Greece + Persia = Hellenistic

Or: the impact of Alexander the Great’s expedition

The Route of Alexander

Greek

Persia

Hellenistic

Greek Cultural Contributions

●Public dramatic performances●Historians and Political Scientists●Concept of political freedom●Logic, geometry,

●Democracy, tyranny●Collective Security●architecture

Persian Contributions

●Agriculture produce and techniques●Metallurgy●Spices●Coinage●governance

Map of the Empire

Empire Break Up

The generals are not nice men

●Ptolemy steals Alexander’s body and runs to Egypt. Alexander’s body disappears…●Antigonus heads back to Macedonia and kills Alexander’s mother and half brother●Seleucus kills Roxanne and her newborn son (Alexander’s? Maybe…) and stays in Persia

Hellenistic World

●Greeks become “Greeks” and spread, but are absorbed by Rome●Philosophy grows: Skeptics, Epicureans and Stoics, oh my!●Astronomy, Engineering; Archimedes and Euclid do their thing with new math●Persia becomes a crossroads for trade, but plays second fiddle to Rome and China