What did the greek and the phoenicians colonists do with the native peoples

by Lindy0132

Both the greek and the phoenicians had many colonise around the mediterranean world but how did they get the land they wanted?

sender__

The phoenicians generally treated the natives respectful and tried to trade. Settlements were built to make trade easily. The phoenicians didnt have a very large land army, though they were strong at sea. This means the Phoenicians didnt really have the options to conquer the natives. As time passes, the native culture may look more like the Phoenician one, and the Phoenicians may expand their influence.

Instead of (most) Greeks, the Phoenicians generally sticked to trading, while the Greeks were fighting against the natives, and building colonies only to store the overpopulation of Greece.

The main differences between Greek and Phoenician colonisation were:

  • Greece had a land army, where Phoenicia rather paid the invaders off, or raised mercenaries. The last was very uncommon though. This meant Greece had the ability to conquer natives, but for Phoenicia it was more lucrative to just trade. This difference can be explained by the next difference, namely:

  • Greece had a large population of poor farmers, but Phoenicia consisted of smaller, richer city-states that imported food (King Hiram of Tyre received multiple letters from the Israelian king asking manpower or resources for olive oil and grain). This meant that it was cheaper to let the citizens work and pay a mercinary to fight for him. Even better was to pay the invaders off. The last difference explains why Phoenicians didnt feel the need to conquer.

-Greece had a overpopulation, and Greece wasnt fertile enough to feed those people. Basically, Greece was searching for more space for its citizens, and Phoenicia just imported food, and searched for lucrative trades. You can ask to trade, and after a while ask to build a small settlement, but you cant ask for a large amount of fertile land. Keeping in mind the low costs of soldiers, this is why Greeks tend to be more expanding.

English is not my native language, so sorry for my language! Feel free to ask any questions!

sender__

It wasnt only political disputes making colonies* sorry for bad writing... I know Carthage was a colony of the Phoenicians, but that doesnt automatically means she behaves the same