ROME

The Land and Peoples of ItalyRome’s central location and geographic features made it a desirable location from which to expand The location of Rome was ideal for settlement,

and provided a central position in Italy from which to expandAn Indo-European people known as the Latins were living in the hills of Rome from about 1500 to 1000 B.C. oThey were herders and farmers oSpoke LatinoThe Greeks and the Etruscans heavily

influenced the development of Rome

Greeks came to Italy in large numbers during the age of Greek colonizationoThe Greeks occupied Sicily and influenced

Rome’s cultural and artistic systems It was the Etruscans who influenced the Rome

the mostoBy 650 B.C., they controlled the city and most

of Latium

The Roman RepublicThe Romans were practical and skillful in politics and military matters A new era in Roman history occurred in 509

B.C. when the last Etruscan king was overthrown and a republic was established

By 264 B.C., Rome had conquered virtually all of Italy

The Roman historian Livy provided stories that glorified the virtues of past Romans

Rome was a successful empire because:oRomans were good diplomatsoThey were smart about extending citizenship

rightsoGave conquered states the autonomy to run

their own affairsoRomans were excellent at military operations• They were brilliant strategists • Built roads throughout the empire to move armies and supplies

oRomans created practical legal and political institutions

Roman Senate

Roman Road

Patricians and plebeians made up Roman societyo Men in both groups were citizens and could vote• However only patricians could be elected to public

officeo Patricians and plebeians struggled over social and

political equality

The Roman Senate was made up of 300 patricians who were elected for lifeoThe Roman Senate selected the consuls and

praetors and passed lawsoTwo consuls, chosen every year, ran the

government and led the army into waroA praetor was in charge of civil law

By 287 B.C., a law making all Roman males equal citizens was passed

Rome’s first attempt at a legal system was the Twelve Tables adopted in 450 B.C. oThis code of laws proved to be inadequate

for the needs of the Roman societyoRomans then established standards of

justice that applied to all Roman citizensoThe principles of this legal system provide

the basis of our current legal system

Roman ExpansionAfter their conquest of Italy, the Romans faced the state of Carthage In 264 B.C., the First Punic War began

between Rome and CarthageoA Phoenician colony in North Africa that had

grown wealthy from tradeoRome was victorious and claimed the island

of Sicily

In 216 B.C., the Carthaginian general Hannibal crossed the Alps with his army of 46,000 men and 37 battle elephants to attack RomeoThis was the beginning of the Second Punic

Waro In 206 B.C., the Romans pushed the

Carthaginian forces out of SpainoAt the Battle of Zama in 202 B.C., Rome

defeated Hannibal, and Spain became a Roman province

In 146 B.C., the Third Punic War was fought. oThe Romans destroyed Carthage and became

the dominant power in the Mediterranean world. 

The End of the Roman RepublicPolitical and social unrest led to civil wars, ending the Republic

By the second century B.C., The Senate was in control of foreign and domestic policy of Rome, including financial affairs

A small group of landed aristocrats began to gain more power and soon brought instability to the Roman RepublicoSmall farmers were forced off their landsoThey moved to the city where they created a

large class of pooro Large landed estates, latifundia, were

created by the rich

oTiberius Gracchus tried to institute land reforms but were murdered by a group of rich senators

A change in the recruitment of soldiers also created problemsoSoldiers seeking land swore allegiance to the

general, not the state • Giving military generals great power• Generals commanded legions of soldiersA legion consisted of 5,000 troops

In 60 B.C., the First Triumvirate was formed to run the governmentoTriumvirate is a government by three people

with equal poweroThe leaders of the triumvirate were Crassus,

Pompey, and Julius Caesar

Julius Caesar illegally crossed the Rubicon River with his army o causing a civil war in which he defeated PompeyoHe went into Rome because he felt Rome

needed to be saved from the instability

In 45 B.C., Julius Caesar was made dictator and controlled RomeoDictator is an absolute ruleroCaesar’s land reform policies were

unpopular with the rich oMembers of the senate thought he wanted

to be a kingoHe was assassinated by a group of senators

in 44 B.C.oRome plunged into civil war again

The Second Triumvirate was composed of Octavian, Antony, and LepidusoOctavian and Antony

soon came into conflict• Antony joined forces with Cleopatra of Egypt• After defeat, they committed suicide

Octavian soon became the sole ruler of the Roman Empire

 

The Beginning of the Roman EmpireOctavian, titled Caesar Augustus, created a new order that began the Roman Empire  In 27 B.C., Octavian gave the Senate some

power but became the first emperor of Rome The Senate gave the Octavian the title of

