How did geography influence the development of Greco-Roman society?

Answer 1

The accident of geography always plays a significant role in any early society's development. The Greeks, especially the Athenians for example, lived in very mountainous terrain. Thucydides, a famous Grecian historian, theorized that part of Athens rise to power came from the fact that it did NOT sit on particularly lush farmland. Thus, rival powers did not tend to attack it because it was seldom a worthwhile endeavor. This in turn gave the Athenians the time to build up and become quite powerful and in turn conquer and dominate their neighbors. The mountainous terrain also lead Grecian warfare to be dominated by armored infantry (the Hoplite) rather than light cavalry or fast moving, lightly armored infantry as was the case for the Persians. This difference was a major part of why the numerically inferior Greeks won two wars against the mighty invading Persian empire. The Spartan 300 at Thermopylae were skilled warriors to be certain, but their heavy bronze armor and shields gave them a huge advantage in close quarters combat over the Persian forces wearing wicker shields and armor and using shorter spears. The Persians were used to combat out in open plains and deserts and could not cope with the tight phalanx oriented style of the Greeks. These are just a couple examples.