The plain on which Athens is located opens to the southwest, to the Saronic Gulf, where, 8 km from the city center, is the port of Piraeus, the sea gate of Athens. On the other sides, Athens is bordered by mountains from 460 to 1400 m high. Mount Pentelikon in the north still provides the city with white marble, from which the Acropolis was built 2500 years ago, and Mount Hymett (modern Imitos) glorified by the ancients in the east, with its unusual color Athens, the epithet "violet-crowned" (Pindar), is still famous for honey and spices.

From mid-May to mid-September, and often later, there is almost no rain in Athens. In the middle of the day the temperature can rise to 30°C or more, summer evenings are usually cool and pleasant. When the rains fall in autumn, the heat-weary landscape seems to wake up, the leaves begin to turn green, and the evenings become cool. Although there is almost no frost and snow in Athens (minimum temperatures rarely fall below 0 ° C), Athenian winters are usually cold.

Population

Athens itself, according to the 1991 census, was 772.1 thousand people, but in Greater Athens, which includes the port city of Piraeus and a significant part of the Attica nome, there were over 3.1 million people - almost 1/3 of the entire population of Greece.

The city's attractions.

The central part of Athens is divided into a number of distinct areas. Behind the Acropolis, which is the core of the ancient city, lies Plaka, the oldest residential area of ​​Athens. Here you can see monuments of the ancient, Byzantine or Turkish period - such as the octagonal Tower of the Winds, built in the 1st century BC. BC, tiny Byzantine church of the 12th century Agios Eleftherios (or the Lesser Metropolis), hiding in the shadow of a huge cathedral built in modern times (the Great Metropolis), or the elegant stone door of the Turkish religious school - a madrasah, the building of which has not been preserved.

Most of Plaka's old houses have now been converted into tourist shops, cafes, night bars and restaurants. Descending from the Acropolis in a northwestern direction, you come to the Monastiraki area, where craftsmen's shops have been located since medieval times. This peculiar shopping area stretches north to Omonia (Consent) Square.

Starting from here along University Street (Panepistimiou) in a southeast direction, you can go to the center of the modern city, passing the richly decorated buildings of the National Library (1832), the University (1837, both by Danish architect H.K. Hansen) and the Academy (1859, Danish architect T.E. Hansen), built in the neoclassical style after the liberation of Greece from the Turkish yoke, and get to Syntagma (Constitution) Square - the administrative and tourist center of Athens. On it stands the beautiful building of the Old Royal Palace (1834–1838, German architects F.Gertner and L.Klenze, now the seat of the country's parliament), there are hotels, open-air cafes, many banks and institutions. Further east towards the slopes of Lycabettus Hill is Kolonaki Square, a new cultural center including the Byzantine Museum (founded in 1914), the Benaki Museum (founded in 1931), the National Art Gallery (founded in 1900), the Conservatory and the Concert Hall. To the south are the New Royal Palace, built at the end of the 19th century. (now the official residence of the President of the country), the National Park and the Great Panathenaic Stadium, reconstructed for the revived Olympic Games in 1896.

City and suburbs.

The village of Kifissia, located among the hills overgrown with pines, 20 km north of Athens, has long been a favorite vacation spot for the townspeople. During the Turkish rule, wealthy Turkish families made up half of the population of Kifissia, and after the liberation of Greece, rich Greek shipowners from Piraeus built luxurious villas there and laid a railway to the port. This line, half underground and crossing the central part of Athens, is still the only urban railroad. In 1993, the construction of a subway began in the city, which was scheduled to be put into operation in 1998, but a number of archaeological finds made during the work postponed its launch until 2000.

Between the two world wars, Glyfada, located on the seashore about 15 km south of the city center, became a popular resort for the Athenians.

The area between Kifisia and Glyfada is already almost completely built up, mostly with 6-9-storey buildings. Once out of the city, you can still take shelter from the heat on the wooded slopes of the three large mountains that frame Athens. Mount Imitos in the east, long known for its honey and herbs, is adorned with an elegant old monastery. Currently, a nature protection zone is arranged here. Mount Pentelikon in the northeast is pitted with quarries (their marble was used for the construction of the Parthenon). It has a monastery and rural taverns. The highest mountain of Parnithos north of Athens is built up with numerous hotels.

Education and culture.

The buildings of the University of Athens are a prominent architectural monument in the city center, and its students take an active part in the life of Athens. Student youth make up a large part of the population in that part of the city, which is located between the huge building of the National Archaeological Museum on Patission Street (October 28) and the ornate university buildings on Akademias and Panepistimiou Streets. There are many foreign students in Athens, many of them studying at archaeological institutions founded in Greece by other countries (such as the American School of Classical Studies and the British School of Archeology).

In addition to numerous archaeological museums and institutes, Athens has the National Art Gallery, the Opera House and a number of other theatres, a new concert hall, many cinemas and small art galleries. In addition, during the summer months, the Athens Festival organizes evening performances in the ancient amphitheater at the foot of the Acropolis. Here you can enjoy ballets and other performances of famous world troupes, performances of symphony orchestras, as well as productions of dramas by ancient Greek authors.

City government.

The small number of the population in Greece and the desire to rally the people after a long Turkish rule contributed to a strong centralization of government. Accordingly, although the position of the mayor of Athens is elected, his powers are very limited, and almost all decisions on the problems of the city are considered by the country's parliament.

Economy.

Athens has long served as the industrial and commercial center of Greece. About 1/4 of all industrial companies in Greece and almost 1/2 of all those employed in Greek industry are concentrated in Athens, along with the suburbs. The following main industries are represented here (partly enterprises are located in Piraeus): shipbuilding, flour milling, brewing, wine and vodka, soap making, carpet weaving. In addition, the textile, cement, chemical, food, tobacco and metallurgical industries are developing rapidly. The main exports from Athens and Piraeus are olive oil, tobacco, fabrics, wine, leather goods, carpets, fruits and some minerals. The most important imports are machinery and transport equipment, including ships and cars, petroleum products, metals and hardware, fish and livestock products, chemicals and paper.

Story.

In the 2nd century AD, during the Roman Empire, Athens still remained a majestic city, magnificent public buildings, temples and monuments of which Pausanias described in detail. However, the Roman Empire was already in decline, and a century later Athens began to be subjected to frequent raids by the barbarian tribes of the Goths and Heruli, who in 267 almost completely destroyed the city and turned most of its buildings into heaps of ruins. This was the first of four catastrophic destructions that Athens would have to endure.