Augustus, meaning the revered one The Senate also gave Augustus the title of

imperatoro Imperator means commander in chief

Augustus’ new political system allowed the emperor to select his successoroThe next four emperors came from his family oThey became more powerful and corrupt

Nero was a ruthless ruleroHe blamed the burning of Rome on the

ChristiansoHe killed his own mother and also committed

suicideoHis death in 69 B.C. caused a civil war to break

out

Following the civil war, emperors were more tolerant oThe time period known as the Pax Romana

began• Period of peace and prosperity

oThe building of roads and public works was undertaken to help the empire

oThe Roman Empire expanded to include Dacia, Mesopotamia, and the Sinai Peninsula

oTrajan, one of the good emperors, strengthened his defenses along the Rhine and Danube Rivers in Europe

oHadrian built a wall in England to defend against the Scots

Hadrian’s Wall

The empire at its height was one of the greatest the world has ever known

Latin was the language of the western empire, whereas Greek was spoken in the east

Roman culture spread through the empire and mixed with the existing Greek culture resulting in a Greco-Roman civilization

Roman Arts and Literature The Romans spread Greco-Roman arts and culture throughout

the empire Art and Architecture The Romans borrowed heavily from Greek

styles of art and architectureoGreek art and sculptures were highly prized

by RomansoUnlike Greeks, Roman art depicted realistic

forms

The Romans constructed roads, bridges, and aqueducts throughout the empire

They used curved forms: arches, vaults, and domes

They used a new and better concrete on a massive scale

Built 50,000 miles of roads Built dozens of aqueducts that brought water

to the city of over one million people

The Pantheon

Roman Aqueduct

The Coliseum

The Age of Augustus is known as the golden age of Latin Literature

Virgil wrote of the splendor of RomeoHis masterpiece was the Aeneid• Aeneas was the ideal Roman whose virtues are duty, piety and faithfulness• Rome’s gift was the art of ruling

Horace wrote Satires about the Roman peopleo Laughs at the weakness of humans

Livy wrote about the history of Rome, although his accuracy is often questionedoThe Early History of Rome• 142 books that told stories about people and their character

Life in Ancient RomeCity life in ancient Rome had problems similar to life today Family LifeoRoman households were headed by the

paterfamilias—the dominant maleoCould sell his children into slavery or have

them put to deathoAbsolute authority over wifeoOver time this authority over the family

declined

oBoys and girls were educated in Roman society

oGreek slaves were often teachers for rich Romans

oUpper-class girls were often sent to primary schools for their education

oAt the age of 12 to 14 boys entered secondary school while girls entered into marriage

oWomen had considerable freedom and independence• They could not enter politics• They could own and sell property, attend theatre and races, and socialize•Women were not segregated from males•Marriage meant for life but divorce was possible for both male and

SlavesoSlavery was common in the ancient world, and

the Romans depended heavily on slave labor for household duties and the building of public works

oMost people owned slaves and many were looked upon as part of the family household

oRoman conquest brought about a change in the use of slaves• Greek slaves were used as tutors, musicians, doctors, and artists

oSome slaves were used for hard labor on farms and construction projects like roads and buildings

oThese slaves were treated harshly

o Spartacus was a gladiator who led a slave revolt in 73 B.C.• Involved 70,000 slaves• Defeated several Roman armies• When finally captured, Spartacus and 6,000

followers were nailed to crosses lining the streets entering Rome

Living ConditionsoRome was the cultural center of the Roman

EmpireoThe large public buildings and magnificent

architecture of the city was unequaled anywhere else in the empire• The place to be if you wanted to become somebody

oVery noisy and busy• No carts or wagons allowed in streets during the day because of congestion

oA gap existed between the rich and the poor. • The wealthy lived in comfortable villas• the poor lived in apartment complexes called insulaeFire was very much a threat in the insulaeRooms often very crowded because of so many people living in them due to the high cost of rent

People often spent much of the time, even at night, outside

Conditions were not so great for the poor

Starting with Augustus, emperors provided the poor with grain for bread

The emperor provided the entertainment for the cityo Horse and chariot races, theater

performances, and gladiator fightso This was done to keep many poor

preoccupied and their minds off of their terrible living conditions

Religion in the Roman EmpirePrior to Christianity, Roman religion involved the worship of a

number of gods and goddesses and the belief that Rome had earned the favor of the gods

Although tolerant of other religions, the official religion of the Romans involved the worship of numerous gods and goddessesoThey were not tolerant if other religions

threatened public order or moralsoRituals guaranteed peace and prosperity

Rome controlled the Jewish state of Judaea under the direction of an official called a procuratoroThe head Roman official of a province

