Ancient Greece - Ancient History Encyclopedia
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by Joshua J. Mark
published on 13 November 2013
D e f i n i t i o n
Greece is a country in southeastern Europe, known in Greek as Hellas or Ellada, and
consisting of a mainland and an archipelago of islands. Greece is the birthplace of Western
philosophy (Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle), literature (Homer and Hesiod), mathematics
(Pythagoras and Euclid), history (Herodotus), drama (Sophocles, Euripedes, and
Aristophanes), the Olympic Games, and democracy. The concept of an atomic universe
was first posited in Greece through the work of Democritus and Leucippus. The process of
today's scientific method was first introduced through the work of Thales of Miletus and
those who followed him. The Latin alphabet also comes from Greece, having been
introduced to the region by the Phoenicians in the 8th century BCE, and early work in physics
A n c i e n t G r e e c e
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when Hellen and his sons became powerful in Phthiotis, their aid was
invoked by other cities, and those who associated with them gradually
began to be called Hellenes, though a long time elapsed before the
name was prevalent over the whole country. Of this, Homer affords the
best evidence; for he, although he lived long after the Trojan War,
nowhere uses this name collectively, but confines it to the followers of
Achilles from Phthiotis, who were the original Hellenes; when
speaking of the entire host, he calls them Danäans, or Argives, or
Achaeans.
MINOAN BULL LEAPING
EARLY HISTORY OF GREECE
Greek history is most easily understood by dividing it into time periods. The region wasalready settled, and agriculture initiated, during the Paleolithic era as evidenced by finds at
Petralona and Franchthi caves (two of the oldest human habitations in the world). The
Neolithic Age (c. 6000 - c. 2900 BCE) is characterized by permanent settlements (primarily in
northern Greece), domestication of animals, and the further development of agriculture.
Archaeological finds in northern Greece (Thessaly, Macedonia, and Sesklo, among others)
suggest a migration from Anatolia in that the ceramic cups and bowls and figures found there
share qualities distinctive to Neolithic finds in Anatolia. These inland settlers were primarilyfarmers, as northern Greece was more conducive to agriculture than elsewhere in the region,
and lived in one-room stone houses with a roof of timber and clay daubing.
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The Cycladic Civilization (c. 3200-1100 BCE) flourished in the islands of the Aegean Sea
(including Delos, Naxos and Paros) and provides the earliest evidence of continual human
habitation in that region. During the Cycladic Period, houses and temples were built of
finished stone and the people made their living through fishing and trade. This period is
usually divided into three phases: Early Cycladic, Middle Cycladic, and Late Cycladic with a
steady development in art and architecture. The latter two phases overlap and finally merge
with the Minoan Civilization, and differences between the periods become
indistinguishable.
The Minoan Civilization (2700-1500 BCE) developed on the island of Crete, and rapidly
became the dominant sea power in the region. The term `Minoan' was coined by the
archaeologist Sir Arthur Evans, who uncovered the Minoan palace of Knossos in 1900 CE
and named the culture for the ancient Cretan king Minos. The name by which the people
knew themselves is not known. The Minoan Civilization was thriving, as the CycladicCivilization seems to have been, long before the accepted modern dates which mark its
existence and probably earlier than 6000 BCE.
The Minoans developed a writing system known as Linear A (which has not yet been
deciphered) and made advances in ship building, construction, ceramics, the arts and
sciences, and warfare. King Minos was credited by ancient historians (Thucydides among
them) as being the first person to establish a navy with which he colonized, or conquered, the
Cyclades. Archaeological and geological evidence on Crete suggests this civilization fell dueto an overuse of the land causing deforestation though, traditionally, it is accepted that they
were conquered by the Mycenaeans. The eruption of the volcano on the nearby island of
Thera (modern day Santorini) between 1650 and 1550 BCE, and the resulting tsunami, is
acknowledged as the final cause for the fall of the Minoans. The isle of Crete was deluged
and the cities and villages destroyed. This event has been frequently cited as Plato's
inspiration in creating his myth of Atlantis in his dialogues of the Critias and Timaeus.
