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Ancient Greece refers to a period of Greek history that lasted from the Greek Dark Ages (c. 1050 – c. 750 BC) to the end of antiquity (c. 600 AD). In common usage, it can refer to all Greek history before—or including—the Roman Empire , but historians tend use the term more precisely.
Greece in the Middle Ages. From the Division (395 AD) the Roman Empire in the East and West until the conquest (century 15th) of Greece by the Ottoman Turks, Greece shared the fortunes and vicissitudes of the Byzantine Empire.
Apr 19, 2024 · The Middle Ages was the period in European history from the collapse of Roman civilization in the 5th century CE to the period of the Renaissance (variously interpreted as beginning in the 13th, 14th, or 15th century, depending on the region of Europe and other factors).
- The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
- What was the role of Christendom?After the dissolution of the Roman Empire, the idea arose of Europe as one large church-state, called Christendom. Christendom consisted of two dis...
- How long did the Migration Period last?The Migration Period was a historical period sometimes called the Dark Ages, Late Antiquity, or the Early Middle Ages. The period lasted from the f...
- What were the major artistic eras of the Middle Ages?Romanesque art was the first of two great international artistic eras that flourished in Europe during the Middle Ages. Romanesque architecture eme...
- What socio-economic system is perceived as characteristic of the Middle Ages?Feudalism designates the social, economic, and political conditions in western Europe during the early Middle Ages, the long stretch of time betwee...
- Overview
- Philosophy and science
- Art, literature, and theatre
- The legacy of Greek culture
•The Greeks made important contributions to philosophy, mathematics, astronomy, and medicine.
•Literature and theatre was an important aspect of Greek culture and influenced modern drama.
•The Greeks were known for their sophisticated sculpture and architecture.
•Greek culture influenced the Roman Empire and many other civilizations, and it continues to influence modern cultures today.
Building on the discoveries and knowledge of civilizations in Egypt and Mesopotamia, among others, the Ancient Greeks developed a sophisticated philosophical and scientific culture. One of the key points of Ancient Greek philosophy was the role of reason and inquiry. It emphasized logic and championed the idea of impartial, rational observation of the natural world.
The Greeks made major contributions to math and science. We owe our basic ideas about geometry and the concept of mathematical proofs to ancient Greek mathematicians such as Pythagoras, Euclid, and Archimedes. Some of the first astronomical models were developed by Ancient Greeks trying to describe planetary movement, the Earth’s axis, and the heliocentric system—a model that places the Sun at the center of the solar system. Hippocrates, another ancient Greek, is the most famous physician in antiquity. He established a medical school, wrote many medical treatises, and is— because of his systematic and empirical investigation of diseases and remedies—credited with being the founder of modern medicine. The Hippocratic oath, a medical standard for doctors, is named after him.
Greek philosophical culture is exemplified in the dialogues of Plato, who turned the questioning style of Socrates into written form. Aristotle, Plato's student, wrote about topics as varied as biology and drama.
Why did Greek philosophers value logic so highly?
Literature and theatre, which were very intertwined, were important in ancient Greek society. Greek theatre began in the sixth century BCE in Athens with the performance of tragedy plays at religious festivals. These, in turn, inspired the genre of Greek comedy plays.
These two types of Greek drama became hugely popular, and performances spread around the Mediterranean and influenced Hellenistic and Roman theatre. The works of playwrights like Sophocles and Aristophanes formed the foundation upon which all modern theatre is based. In fact, while it may seem like dialogue was always a part of literature, it was rare before a playwright named Aeschylus introduced the idea of characters interacting with dialogue. Other theatrical devices, like irony, were exemplified in works like Sophocles’ Oedipus the King.
In addition to written forms of theater and literature, oral traditions were important, especially in early Greek history. It wasn’t until around 670 BCE that Homer’s epic poems, The Iliad and Odyssey, were compiled into text form.
Greek art, particularly sculpture and architecture, was also incredibly influential on other societies. Greek sculpture from 800 to 300 BCE took inspiration from Egyptian and Near Eastern monumental art and, over centuries, evolved into a uniquely Greek vision of the art form.
Greek artists reached a peak of excellence which captured the human form in a way never before seen and much copied. Greek sculptors were particularly concerned with proportion, poise, and the idealized perfection of the human body; their figures in stone and bronze have become some of the most recognizable pieces of art ever produced by any civilization.
Greek architects provided some of the finest and most distinctive buildings in the entire Ancient World and some of their structures— including temples, theatres, and stadia—would become staple features of towns and cities from antiquity onwards.
The civilization of ancient Greece was immensely influential in many spheres: language, politics, educational systems, philosophy, science, and the arts. It had major effects on the Roman Empire which ultimately ruled it. As Horace put it, "Captive Greece took captive her fierce conqueror and instilled her arts in rustic Latium."
Via the Roman Empire, Greek culture came to be foundational to Western culture in general. The Byzantine Empire inherited Classical Greek culture directly, without Latin intermediation, and the preservation of classical Greek learning in medieval Byzantine tradition exerted strong influence on the Slavs and later on the Islamic Golden Age and the Western European Renaissance. A modern revival of Classical Greek learning took place in the Neoclassicism movement in eighteenth- and nineteenth-century Europe and the Americas.
Can you think of modern-day art, architecture, or theater that may have been influenced by Greek culture?
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Apr 22, 2010 · The Middle Ages: Birth of an Idea. The phrase “Middle Ages” tells us more about the Renaissance that followed it than it does about the era itself. Starting around the 14th century, European...
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3 days ago · Greece, the southernmost of the countries of the Balkan Peninsula. It lies at the juncture of Europe, Asia, and Africa and is heir to the heritages of Classical Greece, the Byzantine Empire, and nearly four centuries of Ottoman Turkish rule. One-fifth of Greece’s area is made up of the Greek islands.
October 2001. The classical heritage flourished throughout the Middle Ages in both the Byzantine Greek East and the Latin West. The Byzantines, who called themselves Rhomaioi, or Romans, retained many of the trappings and economic, legal, and administrative institutions of the ancient Roman empire.
