The Crucible of Civilization pt. 1

3/10/20
Crucible of Civilization pt.1

  • the troubled birth of the world's first democracy, ancient Athens, through the life of an Athenian nobleman, Cleisthenes
  • 5th century BC, the Athenians struggle against a series of tyrants and their greatest rival, Sparta, to create a new "society of equals." 
  • paintings, maps
  • The Revolution, begins at the dawn of democracy in 508 B.C., with the revolution of the common people against aristocratic rule
  • chronicle the key events leading up to the revolution. As the camera roams ancient ruins, the Greek countryside, and old stone roads
  • the inhabitants of Greece once lived in mud houses with no sewage and frequently fell prey to disease and warfare
  • nable to write, they memorized their works of literature in order to pass them on to the next generation. Over time, their hardship and learning whetted their appetite for freedom
  • After rule by tyrants of the aristocratic class and a struggle for power, Cleisthenes (570-507 B.C.), himself an aristocrat, sided with the common people of Athens and brought democracy into being
  • western democracy developed and flourished. All the while during their early maturation into a Mediterranean power, Athens and other city-states had to live with the threat of war from expansionist Sparta as well as the vast Persian Empire
  • democracy had taken root, and it proved in the long run to be a greater force than the mightiest of armies
  • the eve of the new society's first great test: invasion by the mighty empire of Persia.

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