The first revival was marked by the construction of a new wall that surrounded a small area of ​​the city - less than 1/10 of its original area. However, the prestige of Athens in the eyes of the Romans was still high enough for local philosophical schools to be revived, and already in the 4th century. among the students was the future Emperor Julian. However, the influence of Christianity in the Roman world gradually increased, and in 529 Emperor Justinian anathematized all hotbeds of "pagan" wisdom and closed classical philosophical schools in Athens. At the same time, all the main Greek temples were turned into Christian churches, and Athens became the center of a small provincial episcopate, completely drowned in the shadow of the new capital of Constantinople.

The next 500 years in the history of Athens were peaceful and calm. 40 Byzantine churches were built in the city (eight of them have survived to this day), including one (St. Apostles, restored in 1956) between the Acropolis and the ancient Athenian agora (market square). When at the beginning of the 12th c. this period of peace ended, Athens found itself in the center of clashes between the Arabs and Christian crusaders, who disputed dominance over the eastern Mediterranean Sea from each other. After predatory raids that lasted about a hundred years, in 1180 the Arabs turned most of Athens into ruins. In 1185, the Athenian archbishop Acominatus vividly depicted a picture of destruction: the city was defeated and plundered, the inhabitants were hungry and ragged. Then, in 1204, the devastation of Athens was completed by the invading Crusaders.

Over the next 250 years, the Athenians lived as slaves under the yoke of successive rulers - Western European knights ("Franks"), Catalans, Florentines and Venetians. Under them, the Acropolis was turned into a medieval fortress, a palace was built over the Propylaea, and a high observation tower was erected on the bastion of the temple of Athena Nike (which stood out in the panorama of Athens for a significant part of the 19th century).

After the capture of Constantinople by the Turks in 1453, Greece, and with it Athens, came under the rule of new masters. The devastated surrounding lands gradually began to be cultivated again by Christian Albanians, who were brought here by the Turks. For two centuries the Athenians lived in poverty but relatively calmly in the Plaka quarter, while their Turkish rulers settled on the Acropolis and in the area of ​​​​the agora. The Parthenon turned into the main city mosque, the Christian observation tower into a minaret, and built in the 1st century. Tower of the winds - in tekka, where the dervishes danced.

The peaceful period ended in the 17th century, when Athens was again devastated, this time by the Venetians, who drove the Turks away in 1687, but then, after a plague, were forced to leave the city themselves. Nevertheless, life in Athens under the rule of the Turks again went on as usual, and only during the Greek War of Independence in the 1820s the city was besieged. In 1826 it was destroyed for the fourth and last time, when the Turks tried to expel the rebellious Greeks from it. This time, the Turkish victory proved to be short-lived, and four years later the independence of Greece was confirmed by an international agreement.

Almost immediately after liberation, ambitious plans arose to turn Athens into a majestic metropolitan city. These plans then seemed unrealistic: almost the entire city lay in ruins, and its population was sharply reduced. Indeed, when the new Greek king Otto of Bavaria arrived here in 1834, Athens differed little from the village and did not have a palace suitable for a royal residence. However, several main streets and a number of monumental public buildings were soon rebuilt, including the royal palace on Syntagma Square and the complex of houses of the University of Athens. In the following decades, new structures were added: the National Park, the Zappion Exhibition Hall, the New Royal Palace, the Olympic Pool and the restored Panathenaic Stadium. At the same time, several richly decorated mansions appeared in Athens, which differed sharply from the typical one- and two-story buildings.

At the same time, archaeological excavations and restoration work were actively carried out, layers of the Turkish and medieval periods were gradually removed from the Acropolis, and its ancient structures were carefully restored.

The next major change in the appearance of Athens, which turned into a city of half a million people, came in the early 1920s, when a flood of Greek refugees expelled by the Turks from Asia Minor flooded here, and the population of the city almost doubled. To solve this critical problem, the suburbs were built up in a short time with international assistance, and the main directions for the future planning of Athens were outlined.

As a result of the Balkan Wars of 1912-1913, fixed by the terms of the Treaty of Lausanne (1923), Greece almost doubled its territory and population, and soon Athens took a prominent place among the capitals of the Balkan countries. Piraeus, the port of Athens, has become important in the Mediterranean and has become one of the busiest ports in the world.

During the Second World War, Athens was occupied by German troops, and then the civil war broke out (1944-1949). At the end of this difficult decade, Athens entered another period of accelerated development. The population of the city grew strongly, new suburbs arose, the sea coast was landscaped, villas and hotels appeared everywhere, ready to accommodate the expanding flow of tourists. In 1950-1970 Athens was almost completely reconstructed. Traditional one- and two-story houses have given way to six-story residential complexes, and quiet shady streets have given way to busy highways. As a result of these innovations, the atmosphere of serenity, traditional for Athens, has disappeared, and many green spaces have disappeared. From 1970-1990 the city continued to grow, but now the authorities have to pay much more attention to the problems of restriction of traffic and pollution, which Athens shares with many other modern capitals.

The expulsion of the Persians from the northern coast of the Aegean Sea, the liberation of the Greek policies in the Black Sea straits and western Asia Minor led to the creation of a rather extensive economic zone, including the Aegean Basin, the Black Sea coast, South Italy and Sicily, within which strong economic ties have developed that feed the economy of individual policies . As a result of victories over the Persian troops, the Greeks captured rich booty, including material values ​​and prisoners. So, for example, after the Battle of Plataea (479 BC), the Greeks, according to Herodotus, “found tents decorated with gold and silver, gilded and silver-plated beds, golden vessels for mixing wine, bowls and other drinking vessels. On the wagons they found sacks of gold and silver cauldrons. From the fallen enemies, they removed wrists, necklaces and golden swords, and no one paid attention to the colorful embroidered robes of the barbarians. So much gold was taken that it was sold as if it were copper.”

The slave markets of Hellas were filled with numerous prisoners. In a relatively short period of time (50 years), over 150 thousand people were sold. Part of the slaves and rich booty were sent to production, went to the construction of new craft workshops, slave-owning estates, and new construction.

The war gave rise to new needs and created additional incentives for economic development. It was necessary to build a huge fleet (several hundred ships), build powerful defensive structures (for example, the system of Athenian fortifications, the so-called "long walls"), it was necessary to equip the armies, which the Greeks had never fielded before, with defensive and offensive weapons (shells, shields, swords, spears, etc.).

