Maps of Ancient Greece Show How Country Became an Empire II

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Map of Macedonia, Dacia, Thrace and Moesia

 Map of Moesia, Dacia, and Thracia, from The Atlas of Ancient and Classical Geography, by Samuel Butler and Edited by Ernest Rhys. The Atlas of Ancient and Classical Geography, by Samuel Butler and Edited by Ernest Rhys. 1907.

This map of Macedonia includes Thrace, Dacia and Moesia. The Dacians occupied Dacia, a region north of the Danube known as modern Romania, and were an Indo-European group of people related to the Thracians. The Thracians of the same group inhabited Thrace, a historical area in southeast Europe now consisting of Bulgaria, Greece and Turkey. The ancient region and Roman province in the Balkans was known as Moesia. Located along the south bank of the Daube River, it is now known today as Central Serbia.

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Halys River

 The Halys River, from a map of Macedonian expansion. Perry-Castañeda Library Historical Atlas by William R. Shepherd http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/

The main river of Anatolia, the Halys River rises in the Anti-Taurus mountain range and flows 734 miles into the Euxine Sea.

The longest river in Turkey, the Halys River (also known as the Kizilirmak River meaning "Red River") is a core source of hydroelectric power. Located at the mouth of the Black Sea, this river is not used for navigation purposes.

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The Path of Alexander the Great in Europe, Asia, and Africa

 Itinerary of Alexander the Great from World as Known to the Ancients, in The Atlas of Ancient and Classical Geography by Samuel Butler (1907). Public Domain. Courtesy of Maps of Asia Minor, the Caucasus, and Neighboring Lands

Alexander the Great died in 323 B.C. This map displays the empire from Macedonia in Europe, the Indus River, Syria and Egypt. Displaying the boundaries of the Persian Empire, the path of Alexander shows his route on the mission to get Egypt and more.

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Kingdoms of the Diadochi

 After the Battle of Ipsus (301 B.C.); at the Start of Greece's Roman Struggles Kingdoms of the Diadochi. Perry-Castañeda Library Historical Atlas by William R. Shepherd http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/

The Diadochi were the successor kingdoms following Alexander the Great. The Diadochi were important rival successors of Alexander the Great, his Macedonian friends and generals. They split up the empire Alexander had conquered among themselves. The major divisions were the sections taken by Ptolemy in Egypt, the Seleucids who acquired Asia, and the Antigonids who controlled Macedonia.

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Reference Map of Asia Minor

Perry-Castañeda Library Historical Atlas by William R. Shepherd http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/

This reference map displays Asia Minor under the Greeks and Romans. The map shows the boundaries of districts in Roman times, as well as the march of Cyrus and the retreat of the Ten Thousand. The map also marks the Persian royal highway.

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Northern Greece

Reference Map of Ancient Greece - Northern Part Reference Map of Ancient Greece - Northern Part. Perry-Castañeda Library Historical Atlas by William R. Shepherd http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/

Referred to as the northern parts of Greece, this Northern Greece map displays the districts, cities and waterways amongst the Grecian peninsula of Northern, Central and Southern Greece. Ancient districts included Thessaly through the Vale of Tempe and Epirus along the Ionian Sea.

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Southern Greece

 Reference Map of Ancient Greece - Southern Part. Perry-Castañeda Library Historical Atlas by William R. Shepherd http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/

This reference map of Ancient Greece includes the southern part including the inset map of Crete. If you enlarge the map of Crete, you'll see Mt. Ida and Cnossos (Knossos), among other geographic locations.

Knossos was famous for the Minoan labyrinth. Mt. Ida was sacred to Rhea and held the cave in which she put her son Zeus so he could grow up in safety away from his children-eating father Kronos. Coincidentally, perhaps, Rhea was associated with the Phrygian goddess Cybele who also had a Mt. Ida sacred to her, in Anatolia.

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Map of Athens

 Map of Athens, from The Atlas of Ancient and Classical Geography, by Samuel Butler (1907/8). From The Atlas of Ancient and Classical Geography, by Samuel Butler (1907/8).

This map of Athens includes a cutout of the Acropolis and shows the walls to Piraeus. In the Bronze Age, Athens and Sparta rose as powerful regional cultures. Athens has mountains around it, including Aigaleo (west), Parnes (north), Pentelikon (northeast) and Hymettus (east).

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Map of Syracuse

 Syraces, Sicily, Magna Graecia Map of Syracuse, From The Atlas of Ancient and Classical Geography, by Samuel Butler (1907/8). From The Atlas of Ancient and Classical Geography, by Samuel Butler (1907/8).

