Main caption: Alexander III of Macedonia conquered most of the known world, uniting it under one rule and enabling the exchange of language and culture between different peoples. Although Alexander’s Empire would quickly fall apart after his early death, the Greek language and culture he introduced throughout the Middle East would remain.
Alexander's Empire: Alexander was a great military leader, fighting along side his troops in battle. He defeated the large Persian Empire and continued east to India.
Seleucid Empire: Alexander's empire fell apart soon after his death. Seleucid took control of the lands he ruled in Alexander's eastern empire: Syria, Mesopotamia, and Persia. Under Seleucid, many leadership positions continued to be held by Greeks.
Ptolemaic Empire: Alexander's empire fell apart soon after his death. Ptolemy, Alexander's half brother assumed control of Egypt. Hellenistic influence continued to flourish under the Ptolemys for generations.
After Alexander: Alexander died of illness at an early age and left no heir. Alexander's half brother and his young son were appointed as kings but soon assassinated. Alexander's generals fought among themselves and eventually divided Alexander's empire among themselves into Hellenistic monarchies.
Parthia: The Parthians were a nomadic people who were excellent horsemen. Because they were an illiterate people, not much is known about them, but they did manage to achieve independence from the Seleucids. They continued to use the Greek language and government practices.
Greek influence: (Info Box) Although Macedonian, Alexander was tutored as a young boy by Aristotle, one of the greatest Greek philosophers. It is said that Aristotle instilled in Alexander a love of literature, philosophy, politics, and medicine. This enthusiasm spread throughout Alexander's conquered lands along with the Greek language and governmental structure.
Alexandria: Founded by Alexander the Great in 331 BC, Alexandria would become the most important city in the eastern Mediterranean for centuries. Greek culture flourished in the city, most notably in the building of a great library and museum.
Jerusalem: The Jewish people of Jerusalem were divided between a Hellenized upper class who accepted Seleucid rule and a lower class that held closely to their religious beliefs. In 168 BC, a Seleucid king ordered the building of an alter to Zeus in a Jewish Temple leading to revolt against the Greek religious influences imposed by the Seleucids.
Main caption: Rome would re-unite the local empires into a large regional empire. Under Roman rule, the process of cultural exchange between the east and the west begun continued. Although Latin was the language of the Roman government, Greek continued as the common language in the eastern empire demonstrating the extent to which Greek language and culture was adopted in the east.
Anatolia: The people of Asia Minor fell early and easily to the Romans. Rome reorganized the local governments and ruled the area closely.
Levant Coast: The Levant Coast was the first of the Middle Eastern states to fall to the Romans. The coast is so important because it is seen as a gateway for trade between the east and the west. The western cities of the coast were ruled closely by the Romans, but the eastern, primarily Jewish, cities were given more freedom by Rome.
Egypt: Egypt was closely ruled by Rome, often by Romans who never traveled to Egypt. Unlike the Hellenistic Ptolemy's, the Romans did not assimilate any Egyptian culture and thus did not have the loyalty of the Egyptian people.
Imperial Economics: Under Roman law, Egypt, the Levant Coast, and Syria experienced peace and growth. The Romans improved roads and opened trade with India by clearing the Red Sea of pirates. In return, the local governments paid Rome large taxes. (More labels not listed – refer to interactive)
Judaism: Rome appointed Herod the Great, an Arab who was a practicing Jew, king of Judea which included Jerusalem. Although a practicing Jew, he was influenced both by the previous Hellenic rule and the present Roman rule. As such, devout Jews did not approve of his rule and there were many revolts against the ruling class.
Christianity: Christianity was was born of the Judaic tradition as Jesus was born a Jew and his Apostles were Jews as well, but soon grew outside of the Jewish community. Christianity began to spread slowly throughout the Roman Empire, but for the next 300 years it would remain a minority religion with its members often facing persecution.
Architecture: Much of what we know about the Romans today is due to the remains of the structures they built and lived in. The Romans drew on the Greek and Etruscan traditions when designing their buildings, but were among the first to use concrete and marble in the designs. Structures of Roman origin can be found throughout the Middle East and elements of Roman architecture remain in these areas today. (Picture: Celsus Library in Ephesus, Turkey: http://www.ephesusguide.com/celsus.html)
Main caption: The large and powerful Roman Empire would eventually break-up just as the Greek Empire before it. The Middle East was split into two dominant empires: The Byzantine Empire and the Sassanid Empire. Each empire had its own religion and culture and looked to expand their empires beyond the Middle East.
Sassanid Empire: (labels should match; I don't think we need Persian in the label): The Sassanids were descendants of the Persian Achaemenids and conquered the Parthian Empire 224 AD. The Sassanids looked to the Achaemenids to define their culture and sought to rid the area of Hellenistic influences. In addition, they returned to Zoroastrianism as the official religion.
Byzantine Empire: The Roman Empire was split into two empires in 395; the eastern empire became the Byzantine Empire. The Byzantine Romans spoke Greek instead of Latin and practiced a different brand of Christianity than the western Romans. The Byzantine Empire would last for more than a thousand years and would, at times, be the most influential people of the Middle East and Europe.
Spread of Christianity: The Roman Emperor Constantine the Great made Christianity the official religion of the Roman Empire in 312. Before this time, Christianity was a marginal religion with many of it members persecuted by the government. After Constantine's recognition, the church and the state were closely aligned allowing the religion to spread throughout the empire.
Arabia: The Arabian peninsula is a very dry desert that did not allow for farming. Instead, the majority of the people were nomads, moving from place to place with the aid of camels who could survive on the few resources of the desert. Unlike the Byzantines and the Sassanid, the Arabs had no central government, but were organized into tribes from whom they gained protection from outsiders.