-
Period: 3200 BCE to 2100 BCE
Early Minoan Age (Crete)
-
Period: 3000 BCE to 2000 BCE
Early Helladic Period (Mainland Greece)
-
Period: 2100 BCE to 1700 BCE
Middle Minoan Age (Crete)
-
Period: 2000 BCE to 1680 BCE
Middle Helladic Age (Mainland Greece)
-
1900 BCE
Linear A Script Developed
The Minoans, a ancient civilization on the island of Crete, developed their own written script, Linear A, as a means of keeping track of property. By creating a written language, the Minoans developed their first characteristic that marked them as a civilization. -
Period: 1700 BCE to 1100 BCE
Late Minoan Age (Crete)
-
1680 BCE
Mycenaean States Emerge
Descending from farmers and herders on mainland Greece, the Mycenaean civilization was formed when several chiefdoms were created. Although the cause for shifting from villages to chiefdoms is unknown, it was an important development, as the Mycenaeans became the ancestors of the prosperous ancient Greek civilization. -
Period: 1680 BCE to 1060 BCE
Mycenaean Age (Mainland Greece)
-
1500 BCE
Minoan Civilization Dissipates, Mycenaeans Invade Crete
Due to a tragic series of events, including a volcanic eruption, tsunami and poor harvest, the Minoan population began to decline. Weakened by these events, the Mycenaeans decided to invade Crete, marking the end of Minoan culture and their influence on Mycenaean culture.
More Information -
1200 BCE
The Trojan War
The Trojan War was a ten year battle sparked by the kidnapping of Spartiate Queen, Helen, by Prince Paris of Troy. To rescue her, an army of Greek soldiers, led by Odysseus, hid in a hollow, wooden horse, which was gifted to the Trojans. Upon nightfall, the Greek army slaughtered the Trojans, rescuing Queen Helen and returning her to her husband. This legend inspired many literary works, including the Odyssey and the Iliad, which were used to teach ancient Greek youth. -
Period: 1150 BCE to 800 BCE
The Dark Ages
A period where various groups of Greeks settled on mainland Greece, including the Peloponnese, building new villages and communities. However, there are no written accounts of life and little has been found to indicate lifestyle. -
800 BCE
Greeks Begin to Colonize
In order to expand their empire and find more fertile land, the Greek people began to colonize many areas along the Mediterranean and Black sea. These colonies became new Greek city-states, and aided in trade, access to resources and flow of ideas. -
Period: 800 BCE to 500 BCE
Archaic Period
-
776 BCE
First Olympic Games
The Olympic Games were an athletic competition created to honour the God Zeus, and took place every four years in Olympia. Drawing Greeks from all over the Mediterranean, the Olympic Games showed rarely seen unity among the city-states. Furthermore, the first Olympic Games were the starting point which later Greeks used to mark the beginning of their past. -
508 BCE
Establishment of Democracy
After the Spartans besieged Athens, exiling the tyrant Hippias, a new form of government was needed. Cleisthenes, a member of one noble family, suggested a governing system that divided the citizens of Athens into ten equal tribes with members from all across the city. Any citizen was allowed to run for office or be chosen by fellow tribesmen to become a member of the Council of 500, which participated in meetings about political rules and laws. This new system is the basis for modern democracy. -
499 BCE
The Ionian Revolt Begins the Persian-Greek War
After defeat at the hands of the Persians, the Ionian Greeks called to their neighbouring city states for help in an attempt to free themselves from Persian rule. Lead by Aristagoras, Athens and Eretria joined a naval battle against Persia off of the coast of Miletus. However, the Greeks were defeated and the Persians advanced. This battle was one of the first in the Persian-Greek War and was Greece's first experience of Persia's military strength. -
490 BCE
Battle of Marathon
As punishment for their participation in the Ionian revolt, Persia sought to pillage Athens. On their way, they stopped at Marathon, a sheltered beach and plain, where the Athenian army decided to meet them. Under the direction of Miltiades, the Athenian armies victoriously defeated the Persians, securing a ten year reprieve from the Persian invasion and glory for the Athenian Army. -
480 BCE
Battle of Thermopylae
