Hellenistic period
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| - | [[History of Western civilization]] | ||
| - | ==Antiquity (before AD 500)== | ||
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| - | The [[East-West dichotomy|opposition of a European "West" to an Asiatic "East"]] has its roots in [[Classical Antiquity]], with then [[Persian Wars]] where the [[Classical Greece|Greek]] city states were opposing the expansion of the [[Achaemenid Empire]]. The Biblical opposition of [[Land of Israel|Israel]] and [[Neo-Assyrian Empire|Assyria]] from a European perspective was recast into these terms by early Christian authors such as [[Jerome]], who compared it to the [[Migration period|"barbarian" invasions]] of his own time (see also [[Assyria and Germany in Anglo-Israelism]]) | ||
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| - | The "East" in the [[Hellenistic period]] was the [[Seleucid Empire]], with Greek influence stretching as far as [[Greco-Bactrian Kingdom|Bactria]] and [[Indo-Greek Kingdom|India]], besides [[Scythia]] in the [[Pontic steppe]] to the north. In this period, there was significant cultural contact between the Mediterranean and the East, giving rise to syncretisms like [[Greco-Buddhism]]. It was only with [[Christianization]] of the Roman Empire in the 4th century that the Mediterranean world lost interest in the Eastern cultures. | ||
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| - | The division of Europe into a Western (Latin) and an Eastern (Greek) part was prefigured in the division of the [[Roman Empire]] by [[Diocletian]] in 285. The [[history of Christianity]] took divergent routes in these spheres from early times, but the final [[East–West Schism|Great Schism]] separating [[Roman Catholicism|Roman]] and [[Eastern Orthodoxy|Eastern]] Christianity occurred only in the 11th century. | ||
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| - | In [[476 A.D.]] the [[western Roman Empire]], which had ruled modern-day [[Italy]], [[France]], [[Spain]], [[Portugal]] and [[England]] for centuries collapsed due to a combination of economic decline and drastically reduced military strength, allowing invasion by [[barbarian]] [[tribe]]s originating in southern [[Scandinavia]] and modern-day northern [[Germany]]. According to many authors, the main causes for the fall of any empire are internal, such as racial, religious or political divisions within the country. Also, warfare and economic crisis may contribute to the empire's collapse. In England, several [[Germanic peoples|Germanic tribes]] invaded, including the [[Angles]] and [[Saxons]]. In [[Gaul]] (modern-day France, Belgium and parts of Switzerland) and [[Germania Inferior]] (The Netherlands), the [[Franks]] settled, in [[Iberian Peninsula|Iberia]] the [[Visigoths]] invaded and Italy was conquered by the [[Ostrogoths]]. [[Christianity]] ceased to be the dominant religion in these lands and much of [[Culture of ancient Rome|Roman culture]] disappeared. Only [[Ireland]], which had never been ruled by [[Roman Empire|Rome]], remained Christian throughout this time. | ||
| + | The '''Hellenistic period''' describes the era which followed the conquests of [[Alexander the Great]]. During this time, Greek cultural influence and power was at its zenith in Europe and Asia. It is often considered a period of transition, sometimes even of decline or decadence, between the brilliance of the Greek [[Classical Greece|Classical Era]] and the emergence of the [[Roman Empire]]. Usually taken to begin with the death of Alexander in 323 BC, the Hellenistic period may either be seen to end with the final conquest of the Greek heartlands by [[Roman Republic|Rome]] in 146 BC; or the final defeat of the last remaining successor-state to Alexander's empire, the [[Ptolemaic kingdom]] of Egypt in 31/30 BC. The Hellenistic period was characterized by a new wave of colonists which established Greek cities and kingdoms in [[Asia]] and [[Africa]]. | ||
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The Hellenistic period describes the era which followed the conquests of Alexander the Great. During this time, Greek cultural influence and power was at its zenith in Europe and Asia. It is often considered a period of transition, sometimes even of decline or decadence, between the brilliance of the Greek Classical Era and the emergence of the Roman Empire. Usually taken to begin with the death of Alexander in 323 BC, the Hellenistic period may either be seen to end with the final conquest of the Greek heartlands by Rome in 146 BC; or the final defeat of the last remaining successor-state to Alexander's empire, the Ptolemaic kingdom of Egypt in 31/30 BC. The Hellenistic period was characterized by a new wave of colonists which established Greek cities and kingdoms in Asia and Africa.
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