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Death Mask of Agamemnon
THE MYCENAEANS & THEIR GODS
The Mycenaean Civilization (approximately 1900-1100 BCE) is commonly acknowledged
as the beginning of Greek culture, even though we know almost nothing about the
Mycenaeans save what can be determined through archaeological finds and through Homer’s
account of their war with Troy as recorded in The Iliad . They are credited with establishing
the culture owing primarily to their architectural advances, their development of a writing
system (known as Linear B, an early form of Greek descended from the Minoan Linear A), and
the establishment, or enhancement of, religious rites. The Mycenaeans appear to have been
greatly influenced by the Minoans of Crete in their worship of earth goddesses and sky gods,
which, in time, become the classical pantheon of ancient Greece.
The gods and goddesses provided the Greeks with a solid paradigm of the creation of the
universe, the world, and human beings. An early myth relates how, in the beginning, there was
nothing but chaos in the form of unending waters. From this chaos came the goddess
Eurynome who separated the water from the air and began her dance of creation with the
serpent Ophion. From their dance, all of creation sprang and Eurynome was, originally, the
Great Mother Goddess and Creator of All Things.
By the time Hesiod and Homer were writing (8th century BCE), this story had changed into
the more familiar myth concerning the titans, Zeus' war against them, and the birth of theOlympian Gods with Zeus as their chief. This shift indicates a movement from a matriarchal
religion to a patriarchal paradigm. Whichever model was followed, however, the gods clearly
interacted regularly with the humans who worshipped them and were a large part of daily life
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in ancient Greece. Prior to the coming of the Romans, the only road in mainland Greece that
was not a cow path was the Sacred Way which ran between the city of Athens and the holy
city of Eleusis, birthplace of the Eleusinian Mysteries celebrating the goddess Demeter and
her daughter Persephone.
By 1100 BCE the great Mycenaean cities of southwest Greece were abandoned and, some
claim, their civilization destroyed by an invasion of Doric Greeks. Archaeological evidence is
inconclusive as to what led to the fall of the Mycenaeans. As no written records of this period
survive (or have yet to be unearthed) one may only speculate on causes. The tablets of
Linear B script found thus far contain only lists of goods bartered in trade or kept in stock.
No history of the time has yet emerged. It seems clear, however, that after what is known as
the Greek Dark Ages (approximately 1100-800 BCE, so named because of the absence of
written documentation) the Greeks further colonized much of Asia Minor, and the islands
surrounding mainland Greece and began to make significant cultural advances. Beginning in c.585 BCE the first Greek philosopher, Thales, was engaged in what, today, would be
recognised as scientific inquiry in the settlement of Miletus on the Asia Minor coast and this
region of Ionian colonies would make significant breakthroughs in the fields of philosophy
and mathematics.
The Parthenon
FROM THE ARCHAIC TO THE CLASSICAL PERIODS
The Archaic Period (800-500 BCE) is characterized by the introduction of Republics instead
of Monarchies (which, in Athens, moved toward Democratic rule) organised as a single city-
state or polis, the institution of laws (Draco’s reforms in Athens), the great Panathenaeic
Festival was established, distinctive Greek pottery and Greek sculpture were born, and thefirst coins minted on the island kingdom of Aegina. This, then, set the stage for the
flourishing of the Classical Period of Greece given as 500-400 BCE or, more precisely, as 480-
323 BCE, from the Greek victory at Salamis to the death of Alexander the Great. This was
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the Golden Age of Athens, when Pericles initiated the building of the Acropolis and spoke
his famous eulogy for the men who died defending Greece at the Battle of Marathon in 490
BCE. Greece reached the heights in almost every area of human learning during this time and
the great thinkers and artists of antiquity (Phidias, Plato, Aristophanes, to mention only three)
flourished. Leonidas and his 300 Spartans fell at Thermopylae and, the same year (480
BCE), Themistocles won victory over the superior Persian naval fleet at Salamis leading to
the final defeat of the Persians at Plataea in 379 BCE.
Democracy (literally Demos = people and Kratos = power, so power of the people) was
established in Athens allowing all male citizens over the age of twenty a voice in government.
