rome study flashcards

Rome's location

Fertile soil and strategic position in the Mediterranean.

Early peoples in Rome

Latins, Greeks, and Etruscans.

Plebeians

Common people—farmers, merchants, and artisans.

Patricians

Wealthy landowners who held most political power.

Tribunes

Elected representatives who protected plebeian rights.

Twelve Tables

Rome's written laws, publicly displayed to protect plebeians.

Republic

A government where citizens elect leaders.

Legion

A Roman military unit of 5,000 soldiers.

Hannibal

Carthaginian general who led the 2nd Punic War invasion of Italy.

Punic Wars

Three wars between Rome and Carthage for control of Mediterranean trade.

Collapse of the Roman Republic

Growing gap between rich and poor, land loss, and civil war.

Gracchus brothers

Tiberius and Gaius; tribunes who tried to help the poor but were murdered.

1st Triumvirate

Julius Caesar, Pompey, Crassus.

Caesar after defeating Pompey

Dictator for life.

Caesar's reforms

Expanded citizenship and created jobs for the poor.

Killer of Julius Caesar

Senators who feared his power.

2nd Triumvirate

Octavian, Mark Antony, Lepidus.

First emperor of Rome

Octavian (Augustus).

Pax Romana

200 years of peace and prosperity in the Roman Empire.

Support for trade across the empire

Roads and a common silver coin (the denarius).

Bread and circuses

Food and entertainment to keep the poor content.

Appeal of Christianity

It embraced all people, including the poor and powerless.

Birthplace of Jesus

Bethlehem.

Teachings of Jesus

Monotheism, love, mercy, and good deeds.

Apostles

The 12 disciples of Jesus.

Spread of Christianity

Apostle Paul.

Diaspora

The exile and scattering of Jews after rebellions.

Persecution of Christians

They refused to worship Roman gods and were used as scapegoats.

Emperor who legalized Christianity

Constantine.

Emperor who made Christianity official

Theodosius.

First Pope

Apostle Peter.

Decline of Rome's economy

Inflation, disrupted trade, and poor farmland.

Weakening of Rome's military

Soldiers loyal to generals; use of mercenaries.

Diocletian's reform

Divided it into Greek-speaking East and Latin-speaking West.

Constantine's capital move

Moved it to Byzantium, renamed Constantinople.

Invaders of the empire

Huns and Germanic tribes.

Fall of the Western Roman Empire

476 CE.

Bas-relief

A Roman style of sculpture that tells stories in raised images.

Preservation of Roman art in Pompeii

Volcanic ash from Mount Vesuvius.

Author of the Aeneid

Virgil.

Tacitus

A Roman historian known for accurate accounts.

Languages developed from Latin

French, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, Romanian.

Roman engineering innovations

Arches, domes, concrete, aqueducts.

Influence of Roman law

It became the basis for many modern legal systems.