UNIT 7 - Ancient Rome
Rome began on the Italian Peninsula
Rivers from the Alps irrigated the peninsula
Three groups of people settled on the Italian peninsula. Greek colonies lived in the south and the Etruscans resided in the north
The Latins dominated central Italy
The origins of the Roman people begin with Aeneas, a Trojan who fled Troy following the Trojan War
Aeneas finally settled on the Italian peninsula after many adventures
The tale of Aeneas is told in The Aeneid by Virgil
Aeneas’s descendants, ½ Trojan and ½ Latin, became the first Romans. Therefore, he is known as the founder of the Roman people
Aeneas’s descendants ruled the Roman people with great success but after several generations, a Roman king was killed by his brother
The brother killed all of the king’s children except one daughter who was a virgin priestess
The daughter gave birth to twins named Romulus and Remus because a god impregnated her
To protect the twins the priestess placed them in a basket and set it afloat on the Tiber River
When the basket was washed ashore, a she-wolf kept the twins alive. They were then found and raised by a shepherd, Faustulus
The twins assumed control over the Roman people when they learned of their origins and decided to build a new capital city where their basket had washed ashore
The twins began to argue over conflicts and Romulus ended up killing Remus
Thus, the new city was given the name Rome and Romulus became its first king
The age of Roman kings: Romulus was Rome’s first king and the last king was Tarquin the Proud, an Etruscan
A group of Senators drives Tarquin the Proud from power
The leaders of the revolt pledged never to allow Rome to be governed by a king again and they established a republic
A republic is a system of government in which citizens elect their leaders and these leaders, in turn, make policy
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Upon overthrowing Tarquin the Proud, Rome created a republic. It consisted of the Senate, two consuls, eight praetors, and an Assembly
The Senate nominated the consuls and praetors. It also provided legislative advice to the assembly and this advice was always almost followed, which made the Senate the most powerful part of the republic
The Assembly passes laws and elects government officials
The consuls had the power to command the military and carry out the laws
The Roman Republic had a significant impact on the US Constitution
The separation of powers, checks, and balances have Roman origins as well
However, significant changes to the structure of the Roman Republic were made over time
These changes resulted in a redistribution of power from the Patricians to the Plebians
The Plebeians were not based on wealth but on birth
Patrician - The ruling class of Rome and everyone else was part of the Plebeians even if they were wealthier than a Patrician
Patricians agreed to write a law code known as the Twelve Tables when the Plebeians seceded
Plebeians were given the power to elect 10 Tribunes who could veto acts of the consuls or the Senate
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The expansion of Rome was one of the fastest and most successful campaigns of conquest in human history
This expansion was due, in large part, to the remarkable Roman military
The Roman army was well known for its hard work, ability to endure hardship, refusal to surrender, and discipline
Although the Romans conquered the Etruscans and Greeks the culture of the latter influenced that of the former
For example, the Romans incorporated Etruscan arches and Greek pillars into their architecture
The Romans also co-opted the Etruscan alphabet and the Greek use of metal coins for currency
Perhaps the greatest Etruscan influence, however, was the funeral tradition of blood sacrifice in honor of the deceased
This was the origin of the famous Roman gladiatorial contests
Perhaps the greatest Greek influence on the Romans was the cooptation of the former’s religion and mythology
The Romans largely adopted Greek religion wholesale, simply changing the names of the gods and goddesses
After gaining control of the Italian peninsula the Romans turned their attention to Carthage
Carthage was located in North Africa