The Pre-Socratic philosophers, following Thales' lead, initiated what would become the
scientific method in exploring natural phenomena. Men like Anixamander, Anaximenes,
Pythagoras, Democritus, Xenophanes, and Heraclitus abandoned the theistic model of the
universe and strove to uncover the underlying, first cause of life and the universe.
Their successors, among whom were Euclid and Archimedes, continued philosophical inquiry
and further established mathematics as a serious discipline. The example of Socrates, and the
writings of Plato and Aristotle after him, have influenced western culture and society for over
two thousand years. This period also saw advances in architecture and art with a movement
away from the ideal to the realistic. Famous works of Greek sculpture such as the Parthenon
Marbles and Discobolos (the discus thrower) date from this time and epitomize the artist's
interest in depicting human emotion, beauty, and accomplishment realistically, even if thosequalities are presented in works featuring immortals.
All of these developments in culture were made possible by the ascent of Athens following
her victory over the Persians in 480 BCE. The peace and prosperity which followed the
Persian defeat provided the finances and stability for culture to flourish. Athens became the
superpower of her day and, with the most powerful navy, was able to demand tribute from
other city states and enforce her wishes. Athens formed the Delian League, a defensive
alliance whose stated purpose was to deter the Persians from further hostilities.
The city-state of Sparta, however, doubted Athenian sincerity and formed their own
association for protection against their enemies, the Peloponnesian League (so named for the
Peloponnesus region where Sparta and the others were located). The city-states which sided
with Sparta increasingly perceived Athens as a bully and a tyrant, while those cities which
sided with Athens viewed Sparta and her allies with growing distrust. The tension between
these two parties eventually erupted in what has become known as the Peloponnesian Wars.
The first conflict (c. 460-445 BCE) ended in a truce and continued prosperity for both parties
while the second (431-404 BCE) left Athens in ruins and Sparta, the victor, bankrupt after her
protracted war with Thebes.
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This time is generally referred to as the Late Classical Period (c. 400-330 BCE). The power
vacuum left by the fall of these two cities was filled by Philip II of Macedon (382-336 BCE)
after his victory over the Athenian forces and their allies at the Battle of Chaeronea in 338
BCE. Philip united the Greek city states under Macedonian rule and, upon his assassination in
336 BCE, his son Alexander assumed the throne.
Alexander the Great
ALEXANDER THE GREAT & THE COMING OF ROME
Alexander the Great (356-323 BCE) carried on his father's plans for a full scale invasion of
Persia in retaliation for their invasion of Greece in 480 BCE. As he had almost the whole of
Greece under his command, a standing army of considerable size and strength, and a full
treasury, Alexander did not need to bother with allies nor with consulting anyone regardinghis plan for invasion and so led his army into Egypt, across Asia Minor, through Persia, and
finally to India. Tutored in his youth by Plato’s great student Aristotle, Alexander would
spread the ideals of Greek civilization through his conquests and, in so doing, transmitted
Greek philosophy, culture, language, and art to every region he came in contact with.
In 323 BCE Alexander died and his vast empire was divided between four of his generals.
This initiated what has come to be known to historians as the Hellenistic Age (323-31 BCE)
during which Greek thought and culture became dominant in the various regions under these
generals' influence. After a series of struggles between the Diodachi (`the successors' as
Alexander's generals came to be known) General Antigonus established the Antigonid
Dynasty in Greece which he then lost. It was regained by his grandson, Antigonus II Gonatus,
by 276 BCE who ruled the country from his palace at Macedon.
The Roman Republic became increasingly involved in the affairs of Greece during this time
and, in 168 BCE, defeated Macedon at the Battle of Pydna. After this date, Greece steadilycame under the influence of Rome. In 146 BCE the region was designated a Protectorate of
Rome and Romans began to emulate Greek fashion, philosophy and, to a certain extent,
sensibilities. In 31 BCE Octavian Caesar annexed the country as a province of Rome
following his victory over Mark Antony and Cleopatra at the Battle of Actium. Octavian
became Augustus Caesar and Greece a part of the Roman Empire.
