The Ancient Greeks
About 2,500 years ago, Greece was one of the most important places in the world. Their civilisation gave us so much but life was unfair for women.
The Greek theatre
The Greeks loved the theatre. Thousands of people came to watch the shows.
Sophocles was the most popular playwright.
There were three types of plays:
- Comedies - funny plays.
- Tragedies - sad, serious plays.
- Satires - a rude type of play with goat-men in them.
If people didn't like the play, they would chuck food at the actors.
What did the Greeks do for us?
Democracy - in Athens, citizens voted using a simple show of hands. Women, slaves and foreigners could not vote.
The Olympics - it started in 776BC. After the first race, which was won by a baker, they added more events.
The Greeks also invented:
- Modern Mathematics
- Science
- Sculpture
- Philosophy
- Medicine
- Our languages (the letters and whole words)
