The aim of this thesis is to define and explore the role of natural resources and the strategic value of geography for Athenian foreign policy, focussing particularly on the fifth and fourth centuries. In spite of the established position of natural resources in studies of Greek economic and political history, there remains no comprehensive treatment of the interrelationship between natural resources and the formulation of Athenian foreign policy. The thesis exploits the approaches established by previous scholarship, advances in epigraphy, modern studies of geography and classical philology to examine these two aspects, focussing primarily on the role of timber, grain, precious metals, red ochre, sea-routes and islands within Athenian foreign policy. Chapter One examines the above resources, always with an eye on their strategic utility for the Athenian state, and identifies a number of regions of Athenian interest. Chapter Two explores the public political discourse within the Athenian polity regarding the nexus between strategic natural resources and foreign policy. Chapter Three continues this theme, considering acquisition through war and diplomacy as methods of access to natural resources. Chapter Four focuses on the ways in which Athens ensured that the necessary cargo did reach safely its harbours. Chapter Five shifts emphasis from natural resources to geography and strategy. Taking Rhodes as a case study it aims to explain how these elements affected the way in which natural resources came into Athens and what this could mean to foreign policy. Chapter Six puts together the various factors discussed in the previous chapters, and examines them within a set period of time.

This dissertation analyses the spatial and contextual organisation of thermal structures (hearths and ovens) on thirty excavated Neolithic sites from Macedonia and Western Thrace throughout the Neolithic period in Greece in diverse habitation environments (tells, flat-extended sites and lake-side sites). Unpublished material from two settlements, Avgi and Dispilio in Kastoria, will also complement this study. This dissertation raises the question of how communities were organised and how different forms of habitus or different kinds of entanglements tell us something of daily life and the formation of social identities. My principal field of research lies in the social interfaces developed around consumption practices in diverse spatial contexts in the course of everyday life. Key questions of this study involve the overall emergence and dispersal of social and cultural traditions in time and in space through the examination of different spatial and material entanglements. My analysis clarifies that intra-site spatial organisation in the area studied does not directly correspond with settlement types. The examination of archaeological data showed that similar configurations of social space can be found in dissimilar settlement types. My study demonstrates that cultural ‘assemblages’ in prehistory do not correspond to geographically broad united community groups but instead they show local diversity and social complexity. Instead of being modelled as unified, monolithic ‘cultures’, people seem to have come together around a sequence of chronologically and geographically focused forms of local identities. A local-scale examination of intra-site spatial patterns from Neolithic Macedonia and Western Thrace demonstrated that, although different settlement types are recorded within particular geographical regions, comparable organisation of space among contemporary sites indicates the development of similar social structures.

British Foreign Office efforts during World War II to ensure the peaceful restoration of the King and his Government-in-Exile after Greece was liberated were frustrated by the King's refusal, with Churchill's support, to submit himself to a plebiscite. The United States refused to become involved (except for an unwarranted interference by Roosevelt) and generally disapproved of British policies. The return of the Government-in-Exile to Greece without a firm commitment by the King concerning his future resulted in a Communist-led revolt which was ended only by British military intervention and by Churchill finally forcing the King to accept a regency and the plebisicite. In post-war Greece, Britain continued to use her influence and support in an effort to establish stability in the face of serious economic difficulties and a right-wing reaction to the Communists, which led to a new civil war. Britain's own financial difficulties made it impossible to solve the economic problems or to bring order to political chaos. In autumn 1946, the United States perceived in the Greek situation a strategic threat to its interests, but its capacity to assist Greece was severely limited by a hostile Congress and neo-isolationism. In early 1947, Britain's financial situation and its doubts as to the strategic value of Greece resulted in a sudden decision to abandon all aid. The American administration was forced to resort to an idealogical crusade in order to obtain the funds necessary to prevent the fall of the Greek Government and a probable Communist-led victory in the new civil war. The proclamation of the American policy was the initial action of the Cold War, and a direct result of the policies which the British and Americans had been pursuing towards Greece since 1943.

