Greece
A little bit of history…
Greek history is filled with epic battles, powerful leaders and victorious conquests. Add to that the country’s revolutionary philosophers, revered poets and archaic god-figures, and you get a national history that has been pored over by classicists for hundreds of years.
The Bronze Age
Bronze Age Greece, the setting of many of Greece’s most famous mythologies including Homer’s Iliad, is a land of legend and you may be surprised to hear that it was a relatively peaceful era in Greek history (though in 1400 BC the Mycenaeans did invade the neighbouring island of Crete unseating the Minoans who had ruled there since 2700 BC). If the name Minoan is setting off alarm bells it’s probably because this is the empire to which the legendary King Minos is said to have belonged. As the tale goes King Minos, in revenge for the murder of his son by a group of jealous Athenian athletes, declared war on Athens. In exchange for peace he demanded that the Athenians send him seven young men and seven young maidens to be sacrificed to the Minotaur every nine years. The Athenians agreed and the ritual continued until Theseus slayed the Minotaur. The palace of Knossos in Crete has been connected to the labyrinth in which the Minotaur was said to live but it is now thought to have been a dancing ground built for the princess Ariadne rather than her father Minos. Both the Minoan and Mycenaean cultures had slipped into decline by 1100BC leading the country into the Greek Dark Age.
The Greek Dark Age
It has been suggested that the Dark Age began with the invasion of Dorian forces which finally overturned the already failing Mycenaean rule. During the years that followed Greek civilisation simply ceased; the palaces abandoned, the language no longer written and the artwork becoming infinitely less elaborate. Poverty and depopulation ensued, and it wasn’t until 800 BC that the Greeks began to rediscover their past and build a new future.
Ancient Greece
So began the Golden Age of Ancient Greece. The country developed a renewed interest in the arts, particularly literature. It was during this period that many of the now famous Greek authors wrote their best works including Homer, Hesiod, Aeschylus, Sophocles, Euripides, and Aristophanes. This era also saw the birth of the Olympic Games and the construction of the Parthenon.
The country’s military forces began to grow in strength. Greece was split into city-states, meaning that each individual city governed itself. This meant that Greece’s military forces were often fighting against each other in petty boundary disputes and when Greece finally went to war on the Persian Empire the states came together in an alliance of experienced military forces. They fought two major wars during this era, both of which were started by Persian attempts to invade Greece (and both of which failed). It’s interesting that not all Greek states fought in the war, some even allied with the Persian invaders and fought against their fellow countrymen. Those states which fought against the Persians became part of the Delian League which saw Athens growing in power. In response to this Sparta, the most powerful state in Peloponnese, began to recruit the southern states to create the Peloponnese League. The two Grecian leagues clashed in the Peloponnese War of 447 BC before joining together to create the Hellenic League. However, Sparta withdrew from the league after an Athenian rose to power and restarted the original Peloponnese League. Perhaps inevitably, the two powers were soon at war and the victory of the Peloponnese League saw the end of the Golden Age.
The Peloponnese Wars seriously weakened the Greek states and they simply weren’t prepared when the Thebans attacked in 371 BC. After ten difficult years of Theban dominance they called in the Macedonian allies to bring an end to the continuous struggles against the resurging city states. Philip of Macedon’s powerful armies easily overcame the drained city states and they soon found themselves under the rule of Macedonia. This taught them an important lesson and the city states made the decision to merge under the rule of Philip, making one federation that was better able to defend itself against attack. After Philips death Alexander (who would soon be known as Alexander the Great) came to power. He was even more ambitious than his father and spent his reign fighting to extend the empire. The Greeks, who had accepted him as their leader, fought beside him. But by the time Alexander had defeated the Persian Empire in 333 BC the Greeks were already beginning to rise up against Macedonian rule again. The rebellion was quashed by Antipater but five years later Alexander was dead and the now reconciled city states saw a chance to regain control.
