Archaic Period - Ancient Greece

By Surata Garratt
  • 776 BCE

    First Olympic Games

    First Olympic Games
    Originally a festival to celebrate and honour Zeus, the events (running, javelin and wrestling) were added later.
    During the period of the games, a truce between city states was put in place to allow the atheletes to travel safely.
  • 757 BCE

    First Messenian War

    First Messenian War
    A war between Messenia and Sparta that was initiated by a mass migration of Dorians into Greece, causing a change in the Greek dialect and tradition in southern Greece. This incident was used to escalate the fighting to a war, and ultimately resulted in a Spartan victory and many Messenians migrated or were enslaved by Spartans.
  • 754 BCE

    Polydorus becomes King of Sparta

    One of his most significant changes was that he changed the law so that he, his co-king Theopompus and the Gerousia (a group of 28 men over the age of 60) could veto the decisions made by the Sparten Apella (the male citizenship body)
  • 738 BCE

    Alterative date for end of the first Messenian war

  • 735 BCE

    Perdiccas I of Macedonia

    He fled with his two brothers from the city of Argos, and then conquered and become King of Macedonia.
  • 734 BCE

    Polydorus sent colonists to italy

  • 725 BCE

    Lelantine War

    Lelantine War
    A conflict between the two city states of Chalcis and Eretria which took place over the fertile Lelantine plains on the island of Euboea.
    These lands were economically significant for both poleis, and the conflict expanded to include more supporters on each side. This makes the Lelantine war remarkable, as it's one of the few conflicts that had city states becoming allies.
  • 719 BCE

    Polydorus is murdered by Polymarchus

  • 690 BCE

    Pheidon II becomes ruler of Argos

    One of the major changes made by Pheidon was the introduction of a weights and measuring system throughout Peloponnesus, and he was the first to make silver coins.
  • Period: 685 BCE to 665 BCE

    Second Messenian War

    This war took place between Messenia and Sparta, and was triggered by an uprising slave rebellion, but there is the opinion that it was started because of Sparta's defeat at the First Battle of Hysiae.
    The outcome of this war was, unsurprisingly, a Spartan victory.
  • 656 BCE

    Cypselus subjects Corinth to tyranny

  • Period: 645 BCE to 560 BCE

    Spartan wars with Tegea

    Sparta won the final main confrontation and there were several small skirmishes and battles during the period of conflict. Sparta forced Tegea into a political change, and Tegea became an oligarchy.
  • 642 BCE

    Battus establishes Greek colony

    Battus establishes Greek colony
    Battus established a colony in Cyrene, Libya and made himself the first king of said colony, making him the first Greek king in Africa and the founder of the Battiad Dynasty
    Little is known about where he grew up, but his past was recorded by Greek historian Herodotus and we know that he his mother was a princess of Oaxus and his father was a Therean nobleman
    There is debate over the date of this event, 642 or 634
  • 632 BCE

    Cylon seizes Acropolis

    Cylon seizes Acropolis
    Cylon was an Athenian who was a nobleman and a previous champion of the Olympic games and attempted a coup. The oracle at Delphi had advised him to take Athens during the festival for Zeus, the coup was unsuccessful.
    He was exiled for violating the law and his followers were killed after being told that they would not come to harm. Two mass graves were found in a suburb of Athens full of shackled skeletons, and it is thought that they are the skeletons of Cylon's supporters.
  • 621 BCE

    Draco issues codes of law

    Making some offences punishable by death.
  • 594 BCE

    Solon becomes Archon

  • 590 BCE

    Sappho florishes on Lesbos

    Greek poet
  • 569 BCE

    Pythagoras was born

    Pythagoras was born
  • 565 BCE

    Peisistratos organises Diakrioi

    Party for poor people