History of Greece
Before 2000 BCE
The Helladic (pre-Greek) tribes entered the peninsula overland from Asia. On Crete they developed an advanced, culturally and technically sophisticated civilization that benefited from its closeness to Egypt and the cultures of the Near East. The Minoans, named for Minos their legendary king, dominated the Aegean world. They relied on sea power to protect their commerce and their cities. The Achaeans (proto-Greeks) invaded the peninsula from the north and settled there. The two cultures, the Achaeans with their sky-gods and the Helladic earth-goddess worshippers were eventually fused into one Hellenistic civilization.
1600 BCE
The Minoans extended their regime over the Achaeans. The interaction of the Minoan and Achaean cultures gave rise to a new civilization - the Mycenaeans, whose center was at Mycenae.
1400-1100 BCE
The Mycenaean Heroic Age that inspired the
Homeric epic The Illiad, which describes the assault of the Achaeans
on Troy.
1100 BCE
Steady migrations of the Dorians, primitive Hellenic tribesmen from the north. They overwhelmed the Mycenaeans and ushered in the 300 year long Greek Dark Ages. During this chaotic time people began to form the city-states or polis. The people of the countryside moved close to the fortfied hilltop or acropolis of the local lord or tribal chief for security. Athens became a center of Mycenaean culture. Built on an acropolis in Attica, the Athenians were able to hold out against the Dorians.
800-650 BCE
The monarchies of the invading tribes were slowly replaced by oligarchies of aristocrats, Hellenic noble families extending their lands and power.
776 BCE
The first Olympic games held.
705 BCE
The Greek alphabet was developed.
650-510 BCE
The aristocrats were overthrown by wealthy commoners, the Age of Tyrants. The title Tyrant connoted that political power had been illegally seized. Trade and industry flourished. The Greeks developed a proud racial consciousness and called themselves Hellenes. In Sparta the aristocracy held power. There was a colonizing movement in the Aegean area. Magna Graecia was formed in Sicily and southern Italy.
6th Cent. BCE
The two dominant cities of Greece were Athens and Sparta. Athens was a peaceful city under the rule of a king. Sparta was a completely militarized aristocratic state, establishing its leadership by conquest and maintaining strict rules.
683 BCE
The hereditary kingship of Athens was abolished by the nobles or Eupatridae.
621 BCE
The statesman Draco codified and published the Athenian law limiting judiciary power of the nobles.
594 BCE
The Athenian statesman and legislator Solon gave citizenship to the lower classes.
560-527 BCE
During the enlightened rule of the tyrant
Pisistratus, the government became more democratic, His sons Hippias
and Hipparchus ruled in a despotic manner and the people revolted.
502 BCE
The supporters of democracy, under Cleisthenes, won a complete victory in elections. A new constitution based on democratic principles came into effect.
490-480 BCE
There were wars between the Greeks, led
by Athens, and the Persians. The Persians were defeated at Marathon,
Salamis and Plataea.
478 BCE
Athens was sacked by the Persians but emerged into a Golden Age. Many new temples were built on the Acropolis and construction of the Propulea and the older Parthenon was begun.
441 BCE
The rise of the Athenian Empire and classical Greece. There were many great writers during this time - Herodotus, Aeschylus, Sophocles and Aristophanes. Hippocrates, the father of medicine, was born at Kos. The temple of Zeus at Olympia was completed.
440-404 BCE
The Peloponnesian Wars, an inevitable clash between Athens and Sparta. Spartan supremacy was established in Greece. Thirty tyrants were sent to rule Athens and the cities and islands of Asia Minor. Socrates wrote and taught during this time
403 BCE
The Athenians, under Thrasybulus, revolted and expelled the Spartans. There were continued revolts against the hegemony of Sparta.
399-395 BCE
There were clashes between the Spartans and Persian along the Asia Minor coast. Socrates was condemned to death and forced to drink hemlock.
395-338 BCE
Philip II, King of Macedonia, expanded the power of Macedonia and united Greece under one kingdom. First he annexed the colonies on the coast of Macedonia and Thrace, He continued through political maneuverings and military forcefulness to gain control of the entire peninsula, The Greek opposition, led by Demoshenes, was defeated and Macedonian supremacy was acknowledged.
336 BCE
Philip was assassinated and his son Alexander III (the Great), only 20 years old, succeeded him.
334-323 BCE
Alexander set out to invade Asia Minor, the Middle East and Persia, with combined Macedonian and Greek troops. A Spartan revolt against Macedonian rule was defeated. Alexander’s conquest in the Far and Middle East extended Greek influence and language throughout the Macedonian Empire, Alexander died in Babylon in 323 BCE.
322-275 BCE
The Macedonian generals partition Alexander’s Empire amongst themselves and a series of wars began over the Empire. Gradual decline of the city-states and Greek political independence.
271-213 BCE
The Aetolian League was formed by the city-states of central Greece. The Achaean League was a confederation of the northern Peloponnesus. The Achaean League, led by Sicyon, began to conflict with Sparta. They had to ask the help of the Macedonians to defeat the Spartans.
215 BCE
Roman interference in Greek affairs led to revolution. Philip V, King of Macedonia, allied with Carthage against Rome. The Aetolian League supported Rome.
197 BCE
The Romans defeated Philip V and Macedonia
was subjugated to the Roman Empire. The Roman council proclaimed the
independence of Greece.
146 BCE
War broke out between the Achaean League and Rome. Corinth was destroyed by the Roman legions. Greece was brought under the control of the Roman government.
145-88 BCE
Greece was completely administered by Rome. The Greeks supported the invasion of Mithridates IV, an Asian monarch, in return for aid against Rome.