Naturally, all this could not but move forward Greek metallurgy and metalworking, construction, leatherworking and other crafts, could not but contribute to the overall technical progress.

Under the influence of these factors in Greece in the middle of the 5th century. BC e. an economic system was formed that existed without any changes until the end of the GU century. BC e. It was based on the use of slave labor.

The Greek economy as a whole was not homogeneous. Among the numerous policies, two main types can be distinguished, differing in their structure. One type of policy is an agrarian one with an absolute predominance of agriculture, a weak development of crafts and trade (the most striking example is Sparta, as well as the policies of Arcadia, Boeotia, Thessaly, etc.). And another type of policy, which can be conditionally defined as trade and handicraft, in its structure the role of handicraft production and trade was quite significant. In these policies, a commodity slave-owning economy was created, which had a rather complex and dynamic structure, and the productive forces developed especially rapidly. An example of such policies were Athens, Corinth, Megara, Miletus, Rhodes, Syracuse, a number of others, usually located on the sea coast, sometimes having a small chora (agricultural territory), but at the same time, a large population that needed to be fed, occupied productive labor. Policies of this type set the tone for economic development, were the leading economic centers of Greece in the 5th-4th centuries. BC e.

The most striking example is Athens. The study of the economic structure of Athens allows us to get a general idea of ​​the features of the trade and craft policies of Greece in the classical period.

The definition of the leading type of Greek policies as trade and craft does not mean that agriculture has receded into the background in them, has ceased to be an important industry. Far from it. Agriculture in trade and handicraft policies was leading along with trade and craft, was the basis of the entire economic system. That is why the characterization of the economic life of trade and craft policies must begin with a description of agriculture as the most important basis of their economy.

For trade and craft policies of the 5th-4th centuries. BC e. characterized by the introduction of slavery into many spheres of life and production. The total number of slaves is increasing. According to rough estimates (due to the lack of statistical materials, exact calculations are impossible), in Athens the total number of slaves reached one third of the total population. Male slaves engaged in production predominated (there were few old men, children, and a few slave women among the slaves), so that the importance of slaves as a category of the active population in society and production was much higher than their arithmetic number.

Slave labor is widely used in the household: grinding grain, cooking, making clothes and shoes, repairing them, not to mention personal services. Slaves were used by elected officials as secretaries, couriers, executioners, police officers. In some Greek policies, slavery was actively introduced into agriculture, for example, in Chios, but in most of the trade and craft policies, slaves were used mainly in craft workshops, mining, maritime transport, and construction. Thus, a significant part of the slaves was concentrated in the city.

The main contingent of Greek slaves of the 5th-4th centuries. BC e. consisted of people of non-Greek origin, whom the Greeks began to call barbarians - Thracians and Scythians, Carians and Paphlagonians, Lydians and Sicilians. There are three main regions that have become suppliers of slaves

to the markets of Hellas - the Northern Black Sea region, Thrace with neighboring regions and Asia Minor. At the end of the 5th-4th centuries. BC e. among the slaves are Greeks sold into slavery during frequent civil strife. For example, the Athenians who were defeated in Syracuse in 413 BC were sold into slavery. e.; during the defeat of Thebes in 335 BC. e. Alexander the Great ordered the sale of 30,000 Thebans, including women and children, into slavery, gaining 440 talents for this sale.

The main sources of replenishment of slaves at that time were: 1) prisoners of war and partly captured civilians. So, during the Greco-Persian wars, apparently, up to 150 thousand captives were sold in slave markets. After the battle of Himera (480 BC), the victors - the Sicilian Greeks - divided the Carthaginian prisoners of war, and some soldiers got 500 people each. During the successful wars of the Syracusan tyrants Dionysius I and Agathocles against the Carthaginians and the local tribes of southern Italy, many prisoners of war were also enslaved; 2) tribesmen sold by the ruling aristocracy of the Thracians and Scythians. As a result of wars, the tribal elite establishes power over neighboring, including related, tribes and willingly transports its enslaved compatriots to Greece in exchange for luxury goods; 3) the slave contingent was replenished through the self-reproduction of slaves. According to Greek law, slaves did not have the right to start a family, but nevertheless, marital relations between slaves are not uncommon. In addition, the slaves were potential concubines of their master. Children born to slaves were also considered the property of the owner. In some estates in Sicily, slave owners even set up a kind of nursery, in which slaves were raised from birth and then sold at a great profit.

At the melting furnace

thieves of free people. Athenian laws punished by death the illegal enslavement of a free citizen. The role of piracy and other methods of kidnapping the free in order to convert them into slavery increased in the turbulent situation of the middle of the 4th century. BC e.

People who were enslaved in various ways were sold in special slave markets. Such markets existed in every city, for example, Aristophanes speaks of slave markets in Thessaly; in Athens, in the central square, the agora, there was a special place where the brought slaves were examined, evaluated and sold.

In trade and craft policies, slaves were used mainly in production, and therefore one of the tasks of the slave owner was the rational organization of slave labor. The labor of slaves had to be organized in such a way that the slave could bring in an income that would make it possible to recoup the funds spent on his purchase, the cost of daily maintenance (food and clothing) and at the same time bring some net profit. One of the forms of increasing the exploitation and, at the same time, the productivity of slave labor in Athens was the holiday of a slave for quitrent. The master provided a smart and energetic slave with small funds, premises, allocated him from his household and settled him separately. The slave opened a small workshop, worked to a certain extent independently, did business with customers, traded in the products of his

work, could start a family. But for this independence, he had to pay a certain quitrent in favor of his master, and the master often set such a quitrent, which was higher than the profit brought by his slaves who were in the house. A slave put on quitrent willingly agreed to such conditions, since this allowed him to a certain extent to feel like a man.

True, there were few slaves in the dues, their legal status did not change from this, they were still in the complete power of the master. At any moment, the master could close the slave's workshop, but this was not in his interests. Due to his diligence, economy, hard work, a slave could save a certain amount of quitrent and redeem himself for freedom. But even in this case, the slave owner did not lose anything, he set a high ransom price and more than compensated for his costs for this slave.

If there were many slaves on the farm of the slave owner, if he did not have the opportunity to organize their labor rationally, then he rented them out for a certain period to a more enterprising person and received a rent for this. In the IV century. BC e. exploitation of a slave brought a fairly high income: on average, a slave employed in a craft brought up to 2 obols per day (for 2 obols

It was possible to feed a family of 3-4 people). If a slave was rented out, then the owner of the slave received 1 obol per day as rent, and 1 obol was the profit of the tenant. The high income brought by slaves is an indicator of the intensive exploitation of slave labor, its rational organization, and a certain increase in the productivity of slave labor.

