Ancient Greece

ARCHAIC PERIOD

Period: 800 BCE to 480 BCE

First Olympic Games

776 BCE

Women weren't allowed at the Olympic games, also the men would often compete naked. They were held in Olympia.

The First Messenian War

757 BCE

Sparta and Messenia fought, the continued rivalry between the Achaeans and Dorians. The Spartans won leading to the left over Messenians becoming Helots

Polydorus Becoming king of Sparta

754 BCE

10th Agiad dynasty king of Sparta. He is believed to have implemented the "Great Rhetra" which meant the king and the Gerousia {a group of 28 men who were over 60 years old} could veto decisions made by the Spartan public [Apella]

Perdiccas I flees Argos

735 BCE

Perdiccas flees Argos and conquers Macedonian land

Italy Colonists

734 BCE

Polydorus attempts to colonize Italy by sending colonists over. Evidently it was unsuccessful

Lelantine War

725 BCE

Chalcis and Eretria both fought over the fertile land in the Lelantine plain in Euboea. The conflict became a war as fertile land was hard to come by, meaning many poleis became involved.

Polydorus Dies!

719 BCE

Polymarchus murders Polydorus. (probably becasue they had such similar names) His wife Nycteus acted as regent as their son Labdacus was too young to rule.

Pheidon becomes a tyrant of Argos

690 BCE

Pheidon seized control from the aristocracy before him. His reign was vigorous and the energetic ruler increased the power in Argos. During his reign various other city states adopted tyrant rulers.
FUN FACT : he once asked Corinth to send 1000 young boys to help them in war, instead he planned to kill the. Corinth found out because of Habron (who subsequently fled to Corinth)

Second Messenian War

685 BCE

Sparta and Messenia reignited the 40 year old dispute.
Theories of the reason (a slave uprising/rebellion or Spartan battle of Hysiae)
Spartans eventually won again, returning the Messenians to helot status or they became refugees in Italy

Sparta wins the Second Messenian War

685 BCE

The two decade war was won eventually by Sparta after the Messenians found refuge in Eira and stayed there for around 10 years, before Sparta let the women and children and a guy called Aristomenes go.
Aristomenes was a Messenian who fought so well in the initial battle (the Battle of Deres) that he became king !!

Cypselus Becomes a Tyrant

656 BCE

Thanks to the example set by Pheidon, Cypselus becomes a tyrant after usurping the throne (he also exiled the former royal house, of which his mother was a member...)
There were two prophecies from the Delphi oracle about Cypselus
- he would overthrow the royal house > they tried to kill him but he smiled at any man send to kill him so no one killed him
- his mum hid him in a chest to hide him from killers, which accounts for his name

Levanite war ends

651 BCE

The Chalcis win! They annex off the plain for themselves

Sparta wars with Tegea

Period: 645 BCE to 560 BCE

There were many unsuccessful wars over the period. An oracle predicted that Sparta would win, hence they began war.
They never officially won, and they didn't annex their land as they usually did, instead, Tegea turned into an Oligopoly like Sparta wanted. The two became allies also, supplying Sparta with soldiers and equipment for war in order for Tegea to remain an independent state.

Cylon fails

632 BCE

Cylon, a noble and Olympic winner attempts to stage a coup against his father but fails, he seeks refuge in Athena's temple on the Acropolis. He eventually died (most likely was intercepted and taken back to stand trial and was found guilty)

Battus makes Cyrene a colony

631 BCE

He sends ships over to colonize

Draco

621 BCE

The first democratic lawgiver. He was harsh but the citizens wanted him. The prevailing system of oral law and blood feud was flawed. He wrote a new set of laws which could only be enforced by a court. This was the first law to distinguish between involuntary homicide and murder.
Dealth penalty was very prevalent (for stealing a cabbage)
The homicide law ruled that the victims family were supposed to prosecute the killer, most of the time they were lead to exile

Solon becomes Archon

594 BCE

This is a fancy way of saying he became ruler of Athens. His rule is said to have laid the groundworks for Athenian democracy due to his reforms of the laws ad policies made by Draco.
After introducing his reforms he went away for 10 years so that no one could get angry at him for them. He went to Egypt and Cyprus

Sappho becomes a big deal

590 BCE

Sappho was a lyrical poet from Lesbos, her work flourished though only the "Ode to Aprodite" was found untarnished

Pythagoras is born

569 BCE

The maths genius is born, he is credited with the pythogras' theorem as well as the idea that Earth was a Sphere.

Peisistratos

565 BCE

He ruled Athens, greatly reducing the power of the aristocracy. He was ousted 3 two times. he returned the first time on a golden chariot with a woman who appeared to be athena, gaining back power. The second time he gained support from cities the silver mines.
He is well known because of the Peisistratids (the term for the three tyrants who ruled Athens, Peisistratos and his two sons)

Persians take Egypt

525 BCE

Camyses II takes control of Egypt.
• Phanes, a Greek general in the Egyptian army, gave him info about the military presence in Egypt
Had to end rebellion of Egyptians with the help of the Greeks

Late Archaic Period

Period: 525 BCE to 490 BCE

Hippias becomes sole ruler

515 BCE

The sons of Peisistratus who shared rule, until Hippias gained sole control after the murder of his brother. He became a tyrant, became very cruel. Sparta and Athens worked together to force Hippias to leave

Cleisthenes

507 BCE

Greek reformer takes control and increases the democratic power. He is credited with reforming the government into an increasingly democratic system.

Battle of Marathon

490 BCE

The first Persian invasion of Greece. King Darius tried to subjugate Greece, but Miltiades and Themistocles defeated the bigger Persian cavalry and fleet. The Athenians were aided by Plataea in the battle.
Greece won in the end, after Philippides, the fastest Athenian runner ran to Sparta to ask for backup, the Spartans said they couldn't join until the full moon (meaning ten more days), accounting for the aid of Plataea, accounting for large gratitude for Plataea from Athens

classical period

Period: 480 BCE to 323 BCE

Pericles elected

443 BCE

Peloponnesian War

Period: 431 BCE to 409 BCE

Sparta Vs Athens