The Ancient period in the European history as well as that of near Asian space includes the Hellenistic era as well as the fact that it represents the presence of Greece culture and Alexander’s political influence. The term Hellenistic’s literary meaning transform to signify as “imitating Greeks” and the period is marked with the change seen through the fusion of Greek language and customs with that of the East. The era is actually accepted to have started with the death of Alexander the Great in the year 323 B.C.E. ended with Rome's conquest of Egypt in 30 B.C.E., although some historians prefer to end the period when Constantine moved the capital of the Roman Empire to Constantinople in 330 C.E.
The Hellenization process is known for the characteristic of Greek culture. The Hellenistic Age marks the transformation of Greek society from the localized and introverted city-states to an open, cosmopolitan, and at times exuberant culture that permeated the entire eastern Mediterranean, and Southwest Asia. While the Hellenistic world incorporated a number of different people, Greek thinking, mores, and way of life dominated the public affairs of the time. All aspects of culture took a Greek hue, with the Greek language being established as the official language of the Hellenistic world. The art and literature of the era were transformed accordingly. Instead of the previous preoccupation with the Ideal, Hellenistic art focused on the Real. Depictions of man in both art and literature revolved around exuberant, and often amusing themes that for the most part explored the daily life and the emotional world of humans, gods, and heroes alike.
Egypt and parts of the Middle East came under the rule of Ptolemy, Seleucus controlled Syria and the remnants of the Persian Empire, while Macedonia, Thrace, and parts of northern Asia Minor came under the hegemony of Antigonus and his son Demetrius. Several smaller kingdoms were established at various times, in Hellenistic Greece. Notably, the Attalid kingdom was formed around Pergamum in eastern Asia Minor, and the independent kingdom of Bactria was created after Diodotos led a rebellion of Greeks there against Seleucid rule. Most of the classical Greek cities south of Thessaly and on the southern shores of the Black Sea remained independent.
Many famous thinkers and artists of the Hellenistic era created works that remained influential for centuries. Schools of thought like the Stoics, the Skeptics, and the Epicurians continued the substantial philosophical tradition of Greece, while art, literature, and poetry reached new heights of innovation and development through the work of Kalimachus, Apollonious of Rhodes, Menander, and Theocritos. The sculptures and canons of Polykleitos remained influential and were copied throughout the Hellenistic and Roman Eras, and even centuries later during the Italian Renaissance. Great works of art were created during the Hellenistic Era. In Architecture, the classical styles were further refined and augmented with new ideas like the Corinthian order which was first used on the exterior of the Temple of Olympian Zeus in Athens. Public buildings and monuments were constructed on larger scale in more ambitious configuration and complexity. The Mausoleum of Pergamum, merged architectural space and sculpture by the placement of heroic sculptures in the close proximity of a grand staircase.
One of the most efficient ways to spread Greek culture turned out to be by moving parts of the Greek population to these new areas conquered by Alexander. As such, new military bases were built in many of the conquered areas, which were soon followed by cities formed around these bases. Basically, colonists would move in as they looked for new economic opportunities. Greek rulers after Alexander benefited from these colonies because they served as military recruitment stations.
However, the administration of these colonies was far from fair to all Hellenistic people. While Greeks had started to adopt the practices of different cultures, they still believed that Greek society was superior to all others. With this in mind, the new Hellenistic cities were often initially culturally identical to Greek cities on the mainland. For instance, the government was still modelled after the Greek polis, or city-state. This meant that the councils and assemblies were still based on Greek ideals of citizenship and political participation. As such, the Greeks dominated politics in these cities. Native people were often prevented from holding any public offices or civil servant’s positions.
Hellenistic Greece became a time of substantial maturity of the sciences. In geometry, Euclid’s elements became the standard all the way up to the 20th c. CE., and the work of Archimedes on mathematics along with his practical inventions became influential and legendary. Eratosthenes calculated the circumference of the earth within 1500 miles by simultaneously measuring the shadow of two vertical sticks placed one in Alexandria and one in Syene. The fact that the earth was a sphere was common knowledge in the Hellenistic world.
The Hellenistic age was by no means free of conflict, even after the major kingdoms were established. Challenges to the Hellenistic kingdoms appeared from internal conflict and new external enemies. The size of the empire made securing it next to impossible, and life outside the orderly large cities was filled with danger from bandits and pirates. Internal strife and revolutions caused the borders of the kingdoms to be shifted several times as the rulers of the major and minor kingdoms engaged in continuous conflict. At the same time serious threats to the Hellenistic world came from external threats. A Celtic people, the Gauls invaded Macedonia and reached southern Greece in 279 BCE attempting to plunder the treasure of Delphi, which was miraculously saved. Eventually, Attalus defeated the Gauls after they crossed into Asia Minor.
The battle of Actium is considered the pivotal moment that defines the end of Ancient Greece. After the battle of Actium, the entire Hellenic world became subject to Rome. Greece in the next two thousand years was to undergo a series of conquests that made its people subjects of numerous powers and did not gain its self-determination until the 19th C. CE.
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