The wars for supremacy between Rome and Carthage are known as the Punic Wars
The Roman military was most successful because of its size
It had many soldiers because of its inclusive/expansive view of citizenship
Hannibal’s famous invasion of Rome took place
Hannibal decided to invade Rome from the north which required crossing the Alps, a feat the Romans believed to be impossible
Hannibal’s arrival caught the Romans by complete surprise. He crushed the Roman army in battle after battle
Then, the Roman invasion of Carthage forced Hannibal to leave Italy and Carthage surrendered
The Romans were the unquestioned leader of the western Mediterranean world
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To make matters worse the Roman conquests resulted in an influx of enslaved prisoners of war
Large landowners began purchasing slaves to work their estates rather than hire paid laborers
Plebeian small farmers and Plebeian laborers were enraged by the fact that the Patricians were gaining greater wealth at their expense
Tribune Tiberius Gracchus proposed confiscating some land being used by the wealthy to redistribute to the landless poor
During an election rally, several senators attacked Tiberius and beat him to death before tossing his corpse into the Tiber river
Three new leaders emerged and joined forces and returned power to the Tribunes and Assembly
The alliance of Crassus, Pompey, and Julius Caesar became known as the First Triumvirate
Crassus was famous for suppressing a slave revolt led by Spartacus
Pompey had gained great fame by achieving great military victories in Anatolia and against the pirated in the Mediterranean Sea
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The first triumvirate orchestrated the appointment of Caesar to a military command in Gaul
By the war’s end, Caesar had added all of modern-day France to the Roman Republic
While Caesar was in Gaul, however, the Triumvirate began to crumble
Pompey was now aligning himself with the Senate and against Caesar. He feared Caesar was becoming too powerful and popular with both the army and the masses
Pompey and the Senate ordered Caesar to disband his army and return to Rome
Caesar crossed the Rubicon River with his army
A brutal civil war ensued, Caesar had driven Pompey and his supporters out of Rome
Pompey arrived in Egypt
Caesar sided with Cleopatra and the two had a love affair when Cleopatra gave birth to his son
Caesar had himself installed as dictator for life
A group of senators conspired to assassinate Caesar
Caesar was called to a meeting of the Senate but he was surrounded by the assassins and stabbed 23 times
He died at the foot of a Pompey statue with a note in his hand
The note that was given to him before the meeting warned him of the plot but he did not have time to read the note
The assassins expected to be heralded as saviors of the republic, but the masses which had been fed and entertained by Caesar for years were outraged
But Caesar’s will contained another surprise
It named Octavian, his great-nephew, as his adopted son and heir
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The 2nd Triumvirate began to hunt down his opponents: Octavian, Marc Antony, & Lepidus
The pro-Caesar forces were victorious. Yet, a power struggle within the 2nd triumvirate was immediately unleashed following their victory
Rome was divided into 3 spheres of influence. Octavian would control western Europe and Mark Antony would control the east (SEE PAGE 30 FOR MORE INFO)
Antony became romantically involved with the Ptolemaic queen
Antony divorced Octavia and married Cleopatra. Soon they had 3 children together
Octavian accused Antony of trying to rule Rome from Egypt
Antony and Octavian soon went to war
Antony committed suicide when it became clear he wouldn’t win and he died in Cleopatra’s arms barely clinging to life
Cleopatra also committed suicide when she was placed under lock guard
Egypt was now part of the Roman Empire. The Ptolemaic Dynasty and the Hellenistic Age were brought to an end
Octavian returned to Rome and assumed total control of the Roman state. He took the title Augustus, or the “exalted one”
Augustus’ leadership would set the stage for 200 years of peace and prosperity in the Roman Empire.
