tionima, kao što su Olimpijske igre i druge javne manifestacije. To je doprinijelo širenju kulture, ideja i znanja među Helencima. Unatoč političkim i teritorijalnim podjelama, Grci su se osjećali dio iste civilizacije i dijelili iste vrijednosti.
Mikenska kultura je nestala s dolaskom Dorana, ali njezino nasljeđe i utjecaj ostali su vidljivi u grčkoj umjetnosti, arhitekturi i mitologiji. Grci su se oslanjali na svoju prošlost kako bi oblikovali svoju budućnost, te su kontinuirano razvijali i usavršavali svoju kulturu i civilizaciju.
They participated in celebrations and gatherings at communal holy sites like Delphi, or various pan-Hellenic sports games, especially in Olympia where participants from all Hellenic regions would come together. Thus, colonization essentially leads to the development and maturation of the Greeks.
The impulse that originated from ancient Hellas was fertilized in Southern Italy and Sicily before returning to the mainland and Aegean islands, giving birth to an entire generation of great philosophers, military leaders, and statesmen.
Trireme – the Greek word for “three oars” – is the name for an ancient galley with three rows of oars on each side. As the dominant warship in the Mediterranean between the 7th and 4th centuries BC, it is mostly associated with ancient Greek tradition, although it is believed to have originated from Phoenicia. It evolved from the pentekonter, a ancient ship with 25 oars on each side.
Agrigento, the Valley of the Temples
Colonization
Sometime around the middle of the 8th century BC, the Greeks began to emigrate from the ports of their city-states to foreign lands, sometimes very far away. The lands of Greece. Over the next two centuries, the entire coast of the Mediterranean and Black Sea will be flooded with Greek colonies, which transmitted Greek culture and way of life to the non-Hellenic population. According to Plato’s vivid description, the Greeks surrounded the Mediterranean Sea like frogs sitting around a pond. Greek settlers mainly limited themselves to fertile land along the coast. Although the indigenous people resisted their settlement, over time, rivalries among the Greeks themselves became more important than disputes with the indigenous peoples.
In their expansion, the Greeks had almost no rivals, as the peoples of the Pyrenees and Apennine Peninsula and North Africa mainly lived in tribal communities and were not familiar with extensive maritime activities. Phoenician trading outposts also did not cause them great concern, as the Phoenicians, due to their trade, sought to live in peace with the surrounding world at all costs. They only gradually became aware of the Greek threats. Therefore, among their key cities, Utica and Carthage in the There was no union that united them and therefore they were not prepared for any resistance.
The reasons for emigration are numerous and different. It is certain that the infertile Greek land could not accommodate the population growth. In addition, Greeks turned to the cultivation of vines and olives over time, neglecting cereals. Often, political tensions in the polises that would drive the defeated party into exile were a motivator. There was also a desire for adventure, especially among impoverished nobles who no longer had a place in the traditional world, so they took the lead in colonization endeavors. Trade as a motivator would appear later, so early colonies were exclusively agricultural cities.
Considering all these different motives, with few exceptions, there was initially no organized colonization policy. People would gather in ports that became common starting points for travel, such as those in North Africa and Gades (Cadiz) in southwestern Spain. Halkida, Eretria, Megara, Naxos, and others, these were the starting points for further migration. Typically, immigrant groups belonged to the same tribe or at least spoke the same dialect. Upon arriving in a new country, they would bring their political organization from their homeland, as well as their worship of gods, and above all, their way of life in urban settlements, since this is where the defensive strength of the settlement was concentrated. The new colonies were mostly independent, although there were always special economic and religious connections with the metropolises, which were the cities from which the individual colonies were founded.
The first wave of migration went towards Sicily and the southern coast, which would collectively be called Magna Graecia – Greater Greece. They generally limited themselves to coastal plains that offered prospects of a richer life, and there they would establish a city.