There was unrest in Judea among the Jews

Four different groups of Jews had varying opinions on how to deal with Roman ruleoThe Sadducees favored cooperation with the

RomeoThe Pharisees believed observance of their

religious laws would protect them from Roman influence

oThe Essenes waited for God to save Israel from oppression

oThe Zealots called for the violent overthrow of Roman Control

A Jewish revolt was ended in A.D.70, and the Jewish temple in Jerusalem was destroyed

The Rise of Christianity Although Christians were initially persecuted, Christianity grew in

importance and spread throughout the Roman Empire Jesus was a Jewish teacher who traveled and

taught in Judaea and Galilee Despite his adherence to the Law, Jesus’

primary emphasis was on the transformation of the inner person

Jesus taught ethical concepts such as humility, charity, and love towards one another

Jesus’ preaching led some to believe he would lead a revolt against Rome

After Jesus’ death, apostles such as Simon Peter and Paul spread the message of Jesus to Jews and GentilesoPaul founded Christian communities all along

the shores of the Aegean Sea and Asia Minor The teachings of Jesus were passed on orally

and, eventually, written down by his followersoThese writings would become the core of the

New Testament

Even though the Romans tolerated other religions, Christianity was seen as dangerous to the stateoChristians refused to worship the state gods• This was seen as an act of treason punishable by death• Christians saw this as worshipping false gods and endangering their own salvation

Persecutions of the Christians started under the reign of Nero

Roman persecution of Christians strengthened Christianityo Fear of persecution meant only the most

committed would choose to follow the faithoThe structure of Christianity became more

organized• Bishops emerged to control church communities• Clergy, church leaders, had distinct functions separate from the laity, or church members

Why was Christianity able to attract so many followers?o It was a personal religion and offered

salvation to all. Doing so gave life meaning to many

oThe state-based religion was impersonal and existed for the good of Rome

o It was similar to existing religions offering immortality

oChristianity fulfilled the human need to belong

oChristianity proved attractive to all classes, especially the poor and powerless

The last great persecution of the Christians was under Emperor DiocletianoEven he recognized the strength of the

Christian religion In the fourth century A.D., the Roman emperor

Constantine became the first Christian emperoroHe issued the Edict of Milan which

proclaimed official tolerance of Christianity Theodosius the Great adopted Christianity as

the official religion of the Roman Empire

The DeclinePolitical upheavals, the plague, and the division of the empire

led to its decline After the last of the five “good emperors” died

in 180 A.D., a period of conflict, confusion, and civil wars followed

Roman rulers relied on military strength to control the large empire

From A.D. 235 to 284, the Roman throne was controlled by the person with the most military power

The throne was occupied by 22 different rulers during this 50 year periodoMost met a violent death

In the third century A.D., invasions, civil wars, and plague nearly caused an economic collapse of the empireo Plague created a shortage of labor and

soldierso Trade and farm production declinedoArmies were needed more and more but cost

a great deal of moneyoSassanid Persians moved into Roman territory

in the eastoGerman tribes poured into Gaul, Spain and

the Balkans

Two emperors—Diocletian and Constantine— attempted to save the empireo they changed the government structure,

economic and social systems, and implemented Christianity as the new state religion

Diocletian ruled from 284 to 305 and split the empire into four regionsoEnlarged the armyoCreated more civil service jobsoCreated price and job freezes

Constantine ruled from 306 to 337 and created a new capital city in the eastoConstantinople was built on the site of the

former Greek city of Byzantium on the shores of the Bosporus

oContinued policies of Diocletian

Spending large amounts of money to save the empire hurt the Roman economy and inflation appeared

The FallThe migration of Germanic tribes helped bring an end to the Roman

Empire To survive hard times, the Roman Empire was

divided into the Western Roman Empire and the Eastern Roman EmpireoWestern capital remained RomeoEastern capital was Constantinople

The Huns moved into Eastern Europe and pushed the Germanic Visigoths west across the Danube RiveroThe Visigoths were initially Roman allies but

revoltedoThey sacked the Roman capital in A.D. 410

The Vandals poured into Spain and North Africao They captured Rome in A.D. 455

In A.D. 476, the western emperor Romulus Augustulus was deposed by the Germanic armyoThis marks the end of the Western Roman

EmpireoThe Eastern Roman Empire remained• It became known as the Byzantine Empire

A.D. 476 is considered the end of the Roman Empire

There are many theories to propose the fall of the Roman EmpireoThe rise of Christianity weakened Roman

military virtueso Italian values decreased as the non-Italian

population increasedo Lead poisoning through lead cups and pipes

caused a decline in the populationoPlague weakened the Roman populationoSlavery led to a decline to technologyoRome could not create a workable political

system