This era is known as the Pax Romana
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Octavian/Augustus - rebuilt Rome, established a fire department, encouraged learning and the arts, built Rome’s first library, and provided support for writers and artists = Virgil and Livy created their works in this period
Caligula - appointed his horse as consul (psychopathic)
Nero - a terrible fire destroyed much of the city and he blamed the fire on a new religious group known as Christians. He was also the first Roman emperor to persecute Christians
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Slaves
Sources of slaves available in Rome - prisoners of war, children born to slaves, unwanted children, exposed infants, abductions, criminals
Every 1 out of 3 people living in Rome were enslaved (33%)
Roman slavery was not based on race or ethnicity
Slaves had no legal rights
Women
Paterfamilias: Oldest male in the household that held complete authority
Patriarchal society:
Women originally were not given individual names, mirrored that of the paterfamilias
They had a limit on the amount of gold they owned to avoid excessive spending
Could not participate in any form of politics. Also expected to oversee the household and birth children
Gladiators and Charioteers
Roman emperor provided free “bread and circuses” (food and entertainment) to curry favor with the masses
Slaves, criminals, and prisoners of war generally constituted the class of gladiators
Colosseum: Most famous Roman arena
Parts of Gladiator Contest:
Morning - Fought with exotic animals
Lunch - Public executions with enhanced crucifixions
Main event - One-on-one gladiator battles
Hippodrome: Largest racetracks
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The Pax Romana was the golden age of Rome
Remarkable achievements regarding architecture, engineering, art, and literature were made
Trade flourished during the Pax Romana as a result of Roman roads
Literature flourished and it was in this period that Virgil composed the Aeneid
Roman achievements in engineering and architecture were mainly arches and domes
(The Roman Colosseum, is on test and should be able to recognize by the picture)
(The Pantheon too, remember they are Corinthian pillars, very circular and Roman-like but had domes)
The Roman language, Latin evolved into the Roman language of Italian, Spanish, and French.
Even languages that are not derived from Latin, such as English, use many Latin words
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The Romans were a polytheistic people
Foreigners in the Roman Empire were free to worship their native gods
The Romans incorporated many foreign deities and ideas into their religion
From the Roman perspective, the persecution of Jewish and Christian subjects was more political than religious
Rome imposed rule on Judea and Jerusalem was teeming with talk of revolution
A small sect of the Jewish population believed that the Messiah had already arrived. His name was Jesus
The main source of information about Jesus comes from the Gospels, the first 4 books of the New Testament of the Bible
Jesus was born in Judea during the reign of Augustus
Jesus was arrested and sentenced to death
The apostles or followers of Jesus began to spread his teachings
Initially, the apostles were simply another sect of Judaism (Christian--Jews) - the reign of Tiberius
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Christianity spread throughout the empire rapidly for two main reasons
The Pax Romana provided roads and security which made travel efficient and safe
In addition, the common languages of Latin and Greek facilitated the communication of the Christian message throughout the Roman world
The content of that message became quite popular because it embraced all people regardless of status
It also offered a personal relationship with a loving god and promoted a very different conception of eternal life after death
But just as Christianity began to rise, the Roman Empire began to decline
The Romans increasingly came to believe Christians were the cause of this decline
CORRELATION DOES NOT EQUAL CAUSATION
Many Romans began to think that Rome was in decline because the gods were abandoning it
The gods had condemned Rome because an increasing number of Romans, as Christians, were abandoning the gods
Christians became scapegoats for the problem of the empire and many were exiled, imprisoned, or executed
However, the prospects of Christians in Rome took a dramatic turn for the better
CONSTANTINE: huge impact of Christian/Roman history
Constantine reported that he saw an image of a cross in the sky in battle
He ordered that the Christian symbol be inscribed on his soldiers’s shields before the battle
Constantine attributed his victory to the Christian god
As a result, Constantine passed the Edict of Milan
It proclaimed that Christianity was a religion formally approved by the Roman state
Christians, therefore, would no longer become the subject of OFFICIAL Roman persecution
Later on, Emperor Theodosius named Christianity as the official religion of Rome
Polytheism was now illegal. As a result, the persecuted would now become the persecutors
