Introduction
Greece has a remarkable history as it is mentioning remind the well-educated people of today about the greatest Greek poets and philosophers such as Aristotle and Socrates, who established the development background for the development of the entire culture of European. Just like other ancient nations, Greece was also influenced by its geography in the settlement, political, economic, and even cultural development. On this background, this paper focuses on discussing the influence of Greece geography on shaping their early history and in the growth of polis. The first part will describe the main features of Greece geography while the second section will explain how geography shaped the early history. The next part will discuss how the geography led to the growth of polis, and finally, the paper will conclude with a paragraph.
Main features of Greece Geography
According to Halliday, Greece is a small country situated in southern Europe, with a shape that looks somewhat like a hand that is outstretched, with land fingers reaching into the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of three main parts, that is, the mainland forming part of Europe to the south; the Peninsula, which is a land surrounded by water on three sides, forming the mainland of Greece, and is connected to it by isthmus, a thin land strip; and the islands throughout the Aegean and Mediterranean seas consisting of over 2000. Crete is the largest island lying in the Mediterranean Sea, to the south of the mainland. However, many of these ancient Greek islands were not suitable for settlement. Another second peninsula penetrates in the southern tip called the Peloponnesus. 1
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Tozer asserts that the mainland Greece is a land which consists of rugged and steep mountains, virtually entirely bordered by turquoise blue seas. The mountains covered over 70 percent of Greece, dividing the land into many smaller regions. 2 The highest mountain is Mount Olympus, rising approximately 9,500 feet above sea level, leaving the rest of Greece as lowlands along its coastline as stated by Halliday. On the three sides of Greece is covered by seas: the Mediterranean to the south, the Ionian to the west; and Aegean to the east. Protected bays and deep inlet curves out of the land where it meets the sea. 3 These features of geography contributed to shaping the early history of Greece as well as the growth of polis as discussed below.
The Influence of Geography in Shaping the Early History of Greece
Geography shaped the early history of ancient Greece in various ways. First, the land being mountainous and the land in valleys and plains being rocky, the soils become poor and the level of land was scarce as well. However, most people still depended on farming despite the land challenge. 4 Farmers grew grapes, fruit, barley, olives, and nut trees along the coast which required less land. The olive oil was used for making soap, cooking, and as fuel for lamps. Besides, the Greece steep hillsides could not favor cattle grazing and as such, Greeks resorted to rearing goats and sheep, which could graze on the mountainsides. 5
As time passed by, the ancient Greek population increased, making it difficult to produce enough food for all the people due to the little existing farmland with poor soils (rocky land). As such, one of the solutions was to start colonies or settlement in places that are distant, which was favored by the presence of the sea for ease of traveling. 6 So, the ancient Greeks took to the seas, traveling to France, Africa, Italy, Spain, France, Asia Minor (present-day Turkey) to set up trading colonies. These people who set up the colonies were referred to as colonists. The colonies were established over a period of over 300 years, from 1000 to 650 B.C.E. These colonies assisted them to spread their culture of Greek, and some flourished through trade and farming. 7
The people living in mainland who could not get enough food through farming relied on trade to get the goods which they needed. The trade was carried out among the polis, with Greek colonies, and also in the wider Mediterranean area. Trading was facilitated by the presence of seas, which liked most Greek parts, thus acting as transport routes. Another factor which facilitated trade was the presence of big ships which were owned by merchants and were meant to sail goods across the seas to the required destinations. 8 Additionally, fishing, seafaring, and shipbuilding become important in ancient Greek. This is due to the kind of geography which existed in the region, that is, large area covered by sea water. 9
The Influence of Greece Geography on the Growth of Polis
Besides geography greatly shaping the early history of Greek, it also influenced the growth of polis. Polis is another term used to refer to the ancient city-states of Greek. According to Hammond and Hammond, the seas and mountains of Greece greatly contributed to the development of isolated ancient Greek communities. This is because the terrain made it difficult for people from different communities to travel and communicate with one another. Land travel was especially difficult as people rode in carts which were pulled by mules or oxen or walked. Besides, roads were unpaved, and the rocky surfaces often shattered wheels while thick mud could also stop wagons in its track. 10
The isolation of communities due to difficulties in communication and traveling led to the development of independent city-states or poleis (plural of the polis) around 750 BC. 11 As such, Greece could not be unified under one government or rule, meaning geography prevented this from happening. These poleis become commercial centers and by around 800 BC, many of the city-states had developed and functioned independently under their own laws, customs, army, leaders, and government. 12 According to Halliday, each city-state formed a different governance, ranging from oligarchies and monarchies to proto-democracies and militaristic societies. 13
Tyrant ruled monarchies. Tyrant is a ruler who follows no set of rules. Oligarchies were mall powerful groups of people who ran the poleis and competed for power with tyrants. Democracies, on the other hand, were governments which allowed the citizens to take part and vote on matters or decisions of the state. In fact, the first democracy of the world developed from one of the city-states of Greeks called Athens. Some of the most significant city-states which grew as a result of geography include Athens, Delphi, Sparta, Corinth, and Thebes. Out of these city-states, Sparta and Athens emerged most powerful, and all contributed to the development of Greek culture and society. 14
Conclusion
From the above discussion, it is evident that geography contributed greatly to shaping the early history of Greece as well as the growth of the city-states. Thus, a deeper understanding of how geography contributed to the growth of polis and shaping the early history of Greece requires a deeper and comprehensive reading in this area. Therefore, it can be deduced that geography shaped the life of ancient Greek and as such is the father of most of the development which still exists in Greece even to the world of today.
Bibliography
Halliday, W. R. “The growth of city states: Lectures on Greek and Roman history. Batoche Books: Kitchener, Canada, 2001.
Hammond, Nicholas Geoffrey Lemprière, and N. G. L. Hammond. A History of Greece to 322 BC . Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1999.
Smailes, Arthur E. The geography of towns . Routledge, 2017.
Tozer, H. F. "The Geography of Greece." The Academy and literature, 1914-1916 4 (1870): 107-108.
1 Halliday, W. R. “The growth of city states: Lectures on Greek and Roman history. Batoche Books: Kitchener, Canada, 2001.
2 Tozer, H. F. The Geography of Greece. The Academy and literature, 1914-1916 4 (1870): 107-108.
3 Halliday, W. R. The growth of city states: Lectures on Greek and Roman history. Batoche Books: Kitchener, Canada, 2001.
4 Tozer, H. F. The Geography of Greece. Ibid .
5 Tozer, H. F. The Geography of Greece. Ibid .
6 Halliday, W. R. The growth of city states: Lectures on Greek and Roman history. Batoche Books: Kitchener, Canada, 2001.
7 Halliday, W. R. The growth of city states: Lectures on Greek and Roman history. Ibid.
8 Halliday, W. R. The growth of city states: Lectures on Greek and Roman history. Ibid.
9 Tozer, H. F. The Geography of Greece." The Academy and literature, 1914-1916 4 (1870): 107-108.
10 Hammond, Nicholas Geoffrey Lemprière, and N. G. L. Hammond. A History of Greece to 322 BC . Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1999.
11 Smailes, Arthur E. The geography of towns . Routledge, 2017.
12 Tozer, H. F. "The Geography of Greece." The Academy and literature, 1914-1916 4 (1870): 107-108.
13 Halliday, W. R. “The growth of city states: Lectures on Greek and Roman history. Batoche Books: Kitchener, Canada, 2001.
14 Tozer, H. F. "The Geography of Greece." The Academy and literature, 1914-1916 4 (1870): 107-108.