86 BCE
The Roman general Sulla forced Mitridates out of Greece and crushed the rebellion. The city of Athens was besieged and sacked. The Roman punishment of all rebellious cities left central Greece in ruins.
22 BCE
Augustus, the first Roman Emperor, separated Greece from Macedonia and made it a province called Achaea.
1st Cent. CE
A Greek renaissance, especially under Emperor Hadrian. The city of Athens was rebuilt and beautified and many of the ruined cities were restored.
267-268 CE
Gothic hordes overran the peninsula and captured Athens. They laid waste to the cities of Argos, Corinth and Sparta.
285 CE
Diocletian’s successor Constantine established his capital at the site of the Greek city of Byzantium in Asia as a New Rome. The city was renamed Constantinople. The Byzantine Empire evolved which included all of Greece and the Agean region. It was Greek in language and culture but thoroughly Roman in its law and administration. Christianity became the official religion of the state.
6th - 8th Cent. CE
Slavonic tribes from the north crowded into the peninsula, occupying Illyria and Thrace.
1204
During the Fourth Crusade, Constantinople fell to the crusaders. After sacking Constantinople they established the Latin Empire of the east. The Greek peninsula was divided into feudal fiefs, the most prominent was the Duchy of Athens.
1262
The French, Spanish and Italians controlled
the Duchy of Athens and some of the other feudal states successively.
1453-1460
Muhammed II, Sultan of Turkey, captured Constantinople. He also incorporated the Peloponnesus and Attica into the Ottoman Empire.
1687
Venetians besieged Athens and occupied it briefly. The Parthenon was heavily damaged. Christian powers, particularly Venice, Austria and Russia, warred intermediately with the Turks.
1718
The Treaty of Passarowitz with Venice and Austria. The Ottoman Empire was given full possession of Greece.
1769-1828
A resurgence of Greek nationalism, aided by Russia, which incited Greek Orthodox Christians to revolt. The Turks put down the revolts under Russian leaders Orlov and Ypsilanti and various others.
1828-1829
The Russo-Turkish War, the Turks were defeated.
France, Great Britain and Russia were allied to Greece against the Turks.
1830
The London Protocol declared Greece an autonomous kingdom under the Allies united protection. The designed territory was considerably less than the Greeks expected. Civil War broke out against the Administration.
1833
Otto of Bavaria is crowned Otto I, King of Greece. He tried to establish a centralized bureaucracy.
1843
Greek resentment culminated in a bloodless revolution. The king was compelled to dismiss his Bavarian advisors and grant the country a constitution.
1862
Otto I is deposed and George I is crowned King.
1878-1912
Greece declares war against the Turks over the adjustment of the northern borders. There were inner conflicts between the Greeks and Turks.
1912
The island of Crete was united with Greece.
1912-1913
The First and Second Balkan Wars. The Balkan countries were allied against the Turks. The Turks were defeated. The Treaty of Bucharest doubled the area and population of Greece, adding Macedonia and Thrace to its territory. Constantine I succeeds his father George I as king.
World War I
Constantine favored Germany. The government voted to aid the Allies. Internal revolts and Allied intervention. The throne changed back and forth between Constantine and his sons.
1924-1935
The king abdicated and Parliament declared Greece a republic. A long period of political instability followed until George II was restored to the throne.
1940
Italians troops attack Greece from Albania. The Greeks successfully resist.
1941
German forces overcame the Greeks and entered into Athens. A Nationalist Socialist government was established at Athens under General Tsolakogov. Greece was under German occupation.
1943-1944
Many organized resistance groups throughout the country waged intense guerrilla warfare. The Communist Nationalist Liberation Front (E.A.M.) and the National Popular Liberation Army (E.L.A.S.) were the most powerful groups.
1945
The German Army withdrew from Greece. A new government, the National Democratic Greek Union (E.D.E.S.) was established under Prime Minister George Papandreou and supported by the British. Civil War broke out between the Communists and the government.
1946
George II was returned to the throne, after his death he was succeeded by his brother Paul I.
1948
The US sent military supplies and advisors to support the Greek government forces against the Communist Party. The rebels held out in the mountains of Macedonia, then a cease-fire was called and the revolution ended.
1950
Field Marshall Papagos formed a new right wing party (E.S.) and was elected Prime minister. He established a more stable government, there was steady growth in industry, social welfare programs were introduced and important achievements made in foreign affairs.
1963
Karamalis resigned and Papandreou won with the United Democratic Left (EDA) supporting the old Liberal Party.
1964
King Paul died and was succeeded by his son Constantine II. There were conflicting ideas over military affairs between the king and the prime minister. Papandreou resigned and Kanellopoulus took his place.
1967
A military junta composed of middle-rank army officers ousted the prime minister and dismissed Parliament, suspended the constitution and banned all political activity in the country. King Constantine fled to Rome. Colonel Papadopoulus took office at the head of a military government.
1973
Papadopoulos issued a decree abolishing the monarchy and calling for the establishment of a Republic, providing for a presidential republic and a parliament. He was sole candidate of a seven-year term as president.
1974-1980
Brigadier Ioannides, commander of the military police, arrested the president and set free the political prisoners. The constitution was modified and Lieutenant General Ghizikis was named president. It was still a military regime. Karamanlis, backed by an ERE Union coalition, was reinstated. The junta leaders were arrested, the military police were disarmed and the democratizing of the armed forces under civilian control was begun. The New Democracy (ND) was formed.
1981
The Panhellenic Socialist Movement (Pasok) came into power with Andreas Papandreou as Prime Minister.
