After the Mycenaean period, difficult times began in the history of Greece. This was due to the invasion of warlike tribes in the land, which made war and piracy a noble occupation. Thus began the Homeric period. Despite many negative points, he could not stop the development of ancient civilization. What is this period and in honor of whom did he get such a name?
The role of Homeric poems in the study of Greek history
The XI-IX century BC in the history of Greece is usually called the Homeric period. This is due to the fact that the two greatest literary works of Homer describe the social, economic and cultural life of the Greek nation of that time. We are talking about the poems "Iliad" and "Odyssey." The first poem tells about the events of the Trojan War, and the second about the return from it of the Odyssey, who was the king of the island of Ithaca.
Homer's works are still the oldest and purest source of information about the life of the Hellenes in the 11th-9th centuries BC. From them you can learn about all aspects of everyday life of that time. For example, about the material situation, public institutions, religious and moral concepts.
Researchers believe that even the presence of fiction did not go beyond Greece. Its inhabitants were not yet well acquainted with representatives of other peoples.
Contribution of Archeology
Researchers learn about the Homeric period not only from poems. A significant contribution to understanding this historical era was made by archeology. Virtually no cultural monuments of that time were preserved. This was due to the invasion of the Dorian tribes, who came from the north, and discarded Greek culture several centuries ago.
However, necropolises were preserved, which became the source of the main archaeological materials.
The concept of "dark ages"
The arrival of the Dorians negatively affected the development of society. The population has declined significantly, people stopped building stone structures. Writing fell into decline. Apart from the Iliad and the Odyssey, there were no other written documents about the Homeric period.
Due to material poverty, scarcity of archaeological finds and other data, the term "dark ages" appeared in the history of Greece.
Trade and craft fell into decline. The Dorians were only interested in skills that related to military affairs. They did not care about art. Although at banquets they liked to listen to music. What developed at this time?
The Dorians contributed to the development of pottery, shipbuilding, agriculture, metal processing technology.
With their arrival, trade ties were also destroyed. They engaged in aggressive piracy, because of which they scared away the Phoenicians and Egyptians from the Greek harbors. Old ties were established only at the end of the Dorian period.
Policies
The emergence and development of Greek policies in the Homeric period did not affect the creation of a single strong state. The centralization of power did not happen. Each policy had its own king, who was supported by the council of elders.
An important role in Greek policies in the Homeric and Archaic periods was played by the popular assembly. The following issues were taken together:
- about the advisability of starting another war;
- about whether there are enough slaves in the policy.
The emergence of policies contributed to the formation of the future Greek civilization.
Society
In the Homeric period of ancient Greece, society returned to tribal relations. There was no private property in the policies, all lands were public. Power was exercised through military democracy.
Classes have not yet been formed. But an agricultural layer has already appeared that existed within the city-state, that is, the polis.
Respect in society was enjoyed only by a man who is engaged in military affairs. Hunting and war were the only occupations worthy of a noble man.
Kings
In the Homeric period in history, royal power was considered a divine institution. She passed by inheritance, usually passed from father to eldest son. However, the successor should have the following necessary qualities:
- show courage in battles;
- be wise in advice;
- be eloquent in public meetings;
- own martial art;
- have good physical strength.
If the king became weak, old or incapable of waging a war, they did not obey him.
The king owned significant plots of land, a large number of cattle was concentrated in his hands, he had a palace. In addition, in favor of the king, statutory duties were established. When dividing military booty, the ruler got all the best, including slaves and jewelry.
The tsar, as usual, convened a popular assembly or a council of elders to discuss important issues. Everything happened as follows:
- nobles sat on the stones near the king, the people stood around;
- the king voiced his thoughts to the assembly;
- the nobleman, who wanted to express his opinion, took an oratory rod;
- if the people approved the words of the nobleman, then he confirmed this with a cry;
- if the people did not support the nobleman, there was silence.
Regardless of whether the people approve of the decision of the king or not, he had to obey.
The king also served as a judge. But most often, warriors resolved their disputes through fights. Violence at that time was so commonplace that a man always had to walk with arms.
The emergence of a slave system
Gradually there was a stratification of society in social terms. A system of slavery began to emerge, but it was not like the classic version of the slave system. Slaves were obtained due to military campaigns, and not because of the large gap in the social status of the residents of the policy.
It was beneficial to capture and sell slaves. They were used as a subject for exchange, allowed to perform the most laborious and dirty work. However, the masters of the slaves also worked. Moreover, some considered them members of their family.
A family
In the Homeric era, family life was noble. Children had to honor and love their parents. It was their sacred duty. If the son forgot about duty, he was pursued by the goddess of vengeance. A father could curse a rebellious son. In this case, he lost his happiness, as well as his descendants to the third or fourth knee.
The wife at that time held a respected position in the home. According to custom, the man gifted the father of the future wife, as if buying her. The girl was brought to a new house, where a fun feast was arranged. The Greek wife was considered his only legal cohabitant. She had to be faithful to her husband.
The wife was mistress in the house. She was in charge of the household, engaged in the manufacture of fabrics, sewing clothes, and washing. She also went to the guests, talked with them, participated in family affairs.
The Greeks were not polygamous, but they could have slaves taken prisoner in the war. Children from such relationships were born free, they were brought up and lived with the children of their legal spouse. But after the death of his father, the children of the slave could count on a small fraction of their father's property. Legitimate descendants divided the inheritance into equal parts.
Geometric style as a business card of the era.
From Homer's period in the history of ancient Greece, almost no cultural monuments were preserved. However, iron tools appeared at this time. With their help, people were able to cultivate significant areas of land.
For the Homeric period of Greece, a special style in ceramics is characteristic - geometrical. He assumed the construction of an ornament from images of people and other objects on amphoras and other household things in geometric order.
At the end of the Homeric era, subjects on ceramic utensils became richer and more complex. You can see the competitions of athletes, scenes from mythology, fighting, dancing. A similar style arose in Athens, from where it spread throughout Greece and the islands of the Aegean.
Gradually, the population grew, trade and craft revived. Ancient Greece approached a new period in its history - archaic.