During the 5th and 4th centuries bc, Ancient Greece thrived. At the time Greece was not one united country under a single ruler, but rather a collection of city states that all had their own form of government, military, and so on. Two notoriously well known city states were Sparta and Athens.
Sparta
Sparta is located in the geographical region known as Laconia in south-eastern Peloponnese. The area consists of surrounding rugged mountains and lots of hilly grass land. Due to their location, Sparta focused heavily on agriculture for survival. They were by no means a society based on trade.
Map of Ancient Greece
They were and still are known as being a highly military based society. The famous Spartan warrior is one of the most well known aspects of Spartan culture. Training began at age 7 and continued to age 20 when a man could officially be known as a soldier and were able to marry. Soldiers remained in the military until the overly ripe age of 60. Sparta had about an estimated 40,000-50,000 people living in their society. Their political views were that of an oligarchy, or rule by a few (although there was one who served the role king).
Ancient Spartan Warrior
King Leonidus c. 530-480 bc or Gerard Butler 1969-present
Athens
The city state of Athens was very different than that of the militant Spartan society. Athens would grow into something so culturally beautiful and full of art, architecture, philosophy, and science it became the largest city in Greece when in its prime, the population was 250,000 – 300,000 people. Athens was located in a region know as Attica which resided in a fertile valley perfect for producing tasty olives and rich wines. Sparta had a great military but Athens was known for having a good navy. One of the most well known images/buildings was the Parthenon located on top of a rocky hill called Acropolis. The Parthenon was a temple dedicated to the Goddess Athena.
The Parthenon atop Acropolis
Athens was home to many great philosophers including the well know Socrates, Aristotle, and Plato. Some famous literature from Athens includes the playwrights Aeschylus, Aristophanes, Euripides, and Sophocles. Athens was also the first known society to establish a form of democracy, rule by the people. It was established c. 500 bc and consisted of male citizens only. There would be a meeting of the male citizens nearly every ten days to discuss new laws and other political issues.
Philosopher Socrates
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