This dissertation offers a new biography of Manuel II Palaiologos (1350-1425), attempting to depict him as a ruler, writer and personality. The dissertation is organized as a chronological narrative, each chapter dealing with a time period in Manuel’s life. For the first time, this study offers an in-depth analysis of Manuel’s complete literary, philosophical and theological oeuvre. Some of the key discussions are Manuel’s self-representation and how he adopts various stances and personas under specific conditions, his literary style, the innovations he introduces to topoi and the allusions he makes to Classical authors in order to display his wit and to give different layers of meaning. An attempt is made to gain an insight into Manuel’s thoughts and feelings, his pastimes and his relationships with the literati, family members and foes. This study also strives to envisage Manuel’s surroundings and everyday life, such as his environment in Constantinople and other cities, his travels, the conditions in the campaigns in which he participated, his daily life in the palace, fashions and food. Finally, through an analysis of Byzantine, Western and Ottoman sources, the dissertation studies the political history of the period.

This thesis takes as its theme Boiotian identity as expressed and disseminated through Boiotian games and festivals. It provides a complete chronological record of the evidence for Boiotian agōnes from the seventh century BC through to the end of the third century AD - alongside that of the most important collective Boiotian festivals – and discusses the role played by these games and festivals in the creation, development, and promotion of a unified Boiotian identity, thus contributing to the wider debates on identity and Boiotian ethnogenesis. In contrast to recent studies - which by the nature of their methodology focus on the development of a unified Boiotian identity through shared traditions - this thesis emphasises the role of the separate Boiotian poleis in the creation of a multifaceted Boiotian identity, reflecting the federal nature of the Boiotian political system. This thesis also highlights three important roles played by festivals and agōnes in the formation and development of Boiotian identity: firstly, in the development of a unified Boiotian identity (Boiotian ethnogenesis proper) through cult interactions at local - often liminal - sanctuaries during the Geometric, Archaic, and early Classical periods; secondly, in the promotion through agōnes of Boiotian identity to the wider-Hellenic world especially during the later Classical, Hellenistic, and early-Roman periods; and thirdly, in maintaining a Boiotian community following the coming of Rome and the dissolution of the Boiotian koinon after 171BC, where participation in pan-Boiotian agonistic festivals was a crucial factor in the regeneration of a quasi-political Boiotian koinon just before the Imperial era. Games and festivals, so this thesis argues, were integral in the creation, dissemination, and survival of Boiotian identity.

This study explores how Classical Athens and Sparta created the warrior citizen and continued to motivate citizens to fight throughout their lives. It engages with the issues of the 'hoplite ideal', exploring the extent to which it existed in practice and the implications of hoplite ideology for other types of warrior. This study also considers various methods of training and proliferation of state ideology, both formal modes of training such as the Spartan agoge and also informal modes of training such as hunting. Modern sociological and psychological evidence regarding military training and the fostering of aggression are also considered. The important role of religious beliefs and mythology are examined with both the role of gods in battle (for example, in pre-battle sacrifices) and also the depiction of gods and heroes as military figures are considered as potential motivating factors. The potential for inter-state rivalries as played out during Panhellenic festivals and as displayed in Panhellenic sanctuaries is also explored as a motivating factor for individuals and for the state as a whole.

The aim of this thesis is to examine the evidence for the performance of a cult of the dead in LH III Greece with emphasis placed mainly on the material evidence from the typical Mycenaean tombs in the central areas of the Mycenaean dominion, viz. the Argolid, Korinthia, Attica, Boeotia and Euboea during the acme of Mycenaean civilization, that is the LH IIIA-B period. Chapter I presents the rationale and the aim of the thesis as well as the regional and chronological boundaries. Chapter II covers the theoretical background of the thesis by investigating general questions on ritual recognition in the archaeological record and on definitions of ancestor worship. A detailed presentation of the previous arguments on the Mycenaean cult of the dead is given and the 'artificial landscapes' of LH IIIB Mycenae are discussed with focus on Grave Circle A. New approaches and perspectives are proposed, namely a new definition of the term `cult of the dead' and a series of indicators of cultic activity to be applied in the study of the Mycenaean ancestor worship. Chapter III deals with funerary art and the artistic expression of Mycenaean eschatological beliefs. The Mycenaean belief in the survival of the soul and the journey of the dead to the Underworld, and the multiple function of terracotta figurines in LH III funerary agenda are assessed with this framework. The possibility of new perspectives and approaches via detailed contextual exploration of Mycenaean symbolic systems is discussed in the final part of this chapter. Chapter IV combines three broad issues, namely the location of cemeteries, tomb design and eschatological symbolism. Special reference is made to the connection between cemeteries and the religious significance of water and the rites of passage. The metaphysical symbolism of the tripartite plan of the typical Mycenaean tombs is also examined. Chapter V investigates the ritual act of attributing sacred honours and offerings to the ancestors by drawing parallels from contemporary religious observances. The first part deals with the significance of libation and sacrifice in honour of the dead. The second part explores the religious significance of secondary burial treatment and suggests that the custom signaled the starting point in Mycenaean ancestor worship. The existence of places especially designed for the performance of a cult of the dead is investigated with emphasis placed on the `Cenotaph' at Dendra. The objective of Chapter VI, which presents the conclusions of the thesis, is to place the evidence for the performance of a Mycenaean cult of the dead into a `historical' narrative and to investigate the reasons behind the establishment and practice of this cult.

