History of Western civilization

History Of Western Civilization

Explain the formation of the Peloponnesian League. What it is, and what city- states are involved in it?

The Peloponnesian League was formed circa 51-500 BC. Sparta was an oligarchy dominating the southern Peloponnese region, a peninsula in southern Greece which, despite being in a position to dominate the Ionian Sea and with allies in position on the Aegean Sea, preferred building a large and well-trained army to assure its place in the world at the time.

The major city-states in the League were Corinth, which controlled the Isthmus of Corinth, linking the Peloponnesian Peninsula to the mainland above Athens, Thebes and Plataea. The league was formed because Sparta wanted to protect itself against Athens, which was a sea power, and because the city-states in the league mistrusted the city-state of Argos. The philosophy of governing was also part of the reason; Sparta and its allies were very controlling of the lives of citizens and Sparta, in particular, depended on slave labor. Athens, however, was a much more democratic city-state and was further influenced to have a more cosmopolitan world-view because of its frequent trading with, and therefore knowledge of, cultures and societies on the other side of the Aegean and beyond.

What were the results of the Peloponnesian War, and how did those results contribute to the demise of the Golden Age of Greece?

The result of the Peloponnesian War (431-404 BC) was the ruination of Athens, both because of the events of the war itself, and because of a plague that wiped out as much as a quarter of the population of Athens between 430 and 428 BC.

A dozen years later, Persia, a powerful nation across the Aegean (what is now Turkey and Iran but was once the Persian Empire (the major force in Asia Minor at the time), financed a Spartan fleet. Some small city-states dependent on Athens also began a revolt, all of which weakened Athens. In 405, Sparta besieged Athens, which surrendered in 404 and never regained its former power, suffering instead under a brutal oligarchic government of the sort that had ruled in Sparta.

How did Alexander the Great's vision of the Hellenistic Empire coincide with the Greek views regarding philosophy and religion?

Even before Alexander's time, some Greeks looked upon other Greeks as barbarians. His father Philip claimed to be descended from royalty, and from the Peloponnesian city of Argos, but he saw Athens as the center of Greek civilization. He had his son taught to play the lyre, debate and recite great works. He also hired Aristotle as Alexander's teacher.

Alexander grew up in a court where a powerful father wanted to unite many allied city-states into a single nation, and he was also influenced by the philosophers of his day, especially Aristotle. Philip had taken advantage of the natural potential of various other city-states, such as Macedonia. But his very disciplined army was what helped his attempts at unity. He used strategic alliances to accomplish unification of a great deal of land. He rewarded nobles for loyalty and soon.

Alexander had been taught logic, and so, with that and the great army and lands his father left him, he saw it as the right thing to do to export learning to other lands. When he first invaded Asia Minor, he took not only soldiers but scientists and philosophers as well. He was convinced that Greek learning was the best in the world, and that Greek gods were also the best in the world. Great men of the ancient world wanted to walk in the footsteps of the gods, and Alexander tried to do that. He also wanted to liberate the Greeks living in Asia Minor under Persian rule, which was not as concerned with logic and beauty as Alexander considered Greek culture to be. In victory, Alexander personified Greek virtues by honoring the dead soldiers of the adversary as well as his own. When each city was freed, Alexander left it to run itself as a Greek-style city-state, founded on ideals of democracy and logic.

Discuss the Greek civilization's fascination with its Gods & Goddesses.