Minoan civilization

The Minoan civilization was a prominent Bronze Age society which flourished from approximately 2700 to 1450 BC on Crete, Greece.

The civilization was rediscovered at the beginning of the 20th century through the work of British archaeologist Arthur Evans.

The term "Minoan" was coined by Arthur Evans after the mythic "king" Minos. Minos was associated in Greek mythology with the labyrinth and the Minotaur.

The Minoan people were not Indo-European, and that they were even related to the pre-Greek dwellers of the Greek mainland and Western Anatolia, the so-called Pelasgians. However, the Minoan civilization was much more advanced and sophisticated than the contemporary Helladic civilization during the bronze-age.

The Minoans developed 20 splendid architecture, a complex language, and a written script that is still not understood. Knossos, also known as Labyrinth, or Knossos Palace, is the largest Bronze Age archaeological site on Crete and probably the ceremonial and political centre of the Minoan civilization and culture.

They built a significant naval power and coexisted with neighboring civilizations as the dominant influence in the region.

The Minoan period saw trade between Crete and Aegean and Mediterranean settlements, particularly the Near East. Through their traders and artists, the Minoan cultural influence reached beyond Crete to the Cyclades, Egypt's Old Kingdom, copper bearing Cyprus, Canaan and the Levantine coast, and Anatolia.
Minoan civilization

Persian invasion of Greece in 480 BC

In 490 BC Datis (admiral under Darius the Great) landed a substantial force at Marathon, north of Athens, where Athenian and Plataean hoplites drove the Persians back to their ships. Ten years later King Xerxes led a much larger invasion by land and sea.

In 481 BC massive preparations, shipbuilding and preparing of supplies and magazines were in train. These preparations were quite open and the Persian aim was obviously to subjugation of Greece.

By the Winter of 481/480 BC Xerxes preparations were complete and his forces gathered at Sardis before crossed the Hellespont.

Xerxes personally led the Persian invasion of Greece with one of the largest ancient armies ever assembled. According to Herodotus there were 1.7 million strong man from Persia.

The Athenians sent a messenger to ask the Spartans to commit their army, an army which could be considered a special forces unit in modern terms. Normally the special forces make up only a small portion of the military. The Spartans, however, were all highly trained killing machines. The Spartan king Leonidas knew that if the Spartans did not show up then the Persians would easily conquer Athens, and eventually Sparta.

Victory over the allied Greek states at the famous Battle of Thermopylae allowed the Persians to torch an evacuated Athens and overrun most of Greece.

Heroic Spartan resistance at Thermopylae failed to prevent Xerxes from sacking Athens, but his navy was mauled at Salamis and in 479 Greek hoplites were victorious at Plataea.
Persian invasion of Greece in 480 BC

Battle of Chaeronea

In 338 BC, the Macedonian army, led by King Philip II (c. 382–336) and his young prince Alexander III, marched against a coalition of Greek city-states led by Athens and Thebes. The site of this clash was near the Boeotian city of Chaeronea, which guarded the entry into the northern plain of Boeotia.

The battle of Chaeronea essentially marks the start of the Macedonian domination in the political affairs of Greece that lasted almost a century. The particular battle is also of great interest from a military point of view, clearly demonstrating the superiority of the Macedonian phalanx against the previous corresponding types of military positioning of other city-states.

This battle was the culmination of Philip’s military campaign during the years 340-338 to build a coalition of loyal Greek cities through various “settlements,” which ultimately led to the League of Corinth (the Hellenic League) against Persia.

King Philip II

The battle was a disaster for Athens, Thebes, and their allies. More than 1,000 Athenians were killed and over 2,000 captured.

Philip’s victory at Chaeronea and his military endeavours throughout Central Greece clearly demonstrated the ingenuity of his leadership and the capability of his army. Philip used the victory and the “settlements” which followed as a means of expanding his influence throughout Greece.

Following the battle of Chaeronea and confined to the conditions of the League of Corinth, it is generally accepted that Athens had a relatively peaceful fifteen-year period. This was certainly so when compared to the turmoil of the Peloponnesian war and its aftermath.
Battle of Chaeronea