Hellenic Greece
A series of battles ensued between the most powerful generals in Alexander’s regime and though the city states struggled to achieve independence it was at best partial and ultimately only short lived. By 255 BC Greece was back under foreign rule, this time by the Anatolia. This continued until 197 BC when Philip V, Greece’s leader of the time, was defeated by the Romans. It is said that the Roman proconsul Titus Quinctius Flamininus, was an admirer of Greek culture and his treatment of the Greeks after their defeat certainly seems to suggest he was - Philip was forced to surrender his fleet and submit to the Romans but was otherwise left unharmed. After Philip’s death his son, Perseus, took the throne. Unfortunately, for both him and Greece, he didn’t stay there for long. With Eumenes II of Pergamum whispering rumours of Perseus’ plans to return Greece to Macedonian rule it wasn’t long before Rome was invading Macedonia, intent on removing him from power. As a result of this, the Macedonians and Greeks (whether they had helped Perseus or not) were punished. Rome demanded that the Achaean League (the only remaining confederation of the Greek city states) be disbanded but the Achaeans, believing it better to die fighting than lose their independence, refused. The other Greek city states rallied behind them and even slaves were freed to fight for the freedom of the country. The Romans defeated them at Corinth and the city was raised to the ground. The final blow came in 88BC when many of the Greek city states overthrew their Roman leaders while the Romans forces fought the rebellious King Mithridates of Pontus. Roman retribution was swift and cruel, and the Greek city states never recovered.
What followed…
During the remainder of the Roman Empire Greece was sacked by various foreign armies including the Goths, the Vandals and the Visigoths causing further damage to the already diminished city states. Sometime between 284 AD and 395 AD the Eastern Roman Empire transformed into the Byzantine Empire but the Greeks were blissfully unaware, as was much of the empire. The Byzantine Empire stayed in power right through to the 14th Century when it finally fell to the Ottoman Empire. Greece moved into another stage of colonial rule from which it would not escape until 1821. The War of Independence followed but it did not end as the Greeks had hoped. After six years of war Russia, France and Britain decided to intervene. To the horror of the Greeks they placed a foreign Monarch on the Greek throne. Despite strong opposition the monarchy remained in power right through to the 20th Century, though the 1964 constitution relegated the king to a more ceremonial role.
Greece fought alongside the Allied forces in World War I and, despite help from the allied forces, fell to Germany in World War II. The slaughter which followed left the country in a state of crisis with poverty and starvation rife throughout. Communist and royalist parties arose in the aftermath of German occupation and the country soon found itself in the midst of a civil war. The royalists were the victors (with a little help from the USA) and Greece remained a democracy. In 1981 Greece became a member of the EU and in 2005 it won the Eurovision song contest!
Best time to go
During the summer it is hot and dry. Maximum temperatures can reach up to 30°C and if you don’t think you can stand that kind of heat you might want to consider travelling during the spring or autumn months when it will have cooled down a little. When travelling in the height of summer it is recommended that you stay out of the sun between the hours of 11am and 2pm when the sun is at its strongest.
The winter months in Greece can become extremely cold making it an ideal destination for skiers. Snowfall is common in the mountain regions and even in Athens it is not uncommon to see the ground covered in a blanket of snow.
Getting around
Plane
If you want to travel in luxury and have a little bit of extra cash to spare then flying is definitely the way to go. If you’re travelling to one of the Greek islands then this is a particularly good option and will provide some stunning views. Of course it will cost about three times as much as a ferry would and is likely to take just as long once you’ve travelled to the airport and made your way through security.
Train
Trains are a great way to travel between cities but they won’t get you to more remote locations. In Greece trains are cheap, the views are often picturesque and the cabins/seats offer a lot more comfort than on the country’s buses.
Bus
Buses are the most popular mode of travel in Greece and will take you nearly everywhere you want to go. Some buses are even loaded onto ferries and will take you to one of the lovely Greek islands. They’re cheap and relatively comfortable making travel around the country a pleasure.
Ferry
Greece boasts an extensive ferry network that connects the mainland to the many beautiful Greek islands. No trip would be complete without at least one ferry ride but if you suffer from sea sickness you would certainly be forgiven for taken a flight out to the islands.
Useful links
www.lonelyplanet.comLonely Planet are leaders in the travel guide sector and their website is a great source of travel information.
www.fco.gov.uk
The Foreign & Commonwealth Office’s website provides up-to-date political news, travel advice and information on visas
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ancient/greeks/
Loads of useful information about Greek history as well as a couple of games to make you smile as you study.
