How the Greeks Colonized the Mediterranean Ancient Civilizations

A traveller visiting Southern Italy can still find people speaking Greco and Calabrian Greek and see ancient Greek temples and cities, echoes of a distant past when Greeks left their homeland to found colonies not only in Magna Graecia, as the Roman writers called it, but all over their known world. In this video, we are going to take a look at how the Ancient Greeks set off to If becoming more knowledgeable was your New Year's resolution, the sponsor of this video MagellanTV is a perfect place to start. MagellanTV's historical documentaries work as a great tandem for the Kings and Generals videos, and if you are interested in learning more about the history of Ancient Greece, check out the three-video series called Ancient Greece – The Greatest Show on Earth. 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Click the link in the description to get a one-month free trial and watch hundreds of history documentaries anytime, anywhere. If one were to look at a map of Greece, the reasons behind the ancient colonization waves would be easily identifiable. Greece is and was a land of limited resources, and its mountainous terrain meant that there was precious little farmable land. While many Greeks turned to the seas for fishing and trading, agriculture was still the main means of food production, and the average Joe was still a farmer. As the population of the city-states grew, and land had to be divided among more and more families, it became evident that the small fiefs could no longer economically support their poor owners. Chalkis and Eretria on the island of Evia, as well as Corinth and Megara due to their geography, were among the first places where the situation escalated and consequently became the first cities to send colonists to other parts of Greece and the Mediterranean world to seek their fortunes there. Another reason that possibly forced part of the population of a city to relocate was political differences. The mostly oligarchic and tyrannical regimes that ruled over most archaic Greek city-states excluded many from governance of the city, regardless of their economic status. The resentment these people had towards the ruling class because of their exclusion from political privileges, combined with the discontent born from the growing economic distress, created a dangerous environment that could lead to war. To defuse the situation, the ruling elites of the cities opted for the classical solution of sending them away as colonists, killing two birds with one stone, solving the problem of overpopulation and getting rid of their political opponents. But for whatever reason the colonists had to abandon their homeland and head into the unknown, the procedure was almost the same, for the colonization was in most cases a public endeavour of the city, not acts of individual migrations, though there are examples of private ventures, such as the expedition of Miltiades the Elder to Chersonese. One of the preliminary and most important steps in the establishment of a new colony was the selection of the oikistes, or the founder of the new settlement. These men could come from any social background, however it is probable that in most cases they were of noble birth. Regardless of the class they originated from, the oikistes had to be accomplished men with a knack for leadership, as their main task was guiding a group of people to a new home. Most colonies had one founder, though there are cases of cities founded by multiple oikistes, like Region in modern-day Calabria. Furthermore, from the writings of Thucydides, we learn that when a colony itself wanted to establish another colony, it was customary to ask for an oikistes from the mother city. Once selected, the oikistes would have to seek the approval of the gods, especially Apollo, and to do so he would have to consult the Pythia at the Oracle of Delphi. Herodotus informs us that by his time, the consultation with the Pythia was somewhat obligatory, but it is likely that the Oracle was influential in the colonization movement from its earliest days, even if the evidence is not securely historical. Later authors, like Cicero, mention other Oracles, such as Ammon's in Siwa and Zeus' in Dodona, as well as other sanctuaries dedicated to Apollo, especially the ones in Asia Minor, were consulted. However, Delphi seems to be the ultimate religious authority in matters of colonization. But why did the oikistes have to consult the Pythia? Again from Herodotus, we learn that Doryaeus, the brother of the famous king Leonidas, did not ask for the Oracle's advice on which land he should colonize, nor did he follow any other customs before he set off for his first endeavor to establish a colony. With his first attempt ending in failure, as the Carthaginians attacked the colony, Doryaeus decided to try a second time, now visiting the Oracle and asking if he would take the land to which he was setting forth, with the Oracle replying that he would. Another account, this time from Thucydides, informs us that the Spartans who wanted to colonize the area of Heraclea in Thracis had already made all decisions and merely asked the Pythia for the god's approval. From these accounts, it seems that the bestowment of divine authority on the person of oikistes and consent for his endeavor was the primary goal of consulting the prophetess, although there might be some basis about the Oracle giving geographical directions to the colonists. It is not hard to imagine that since people from all over the ancient world visited the Oracle of Delphi, the people of the sanctuary had some insight as to which lands were fertile, close to important trade nodes, or if the locals were friendly towards strangers. Many foundation legends include the oikistes asking which land they should settle, though these accounts are somewhat dubious. One such example comes to us from Strabo and Tacitus, who report that the Pythia told the Megarian colonists who founded Byzantium to build their city opposite the blind people. The ones derided as blind were earlier Megarian colonists who had founded the city of Chalcedon nearby, completely ignoring the sight of Byzantium and the numerous advantages it offered. However, Herodotus attributes the same words to a Persian named Megabassus who upon visiting the area commented that the settlers of Chalcedon must have been blind. As we have already mentioned, for the oikistes himself, the most important aspect of his visit to Delphi was his appointment as Apollo's chosen and the investment of religious authority on him by the god's prophet Tess. His relation to the settlers was similar to the one he had with Apollo. He guided the colonists to a new home and he himself was guided by the god, and in a way reassured the colonists of a safe journey and success when they finally reached the promised land, and as their leader, the oikistes would be responsible for setting up the social and religious order of the newfound city. Due to this authority, a worshipping cult was formed around him after his death, which also signaled the end of the foundation era of the colony. Finally, besides receiving divine authority from the oracle, the oikistes and the colonists were also given some moral justification for the establishment of their settlement, as the land was described as a gift