Corinthian emigrants, led by Archias, founded Syracuse before the end of the eighth century B.C. Syracuse was on the southeastern cape and the southern part of the east coast of Sicily. It was the most powerful of the Greek cities in Sicily.

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Mycenae

 Mycenae. From The Historical Atlas by William R. Shepherd, 1911.

The last phase of the Bronze Age in Ancient Greece, Mycenae, represented the first civilization in Greece that included states, art, writing and additional studies. Between 1600 and 1100 B.C, Mycenaean civilization contributed innovations to engineering, architecture, the military and more.

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Eleusis

 Eleusis. From The Historical Atlas by William R. Shepherd, 1911.

Eleusis is a town near Athens in Greece known in ancient times for its sanctuary of Demeter and the Eleusinian Mysteries. Located 18 kilometers northwest of Athens, it can be found in the Thriasian Plain of the Saronic Gulf.

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Delphi

 Delphi. From The Historical Atlas by William R. Shepherd, 1911.

An ancient sanctuary, Delphi is a town in Greece that includes the Oracle where key decisions in the ancient classical world were made. Known as "the navel of the world", the Greeks used the Oracle as a place of worship, consulting and influence throughout the Greek world.

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Plan of the Acropolis Over Time

 Plan of the Acropolis Over Time. Shepherd, William. Historical Atlas. New York: Henry Holt and Company, 1911.

The Acropolis was a fortified citadel from prehistoric times. After the Persian Wars it was rebuilt becoming a precinct sacred to Athena.

Prehistoric Wall

The prehistoric wall around the Acropolis of Athens followed the contours of the rock and was referred to as the Pelargikon. The name Pelargikon was also applied to the Nine Gates on the west end of the Acropolis wall. Pisistratus and sons used the Acropolis as their citadel. When the wall was destroyed, it was not replaced, but sections probably survived into Roman times and remnants remain.

Greek Theater

The accompanying map shows, to the southeast, the most famous Greek theater, the Theatre of Dionysus, the site of which was in use until late Roman times from the 6th century B.C., when it was used as an orchestra. The first permanent theater was erected at the start of the 5th century B.C., following an accidental collapse of the spectators' wooden benches.

Source: The Attica of Pausanias, by Pausanias, Mitchell Carroll. Boston: Ginn and Company 1907.

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Tiryns

 Tiryns. From The Historical Atlas by William R. Shepherd, 1911.

In ancient times, Tiryns was located between Nafplion and Argos of eastern Peloponnese. It became of large importance as a destination for culture in the 13th century BCE. The Acropolis was known as a strong example of architecture due to its structure but was ultimately destroyed in an earthquake. Regardless, it was a place of worship for Greek Gods like Hera, ​Athena and Hercules.

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Thebes on Map of Greece in the Peloponnesian War

 Thebes located with respect to Athens and the Gulf of Corinth. Perry-Castañeda Library Historical Atlas by William R. Shepherd http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/

Thebes was the main city in the area of Greece called Boeotia. Greek mythology says it was destroyed by the Epigoni before the Trojan War, but then it recovered by the 6th century B.C.

Role in the Main Wars

It does not appear to have recovered in the Trojan War, which is in the legendary period, and so doesn't appear in the lists of Greek ships and cities sending troops to Troy. During the Persian War, it supported Persia. During the Peloponnesian War, it supported Sparta against Athens. After the Peloponnesian War, Thebes became the most powerful city temporarily.

It allied itself (including the Sacred Band) with Athens to fight the Macedonians at Chaeronea, which the Greeks lost, in 338. When Thebes revolted against Macedonian rule under Alexander the Great, the city was punished: the city was destroyed, although Alexander spared the house that had been Pindar's according to ​Theban Stories.

Source: "Thebes" The Oxford Companion to Classical Literature.Edited by M. C. Howatson. Oxford University Press Inc.

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Map of Ancient Greece

 Map of ancient Greece. Public Domain

This map, from an Ancient Greece site, is in the public domain and comes from the 1886 Ginn & Company Classical Atlas by Keith Johnston. Note that you can see Byzantium (Constantinople) on this map. It's in the pink area to the east, by the Hellespont.

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Aulis

 Aulis Highlighted on Map of Northern Greece. Reference Map of Ancient Greece. Northern Part. (980K) [p.10-11] [1926 ed.]. PD "Historical Atlas" by William R. Shepherd, New York, Henry Holt and Company, 1923

Aulis was a port town in Boeotia that was used en route to Asia. Now known as the modern Avlida, the Greeks often got together in this area to set sail to Troy and bring back Helen.