Ancient Greece in a 3D travel
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
JOSHUA J. MARK
A freelance writer and part-time Professor of Philosophy at MaristCollege, New York, Joshua J. Mark has lived in Greece and Germany and
traveled through Egypt. He teaches ancient history, writing, literature,
and philosophy.
HELP US WRITE MOREWe're a small non-profit organisation run by a handful of volunteers. Each article
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BIBLIOGRAPHY
The Internet Classics Archive | The History of Herodotus by Herodotus
Thucydides Book I
Brendan Nagle, D, The Ancient World (Pearson, 2009).
http://www.ancient.eu/books/0205637442/http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/ancient/thuc-hellenes.asphttp://classics.mit.edu/Herodotus/history.htmlhttp://www.ancient.eu/membership/?utm_source=ahe&utm_medium=button&utm_campaign=membership-message-largehttp://www.ancient.eu/membership/http://www.ancient.eu/membership/http://www.ancient.eu/static/help-us/http://www.linkedin.com/pub/joshua-j-mark/38/614/339https://plus.google.com/102570966791370271297http://twitter.com/https://twitter.com/JoshuaJMarkhttp://www.facebook.com/https://www.facebook.com/joshuahttp://www.ancient.eu/user/JPryst/
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Durant, W, Caesar and Christ (Simon and Schuster, 1972).
Durant, W, The Life of Greece (Simon & Schuster, 2011).
Graves, R, The Greek Myths (Penguin, NY, 1993)
Waterfield, R, The First Philosophers (Oxford University Press, USA, 2009).
CITE THIS WORK
LEGAL NOTICEWritten by Joshua J. Mark, published on 13 November 2013 under the following license: Creative
Commons: Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike . This license lets others remix, tweak, and build
upon this content non-commercially, as long as they credit the author and license their new creations under
the identical terms.
M a p
GREEK CITY-STATES - 1100 BCE
1100 BCE · 800 BCE · 800 BCE · 700 BCE · 700 BCE · 700 BCE · 700 BCE · 600 BCE · 513 BCE · 478 BCE ·
403 BCE · 377 BCE · 361 BCE · 337 BCE
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T i m e l i n e
c. 6000 BCE - 2900 BCE
Neolithic Age settlements in Greece, beginning of agriculture. .
c. 3200 BCE - 1100 BCE
The Cycladic Civilization in Greece.
2700 BCE - 1500 BCE
The Minoan Civilization flourishes on Crete, Greece. King Minos establishes the first
navy in the region.
2300 BCE
Bronze is used in the Aegean.
2000 BCE
Early Greeks settle the Peloponnese.
2000 BCE - 1450 BCE
Minoan civilization in Crete and the Aegean.
1900 BCE - 1100 BCE
Mycenaean civilization in Greece and the Aegean.
1650 BCE - 1550 BCE
Eruption of Thera and consequent tidal waves, destruction of Akrotiri and other
Aegean centres.
1100 BCE
Dorian peoples occupy Greece.
c. 1100 BCE
Greeks implement use of individual tombs and graves.
c. 1000 BCE
The first distinctive Greek pottery is produced, the Proto-geometric style.
c. 900 BCE
Sparta is founded.
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c. 900 BCE
The Geometric style of Greek pottery is first produced.
c. 800 BCE - c. 700 BCE
Homer of Greece writes his Iliad and Odyssey .
800 BCE - 500 BCE
Greek colonization of the Mediterranean and Black Sea.
c. 800 BCE - 500 BCE
Archaic period of Greece.
c. 740 BCE - c. 433 BCEGreek poleis or city-states establish colonies in Magna Graecia.
733 BCE
Corinth founds the colony of Syracuse in Sicily.
683 BCE - 682 BCE
List of annual archons at Athens begins.
c. 660 BCE
Pheidon is tyrant in Argos.
c. 657 BCE - 585 BCE
The Kypselidai are tyrants of Corinth.
c. 650 BCESparta crushes Messenian revolt.
650 BCE
Earliest large scale Greek marble sculpture.
