Download Aim: What was the legacy of ancient Rome?

Review Questions
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What group influenced the early Romans?
When was the Roman Republic founded?
Describe the Roman Republic.
What were some key events in Rome’s
expansion?
• Describe the leadership of Julius Caesar
and Augustus. Significance?
• What was the Pax Romana?
• What were some achievements of Rome?
(engineering and law)
Review Questions
• What group influenced the early Romans?
– Etruscans
Review Questions
• When was the Roman Republic founded?
– 509 B.C.E.
Review Questions
• Describe the Roman Republic.
– People voted for officials to represent them
– Government divided into 3 branches – 2
Consuls, Senate and Assembly
– Patricians (upper class) and Plebeians (lower
class)
– Plebeians had some say in the Assembly but
overall government dominated by Patricians
– 12 Tables – laws that included idea of innocent
until proven guilty, standard of proof
Review Questions
• What were some key events in Rome’s
expansion?
– Punic Wars with Carthage – Rome gained
Sicily, Sardinia, Corsica and eventually parts of
northern Africa and Spain; Hannibal came
close to defeating Rome
– Julius Caesar gained Gaul (France)
Review Questions
• Describe the leadership of Julius Caesar
and Augustus. Significance?
– People were willing to give up rights (republic)
for a dictator that would help them
– Both leaders made reforms (gave people land,
food, jobs)
– Augustus’ rule was officially the beginning of
the Roman Empire
Review Questions
• What was the Pax Romana?
– 200 year period of peace and prosperity that
began with Augustus
Review Questions
• What were some achievements of Rome?
(engineering and law)
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12 Tables
Roads
Aqueducts
Domes
Arches
Aim: Why did Rome fall?
Do Now: Quote analysis
“With great power comes
great responsibility.”
“A man may die,
nations may rise and
fall, but an idea lives
on”
Explain what this
quote means.
Did Rome really fall?
Recall: What was the Pax Romana?
What made Rome a stand
out empire?
Between 235-284 C.E. there were
26 emperors, only one of which
died from natural causes.
There were already cultural divisions between east
and west. What was main language of each part?
1. How did Emperor Diocletian
(286–305) change the boundaries
of the roman empires?
• Divided Roman
Empire into two
parts (Western and
Eastern)
Execution of Christians
• Death by burning
• Crucifixion
• Feeding of Christians
to wild animals
• Cover in honey and
unleash to bees
Emperor Maxentius
• Consulted witches
• Ripped open bellies
of pregnant women to
somehow see the
future
• Constantine saw him
as a pagan and
barbaric
• 6 year reign
Battle of Milvian
Maxentius vs. Constantine
2. How did Emperor
Constantine (312-337)
change religion in Rome?
• 1st Christian emperor
• Granted toleration to
Christians (used to unite
diverse people)
• Built Constantinople
(made Eastern portion of
empire powerful)
• Built Church of Holy
Sepulchre
Economic Reasons
“Heavy taxes began to take their toll on the people.
Farmers were so disgusted that they abandoned
their land. All the middles classes that had
prospered for years began to sink into poverty. To
make matters worse, reliance on slave labor
discouraged Romans from creating new forms of
technology. It has also kept wages extremely low,
thereby exacerbating the plight of the people.”
Gap between rich and poor
Economic Problems
• Increased taxes (army and
government)
• Slave labor
• Unemployment / inflation
Political Reasons
“As a Roman citizen, I no longer trust the Roman
government. For years, emperors have ruled with
only their own interests at heart. They are corrupt
and selfish people. The Rome that was once so
strong and great has crumbled. It is now divided
and weak.”
Political Weakness
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Power struggle
Quick turnover of rulers
Corrupt and ineffective rulers
Government lost support
Division of the empire
Between 235-284 C.E.
there were 26 emperors,
only one of which died
from natural causes
Social Reasons
“Disease and war have swept through the empire.
So many people have died. The empire has done
nothing to alleviate this problem. The people of
Rome are bewildered and disillusioned by all the
chaos. In addition, there are many lives being
consumed by poverty. Happiness and Roman pride
seem to be abandoned and replaced by despair and
disloyalty.”
Social Problems
• Decrease in population –
war and disease
• People became selfish and
lazy
• Lack of patriotism
Military Reasons
“The Roman government decided to hire foreign
soldiers, called mercenaries, to defend its borders.
Its own army was beginning to lack training and
discipline. However, foreign soldiers felt little
loyalty to Rome and could not be trusted. The use
of these mercenaries facilitated foreign invasions.”
Military Decline
• Soldiers – decrease in number / morality/
patriotism
• Mercenaries (foreign soldiers who
defended borders)
• Foreign invasions
Invasions
• Germanic tribes from northern Europe and the
Huns from Asia
• 410 C.E. – Rome was sacked by the Visigoths
• 476 C.E. – Last Roman Emperor overthrown in the
west by the Germanic general Odoacer
• Continued invasions and power struggles
disrupted trade and manufacturing
• In Western Europe, no large scale, centralized,
political authority ever established again for any
substantial amount of time
• In Eastern Europe, empire survived and changed
into Byzantine Empire (lasted another 1,000 years)
The Huns
http://www.youtube.c
om/watch?v=VpHMP
zk6uI4
Did Rome really fall?
“A man may die,
nations may rise and
fall, but an idea lives
on”
How might this quote
be used to argue that
Rome did not fall?
“The year was 476. For those who
demand to know the date Rome fell,
that is it. Others will realize that the
fall of Rome was not an event but a
process. Or, to put it another way,
there was no fall at all – ancient
Roman civilization simply evolved
into the medieval civilization of the
Middle Ages”
What is this person saying about the fall
of Rome?
Bonus Question
•In what year did the
Romans force out the
last Etruscan king
and establish a
republic?
Bonus Question
•In what year was
Julius Caesar
assassinated?
Bonus Question
•In what year did the
Roman Empire fall
with the overthrow
of the last Roman
Emperor?
• Which factor do you think was most
responsible in leading to the decline
and eventual end of the Roman
Empire? Explain.
Unit Summary
“With great power comes great
responsibility.”
1. What does this quote mean?
2. In what ways was Rome able to
live up to this quote?
3. In what ways did Rome fail to
meet the needs of the people?