Many colonies, such as Syracuse, Agrigento (Akragas), and Gela in Sicily, Cumae, Sybaris, Kroton, and Tarentum in southern Italy, quickly became very significant, and later… The Greeks also established their own colonies. Individually, the Greeks reached the eastern coast of present-day Spain, and in large groups, they reached the southern coast of France, where Massalia (Marseille) became a major center of Greek culture and established many new cities. In Africa, Cyrenaica (present-day Libya) was settled, and in Egypt, Naukratis was founded in the Nile Delta. The Adriatic and Illyrian coasts were also colonized, mainly thanks to Corinth, which kept them firmly under control through calculated politics.
Another direction of colonization was the northern coast of the Aegean Sea, the areas of the straits and the coast of the Black Sea. Settlement in this part originated primarily from Miletus, which established as many as ninety colonies. The oldest and most significant ones were Sinope on the southern coast of the Pontus (Black Sea), founded in 812 BC, and Cyzicus on the coast of the Pro Pontide (Sea of Marmara).
Colonization continued almost unhindered for two hundred years, but in the middle of the 6th century BC, the conditions in the world began to change irreversibly. ed milla. The Persian Empire reached all the way to Asia Minor, so colonization was interrupted there, and the cities of Asia Minor became part of it, including Miletus. The Persian threat sparked the last wave of emigration that started from Phocaea and established colonies on the southern coast of France. The situation also changed in the west. The Phoenicians agreed on their defense, and Carthage had fully matured to become the leading Phoenician power. Etruscan cities also became maritime powers. Sometimes they allied with the Carthaginians, and in 540 BC, they succeeded in jointly driving the Greeks out of Corsica. There was also war in Sicily, where the Phoenicians held the western part of the island.
Although colonies continued to be founded in the coming centuries, including those on the Adriatic, they were smaller cities. The golden age of colonization has passed, and political relations have stabilized based on the state of affairs in the mid-6th century BC.
Pythagoras
Croton
Croton in Calabria was founded. Kroton was founded around 710 BC as an Achaean colony. For a long time, Kroton was one of the most advanced cities of Greater Greece. Pythagoras established his philosophical school here around 530 BC. The unexpected development of Kroton’s political power in the 6th century and its leading political role in the second half of the 5th century is attributed to the spread of Pythagoreanism. Pythagoras successfully united his followers into an alliance that had a strong influence in the southern Italian cities of Tarentum, Metapontum, Heraclea, Sybaris, Catana, Himera, and Agrigento. The residents of Kroton were known for their moderation. Many Olympic champions originated from Kroton, with Milo being the most famous, as well as an excellent military leader. Herodotus wrote that Krotonian physicians were considered the best in Greece, and Strabo said: “The last Krotonian is still equal to the first among other Greeks.”
Method of colonisation
The founding of colonies was preceded by seeking advice from the Oracle of Delphi or another Greek oracle. If the answer was favorable,
Millet In the middle of the 8th century BC, a group of Corinthian settlers founded the city. When Gelon took over power in Syracuse (485-478), it became the most important city in Sicily. During the reign of Gelon and his brother Hiero (478-466), who were great lovers of philosophy and art, the Syracuse court became one of the intellectual centers of that period. Pindar, Aeschylus, Xenophanes, and others stayed there. Syracuse became a strong and wealthy city under the rule of Dionysius (405-367). Cicero described this city as “the greatest and most beautiful Greek city of all”.
Importance of colonization
The immense colonization activity was of great importance not only economically but also culturally. Thanks to colonization, the previously unknown world became closer to the Greeks, expanding the horizons of their knowledge like never before. By traveling the world as emigrants, traders, exiles, and mercenaries, they encountered different peoples and their cultures, becoming intermediaries between formerly separate societies. The people. They distinguished themselves with clarity, agility, and curiosity, quickly adopting and adapting the achievements of those cultures to the Hellenic spirit. As a result, cultural life in these colonies flourished faster and freer than in the conservative homeland.
