Hellenistic+Empire+(Alexander+the+Great's+Empire)

Hellenistic Empire (Alexander the Great's Empire)
** ﻿By: Tyler Henry, Teresa Tian, and Becca Kasdan **  So great, it should be called the __Heavenistic__ Empire!

323 B.C.E- 30 B.C.E


**G**


 * In Persian ruled areas, Alexander tried to restore democracy by allowing some degree of self-government by the cities.
 * Territories controlled be Alexander's personal power.
 * Kept native officials around foreign areas.
 * Believed in great of his military.

**R ** 
 * The Hellenistic Empire consisted of Alexander the Great spreading Greek culture to nearby civilizations, which means, he would be spreading some of Greece's religion
 * Hellenistic Age included a combination of Greek religion and the religious customs and traditions of other countries, which is called syncretism, or mixing different religions
 * Alexander the Great encouraged his empire to worship him as a god, for if people were to follow him as a leader, they would do it more willingly if the considered him a god.
 * All of the countries in the Hellenistic Empire were polytheistic
 * An example of mixing religions: Egyptian religion had gods, but adapted them to fit into Greek culture. For instance, they believed in Amon, a god, but believed that he was the same god as Zeus, in Greek culture
 * Alexander the Great respected others religious beliefs in order to gain favor from his people

**E**
 * Alexandria, main economic center for the Hellenistic, Roman, and Byzantine worlds
 * Alexandria set as capital in Egypt, named after Alexander the Great
 * Used coins as currency
 * Alexander defeated the wealthy Persian empire, enabling them to put money towards architecture and art
 * Temple lands ruled by state officials, small estates given to soldiers
 * More banks, and growth of insurance businesses
 * Oil, papyrus, textiles were the main industries
 * Built more trade routes, causing an increase in the size of cargo ships and trade

**A**
 * **Architecture**
 * Some things built during the Hellenistic Empire, included: The Alexandrian Library and Museum, which came to be the world known center for learning
 * The Pharos Lighthouse, which is on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea by Alexandria. Built by Ptolemy in 290 BC, so people could see approaching ships and so ships could see the harbor, for it had no natural landmarks
 * **Art**
 * Callimachus was a famous poet and critic, considered on of the founding fathers of libraries, and a major contributor to Western literature
 * Greek became the primary language during the Hellenistic Era
 * Sculpture, and decorative arts, such as mosaics became popular



**T**
 * In **astronomy**, Hippechus of Bithynia developed the first systematic catalog of stars around the Hellenistic period.
 * In **medicine**, Erasistratus of Ceos and his colleague Herophilus studied the human body to study anatomy and investigate features of the body such as the nervous systems.
 * In **mathematics**, Euclid is cited as the prime example of Hellenistic innovation in 300 B.C.E because he wrote about principles, plane geometry, number theory, irrationals, and solid geometry in his book "The Elements".
 * In **engineering**, the lever and the pulley was already in use in 300 B.C.E
 * In **military engineering**, during the Hellenistic period, Archimedes developed siege machines: catapult and crane-like claw that lifts ships out of the water which then smashes them.

**S**  
 * In the Hellenistic Empire, it was filled with architects and artists.
 * Slavery declined in this period.
 * Women has more rights such as not being restricted to their houses and are learning how to read and write.
 * Rise of new schools of philosophy such as Stoicism, where everyone is equal due to reason to live.
 * In addition to philosophy, rhetoric (the art of public speaking), mathematics, physics, botany, zoology, religion, music, politics, economics, and psychology was taught.
 * It was the Golden age for poetry.

Summary of our civilization's achievements:  Because Alexander the Great defeated the wealthy Persian Empire, he had a lot of money to spend on building projects and arts. Tremendous achievements during this period were made in the areas of science and art: Aristarchus of Samos stated a theory that the earth revolves around the sun and rotates daily on its own axis; in Alexandria, Euclid wrote a textbook (a work that is still referred to to this day); Archimedes of Syracuse made many important theorems in mathematics. In the arts, sculpture became more realistic. During the classical period, the scultors portrayed features with little emotion while the Hellenistic sculptors aimed at more natural expressions. Female nudes and busts became quite common during this period. Many achievements were made in technology too, in the fields of astronomy, medicine, mathematics, engineering, and military engineering. Other achievements were also made in education. Philosophy became more accessible than it had previously been because there are many people, including women, who began to study philosophy and attend lectures of popular philosophers.They learned Stoicism where everyone is equal due to reason to live.    >
 * In **astronomy**, Hippechus of Bithynia developed the first systematic catalog of stars around the Hellenistic period.
 * In **medicine**, Erasistratus of Ceos and his colleague Herophilus studied the human body to study anatomy and investigate features of the body such as the nervous systems.
 * In **mathematics**, Euclid is cited as the prime example of Hellenistic innovation in 300 B.C.E because he wrote about principles, plane geometry, number theory, irrationals, and solid geometry in his book "The Elements".
 * In **engineering**, the lever and the pulley was already in use in 300 B.C.E
 * In **military engineering**, during the Hellenistic period, Archimedes developed siege machines: catapult and crane-like claw that lifts ships out of the water which then smashes them.