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Yet, the Pax Romana came to an end and the western half of the Roman Empire would be no more
Several different causes have been suggested
A decline in morality, the rise of Christianity, and environmentally derived health problems
The eastern half of the Roman Empire would survive and thrive for another 1,000 years
The Eastern Roman Empire, or Byzantine Empire, also utilized lead pipes and utensils, enjoyed gladiator contests and was Christian
Economic factors: unemployment, urban decay, inflation, and inferior technology
Inflation was an issue and the economy of Eastern Rome was far more vibrant than that of Western Rome
Yet, Rome had high levels of unemployment and urban decay during the Pax Romana, and the Byzantine Empire had slavery (thus, inferior technology)
Political instability resulted from Rome’s inability to establish an imperial plan of succession
The main cause of the decline and fall of the Roman empire was an inadequate Roman military and defense
Germanic groups in the north were threatening to invade Roman territory. Rome was unable to defend itself
This inability to defend Rome was due, in part, to political upheaval. Roman generals seeking power would call their armies from the border to fight in civil wars that raged in the city of Rome
The size of the Roman border required an enormous number of troops, a number Rome could simply not afford
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The decline and fall of Rome: it was a process that several emperors did their best to forestall
One emperor who attempted to save the empire was Diocletian
Diocletian believed that Rome was crumbling, in part, because of Christians who refused to recognize the divine authority of the emperor
Diocletian also believed that the empire was too large to be governed by one man alone
As such, he divided the empire into two sections, the Western Roman Empire and the Eastern Roman Empire
Diocletian also addressed the problem of succession
The West and East would each be governed by an emperor
These co-emperors would each have a junior emperor (vice-emperor)
Constantine passed the Edict of Milan and organized the Council of Nicaea
Constantine also reunited the Roman Empire under one leader, but he moved the capital of Rome to Byzantium and renamed the city “Constantinople”
Emperor Theodosius tried to save the empire by making Christianity the official religion of Rome, persecuting polytheists
Rome’s Germanic neighbors to the north began invading the Western empire
Visigoths, Ostrogoths, Franks, Angles, Saxons, Burgundians, and the Vandals consisted of the German tribes
They began flooding into Rome in the 400s because they were being pushed from their lands by fierce nomads from the Eastern Steppe, the Huns
The Hun migrated to XY and Z from Mongolia
The Hun became a formidable force when Attila united them
Attila the Hun first attacked the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire
When the Huns were unable to conquer Constantinople they headed west
Germanic groups poured into Western Rome, whose border was largely unguarded, to avoid the wrath of the Hun
The Hun pushed on into Western Rome
As the Hun approached Rome, Pope Leo I attempted to appease Attila
The pop offered tribute in return for mercy
Attila agreed to spare Rome but he planned to invade again in the spring
Attila died unexpectedly
Many Romans believed that the city had been saved by an act of god
The person who facilitated that act on Earth was the pope
The authority of the Emperor would now be replaced by the authority of the pope
Though the threat of the Hun had passed the Germanic barbarians had taken territory throughout the former Western Roman Empire
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The success of eastern Rome was largely due to its beneficial location
Its capital, Constantinople was much easier to defend
Second, it served as the hub of the European, African, and Asian trade network
When the Western Roman Empire collapsed in AD 476 Rome lived on in the east
The Byzantine Empire would thrive for 1,000 years
The Byzantine Empire was known as “New Rome” because it preserved the culture of the Roman Empire
The Byzantine Empire continued many Roman political traditions
All power resided with the emperor, the most famous was Justinian
Justinian wrote the Justinian Code, he revised the original Roman law code: The twelve tables
Engineering abilities: To protect the city Justinian rebuilt and expanded upon the capital’s defensive walls
He also beautified the city by building the incomparable church, Hagia Sophia. It was remarkable because of its great dome
Justinian continued the Roman tradition of “bread and circuses” and constructed a most famous arena: the Hippodrome
Both empires were also Christian, however, there were some significant differences between Western and Eastern Christianity
Western Rome: leader of the church - pope, pop claims authority over kings and emperors
Eastern Rome: leader of the church - Patriarch, emperor claims authority over patriarchs
Later a split of the Christian church occurred, it’s called the “Great Schism”
The Western Christians became known as Catholics and Eastern Christians became known as Orthodox