History unit 1

Romanization

• Who- non romans settling in the roman empire

• What: the adoption of roman culture by non romans

• When- began in the first century with the roman expansion and would continue as the empire grew

• Where- Provinces of the roman empire, but it was most necessary in places that were vastly different than the empire

• Why: It is important bc it distinguished their influence and allowed roman culture to endure and spread.

Pax Romana

• Who: The roman empire

• What: a time of peace and prosperity for the empire and when it extended to its greatest extent

• when : 69-180 CE

• Where: Roman empire

Gracchi

• Who: Tiberius and Gaius Grucchus

• What: In 133 bce Tiberius Gracchus proposed to close the gap between rich and poor by redistributing property amassed by plantation owners. He was murdered and most senators opposed his reforms. 10 years later his brother Gaius was elected and renewed his brothers proposals and proposed to extend full roman citizenship to the allied states of italy 

• When: 133-121 bce

• Where: Rome

• Why: the attempted reforms of the gracchi exposed the corruption of the republic's constitution and their popularity influenced military commanders to try to gain power

Res publica

• Who: the romans 

• What: the romans name for their political and legal system, meaning “public thing”

• When:  the early republic 

• Why: The res publica represented roman culture and served as a symbol of roman identity in the beginning of the republic and would continue to embody the ideas of legal system

5 good emperors

• Who: Nerva (96–98 C.E.), Trajan (98–117 C.E.), Hadrian (117–138 C.E.), Antoninus Pius (138–161 C.E.), and Marcus Aurelius (161–180 C.E.)

• What: 5 emperors who ruled in succession at the height of the augstan system, they were capable rulers and adopted worthy successors. 

• When 96-180 CE

• Where: Roman empire

• Why: Under the rule of the 5 good emperors, the empire was expanded, public welfare was increased, and they generally brought peace and prosperity to the empire during the pax romana

Augustus Octavian Caesar

• Where: roman republic, turned empire

• When: 31 BC – 14 AD 

• What: Augustus’s rise to power marked the end of the republic and the beginning of the empire with him as the single emperor. He also established the principate and implemented reforms of public services and instituted a new system of coinage.

• Why: Augustus’s rule gained vast amounts of territory for rome and the system of government he had devised would allow the roman empire to enjoy almost two centuries of peace and prosperity known as the pax romana

punic wars

• What: 3 periods of warfare between rome and carthage for key territories im the mediterranean that lasted well over a century

• When 264 bc- 146 bc

• Why: romes victory over carthage led to the creation of new colonial provinces in the western mediterranean. The wealth and resources from these territories would help boost rome's economy and military strength, allowing it to expand even further.

Plebs

• Who: 98% of roman society some were wealthy but most were poor or farmers

• When: within a generation of the establishment of the republic the plebs began to challenge the government . centuries long battle, struggle of the orders

• what : The plebeians rebelled in the early 5th century and refused to join the military defense which resulted in them being able to elect their own officers and resulted in the codification of the law of the twelve tables

• Why: the plebians rebellions led to a great amount of change and helped limit the control of aristocratic families.

Julius Caesar

• Who: a prominent general  and politician who come to be Dictator in 46 BCE  and bring wealth and resources to rome 

• What: Caesars rule brought changes such as a new calendar, reforms that had a lasting impact on the society, and his death would lead to augustus taking rule

Roman Law

• What: the romans standardized laws for common legal issues and these laws would be incredibly durable and influential

  • 3 branches: civil, natural, and the law of nations 

    • The law of nations extended to all people of the world regardless of their ethnicity and is the precursor of international law.

