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They were an extraordinary people born of white rock and blue sea. They invented democracy, distilled logic and reason, wrote plays to plumb the deepest recesses of the soul, and captured the perfection of the human form in athletics and art. Quite simply, the Greeks created our world. Today, of course, Greece conjures very different images: civic unrest, financial meltdowns, long ATM lines.
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Comparing democracy in the U.S. today to its original version in Athens.
In this iconic battle, a mere 10,000 Athenians withstand the invasion of Persian forces.
Episode 3 Preview | Chasing Greatness
See how the ancient Greeks reached the peak of civilization.
In 507 BC, the people of Athens discovered their voice and democracy was born.
Revisit the sacred origins of ancient Greece’s famous athletic competitions: the Olympics.
The first use of Greek letters we have is not a decree or contract but an expression of lo
Episode 2 Preview | The Good Strife
Witness the Greeks’ emergence from the dark ages to construct the world’s first democracy.
The Oldest Piece of Greek Writing Ever Discovered
Archaeologists inspect an artifact that changes our understanding of how states formed.
They were an extraordinary people born of white rock and blue sea. They invented democracy, distilled logic and reason, wrote plays to plumb the deepest recesses of the soul, and captured the perfection of the human form in athletics and art. Quite simply, the Greeks created our world. Today, of course, Greece conjures very different images: civic unrest, financial meltdowns, long ATM lines. But, as its ancient history attests, strife and discord are often incubators for greatness.
From their beginnings as hunter-gatherers in harsh, unforgiving landscapes; to surviving the worst collapse in human history; to facing off against the greatest empire the world had ever known, the Greeks would have to overcome incredible odds to pave the way for the modern West.
In National Geographic’s landmark event series, "The Greeks," historians and archaeologists, actors and athletes, scientists and artists launch a groundbreaking exploration into the ancient Greeks’ journey — not just to better understand their past, but to discover how their legacy illuminates our present, and will shape our future. The story of the Greeks is the story of us.
Episode 1 | Cavemen to Kings
Uncover the origin story of Western civilization, as the early Greeks rise from nothing and change everything—laying the groundwork for a revolution in human thought.
Episode 2 | The Good Strife
Explore history as the ancient Greeks emerge from the first dark ages to compose timeless epics, compete in the original Olympic Games, conjure early theories of nature, and construct the world’s first democracy.
Episode 3 | Chasing Greatness
Discover how the ancient Greeks finally reached the peak of civilization—revolutionizing art, architecture, drama, philosophy and government—and left a legacy that still points the way forward.
Ancient sculptures line the upper floor of the Acropolis Museum in Athens.
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Jonathan Meyer, NGT, Inc.
The ruins of Mycenae, originally excavated by Heinrich Schliemann in the 1870s.
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Jonathan Meyer, NGT, Inc.
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NGT, Inc.
A statue of the Spartan war hero, Leonidas, at Thermopylae, where the Greeks faced off against a much larger Persian Army.
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Chad Cohen, NGT, Inc.
A view from Delphi, home to the oracle of Apollo.
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Jonathan Meyer, NGT, Inc.
The ruins of Mycenae, home to the Mycenaeans, who developed a written language called Linear B.
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Jonathan Meyer, NGT, Inc.
A view of the street artist INO's finished mural, of the ancient Greek thinker Democritus and a young child.
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Chris Dye, NGT, Inc.
A view of the marble mines of Mount Penteli, where marble was and continues to be sourced for the Parthenon.
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Chad Cohen, NGT, Inc.
The Acropolis Restoration Service still sources its marble from Mount Penteli, where the original Parthenon's marble was mined.
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Chad Cohen, NGT, Inc.
The Temple of Poseidon at Cape Sounion was part of a major construction project spearheaded by Pericles that also included the Parthenon.
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Chris Dye, NGT, Inc.
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