650 BCE - 600 BCE
Age of law-givers in Greece.
c. 625 BCE
Black-figure pottery created in Corinth.
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c. 625 BCE - 600 BCE
The orientalizing style of Greek pottery becomes popular in Corinth.
594 BCE - 593 BCE
In Athens the archon Solon lays the foundations for democracy.
580 BCE - 376 BCE
Carthage and Greece fight for dominance in Sicily.
c. 560 BCE
Pisistratos becomes tyrant in Athens for the first time.
c. 550 BCE - c. 366 BCEPeloponnesian League alliance between Sparta, Corinth, Elis and Tegea which
establishes Spartan hegemony over the Peloponnese.
546 BCE - 545 BCE
Persian conquest of Ionian Greek city-states.
539 BCE
Etruscan & Carthaginian alliance expels the Greeks from Corsica.
535 BCE - 522 BCE
Polycrates rules as tyrant of Samos.
c. 530 BCE
Red-figure pottery style takes precedent over black-figure.
530 BCE
The Andokides Painter invents red-figure pottery.
c. 525 BCE - c. 456 BCE
Life of Greek tragedy poet Aeschylus.
521 BCE
Darius I (Darius the Great) succeeds to the throne of Persia after the death of
Cambyses.
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514 BCE
Fall of the Peisistratid tyranny in Athens.
514 BCE
The tyrant of Athens Hipparchos is killed by Harmodios and Aristogeiton - the
'tyrannicides'.
c. 508 BCE
Reforms by Cleisthenes establishes democracy in Athens.
499 BCE - 494 BCE
Ionian cities rebel against Persian rule.
c. 498 BCEIonians and Greek allies invade and burn Sardis (capital of Lydia).
c. 496 BCE - c. 406 BCE
Life of Greek tragedy poet Sophocles.
c. 495 BCE
Birth of Pericles.
492 BCE
Darius I of Persia invades Greece.
11 Sep 490 BCE
A combined force of Greek hoplites defeat the Persians at Marathon.
487 BCE - 486 BCE
Archons begin to be appointed by lot in Athens.
486 BCE
Xerxes succeeds to the throne of Persia after the death of Darius I.
c. 484 BCE - 407 BCE
Life of Greek tragedy poet Euripides.
c. 483 BCE
Themistocles persuades the Athenians to significantly expand their fleet, which saves
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them at Salamis and becomes their source of power.
480 BCE - 323 BCE
The Classical Period in Greece.
Jul 480 BCE
Xerxes I makes extensive preparations to invade mainland Greece by building depots,
canals and a boat bridge across the Hellespont.
Aug 480 BCE
Battle of Thermopylae. 300 Spartans under King Leonidas and other Greek allies
hold back the Persians led by Xerxes I for three days but are defeated.
Aug 480 BCEThe indecisive battle of Artemision between the Greek and Persian fleets of Xerxes I.
The Greeks withdraw to Salamis.
Sep 480 BCE
Battle of Salamis where the Greek naval fleet led by Themistocles defeats the
invading armada of Xerxes I of Persia.
479 BCE
Xerxes' Persian forces are defeated by Greek forces at Plataea effectively ending
Persia's imperial ambitions in Greece.
479 BCE - 432 CE
The period of Thucydides' Pentecontaetia in ancient Greece.
478 BCE
Sparta withdraws from alliance against Persia.
478 BCE - 404 BCE
The Delian League in Greece, led by Athens.
c. 469 BCE - 399 BCE
Life of Socrates.
c. 462 BCE - 458 BCE
Pericles introduces democratic institutions in Athens.
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460 BCE - 445 BCE
First Peloponnesian War.
c. 460 BCE - c. 380 BCE
Life of Greek comic poet Aristophanes.
c. 460 BCE - c. 320 CE
Period of full and direct citizen democracy in Athens.
457 BCE
Hegemony of Athens over central Greece.
451 BCEThirty years peace between Argos and Sparta.
c. 451 BCE - c. 403 CE
Life of Athenian statesman and general Alcibiades.