  • Would spread throughout the mediterranean

pompeii

• In 79 ce mount vesuvius erupted and destroyed pompeii

• This eruption preserved many aspects of daily life for future historians to study

• Pompeii had been a powerful adversary of the roman empire and the destruction of it ended any possible of them having more conflicts

• It is likely that they may have thought this was the gods punishing htme

• Killed thousands which would have affected the economy

Cicero

• When 106-43 bce

• What: most influential of ethical teachers in the late republic of rome

• Why: advanced latins use and defended republican values and had conflicts with caesar who he viewed as a threat to the republic

Principate

• What: term for centuries of autocratic rule by the successors of augustus such as Nerva Trajan and Hadrian

• When: began around 27 bce and then continued through the first and second century

• Why: this from of rule had great success and allowed the pax romana to occur and many qualified emperors ruled under it

Virgil

• Who: poet commissioned by augustus to tell the story of rome's rise to glory

  • Believed that the romans were divinely chosen to colonize the world

Jesus

• Who: a jew who was born around 4bce and died in 30 ce, believed himself to be messiah of jewish for the jews

• What: founded christianity, his followers believed he was a messiah and the son of god 

• Christianity would go on to become the most influential religion in the empire

Christianity

• What: a religion started by the followers of Jesus. Originally thought to be fulfillment of jewish prophecy but by the end of the first century it would branch off into its own religion. 

• Why: christianity was very different from the traditional pagan beliefs of the Romans, but it would go on to be the most influential religion after it was favored by emperor constantine. Its prominence is partly blamed for the decline of the empire by those in rome since the empire still suffered after it was accepted.

Diocletian

• The largest persecution of christians was during his reign in 303-313

  • Stripped the rights of those who did not show loyalty to the roman gods

  • Wanted to promote unity was to suppress any group that was subversive 

• Divided the empire into two parts and it implemented the tetraarchy, or the rule of four. 

  • Would lead to many civil wars and power struggles due to tension among co emperors

  • Would influence the creation of byzantine 

Constantine

• Gained control of the west after diocletian retired. 

  • Converted to christianity in 312 because he felt his gods were not powerful enough which influenced it to become a prestigious religion and widely accepted. He also issued the edict of milan and granted freedom of worship to roman citizens

Heresy

• What: a word that became the churches term for false beliefs that are punished by damnation

• Why: arianism was condemned as heresy as they did not believe in the holy trinity. Represented christianity's new emphasis on orthodoxy after it became a prominent religion, since christians had to prove their beliefs could withstand intense scrutiny. Wanted to put rest to any doctrinal disputes

Goths and Alaric

• Who:  a tribal people who became refugees of the roman state, until they were forced to sell their children into slavery and they revolted

• Alaric a young leader of the goths sieged and sacked  rome which played a part in the decline in rome

ambrose

When: 340-397

• Aristocrat who was regarded as a father of the church who helped define the relationship between the sacred authority of the church and the secular authority of rulers

  • Ambrose argued that the goal of human conduct should be reverence for God, not social or political advancement

paul of tarsus

• One of the disciples of jesus who was active during the 50’s and 60s ce, his letters specifically mention jesus

• Devoted his life to spreading the christian faith throughout the eastern roman empire, despite never having met jesus. He also founded the first christian church and declared that jewish law was now irrelevant to the christian faith which was not popular among the other disciples

Second temple judaism

• A period in judaism during the lifetime of jesus

• References the reconstruction of the temple at  Jerusalem in the 6th century bce

  • Diversity of religious practice and competion among jews during this period

• Important bc jews were hoping for a messiah at this time and jesus’s teachnigs may have been influences by the essences and pharisaic during this time

tetrarchy

• a “rule of four,” with each man governing a quarter of the empire, split the empire into 2

• This system responded to the challenges of imperial administration and allowed peaceful transfer of power

• Established during diocletians rule 

• Important bc the roman empire would later come to be seen as the east and the west instead of one whole unit

Edict of Milan

• What: a document guaranteeing religious freedom to all of romes citizens

• It is important because it cemented chritianitys new status as a preferred religion due to constantines conversion

Council of Nicaea

• What: a meeting of the christian community that condemned arianisim and resolved arguments over the books to be included in the bible

• Who: christian representatives

• Where: nicaea

• Why: it was one of the most influential councils in christian history and defined what christians should believe

5th century migrations

• The new capital at Constantinople shifted the focus of imperial administration to the eastern territories of the Roman Empire while mass migrations of frontier peoples and barbarians created new settlements within the western half of the empire.

