to learn many other things from surrounding cultures.

Today in class we read and took notes on Greece.  The notes I took, involve some landscape, history, some war history, and other interesting facts from our textbook. some main themes include the war with Troy, myths that the Greeks created, and the landscape of Greece.
Mycenaeans- Some of the people who settled on the Greek mainland around 2000 B.C.
During the 12000 BC the Mycenaeans fought a ten year war against Troy, an independent trading city, in Anatolia.  Greece has many rugged mountains, and they cover about three fourths of Greece.  The mountains mainly ran from the northwest to southeast along the Balkan Peninsula.  The Greeks developed a rich set of myths, or traditional stories, about their gods. The greeks beloved in many gods and goddesses for many different things in everyday life.