Latin Midterm - Culture

aedile

magistrate in charge of games, markets or buildings; These senators were in charge of general administration

ambitiō

the act of going around and canvassing for votes

beneficium

official kindness; benefit

collēgia

The 4 main groups of rank in the senate were called...

colōnia

a colony or municipality under Roman jurisdiction

consuls / consulēs

The two highest ranking elected officials in the Senate

decuriō / decuriōnes

an assembly of 80

bribery

This devious practice was common in swaying votes

panem et circenses

"Bread & circuses": what the satirist poet Juvenal said that people only care about

praetor / praetōres

these senators were in charge of judicial administration

quaestors / quaestōres

these senators were treasury officials; this was a junior post

votum or suffragium

vote

cursus honōrum

course of offices: the steps of political offices for Roman senator. the sequence or course of elected offices in the senate (from quaestor, to aedile, to praetor, to consul)

How often were elections held?

annually

How long did members of the senate serve?

for life

toga candidata

the bleached white toga that candidates wore in public

graffiti

These often colorful writings on walls have preserved many election slogans

duovir / duovirī

The two highest ranking elected officials in the assembly of a colōnia

SPQR

abbreviation for Senātus Populusque Rōmānus \= The Senate and the Roman People. This was the motto of the Republic founded in 509 BCE

veto

how the consuls were able to reject the other's proposals. From Latin meaning "I forbid"

Cicero

famous Roman orator and politician; we have over 30 of his speeched that survive, and 30 books of letters

concilium plēbis

Latin for Council of the Common People, whose decrees in 287 BCE became binding

equitēs

The Knights, "horse" aristocracy....upper middle class; the equestrian order, wealthy non

fascēs

a bundle of rods tied around an axe signifying the king's right to inflict punishment; during the Republic, the name for the bundles of rods that the 12 attendants of the consuls carried...symbols of authority

nōbilēs

another word for the patrician class; high

novus homo

term for the first member of a family elected to the senate; Cicero was one

optimātēs

representatives/supporters of the nōbilēs; conservative senators

plēbiscīta

name for the decrees of the concilium plēbis

plēbs

plebeians, common people; Latin for the "common people"

populārēs

a group whose political philosophy supported the common people of Rome; representatives/supporters of the plēbs; the Gracchi brothers and Julius Caesar were famous examples

(decem) tribunī

10 of these tribunes were appointed to safeguard the plēbs

rēspūblica

the form of government that replaced the monarchy in 509 B.C.

510 B.C

year when the last king, Tarquinius Superbus, driven from Rome

Aventine Hill

The hill where Romulus and Remus held augury contest

Remus

The twin brother of Romulus who died

Curia

the ancient name for the Senate building

Temple of Vesta

the temple where the eternal flame is kept burning; famous ofr its priestesses who take a vow of chastity

pons Fabricius

famous old wooden bridge in Rome over the Tiber River

forum

city center square, where the following take place: banking, religion, law courts, marketplace

The famous number of hills at Rome; & also the number of Roman kings

VII or seven

Subura

a section of Rome off the Forum, known for its night life; reputed to be a dangerous area: the slums of Rome, squalid and filthy

On what river's banks was Rome built, ca. 40 miles from the sea?

Tiber River

Tarpeian rock; Temple of Jupiter Optimus Maximus; Arx; Tabularium

Things on Capitoline Hill

rōstra

the speakers' platform in the Forum, literally "beaks"...so called, because the front of enemy ships were attached to front of the speakers' platform

Campus Martius

Field of Mars

Circus Maximus

Large structure for races built in the valley between the Palatine & Aventine hills; allegedly could hold up to 250,000 spectators

Ostia

the main seaport of Rome at the mouth of the Tiber

Palatine Hill

wealthiest section: "palace"; the location of the cave, known as the Lupercal, where Romulus and Remus were found by the she

Pompey the Great

he built the first stone theater of Rome in 55 BC; ironically, where Julius Caesar was assassinated

Romulus

founder of Rome and the 1st king of Rome

Sacred Way

Via Sacra; route of Roman triumphal parades and ovationes

Athens

The Greek city that many young Roman men traveled to in order to study rhetoric; capitol of Greece today, famous for its acropolis and the Parthenon

Ptolemy

a great Egyptian astronomer

Horace

Roman poet who wrote Graecia capta ferum victōrem cēpit \= "Captured Greece captured her wild conqueror"; the boy Quintus in our textbook

