Greek Beliefs

Greek Beliefs

                The Greeks believed in different gods. They believed that certain gods controlled something that happened in their everyday lives. For example, if there was a storm, they believed that it was the doings of Zeus, the god of the sky and the king of the gods.

                There were more gods than just Zeus, though. There was also Hera, wife of Zeus, goddess of marriage, and queen of the gods.

                The children of Zeus and Hera were Ares and Hephaestus. Ares was the god of war, and enjoyed causing unnecessary bloodshed, making friends become enemies and enemies go to war. Hephaestus, the other child of Hera, was the god of the forge. They believed that when he and his Cyclopes would work under mountains, the sparks were so big they would come out the top of the mountains, making, as we know today, volcanoes.

                But Zeus had children with others, too. Metis was Zeus’s first wife. She was very wise and gave him advice often on being king. But when she expected a child, Zeus, having heard from an oracle that his child would overtake him, tricked his wife. He tricked her by playing with her and asking her to change her shape. At last, she turned into a fly and Zeus swallowed her. Metis’ child’s name was Athena. Athena was born out of Zeus’s head. Athena was the goddess of wisdom and battle strategy.

                Semele was another one of Zeus’s wives. Semele was tricked by jealous Hera to have Zeus reveal his true form, and was killed. Her child’s name was Dionysus. Dionysus was the only god to have a mortal mother. He was also the god of wine.

                Leto, another of Zeus’s wives, gave birth to twins Artemis and Apollo. Artemis was the goddess of the moon and the hunt. When Artemis was born, she asked her father never to make her marry and to give her a pack of hunting dogs to hunt with. Zeus gladly granted these wishes. Apollo was the god of light, reason, and music. Helios was the real god of the sun, but would let Apollo and Apollo only drive his sun chariot.

                Maia was yet another wife of Zeus. Maia’s child was Hermes, god of thieves and all those who lived by their wits. He was also the messenger of the gods.

                Hades, Zeus’s brother, was the god of the underworld, where people would go when they died.

                Demeter was Zeus’s sister and the goddess of harvest. She had a daughter named Persephone who one day was taken by Hades to the underworld. She was forced to stay there six months of the year because she had tasted the food of the dead. During these six months, her mother, Demeter grieved and nothing grew. This, as they believed, was the cause of the four seasons.

                Poseidon was a moody god and a brother of Zeus. He was the god of the sea and was protective of all things in it. He would strike the earth with his trident, and an earthquake would occur.

                Hestia was the goddess of the hearth. She gave up her throne for Dionysus.

                Aphrodite had neither a mother nor a father, but was born from the foam of the sea. She was the goddess of love.

                                                   These are just the main gods the Greeks believed in.

Video Summary

Video Summary

                In 508 B.C., pandemonium ruled over Greece. Living in Greece at this time was a man named Cleisthenes, who would eventually lead his home of Athens to an empire.  Cleisthenes had been brought up to defend his people.  Cleisthenes was born in 570 B.C. and was brought up as an aristocrat.  Aristocrats controlled most things that went on in Athens. 

                Athens was built on an acropolis.  For Athenians, people who could read and write were rare things.  Life was tough in Athens, because the aristocrats ruled over everything the people did. 

                Greece was divided into city-states.  One of the city-states, Argos, had more power than Athens, but was not known for it.  Another powerful city-state was Corinth.  Corinthians were known as boat builders and sailors.  Spartans were brought up and trained to fight in the military, but had few possessions.  Spartans conquered many regions around them.

                Cleisthenes was inspired by stories of power, such as the Odyssey and other stories of epic battles.   He was brought up to become a hero himself. 

                One day, a man rode into Athens with “Athena” and convinced them that he was their ruler.  This man’s name was Peisistratus, who became a tyrant of Athens.  Peisistratus allowed people prosperity and freedom, which caused him to begin his rise to power. 

                Of the valuable things found in Athens, olives were among the highest.  People were willing to trade many products for olives.  Because olives were found in Athens, Athens began to rise in wealth.  Another reason for this was because they had invented the vase.  But although potters were one of the causes of the rise to wealth of Athenians, potters were very low in society.  Potters and artists were inspired by the prospect of out-doing one another. 

                Cleisthenes knew how high Athenians were rising in power, but in 527 B.C., Peisistratus died and his son Hippias took over.  Hippias was a cruel ruler, torturing citizens in order to gain power.  After his brother died, he became suspicious of everyone, putting Cleisthenes in danger.  After Cleisthenes saw what was happening to Athens, he took over the rule from Hippias and banished him from Athens.  He inspired many Greeks by this heroic act. 

                In Olympia, Greeks gathered every 4 years for the Olympic Games.  If you won at the Olympic Games, it was a great honor to you and your city-state.  If you won, that would be the highlight of your entire life.  People traveled very far to compete in the Olympic Games.  Having so many competitive people gather in Athens, was not good for Cleisthenes and his rule over Athens.  A man named Isagoras wanted Cleisthenes spot in power.  To ensure that Isagoras got this spot, he traveled far to Sparta, where he entreated a supporting military force from them.  The Spartans accepted, and Isagoras gained control of Athens.  Under Spartan control, many Athenians were kicked out of their homes, including Cleisthenes.  Out of their anger, the people rose up to overthrow Isagoras, and defeated him after three days.  Cleisthenes was brought back into Athens and was asked to build a new government for Athenians.  He made fair decisions and built the first democracy for Athens. 

                Later, Pheidippides ran from Athens to Sparta, to get the help of Sparta to defeat the Persians. The Persians were invading their homeland. He later died of exhaustion.  What he didn’t know is that Athens had won the battle, because the Persian army was forced to fight against their will, while Athens fought to keep their home.  The Persians wanted to make sure they weren’t defeated again, so they used a powerful weapon and the advantage of the sea.  They would sometimes consult the oracle at Delphi to find out how to lead their people into battle. 

                But the Athenians were still gaining power, because they had found silver.  Athens was the only Greek city-state with the ability to dig its own wealth straight from the ground.  They were not sure whether to divide it amongst themselves, or give it all to the person who discovered it.