OCR GCSE Ancient History key terms

An ancient Greek historian who wrote the History of the Peloponnesian War, including narratives of events and reconstructed speeches.

A tenth share; in the context of military dedications, a portion of the proceeds of victory offered to a deity.

A serious dramatic form in ancient Greece which often used mythical stories to explore suffering, conflict and difficult moral choices.

Writing a name or word from one script using the letters of another, rather than translating its meaning.

A serious offence against the community or its authority, such as betrayal of the state.

The place where a state's or organisation's money and other financial resources are kept.

The peace agreement that ended the First Punic War in 241 BC and imposed losses and obligations on Carthage.

One of the four geographical divisions into which Servius divided Rome, distinct from the wealth-based centuries.

An official representing the plebeians and protecting them against abuses by magistrates.

An official chosen to defend plebeian interests against abuses of authority.

A payment demanded by a ruling power from a subject people.

A warship powered by oars arranged in three levels, central to the naval strength of Athens and the Delian League.

One of the thirty groups of demes organised by Cleisthenes. Each new tribe combined one city, one coastal and one inland trittys.

A ceremonial celebration of Roman military victory; triumphal imagery includes chariots, trophies and victory monuments.

Honours recognising military success without granting the recipient a full triumphal procession.

The person who teaches and guides a pupil, often individually. Alexander had several tutors with different responsibilities.

The written collection of Roman laws produced by the decemvirs, covering matters including legal procedure, debt, property, family relationships and punishment.

A person who kills a tyrant. Harmodios and Aristogeiton were commemorated in Athens as the tyrannicides.

Rule in which a ruler exercises power arbitrarily, using fear or coercion and disregarding established restraints on authority.

A ruler who held power outside the established constitutional arrangements, rather than through ordinary democratic authority.

A final demand whose rejection brings a threatened consequence, such as war.

A history that brings together the histories of different peoples and places within a broad account.

The development and growth of towns and urban ways of life.

The extent to which evidence helps answer a particular historical question.

Priestesses of Vesta whom Numa supported with public funds and bound by a vow of chastity.

An experienced soldier who has served in earlier campaigns.

Long-serving soldiers with experience of military campaigns.