In connection with the increased exploitation of slave labor in commodity farms, the social position of slaves is deteriorating in comparison with the previous era. The slave is considered both by legislation and by public opinion as an instrument of production endowed with speech, as a being of a lower order, as a half-man. In the IV century. BC e. the corresponding theory of slavery was also created, especially fully developed by Aristotle. Reflecting the common practice of his time, Aristotle substantiated the need for slavery by the needs of life and production, considered slaves to be creatures with a different physical and mental organization than free people. “Nature arranged it so,” Aristotle wrote, “that the physical organization of free people is different from the physical organization of slaves: the latter have a powerful body, suitable for performing the necessary physical labors, while free people hold themselves upright and are not capable of performing this kind of work: on the other hand, they suitable for political life ... Some people are by nature free, others are slaves, and it is useful and fair for these latter to be slaves.

The slave was the property of the master, the latter owned his working time, his life. Using uncontrolled power, the masters could starve their slaves, subject them to any punishment, up to and including murder. But on the other hand, buying a slave, paying a certain (and considerable) amount of money for him, and then killing him or starving him to death was unprofitable for the ho-

That is why Sparta is characterized by a low level of development of slave relations and the predominance of various forms of dependent labor. Spartan society was also characterized by the incompleteness of internal social differentiation.

cations, which left an imprint on the nature of social relationships and contradictions, which most often manifested themselves in the form of organized uprisings of helots or a struggle for power between small cliques, which was of an apex nature.

Economic development of ancient states

Ancient countries, like the ancient Eastern ones, are traditionally called slave-owning countries, but the types of production in these states varied significantly. In the Ancient East, there was the so-called Asian mode of production, based on patriarchal slavery (from the word patriarch - head of the family) - a relatively mild type of slavery that arises in the early stages of the development of ancient states. In the ancient Eastern countries, slaves were not the main producers of material goods, this role belonged mainly to various categories of communal peasants who were, to one degree or another, dependent on the state, which owned most of the land fund.
In ancient countries, patriarchal slavery also existed at first, but as production and commodity-money relations developed, it gave way to the so-called classical slavery, which is characterized by a high degree of exploitation of slaves, the desire to get the maximum benefit from their labor. In contrast to the patriarchal slaves, who were recognized some of the rights of the human person, the slaves of the classical type were deprived of all rights and were considered living tools of labor. In ancient society, it was slave labor that was the basis of production. Another characteristic feature of the ancient economy was the existence of polis ownership of land, which was a kind of combination of communal and private property.

7. Economy of Ancient Greece

7.1. The economic development of the Greek lands in the III-II millennium BC. e.

III-II millennium BC e. in Greece is commonly referred to as the Bronze Age. During this period, bronze tools spread both on the islands of the Aegean Sea and on the mainland, contributing to the acceleration of economic development and the creation of the first states. During the III millennium BC. e. were the most developed cycladic islands, located in the southern part of the Aegean Sea. From the beginning of the II millennium BC. e. the island becomes the most influential among others Crete, located at the crossroads of ancient sea routes. The Cretan (or Minoan) civilization reached its peak around the middle of the 2nd millennium BC. e.
The development of mainland Greece in the III millennium BC. e. went not so fast, however, in some coastal areas, already in the second half of the 3rd millennium BC. e. evolved cultures. At the end of III millennium BC. e. Greek tribes migrate from northern Greece to the south (Achaeans), which in most areas ousted the pre-Greek population (Pelasgians) and by the middle of the 2nd millennium BC. e. created their own states, which flourished in the 15th-13th centuries. BC e., and from the XFV century. BC e. the most influential among them was the city Mycenae in Argolis (northeast of the Peloponnese).
Approximately in the XII century. BC e. a new wave of settlers is approaching from the north of the Balkan Peninsula, the leading role among which was played by the Greek tribe Dorians. Most of the centers of Achaean culture were destroyed.

During the III millennium BC. e. significant success is achieved metallurgy and ceramic production, where approximately from the XXIII century. BC e. the potter's wheel began to be used. In agriculture, the leading position is occupied by the so-called Mediterranean triad: cereals (especially barley), grapes, olives.
Most active in the III and the first half of the II millennium BC. e. the Greek islands developed, on which sea ​​crafts, trade, crafts, including artistic ones. Cycladic sailors maintained contact with the lands located in the basins of the Aegean and Adriatic Seas, reached the shores of Spain and the Danube.
The basis of the economy of Crete and the Achaean states was Agriculture, the leading industry of which was agriculture, but livestock (especially sheep) also played an important role. Among the crafts, metallurgy and ceramic production were of primary importance. Crete and the Achaean states maintained foreign trade relations with Egypt, Cyprus, the Eastern Mediterranean; Raw materials and some luxury items were mainly imported from these regions, mainly ceramics, metal products, including weapons, were exported. In addition, the Achaeans developed trade with the peoples who inhabited the north of the Balkan Peninsula, with Italy, Sicily, and also with the western coast of Asia Minor, where in the XIV-XIII centuries. BC e. Achaean settlements appear.
Socio-economic stratum
The basis of the socio-economic structure of the economic Crete and the Achaean states were palaces- build huge complexes, including residential and religious premises, many pantries, workshops, etc. It is difficult to judge land relations in Crete due to insufficient sources, however, most likely, the lands were in communal and state ownership. In addition, it can be assumed that temple and private farms also existed on state land. In the Achaean states, the palaces disposed of all land, which was divided into two main categories: public land (partially owned by territorial communities, partly allocated for the performance of any work) and land owned by individuals. Both categories of land were quite actively leased out, including to slaves, but a slave could not become the owner of the land. Slaves, as in Crete, were relatively few, most belonged to the palace, and, in addition, to private individuals and temples. Free community members were mainly employed in production.
All categories of the free population (nobility, community members, etc.) were in varying degrees dependent on the palace. was at the head of the state tsar, performing political and religious functions. The real management was in the hands of the palace administration, which was engaged in the organization of military affairs, the tax system, observed the work of various groups of the population directly subordinate to the palace (artisans, shepherds, etc.), gave them the necessary materials and products. Territorial communities were also under the control of officials.
Almost all groups of the population and, above all, territorial communities were taxed on various types of products. Some social groups were exempted from paying taxes, mainly playing a special role in the existence of the state (blacksmiths, rowers, warriors).
Foreign economic activity was probably controlled by the kings, in Crete, special attention was paid to the security of trade, the fight against pirates.

