How did Greece's geography impact social, political, and economic patterns?

The country now called Greece consists of an arid, mountainous section of the mainland
of South-Eastern Europe, surrounded by a great many islands. Most of them are small, but one in
particular, Crete, is both large and of great historical significance.

The
mountains in the center of Greece had several effects on its development. They prevented Ancient
Greece from ever becoming fully unified, despite the efforts of Mycenaean, Athenian, Spartan,
and Macedonian rulers to build empires. They also prevented many Greeks from living far inland,
ensuring that the Greek city states were close to the sea and that their prosperity and power
depended primarily on their navies.

Finally, the relatively poor soil and
scarce resources of Greece, together with the lack of unity among the states, meant that that
Greek civilizations never became spectacularly wealthy, like Persia, Lydia, and later Rome. When
we think of Greek civilization, we tend to consider Athens first, and the fame of Athens rests
not...