Furthermore, new relationships formed among the incoming population in the colonies: at the time of their establishment, all settlers were equal, land was distributed fairly, and there were no social differences that were so emphasized in the motherland. In the new colonies, everyone could start anew, and a person’s worth was greater than their position and possessions. One must also consider the mentality of the emigrants, which was undoubtedly characterized by bravery, risk-taking, sacrifice, and facing new challenges. With the change in political and social relationships, interest in ethical issues grew, and individual-ethical principles of life for individuals and nations were sought. This newfound enthusiasm and sense of freedom awakened the still undeveloped powers of the Greek people. Because of the For these reasons, Magna Graecia will be fertile ground for the development of philosophy, which will be the main pillar of life in these cities in the coming centuries.
Perhaps it is precisely because of these reasons that many philosophers chose southern Italy and Sicily for their work. The most significant philosophical school in Magna Graecia, stemming from a moral reform movement, was the Pythagorean school. It planted the seed of practical philosophy here, and thanks to numerous disciples, it will influence the life of these cities for centuries, flourishing and bearing even more beautiful fruits. It is also worth mentioning that Plato saw the possibility of realizing his political ideal with an enlightened ruler-philosopher on the throne precisely in these cities. The characteristics of the rulers of these cities often resembled the ideals of the later Renaissance man: the homo universalis. Let us mention a few examples.
Cumae
In the second half of the 8th century BC, the Euboeans from Chalcis founded Cumae (Latin Cumae). As the oldest Greek settlement on the Tyrrhenian Sea, Cumae She had a special role in spreading Greek culture. The Cumae alphabet, a Western version of the Greek alphabet, spread to the Italian peninsula from it, from which Latin originated. As the oracle of the Cumaean Sibyl, Cumae was the spiritual center of Magna Graecia and held a special place among the colonies. The famous Sibyl’s cave, which Vergil described in his Aeneid, is still located here. Cumae came under Roman rule in 338 BC.
Archytas of Tarentum
Among the later Pythagoreans, Archytas stood out as the most talented genius: he was a philosopher, mathematician, physicist, astronomer, musician, and a seven-time strategist, never losing a battle. In the first half of the 6th century BC, he gained political power in Tarentum, the main force of the southern Italian alliance. His role as a statesman left us with the image of a ruler-philosopher. The spirit and method of his wise governance continued to live on in the state of Tarentum, and the administration of the Pythagoreans largely maintained its foreign policy strength for more than. For a hundred years, they say the city stopped blooming when it was no longer governed by philosophers. Tarant was founded by the Dorians in 706 BC as the only Spartan colony in Italy. The history of this colony is peculiar: its founders were partheniae, whose mothers were unmarried Spartan women and fathers were perioeci (free men but not Spartan citizens). Sparta approved these unions only during the bloody wars with neighboring Messenia in order to increase the number of soldiers. After Sparta conquered Messenia, these unions were annulled, and the sons from these unions were forced to leave Sparta. The leader of the disenfranchised Spartans received a response from the oracle at Delphi to found a colony in Taras. When they arrived in Apulia and founded the city, they named it Taras, after Poseidon’s son. Thus, the symbol of this Greek city became Taras riding a dolphin and has remained on the city’s coat of arms to this day. Tarant quickly grew into a powerful city and for a long time had supremacy over all Greek colonies. A pit in southern Italy. The most famous citizen of Taranto is Arhita (428-347 BC) known also for being a friend of Plato.
Empedocles of Akragas
He was born around 490 BC in Akragas on the southern coast of Sicily. Empedocles was a physician, poet, philosopher, prophet, botanist, zoologist, and engineer, and in addition to all that, a great orator and statesman. He is considered the founder of the great Sicilian medical school. One ancient author mentions the difference between Empedocles’ medical school and the most important Ionian schools: And some physicians and philosophers claim that it is impossible to understand medicine if one does not know what man truly is; moreover, whoever wants to treat people properly must first know that. Empedocles, therefore, believes that a true physician must also be a philosopher and that man should be observed in relation to nature as a whole. The inner connection between the cosmos and man is one of the main ideas of Empedocles as a physician, philosopher, and naturalist. His teachings influenced Giordano Bruno. And many knowledge about music and medicine still await to be rediscovered in some future renaissance.