7.2. Economic development in the XI-VI centuries. BC e.

This period of time covers two stages in the history of Ancient Greece: the so-called dark ages(XI-IX centuries BC) and archaic period(VIII-VI centuries BC). The Dark Ages are often called the Homeric period, since, along with archaeological data, the main source for the study of this time are the poems "Iliad" and "Odyssey", attributed to Homer.
Usually XI-IX centuries. BC e. is considered an intermediate stage at which, on the one hand, the level of development decreases compared to Achaean Greece, but, on the other hand, with the start of the production of iron tools, the prerequisites are created for the further flourishing of the Greek states.

The archaic period is characterized by two main processes that had a decisive influence on the development of Greek civilization: 1) this is the Great Colonization - the development by the Greeks of the coasts of the Mediterranean, Black, Azov Seas, 2) the design policy* as a special type of community.

* Policy(gr. city, state) - a special type of state, which arose as a collective of citizens-landowners, is a city with a rural area adjacent to it.

Sectoral structure of the economy
In the XI-IX centuries. BC. dominated the Greek economy natural type economy, the craft was not separated from agriculture. As before, the main agricultural crops were cereals (barley, wheat), grapes, and olives. Irrigation systems were still created, soil manure was used. There was some improvement in the tools of labor, in particular, appeared plow with metal(especially iron) coulter. Animal husbandry also played an important role in agriculture, livestock was considered one of the main types of wealth. In the craft of the XI-IX centuries. BC e. there was some differentiation, weaving, metallurgy, ceramics were especially developed, however, production, as in agriculture, was focused only on meeting the urgent needs of people. In this regard, trade developed very slowly and was mainly of an exchange nature.

In the VIII-VI centuries. BC e. The economic situation in ancient Greece has changed significantly. During this period, the craft separated from agriculture, which remains the leading branch of the economy. The weak development of agricultural production at the previous stage, the inability to provide food for the growing population of policies became one of the main reasons Greek colonization. The most important function of the colonies located in the Black Sea basin was the supply metropolises* bread. Many Greek policies refuse to grow cereals, and focus on crops, the cultivation of which is more consistent with the natural conditions of Greece: grapes, olives, all kinds of garden and horticultural crops; as a result, agriculture is becoming increasingly market-oriented. This is also facilitated by the wider distribution of iron tools.

* Metropolis(gr. mother of cities) - the main city in relation to the colonies he created.

Handicraft production also acquires commodity character, and, as in agriculture, Greek colonization played an important role in this, contributing to the expansion of the resource base and the development of trade. Many Greek city-states are becoming major craft centers, with entire quarters of artisans appearing in them. In Chalkis, Miletus, Corinth, Argos, Athens was especially developed metallurgy, the improvement of which in the archaic era was facilitated by the discovery of the technique of soldering iron and bronze casting. important centers ceramic production were Corinth and Athens, here from the turn of the 7th-6th centuries. BC e. mass production begins. By making textiles the Greek cities of Asia Minor were famous, as well as Megara.
Greek trade in the era of the Great Colonization is developing very actively. Permanent ties are being established between the metropolises, which export mainly handicraft products, and the colonies, which supply various types of raw materials (especially metal, timber) and agricultural products (especially grain). In addition, the colonies become intermediaries between Greece and the distant barbarian periphery. In the most developed Greek policies maritime trade becomes one of the most important sectors of the economy. From the end of the VI century. BC e. Navclairs, owners and captains of merchant ships, began to play a significant role.
Land property. Organization of production
During the Dark Ages, the land was the property of the territorial community, the main production unit was oikos(from gr. house) - the economy of the patriarchal family. Each family in the community was assigned a piece of land, which was inherited; however, it is possible that redistributions of land were carried out from time to time. Slavery in the 11th-9th centuries BC e. still had a patriarchal character, the main producer of products was a free farmer.
The archaic period brought great changes in property relations. The leading form of land ownership is polis(or ancient) - only citizens had the right to own land in the territory of the policy; personally free people who were not citizens (meteks) did not have this right. Citizens could sell, mortgage land, rent it out.
In the VIII-VI centuries. BC e. there is also an important change in the organization of production - a classical slavery. This process was associated with the development of commodity production and a significant increase in the number of foreign slaves coming from the colonies. Cheap slave labor made it possible to obtain a higher income and was more actively used in the main branches of production.
Money relations

At the turn of II-I millennium BC. e. due to the predominance of subsistence farming and the weak development of trade, there was no money as such, their role was played mainly by cattle. In the era of the Great Colonization, metal ingots, bars and, finally, around the turn of the 7th-6th centuries, were increasingly used as money. BC e. starts coinage. By the VI century. BC e. Greece had two main monetary systems - Aegina and Euboean*. The basis of each system was talent - weight unit, which on Euboea was 26.2 kg, and on Aegina - 37 kg. 6,000 coins were minted from one talent. drachmas- silver coins. The Aegina standard was distributed over most of the territory of Greece and the islands of the Aegean Sea, the Euboean - on the island of Euboea, in many western Greek colonies, as well as in the two largest policies - Corinth and Athens.

* From the names of the islands of Aegina and Euboea - important trading centers of the Aegean Sea.

Corinthian stater (c. 320 BC)

Tetradrachm of Tarsus (323 BC)

In the archaic period, along with money circulation, usury, and insolvent debtors, as a rule, were turned into slaves and could even be sold abroad.