Demosthenes

Ancient Greek politician and famous speech writer; foamous for his speeches against Philip the Great of Meacedonia called "The Philippics"; Dr. McGay wrote his dissertation on one of his speeches

Homer

epic poet, author of the Iliad and the Odyssey

Herodotus

"The Father of History" and, ironically, also called "The Father of Lies"

Aeneas

the Trojan leader who escaped from ruins of Troy; the hero of Vergil's epic poem The Aeneid

Pheidias & Praxiteles

both these Greeks were famous for architecture and sculpture

Archimedes

ancient Greek scientist who allegedly cried out "Eureka!" or "I figured it out!" ...lived in Syracuse, Sicily...known for his eponymous principle, his eponymous screw, hydrostatics, levers, infinitesimals, and Neuseis constructions

Vergil

epic poet, wrote the great Roman epic, The Aeneid

Thucydides

historian who wrote about the Peloponnesian Wars, between Athens and Sparta

Pythagoras

Greek mathematician. There is a theorem named after him

Anchises

the father of the mythical hero, Aeneas. He was struck by a lightning bolt of Jupiter (Zeus) for boasting about his love affair with Venus (Aphrodite), the mother of Aeneas

Aristotle

One of the most famous philosophers of all time; known for his writings on natural history and science; founded the Lyceum. A student of Plato.

Plato

Greek philosopher, famous for his dialogues featuring Socrates, his teacher. He founded the Academy. Aristotle was his pupil.

Euclid

Great mathematician, known for the field of geometry

The year that Rome established rule over all of Greece

197 BCE

What Aeschylus, Sophocles and Euripides wrote...

tragedies

Atticus

Cicero's Greek friend to whom he wrote many letters

concordia ōrdinum

"The harmony of the orders", i.e., the harmony of the senatorial, equestrian and plebeian classes

Catiline (Lucius Sergius Catilina)

This man lost the election in 63 BC and tried to kill Cicero and take over Rome. The plot was quashed.

The Battle of Carrhae

The battle in 53 BC where Crassus, the richest man in Rome and member of the so

C. Julius Caesar

The winner of the Battle of Pharsalus in 48 BCE, and member of the so

Pompey the Great (Cn. Pompeius Magnus)

The loser of the Battle of Pharsalus in 48 BCE; fled to Egypt, but was assassinated as he landed on shore near Alexandria

members of the so

called First Triumvirate in 60 BCE

Clodius

man who tried to prosecute Cicero for executing Catiline's fellow conspirators; later killed by the henchmen of Milo in 55 BCE

Clodius burned down Cicero's ...on the Palatine

aedēs Ciceronis \= Cicero's house

Where did Cicero study law, rhetoric and philosophy, before returning to Rome?

Athens

In 63 B.C.E. Cicero was elected to this highest position in the Senate

consulship in the year 63 BCE

Milo

His gangs killed Clodius in 55 BCE; he was defended by Cicero in the subsequent murder trial

Tullia

the daughter of Cicero who died in 45 BC; Cicero was most distraught at her passing

The full name of Cicero

Marcus Tullis Cicero

Arpinum

the town south of Rome where Marcus Tullius Cicero was born in 106 BCE

The number of books of letters that Cicero wrote

35 in all; many to his friend Atticus and to his brother Quintus Tullius Cicero

The office in the senate that Cicero was elected to early on in his career in 76 BCE

quaestor (quaestorship)

Verres

The ruthless and corrupt governor of Sicily whom Cicero famously prosecuted for extortion, and thus earned the reputation as being the best lawyer in Rome

pater patriae

"Father of the Country/Fatherland"...The title Cicero was given after dealing with attempted coup of Catiline

The year that a bloody riot broke out during a gladiatorial combat in Pompeii; Nero banned games at Pompeii for 10 years

CE 59 \= AD 59

bestiārius

this gladiator fought wild beasts

What did Romans prefer to see at the theater?

farcical slapstick comedies, acrobats & mimes

The reasons why magistrates (officials) put on the games...

to display their wealth and win votes of the populace

What animals did Pompey exhibit in the Circus Maximus in 55 BCE?

elephants

gladiātrix

a female gladiator

carcerēs

the starting gates for the chariots & horses; also the name for a prison

rētiārius

this gladiator fought bare

eggs & dolphins

these were used to display how many laps remained

mappa

a praetor dropped a white cloth or ... to start the race

ludus magnus

the name of the gladiatorial training school

mētae

the turning posts on the racetrack in the circus