from Apollo to the oikistes. It was therefore important that their new home, that would house the humans as well as their gods that they would bring from their old city, be approved by the gods and not be seen as stolen land. Besides the consultation with the oracle, a similar practice of divination also took place. A professional seer or even the oikistes himself would perform a ritual to find out if the omens were favourable and the gods approved of their endeavour. It also served as further reassurance for the colonists. The establishment of a colony and even the journey itself was a great risk, and the settlers put their lives on the line, so they needed as much divine help as they could get. The colonists, at least in later times, most often volunteered for the task, and it was easy for the city to many people who were willing to leave immediately. This might have been the case in the early archaic period as well, however, the only reliable evidence we have about recruitment is about Kyrene, and in that case, the settlers were conscripted on pain of death. The number of colonists varied as well, in most cases ranging from just a couple of hundred to a thousand. Once the settlement was established and seemed to prosper, then others could come either from the mother city, or as it was called Metropolis, or from the wider area of Greece. As the first expedition to establish the new settlement was essentially a military undertaking, we can assume that it was mostly men who went, and women would follow in later expeditions when it would be safer, if at all. From Herodotus, we learn that the colonists of Miletus married local Carian women after killing their fathers, but because of the killing, the women took an oath to never dine with their husbands and to never call them by their name. A similar case might have been Kyrene, as Herodotus only mentions men participating in the colonization, and there is evidence of intermarriage between Greek men and Libyan women. Though intermarriage between Greek men and local women was quite common, there is no evidence suggesting that all colonists acted like those of Miletus, and it would be extreme to hypothesize that none of them took Greek wives. Another practice attributed to the Greek colonists was the taking of the sacred fire from the hearth that burned perpetually in the Pridoneion, the government center of the mother city, to kindle the hearth of the colony. This practice is mostly found in later sources, while Herodotus only seems to imply this, and it is well attested at least for the case of Athens, though it is a possibility that it was a universal Greek religious custom. The symbolism of the transfer is somewhat open to interpretation, but since the fire in Hestia's altar symbolized life, then its transference to the hearth of the colony possibly symbolized the continuation of the community's life from the old city to the new. The origins of this custom can be traced to two other ancient practices. The first was marriage ceremonies, where the mother accompanied her daughter, the bride, with a torch that was lit on her father's hearth. Considering the analogous mother-daughter relation the metropolis had with its colony, it could be possible that this familial ceremony might have been the origin of the transfer of fire on state level. However, a more probable explanation is the practice of military firebearing and the rituals in which the piferoi, the firebearers, participated. By analogy, the Achistes, who was also a military leader, might have been responsible for carrying the fire. Once the necessary preparations and rituals had been completed, the colonists would travel to the area they wished to settle in in their warships, and the Achistes would undertake his first task after the completion of the journey, picking the right site to build the new city. The typical site the Greek settlers picked were easily defended positions like headlands and peninsulas, or sometimes between two rivers, and always with easy access to a water supply. Once the right site had been picked, the colonists would erect walls, build houses and temples, and divide the land between them. All of these tasks were of course supervised by the Achistes, who was also responsible for naming the colony. With the exemption of some colonies Corinth and Athens founded in the imperialistic style of colonialism, the newly founded city was an independent entity with mostly sentimental ties to its metropolis. It wasn't an extension of the mother city, but a new city that governed itself. On the other hand, the colony did resemble the old city in many ways, as the settlers brought with them the same religious cults, calendar, dialect and state offices. Many colonies naturally had cordial relations with the metropolis, traded and sometimes forged alliances and assisted each other. However, there are also cases of rivalry. A great example of a rival relationship between colony and metropolis is that of Corcyra and Corinth and their conflict over Epidamnus, which became the prelude to the devastating Peloponnesian War. Earlier on we mentioned that the death of the Achistes marked the end of the foundation era, and a universal practice among Greek colonies was the official commemoration of the founder and the worship of the Achistes like a hero through a cult devoted to him. So important was the founder for the colonists, it is of little surprise that his name as well as other facts about the foundation, like the date and the name of the metropolis, were well documented and remembered centuries later. His funeral would be attended by all of the settlers and his memory would be celebrated by an annual state festival open to all citizens of the city. From Herodotus, we learn that when Miltiades the Elder, the Achistes and ruler of Chersonese, died, the people offered sacrifices and held athletic and equestrian games in his honor. Herodotus sums it up, as it is the norm for a founder, os nomos Achiste. Even the Achistes' final resting place was different from that of the common people. Generally, the Greeks preferred to bury their dead outside inhabited areas, with notable exceptions being the cities of Sparta, her colony Taris, and Megara. However, from Pindar, we are informed that the Achistes were buried in the center of the polis, in a tomb in the Agora. This wasn't a random decision. The settlers of the city needed to have something in common to bind them, and also a tradition that was independent of those of the metropolis, so as for the colony to have a sense of religious independence. The cult of the Achistes served that purpose, which is why his tomb and the cult site were located in the center of the new polis. With the death of the Achistes and the establishment of his cult ended the first chapter in a colony's history. Some of those colonies would thrive to the point of surpassing their metropolis like Syracuse, while others wouldn't be so lucky and were abandoned or conquered. Regardless of their fate though, they all serve as a testimony of a time when Greece sent her children off to settle distant lands and Greek civilization reached all over the then known world. More videos on the history of Ancient Greece are on the way, so make sure you are subscribed and have pressed the bell button to see them. 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