The main distinguishing feature of the Greek policy was the participation of all members of the civil community in government, and this feature largely determined the internal policy of policies. In particular, many Greek city-states had laws restricting the purchase and sale of land and aimed at protecting the landed property of individual citizens. However, despite this, in most parts of Greece, the development of commodity production and the lack of land led to the growth of large land ownership, increased social differentiation and aggravation of the conflict between aristocracy and demosome(by the people). In many policies of the archaic era, socio-political conflicts often ended in the establishment of tyranny- regime of personal power. In most cases, tyrants sought to enlist the support of the demos, took care of improving its position, promoted the development of crafts and trade, and the improvement of cities. However, the tyrants were constantly in need of money and pumped it out of the population in various ways; in the end, in most policies, tyranny was overthrown.
An important role in the further socio-political and economic development of Greece was played by reforms, carried out in the archaic era. The most famous and interesting are the reforms in Athens and Sparta, which most clearly represented the two main types of policy - trade and handicraft and agrarian.
One of the greatest Athenian reformers - Solon - politician and poet, considered one of the seven Greek sages. In 594 BC. e. Solon was endowed with emergency powers and began reforms aimed at restoring the unity of the civil collective. First of all, he spent seisakhteyu(gr. Shaking off the burden): all debts made on the security of land, and the interest accumulated on them, were declared invalid. Slavery for debts was abolished, the Athenians-debtors sold abroad were redeemed at the expense of the state. Seisakhteya, as well as laws prohibiting the acquisition of land above a certain norm, prevented the ruin of the peasants and contributed to the development in Attica, mainly of medium and small landownership. To facilitate the trade of Athens with Asia Minor and the western part of the Mediterranean Sea, the unification of measures and weights was carried out, and the previously dominant Aegina monetary system was replaced by a lighter Euboean one. Measures were also taken to increase the marketability of agriculture: the development of horticultural crops was encouraged, and olive oil was allowed to be exported abroad. Much attention was also paid to the craft: in particular, it was found that if the father did not teach his son any craft, he could not claim filial support in old age. In addition, the export of raw materials was prohibited; foreign craftsmen were attracted to Athens, many meteks engaged in crafts were granted Athenian citizenship.
Important transformations of Solon, indicating the achievement of a high level of commodity-money relations in Athens in the 7th-6th centuries. BC e., there were the introduction of freedom of wills and the replacement of patrimonial privileges with property ones: depending on land income, all citizens were divided into four categories.

In Sparta, the legendary legislator who laid the foundations of the state system was considered Lycurgus. The land in Sparta was actually state property, the allotments of individual families were inalienable, their number changed only with the annexation of new territories, in particular, with the conquest of Messenia, a rich region in the southwest of the Peloponnese peninsula, at the turn of the 7th-6th centuries. BC e. redistribution of land was carried out: approximately nine thousand allotments were allocated according to the number of citizens. The land was cultivated attached to it helots - the population of Laconia * and Messenia conquered by the Spartans, turned into state slaves. The helots paid the owner of the allotment a fixed rent in kind every year.

* An area in the southeastern part of the Peloponnese, the center is Sparta.

The citizens of Sparta were considered equal to each other in everything - both in everyday life, and in the political, and in the economic sphere. Lycurgus is credited with establishing a ban on the use of gold and silver coins, only extremely inconvenient and bulky iron coins were allowed. The main occupation of the Spartans was military affairs, craft and trade were considered shameful for a citizen. These activities have been provided periecam- deprived of political rights, but personally free residents of Laconia. The Spartan system practically did not change for several centuries (up to the 4th century BC) and caused the economic and cultural lag of this policy from others.

7.3. Greek economy of the classical period (V-IV centuries BC)

5th century BC e. - the time of the highest rise of Greek civilization. During this period, classical slavery finally takes shape, the policy reaches its peak. A huge role in the development of Greece was played by the victory in the Greco-Persian wars (500-449 BC), which for a time turned Athynga into the leading state of the Greek world. The last decades of the century were marked by the Peloponnesian War (431-404 BC) between the eternal enemies - Athens and Sparta, which accelerated the development of commodity-money relations and contributed to the beginning of the crisis of the policy in the 4th century. BC e.
Sectoral structure of the economy
The main branch of the Greek economy was still agriculture: it employed the majority of the population, agriculture, as before it was considered the only type of practical activity worthy of a citizen. The processes that began in agriculture in the VIII-VI centuries. BC e., are further developed: the marketability of production increases, regional specialization deepens (for example, the Greek policies of the Northern Black Sea region and Sicily were suppliers of grain, Athens - olive oil, the islands of Chios and Thasos - wine, etc.). However, completely subsistence farming was not forced out. Still attractive to both individuals and politicians was the principle autarky - independence from the outside world, political and economic independence, self-sufficiency. True, in contrast to the archaic era in the 5th century. BC e. it is recognized that everything necessary for the policy can be provided with the help of trade.
In connection with the general economic recovery, the widespread use of slave labor, the development trade in Greek craft in the 5th century. BC e. going on expansion of production, deepening the division of labor. Particularly active are the industries associated with shipbuilding and navigation, mining, and the production of ceramics.
Even more important than in the previous era, is acquiring foreign maritime trade. In this regard, of the ancient peoples, only the Phoenicians could compare with the Greeks, and at a later time only Holland of the 16th-17th centuries. can be compared with Ancient Greece of the classical period in terms of its contribution to the development of trade of its era. It is characteristic that if the Phoenicians and the Dutch were mainly engaged in intermediary trade, then the ancient Greeks, without neglecting mediation, widely exported their agricultural and especially high-quality handicraft products.
Main Articles export other countries were olive oil, wine, metal products, ceramics. To Greece imported mainly foodstuffs (especially grain, salted fish), slaves, various types of raw materials (iron, copper, timber, resin, furs, leather, linen, ivory, etc.). The trade of individual Greek policies with each other was dominated by handicrafts, in the production of which this or that area specialized. The main centers of Greek foreign trade were Athens, Miletus, Corinth.

Wine jug (c. 470 BC)

Internal trade in the Greek policies was much less developed. Peasants from the surrounding villages mainly came to the city market and sold agricultural products in exchange for handicrafts.
Organization of production
The most important characteristic feature of the Greek production economy of the 5th century. BC e. - wide use classical slavery. Wars, piracy, slave trade (the main sources of slavery) ensured a sharp increase in the number of slaves. In the 5th century BC e. slaves are used in all spheres of production, become the main labor force and are finally deprived of all rights. It is believed that in the most developed region of Greece - Attica - slaves made up about one third of the population. The labor of slaves was especially actively used in craft workshops - ergasteria. Among the handicraft workshops, small ones (from two to ten slaves) prevailed, however, there were also rather large ergasteria, in which the labor of about 50-100 slaves was used. The use of slave labor in mining was especially large-scale. So, in the development of the Lavrion silver mines (in the southern part of Attica), individual private individuals used the labor of 300-1000 slaves.

Working Greek miners are lowered food on a ropeVIin. BC.