When King Xerxes and his Persian army crossed the Hellespont, Athens and Sparta united to stop them. The battle culminated in Thermopylae, a narrow pass in central Greece, where the Greeks were betrayed. The Greeks were defeated by the Persians, and King Leonidas, his bodyguard of 300 men, and 4000 soldiers were killed. The Persians continued on to take control of Athens, a disastrous turn of events. -
Period: 480 BCE to 323 BCE
Classical Age
-
479 BCE
Delian League is Formed
Athens, recognizing its need for protection from Persia, formed the Delian League, a military force meant to protect Greece. The states that participated paid an annual fee to the League for its maintenance. The Delian League, which was maintained on the island of Delos, was a Greece wide effort to protect themselves from invaders and was one of the first times, outside of wartimes, that the Greek states united. -
454 BCE
Delian League is Moved to Athens
Pericles, fearing that Delos, the base for the Delian League treasury, would be attacked by the Persian army, moved the treasury to Athens. This switch in location marked the beginning of an Athenian empire. -
438 BCE
Parthenon was Completed
Designer and Architect, Pheidias and Ictinus, created the Parthenon atop the Acropolis in Athens to honour the goddess of wisdom and strategy. The temple, constructed by hand, also commemorates the Greeks' victory over the Persians. Egyptian methods of architecture can be seen in the details of the Parthenon, as well as the abundant wealth and prosperity Athens had during its construction. -
431 BCE
Beginning of the Peloponnesian War
After Athens interfered with Corinth’s colonies, breaking the previously made peace treaty with Sparta, the 27 year long Peloponnesian war began. Almost every city-state chose a side in what is known as the longest, most costly and bitter war in ancient Greece's history. By the end of the war, the Athenian empire had declined, and was no longer a power in Greece. -
430 BCE
The Plague Strikes Athens
After Athens was invaded by Sparta, the Athenians fled to the long walls they had built. However, close quarters and filthy conditions led to the outbreak of a [plague](www.ancient.eu/article/939/the-plague-at-athens-430-427-bce/). The plague wiped out one third of Athens population and was one of the most severe in ancient history. -
400 BCE
Athen's Assembly Members Receive Pay
Prior to 400 BC, members of the assembly in Athens did not receive pay for their participation, leading to an assembly made up of wealthier citizens. In order to create a more equal government, the Athenian government began paying assembly members, allowing poorer citizens to participate and earn money. By doing so, the government fostered a sense of quality among the Athenians, promoting more equal representation in government. -
399 BCE
Socrates Ordered to Commit Suicide
Socrates, a revolutionary philosopher of his time, was accused of corrupting the Athenian youth by attempting to introduce new gods. As a result, he was [sentenced to death](www.historychannel.com.au/this-day-in-history/socrates-sentenced-to-death/) by drinking hemlock, a lethal poison. Socrates' contributions to society included the Socratic method, which is still used today, and his work was only saved by his apprentice, Plato. -
338 BCE
Battle of Chaeronea
Philip the Great, one of the kings of Macedonia, defeated southern Greece in the battle of Chaeronea. The Macedonian victory led to the unity of mainland Greece under the power of Macedonia, the first time that mainland Greece had been united under one banner. -
331 BCE
Alexander the Great Overthrows the Persian Empire
After Philip the Great's death, his son, Alexander took over. Alexander's greatest accomplishment was his conquest of the Persian empire and much of the Asiatic continent. In the battle of Gaugamela, Alexander and the Macedonian army decisively beat the Persians, successfully conquering the Persian Empire, one of the greatest powers in the ancient world, and expanding Greece's culture to many new nations. -
323 BCE
Death of Alexander the Great, Macedonia Splits into Three Kingdoms
Once Alexander the Great died, his empire was divided into three kingdoms by his best generals. General Seleucus took the Asiatic part of the empire, establishing the Seleucid dynasty; General Ptolemy sectioned off the African portion of the empire, forming the Ptolemaic dynasty; and General Antigonus overtook the European portion, fathering the Antigonid Dynasty. -
Period: 323 BCE to 31 BCE
Hellenistic Age