  • The goths were notable refugees who would eventually invade the empire 

  • the huns would also invade

    • Both of these invasions contributed to decline of empire

Augustine of Hippo

• Often considered the greatest of all of christianity founders and may be the most important christian thinker of all time

• His theology influences the roman church and later protestantism

3rd century crisis

Invasions on the Borders come from two directions at almost two ends of the Empire.  The first is pressure from the Sassanids in Persia in the far east; the second is waves of migration and raids by Germanic tribes in the west and the north

• As a result of these invasions citizens in rome have to pay much higher taxes and the economy struggled and inflation went off

• The empire was also hit with waves of plague and there was a shortage fo food bc it was dependent on food from the east which was engaged in warfare

• All of this resulted in the decline of the empire and its split into two halves under diocletian

neoplatonism

• A philosophy that drew on aspects of plato’s thought founded by plotinus in the 3rd century

• Believed in one god and human beings being composed of part of god

  • liberate the soul from its bondage through fasting and other forms of self-denial.

  • Human beings are thus composed of matter (bodies) and emanations of the divine (souls)

• May christian theologians were influenced by it 

• Many romans found their way to christianity through it

arianism

• Arianism believed that the holy trinity was not real and that jesus was not equal to god 

  • Condemned as heresy but was appealing to pagans and romans who were used to patriarchal norms

• Condemned at the council of nicaea

Foederati

• Non romans who the roman empire entered into alliances with for military purposes

  • In frontier regions entire barbarian tribes became this 

  • Tied them more closely to romans and their service contributed to the stability and defense of the empire

Jerome

• One of the church fatheres

  • translator of the Scriptures from Greek and Hebrew into the Latin Vulgate.  This would be the single, authoritative version of the Christian Bible in western Christianity until the sixteenth century.

  • also argued that christians could study non christian texts and he promoted monasteries

  • Was also misogynistic  

Benedict of Nursia

Founded a monastery where he urged the monks to adopt simple rules and educated them in the teachings of augustine 

• Benedictine monasteries then became engines for the transmission of knowledge and greek and latin texts 

• Developed codex’s

Justinian

• ustinian ruled in the mid 6th century and attempted to reunite the two halves of the empire to restore it. His armies invaded the Vandal, Ostrogothic, and Visigothic kingdoms in turn, and, in a series of wars that lasted over twenty years, he reconquered much of the Mediterranean lands of the West

• Justinian translated the laws into latin which made theme much aerie to transmit to the west and adopted greek which made the empire more eastern

• Despite his best efforts his conquests are thought to have done more harm than good as the wars drained the economy, destroyed public works, and raised taxes incredibly high on citizens of rome. However his code of laws were very influential 

Byzantium

• The eastern half of the roman empire which was started in the year 395 when theodosius divided the empire among his sons

• Had greek culture, roman government, and christian religion in early byzantium

• Much wealthier and more urban than the west so emperor remained here

• Made it easier to govern since the empire was divided, but it weakened its foundations

Hagia Sophia

• A church with impressive architecture and art built in constantinople under justinian

• Represents jusitinans desire to revive the glory of ancient rome and linked imperial glory and christianity

5 pillars of islam

• Seen as the only way to achieve salvation god will judge them soon and those that are righteous get eternal life and those that arent will suffer eternally

• Shahada: there is no god but god

  • God was believed to be god of all people not just the islamic people

• Ritual prayer:

  • Inspired creation of towers and mosques to alert people to pray

• Zakat: alms tax

  • Show compassion to the less fortunate, but it was up to the person how much to give

