Department of History and Digital Humanities | History and Digital Humanities Curriculum Course Outlines (from 2025-26)

Short Description:

The aim of the course is a systematic overview of historical events from the Archaic to the Classical period (ca. 750–323 BCE) through a thorough study of primary and secondary sources. Particular emphasis will be placed on key issues of each period, such as the emergence of the city-state, the adoption of the Phoenician alphabet, colonization, the political and social crises of the 7th–6th centuries BCE, the hoplite “revolution,” the codification of laws, the rise of Athenian democracy, the Persian Wars, the Delian League, the Athenian Hegemony, the Peloponnesian War, the dominance of Sparta and Thebes, and the rise and fall of Alexander the Great.

Through the study of these events, the course will highlight the political and social institutions, as well as the economic and cultural factors, that contributed to the shaping of ancient Greek civilization.

Objectives - Learning Outcomes:

Upon successful completion of the course, students will be able to:

• Know and recall the characteristic events of the different periods from 750 to 323 B.C.
• Understand the political, social, economic, and cultural developments of ancient Greece.
• Identify the main institutions and forms of governance (e.g., city-state, democracy, monarchy).
• Analyze the causes and consequences of major historical events (e.g., Persian Wars, Peloponnesian War).
• Extract information from ancient sources (historical texts, inscriptions, archaeological findings) and interpret it critically.
• Present historical arguments orally and in writing with clarity and scholarly accuracy.

Syllabus:

Week 1: Introduction to the course. Sources and methodology. The Mycenaean period.

Week 2: The Transitional period. The Homeric world: economy and society, political institutions. The political structure and social organization described in the Homeric epics.

Week 4: Innovations of the Archaic period. The birth and development of the polis (city-state). The expansion of the Greek world: colonization (8th–6th centuries B.C.). The hoplite “revolution.”

Week 5: Athens: from Cylon to the reforms of Solon.

Week 6: Tyrants and lawmakers – The tyrants of the Peloponnese: the example of the Cypselids. The tyranny of Peisistratus and its fall. The Spartan invasion of Attica – Sparta’s foreign policy. The reforms of Cleisthenes.

Week 7: The Ionian Revolt and the Persian Wars.

Week 8: Athens after the Persian Wars – “The Delian League.” The growth of Athenian power – The Athenian Hegemony.

Week 9: The Pentekontaetia. Pericles and Athenian policy – The Peloponnesian War (Part I).

Week 10: The Peloponnesian War (Part II). The end of Athenian hegemony – The consequences of the Peloponnesian War.

Week 11: Introduction to the 4th century: The early postwar years – The Common Peace – The “Spartan Hegemony” and its collapse. The rise of Thebes.

Week 12: The Second Athenian League and the revival of Athenian power.

Week 13: The rise of Macedonia – Philip II – Alexander the Great.

Suggested Bibliography:

Αρχαϊκή Ελλάδα

M. Austin & P. Vidal-Naquet, Οικονομία και κοινωνία στην Αρχαία Ελλάδα.

Cl. Mossé, Η Αρχαϊκή Ελλάδα.

J. M. Hall, Αρχαία ελληνική ιστορία. H αρχαϊκή περίοδος 1200 - 479 π. Χ.

Α. Snodgrass, Archaic Greece.

H. van Effenterre, La cité grecque.

R. Lonis, La cité dans le monde grec.

L. H. Jeffery, Archaic Greece: the city-states, c. 700-500 B.C.

M. I. Finley, The Bronze and Archaic Ages.

G. R. Stanton, Athenian Politics, c 800-500 B.C. A Sourcebook.

M. Dillon & L. Garland, Ancient Greece: social and historical documents from archaic times to the death of Socrates.

L. G. Mitchell & P. J. Rhodes (eds.), The Development of the Polis in Archaic Greece.

M. H. Hansen, Polis: An Introduction to the Ancient Greek City.

H. A Shapiro (ed.), The Cambridge companion to archaic Greece. K. A. Raaflaub & H. van Wees (eds.), A Companion to Archaic Greece.

Κλασική Ελλάδα

Bury & Russell Meiggs, Ιστορία της αρχαίας Ελλάδας.

Cl. Mossé - Α. Schnapp - Gourbeillon, Επίτομη Ιστορία της Αρχαίας Ελλάδας (2.000-31 π. Χ.).

Cl. Mossé, Οι Θεσμοί στην κλασσική Ελλάδα.

Cartledge, P. (2009). Ancient Greece: A History in Eleven Cities.

Finley, Οικονομία και κοινωνία στην Αρχαία Ελλάδα.

Δ. Ι. Κυρτάτας & Σ. Ι. Ράγκος, Η ελληνική αρχαιότητα: πόλεμος - πολιτική – πολιτισμός.

de Romilly, Ο Θουκυδίδης και ο αθηναϊκός ιμπεριαλισμός.

Osborne, R. (1996). Greece in the Making 1200–479 BC.

Hornblower, Ο Ελληνικός κόσμος 479-323 π. Χ.

Schuller, Ιστορία της Αρχαίας Ελλάδας.

Teaching Methods:

The course is lecture-based, even as it seeks to foster critical discussion with the students, answering their questions and elaborating their critical comments.

We will examine the historical sources that document the institutions, political organization, economic, political and social developments in Greek cities

New Technologies:

Powerpont presentations

Use of digital media

Comminication via email

Evaluation Methods:

Written examination.