In Greek agriculture, slave labor played a relatively small role, which is due to two main factors: in the cultivation and cultivation of labor-intensive crops (grapes, olives, vegetables), it was unprofitable to widely use the low-productive labor of slaves, and the predominance of medium and small peasant farms excluded the large-scale use of slave labor. labor. Greek peasants, as a rule, cultivated the land with the whole family, using one to seven slaves as an auxiliary labor; hired labor was also used, especially during seasonal work.
Slaves were very actively used as domestic servants, secretaries, etc. Slaves could be rented out (mainly cooks, dancers, artisans), some were released for quitrent - in such cases, the slave could start his own workshop, get hired for any job - the owner in his life did not interfere. Along with private there were state slaves, for example, in Athens they carried out police service, filled minor positions in the city administration: secretaries, scribes, bailiffs, etc.
Money relations

In the 5th century BC e. coinage covers the entire Greek world. As a result of the development of retail trade, minting begins at this time. bronze small change coin. All independent Greek policies used the right to mint their own coin, so it is not surprising that the development of trade in the 5th century. BC e. gave birth to a special profession changed (meals *). Gradually (mainly from the end of the 5th century BC) change shops begin to perform some of the functions inherent in banks: the storage of money, the transfer of various amounts from the account of one client to the account of another, the issuance of cash loans. The usual loan interest secured by land, a city house was about 15%, the interest on marine loans (under a more unreliable pledge of ships and goods) could exceed 30%.

* From gr. table, change shop.

Refectories also performed some functions of notary offices - they concluded transactions, drafted deeds, and stored documents.
The role of the state in economic life
In most Greek policies there was no organized state economy that brought a constant and significant income, there was no direct taxation of citizens. The lack of a stable source of replenishment of the state treasury was partly compensated by voluntary donations and liturgies - taxes from wealthy citizens for the needs of the state. During the wars, an extraordinary military tax was levied on all citizens - eisphora. Many policies had other sources of replenishment of the treasury, for example, in Athens, state revenues were replenished at the expense of the Lavrion silver mines. For example, during the Greco-Persian wars in 482 BC. e. Themistocles offered to build warships with the proceeds from the mines. In the future, these mines were leased to private individuals - citizens of Athens.
The supply of bread was the most important issue in the economic policy of most Greek policies. Special officials took care of the uninterrupted supply of grain, and special norms for its transit were established. At the end of the 5th century BC e. in many policies, commissions were elected from the richest citizens for the purchase and distribution of grain among citizens. Similar regulation in a number of cases also applied to building materials, firewood, flax, oil, etc.
To maintain order in the internal markets, special officials were appointed in many policies - agoranomas(market keepers), who collected duties, monitored the quality of products, the correctness of weights and measures, etc.
New phenomena in the economy of Greece IV in BC.
Currently in the 4th century BC e. regarded as a period crisis of the classical 4th century before Greek polis. This process was a direct consequence of the development of the Greek economy. The manifestations of the yuizis of the traditional polis structure were, first of all, changes in land relations. From the end of the 5th century BC e. spread very widely land purchase and sale transactions, which in the IV century. BC e. is no longer considered as the basis of a citizen's life, but as one of the sources of income. In addition, in the IV century. BC e. the exclusive right of citizens to own land is increasingly being violated - meteks who have distinguished themselves by some merit are granted privileges, including the possibility of acquiring land and a house. In addition, from the end of the 5th c. BC e. spreads lease of private property, and since the cultivation of foreign land was considered shameful for a citizen, the metecs and freedmen become mainly tenants. Thus, the non-civilian population penetrates into the sphere of agriculture, which was previously practically closed to it.
Along with this, many citizens are beginning to engage in more profitable activities than agriculture, previously considered unworthy of a citizen: maritime trade, interest-bearing loans, mining, etc.
All this, as well as the rapid development of crafts and trade, which were mainly engaged in meteks, objectively leads to an increase in the role of the free non-civilian population in the economy, the socio-political life of the policy, to the gradual destruction of the traditional policy structure; the main measure of value is money, they determine the position of a person in society.
In connection with the crisis of the policy, significant changes occurred in the sphere of slavery. Since the Peloponnesian War, the number of Greek slaves has been growing, which was almost unthinkable before. In addition, as a more profitable practice, the practice of leave of slaves for quitrent. The number of freedmen - slaves who managed to save up money and redeem themselves at will - is sharply increasing. In general, in the GU in. BC e. classical slavery continues to develop, the number of slaves increases.
The crisis of the Greek polis in the IV century. BC e. was not associated with economic decline. On the contrary, crisis phenomena, beginning with changes in land relations fundamental to the policy, are closely connected with the development of commodity-money relations, the desire for enrichment, and the development of inter-polis economic ties. It was these processes that contributed to the weakening of the close connection between the citizen and his policy, created the prerequisites for the development of contradictions between private and state interests, for the clash of various social groups within the civil collective.
The loss of close polis unity became one of the important reasons for the loss of independence by Greece and its subjugation in 338 BC. e. Philip of Macedon, whose son and heir, Alexander, created in the 30-20s of the 4th century. BC e. the largest world power of antiquity. Since that time, policies ceased to be the leading force in the Greek world, they were replaced by Hellenistic monarchies.

7.4. Economic development in the Hellenistic era (end of IV-I centuries BC)

The state of Alexander the Great after his death broke up into a number of states: Greco-Macedonian kingdom; Egypt, in which the Ptolemaic dynasty ruled; the state of the Seleucids; the central core of which was Syria and Mesopotamia; Pergamon and Kingdom of Pontus in Asia Minor, etc. In these Hellenistic states, a synthesis of Greek (Hellenic) and Eastern elements takes place; this applies to the economic, socio-political, and cultural spheres.
The development of the economy in the Hellenistic era was favorably affected by the transformation of the eastern Mediterranean Sea into the inland sea of ​​the Greek world. In addition, in most Hellenistic states, the monetary system was preserved, unification which began under Alexander the Great: the weight standard adopted in Athens was taken as the basis, along with silver, they began to mint Golden coins.
A very important role in the economic development was played by the exchange of experience between the Greeks and the Eastern peoples, which contributed to the improvement of agricultural practices, the cultivation of new crops, as well as the development of technology and further specialization in the craft. All this had a huge impact on the growth of marketability and increase in trade turnover.
During this period, science and technology developed significantly: the famous scientist Archimedes discovered the hydraulic law, the law of the lever, invented the bolt, the screw water scoop, and much more.