• Fasting in ramadan

  • Submission to god and willingness to reject worldy pleasures

• Hajj pilgrimage to mecca

Charlemagne

The emperor of western europe who managed to build one of the greatest and most powerful empire since that of the romans. His rule expanded christianity throughout europe, influenced structures of power, and attempted to centralize western europe for the first time in centuries. His crowning of the emperor of the roman empire in 800 also solidified the idea that the empire was now two separate entities: the east and the west.

carolingean renissance

• A cultural and intellectual flowing that took place during charlemagnes rule in the late 8th and early ninth century in the kingdom of the franks

• Collected and copied ancient texts, including the latin bible and developed a new style of handwriting and punctuation 

• The carolingians encouraged scholarship and encouraged patronage of learning and the arts

islamicate world

• The regions influenced by the social, political, and political norms associated with islam

• These territories were conquered and governed by muslims, but were home to many ethnic and religous groups

• Traders, officials, and scholars could readily move throughout these Islamic territories, such that the period from the later eighth to the eleventh century has been described as a Pax Islamica, that is, an Islamic Peace

iconoclasm

• In the islamic faith drawing god is sacrilegious because it deviates from the truth of god

• This created conflict betweens islamic people and christians who expressed devotion through images as aids to worship

• Some areas under islamic rule would ban public display of religous images and even destroyed many artworks in the eastern roman empire

• This also widened the religious differences between the east and west since byzantium's dependence on islamic people led to following iconoclasm

muhammed

god's prophet and giver of the koran during the beginning of the 7th century

,started islam

Muhammads lack of a male heir would cause significant divisions in islam,

born in mecca where muslims have to pilgrimage to

umayyad

• A wealthy clan that resisted muhammeds authority

• From 661-750 the umayyad caliphate ruled the islamic world

• The muslims that support the umayyad family became the sunnis and they are divided against the shiites

• conquered significant parts of the byzantine empire but it functioned as a roman successor state with roman power structures and greek language

monasticism

• Monasteries functioned as institution of higher learning, manufacturer and preservers of books and sources of wealth for elite families , and important centers of trade and governance 

• Monasticism began around the 4th century but would spread and grow throughout the rule of the empire even played a part in unifying the west during charlemagne's rule several centuries later 

• Played key roles in economic development of communities which contributed to the spread of christianity

vikings

• Scandinavian traders who began raiding and plundering after the collapse of the carolingian empire, became an organized army of thousands

• Viking populations assimilated into the cultural and poltical world of nw europe

• Their raiding caused massed destruction and disorder in the frankish kingdom but they also fueled the economy in western europe since they brought large quantities of silver

justinians code

• Two part index of all roman laws which he had translated into latin in the 6th century

• Made laws more accessible to the west but was less accessible to those in byzantine who spoke greek

•  Influences legal principles throughout europe and was distributed by the church

Orthodoxy vs orthodoxy

• Orthodoxy: refers to the eastern orthodox church

• orthodoxy: greek for correct teaching refers to a set of correct opions

  • Emphasis on strict observance of the traditional and conservative practices of  the eastern orthodox church and use of greek language in worship

Quran

• The islamic holy scripture, contains the prophecies revealed to muhammad  in the 7th century

  • Calls for submission to allah, the universal god and the following of the five pillars

Kingdom of the franks

• Emerged during the 5th and 6th century

• Introduced agricultural innovations that increased food supply

• Succeeded in a establishing a single dynasty from which leaders would be drawn from for the next 250 years, the merovingians

  • Would be taken over by pepin, the father of charlemagne

• Under charlemagne the empire would take over most of the prior western roman empire

Gregory the great

• Pope of rome that sought to extend the roman imperial religion to the world outside of the romanized mediterranean 

• Emphasis the necessity of penance for the forgiveness of sins and introduced the concept of purgatory instead of just eternal damnation

• Also played a role in making christians view of jews more negative and emphasizing their role in christs crucifixion and their denial of his divinity

Caliphate

• A state or territory under islamic rule

• The umayyads and the abbasid caliphate would have significant impact on the byzantine empire and on the religion of islam