Roman Empire Vocabulary

Aqueduct

Raised tunnels used to carry water from the mountains to the city

Atilla the Hun

The leader of the Hun Empire who invaded the Roman Empire

Byzantine Empire

The Eastern Empire split of the Roman Empire

Caesar Octavian Augustus

Julius Caesar’s adopted son who became the next emperor after Caesar’s death

Checks and Balances

A method of balancing power so that no one group becomes to powerful

Consuls

The title of the 2 upper-class citizens elected from the magistrates

Constantine

The first Christian emperor of Rome

Dictator

A ruler during the Roman Empire. This person had total power over the Roman Empire

Gladiator

A slave or captive who was forced to fight to the death against another person or wild animal in a public arena

Julius Caesar

A great general who fought for the plebeian’s rights and overthrew the republic

Magistrates

Upper-class who were elected into power by the people

Patricians

Romes’s upper-class citizens who ran the government

Pax Romana

The Roman Golden Age during the first 200 years of the Roman Empire

Plebeians

Rome’s lower class who rebelled when they were not being listened to

Punic Wars

A series of wars between Rome and Carthage

Republic

A style of government run by elected leaders chosen by people to represent their views

Roman Assembly

A group that protected the rights of the plebians

Roman Empire

A time in Rome when the government was ruled by a dictator (one person)

Roman Senate

A group of upper-class Romans that advised the leaders

Tiber River

The physical feature where Rome was built

Veto

The act of stopping a law from being passed when one group wanted it to and another doesn’t