449 BCE - 448 BCE
Peace between Greece and Persia.
448 BCE
Ionian cities become independent from Persia.
448 BCE
The Peace of Callias with Persia.
447 BCE - 432 BCEThe construction of the Parthenon in Athens by the architects Iktinos and Kallikrates
under the direction of Pheidias.
446 BCE - 445 BCE
Thirty years peace between Athens and Peloponnesians.
431 BCE - 404 BCEThe 2nd Peloponnesian War between Athens and Sparta (the Delian League and
the Peloponnesian League) which involved all of Greece.
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427 BCE - 347 BCE
Life of Plato.
421 BCE
Peace of Nicias, a truce between the Delian and Peloponnesian Leagues.
420 BCE
Democritos develops an atomic theory of matter.
c. 415 BCE
The Histories of Herodotus is published. The work is divided into nine chapters, each
dedicated to one of the Muses.
412 BCESparta allies with Persia.
404 BCE
End of the Peloponnesian war, Athens defeated By Sparta at Aigospotamoi, Rule of
the Thirty Tyrants in Athens.
403 BCEPlato turns away from politics toward philosophy.
400 BCE
Pepper is known in Greece.
400 BCE - 330 BCE
The Late Classical Period in Greece.
399 BCE
Trial and death of the philosopher Socrates, who taught in the court of the Agora.
c. 398 BCE - c. 380 BCE
Plato travels in Egypt, Cyrene, Italy, Syracuse and Sicily.
395 BCE - 386 BCEThe Corinthian Wars between Sparta and an alliance of Athens, Corinth, Argos,
Boeotia and Thebes.
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384 BCE - 322 BCE
Life of Aristotle.
c. 384 BCE - 322 CE
Life of Athenian statesman Demosthenes.
380 BCE
Plato founds his Academy outside of Athens.
371 BCE
Thebes, led by Epaminondas, defeats Sparta in the Battle of Leuctra.
371 BCE - 362 BCE
Thebes is the dominant city-state in Greece.
359 BCE - 336 BCE
Reign of Philip II of Macedon.
356 BCE
Third Social War in Greece.
21 Jul 356 BCE - 11 Jun 323 BCE
Life of Alexander the Great.
350 BCE
The Scythians have absorbed a lot of Greek culture, Scythian artefacts show Greek-
style depictions.
347 BCE
Plato dies at his Academy.
343 BCE
Aristotle becomes tutor of young Alexander.
336 BCE - 323 BCE
Reign of Alexander the Great.
334 BCE
Alexander invades the Persian empire.
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331 BCE
Egypt is conquered by Alexander the Great without resistance.
323 BCE - 31 BCE
Hellenistic civilization in Greece, the Mediterranean and Asia.
323 BCE - 31 BCE
The Hellenistic Age.Greek thought and culture infuses with indigenous people.
320 BCE
Last recorded examples of Attic Red-Figure Pottery.
310 BCEAssassination of Roxanne and Alexander IV, wife and son of Alexander the Great.
c. 280 BCE
Founding of the Achaean League in the Peloponnese of Greece.
270 BCE
Aristarchus of Samos proposes a heliocentric world view.
168 BCE
Rome defeats Macedon at Battle of Pydna.
146 BCE
Rome sacks Corinth and dissolves the Achaean league. Greece is ruled by Rome.
146 BCERoman influence over Greece begins to rise.
140 BCE
Venus of Milo is completed.
88 BCE - 63 BCE
Mithridates of Pontus fights three wars to free Greece from Rome.
86 BCE
The Roman general Sulla sacks Athens and the port of Piraeus.
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31 BCE
Greece absorbed into Roman Empire.
42 CE - 62 CE
St. Paul goes on missionary journeys across Asia Minor, Greece, and Rome.
c. 50 CE - c. 60 CE
Establishment of various Christian communities in the Eastern Mediterranean, Greece,
Egypt, and at least the city of Rome.
257 CE - 263 CE
The Goths raid Greece.
267 CE
The Goths sack Athens, Corinth, Sparta, and Argos.
V i s i t o u r S h o p
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