This thesis examines the micro-/macrocosm model in Archaic and Classical Greek thought. The main focus of the thesis centres on medical and philosophical theories and these are examined against the background of popular beliefs and mythology. The evidence investigated will be drawn from the Hippocratic and Aristotelian Corpus. The original formation of mankind is studied in relation to the idea that mankind is a product of the natural environment and so parallels the universe in its form and processes. Owing to this, the body reacts in the same way as the natural environment does to change and the overall nature of the natural environment extends to the nature of the body and its diseases. The fact that the body changes with the weather in this way meant that physicians could predict disease patterns through predicting the weather.

This thesis analyses the Holocaust in occupied Greece and its effects on Greek political life. It is undertaken through a socio-political and historical interpretation of texts and archival sources. It draws especially from the political philosophy of Hannah Arendt and her understanding of totalitarianism, nationalism, statelessness and ‘evil’. I aim to understand the changed position of Jews in Greek society from the fall of the empires, through the emergence of nation-states, to the period of deportations and extermination. I do so to comprehend the rise of nationalism in Greece. I examine a mix of primary and secondary materials – histories, memoirs and unpublished archives of Nazi rule – to cast light on the anti-Semitic laws implemented in Greece during the Nazi occupation and on the relationship of the Holocaust to the political regime that emerged in Greece after the war. I place particular emphasis on Jewish participation in the Greek Resistance, the political conflicts that emerged within the larger resistance movement, and the sensitive issue of collaboration, which was to shape much of the political agenda in Greece after the war. Through the use of diplomatic papers and Foreign Office files, I show how democratic anti-Nazi resistance movements were suppressed after the war by fascist forces and through the reluctance of the Greek bourgeois politicians and British officials to intervene. The politics of collaboration, underplayed in the current literature, also casts light on why perpetrators of the Greek Holocaust generally escaped legal prosecution in Greece and why resistance fighters were prosecuted through the implementation of martial laws and emergency decrees. Finally this thesis explores the ties that bind repression of the memory of the Greek Holocaust, to the development in post-war Greece of nationalist values.

The aim of this thesis is to examine ritual action and identity formation in the funerary record of the South-Eastern Aegean during the Hellenistic period (late 4th – 1st centuries BC). Chapter 1 presents the aim, scope, originality, research context and methodology of the thesis. Chapter 2 provides the geographical background of the thesis along with the topographical features of the tombs and the cemeteries followed by a discussion on the deathscapes of the South-Eastern Aegean in Hellenistic times. Chapter 3 is a concise typological analysis of the tomb types in the islands and the mainland cities of the Rhodian peraea and Chapter 4 offers a contextual look into funerary and post-funerary ritual drawing from various types of evidence such as modes of disposal of the human body, monumental tomb architecture (tombs with funerary beds) and funerary monuments (cylindrical altars with decorations in relief) among others. In Chapter 5, I discuss several manifestations of individual and collective identity as inferred by the archaeological record, as far as this is possible, followed by a brief assessment of insularity and identity in the Hellenistic communities of the South-Eastern Aegean. Finally, chapter 6 offers a synopsised outline of the main themes explored in the thesis along with general and specific conclusions.