Archimedes screw that allows you to pump water from the bottom up

In the Hellenistic era, the center of economic life moved from mainland Greece and the Aegean Sea to the south and east, where many new cities were founded on the coasts of the seas and on caravan routes. Major trading and craft centers were Alexandria in the Nile Delta in Egypt, Pergamon in the northwest of Asia Minor, Antioch on the Orontes River in Syria, Selsvkia on the Tigris River in Mesopotamia, etc. In the III-II centuries. BC e. Hellenistic policies experienced an era of prosperity.

Alexander lighthouse

Cities were administrative units, in most cases self-government bodies were preserved in them, lands owned by the city and private individuals were assigned to them. The rest of the land fund was considered state: there were actually royal lands, as well as lands granted to the tsar's close associates, temples, transferred to the possession of soldiers.
In the Hellenistic states, classical slavery gradually spread, but along with it there was a characteristic of the Eastern economy. debt slavery. In agriculture, the number of slaves increased, but the land was mainly cultivated by members of rural communities who were more or less dependent on the state. In the craft, along with private workshops, there were workshops, whose workers also depended on the state.

Review questions
1. Name and compare the stages of development of the ancient Greek economy.
2. Describe the features of the economy of Ancient Greece.
3. Tell us about the reforms of Lycurgus and Solon and their impact on the economic development of Sparta and Athens.
4. Explain what is the reason for the crisis of the policy in the IV century. BC e.

Greek economy of the classical period (5th - 4th centuries BC)

The classical period in Greek history is also called the heyday of the polis system. The formation of Greek policies, accompanied by violent socio-political upheavals, was completed by the end of the 6th century. BC e. The internal situation in Balkan Greece stabilized, economic life revived in numerous policies, the political position of the middle strata of citizenship was strengthened, and conditions were created for the development of culture. This is the time of the highest rise of Greek civilization.

At the same time, classical slavery took shape.

Ancient Greece knew two options for slavery:

• - polis or Athenian, was characteristic of economically developed regions, the main source of slaves was trade. Polis slavery was peculiar in terms of forms of ownership. State slavery did not receive much development due to the fact that large types of work requiring the use of a large amount of labor were carried out not by the state, but by private individuals. State slaves could start a family, own property. The state owned a small number of slaves who were very rarely used in the production process. Slaves owned by various private individuals were used in urban industrial production, including in ergasteria. The forms of exploitation of slaves were also peculiar. The bulk of the labor of slaves was used in the cities in handicraft production. Slaves were often rented out and hired out as income-generating property. Debt slavery was not widely developed;
• - the Spartan version of slavery, which by its nature was closer to the Egyptian and Roman. Wars were the main source of slaves. In addition, slaves, like land, were considered public property in Sparta. Each Spartan received a land plot and a certain number of slaves only for temporary use. The sale of slaves was prohibited. Equality of land allotments was envisaged, which excluded the individual concentration of land and slaves. The main form of exploitation of slaves was agriculture. At the same time, slaves could have some property, tools of production, could run their own household and start families. Their duty was to obey the masters and hand over a certain amount of products. There were relations of the quitrent type, characteristic of the Roman colony and medieval serfdom.

The Greek policies were developed trade and craft cities, quite populated, with a high culture, so Persia paid attention to them.

The causes of the Greco-Persian wars were:

• 1) The apparent weakness of the Greek policies, fueled Persia to start the war;
• 2) The capture of the Balkan Greece is important from a strategic point of view, since it gave the entire Eastern Mediterranean into the hands of Persia.

The repulse of the Persian invasion became possible thanks to the unification of the Greek policies and, above all, Sparta, Corinth and Athens into the so-called Organization of the Delian Symmachy (the First Athenian Maritime Union).

The victory in the Greco-Persian wars led to the creation of an extensive trading zone. As a result of victories over the Persian troops, the Greeks captured rich booty, including material values ​​and prisoners. ancient greece economics international

Under the influence of these factors in Greece from the middle of the 5th century. BC e. an economic system was formed that existed without any changes until the end of the 4th century. BC e. It was based on the use of slave labor. The Greek economy as a whole was not homogeneous. Among the numerous policies, two main types can be distinguished, differing in their structure. One type of policy is an agrarian one with an absolute predominance of agriculture, a weak development of handicrafts and trade (the most striking example is Sparta, as well as the policies of Arcadia, Boeotia, Thessaly, etc.). And another type of policy, which can be conditionally defined as a trade and handicraft policy, in its structure the role of handicraft production and trade was quite significant. In these policies, a commodity slave-owning economy was created, which had a rather complex and dynamic structure, and the productive forces developed especially rapidly. An example of such policies were Athens, Corinth, Megara, Miletus, Rhodes, Syracuse, a number of others, as a rule, located on the sea coast, sometimes having a small hora (land allotment), but at the same time, a large population that needed to be fed, occupied productive labor. Policies of this type set the tone for economic development, were the leading economic centers of Greece in the 5th-4th centuries. BC e.

The most striking example is Athens. The study of the economic structure of Athens allows us to get a general idea of ​​the features of the trade and craft policies of Greece in the classical period.

The definition of the leading type of Greek policies as trade and craft does not mean that agriculture has receded into the background in them, has ceased to be an important industry. Agriculture in trade and handicraft policies was leading along with trade and craft, was the basis of the entire economic system. That is why the characterization of the economic life of trade and craft policies must begin with a description of agriculture as the most important basis of their economy.

Cities in this period were the vital centers of economically developed regions. Industry and trade were concentrated in the city, their growth reflected the most progressive trends in economic development. Handicraft activity mainly existed in the form of small-scale production, based on manual labor with low productivity. The sectoral structure of production is becoming more complex, and the social division of labor has developed.

Along with handicrafts, forms of large-scale production, ergasteria, also appear in policies, mainly in metalworking, weapons business, and leather production, employing 20-30 people. The division of labor within the ergasteria was only outlined and arose sporadically.

Trade was developing intensively, there were professional merchants and wholesale trade, temporary companies arose to equip trading expeditions. To control the organization of trade and maintain order in the markets, a special supervision administration was created, and speculation, especially in bread, was persecuted.

In the IV century. Greece was going through a period of decline. The crisis of slavery, the development of its internal contradictions, connected with the lack of interest of this economic system in improving the tools of labor, accelerated this process. The extraordinary flowering of culture was combined with a low technical level of production. The difficulty in the reproduction of slaves - the main productive force in this period - inevitably leads to an aggravation of the problems of economic development.