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Chapter 9, The Rise of Rome
Words to Know
Peninsula - A long piece of land almost completely surrounded by water (From the Latin word meaning
“Almost an Island”.)
Republic – A government in which the citizens have the right to elect their representatives to make laws.
Elect – to choose someone for an office by voting
Representative – a person who is chosen to act or speak for others.
Senate – a governing or lawmaking body
Province – A part of a country, with its own local government, much like the states in the United States.
Governor – a person chosen to run a province or territory.
Civil war – a war between people who live in the same country.
Forum – a public square in an ancient Roman city; law makers met there.
Emperor – a person who rules a group of different countries, lands or people.
Aqueduct – a channel made by humans that carries flowing water over a long distance.
Crucifixion – the putting to death of someone by nailing or tying that person to a cross.
Persecute – to treat in a cruel way, to hurt or injure
Convert – to change from one religion to another.
Bishop – a high ranking church official; from the Latin word that means “overseer”.
Pope – The head of the Roman Catholic Church
Early Rome
Seven hills rose up along the Tiber River in the center of Italy. Small villages dotted the seven hills. One
of those villages was called Rome. It was built by the Latins in 753 B.C. The Latins or Romans were one of
several groups who had moved down from central Europe. They settled in the Italian Peninsula around
1,000 B.C.
From 750 B.C. to 600 B.C., the little Italian villages were ruled by a series of Roman kings. During those
years, the Romans lived in peace. They were mainly herders and farmers. Things changed in about 600
B.C., north of the Tiber River lived a people called the Etruscans. The Etruscans decided to conquer the
Romans and other neighboring tribes. The Romans did not stand a chance against them.
For the next 100 years, Rome was ruled by Etruscan kings. The Etruscans had many skills. They built a
wall around the city. They drained nearby swamps and laid the first sewers. Rom even adopted the
Etruscan alphabet. Slowly, Rome changed from a small farming village to a city – state.
Then in 509 B.C., the people of Rome rebelled against a very harsh Etruscan king. They took the
government of Rome into their own hands and set up a republic.
The Roman Republic
In a republic, government is controlled by the people. Roman citizens elected men to make their laws
and run their government. Three hundred elected representatives met in a Senate. The Republic was
democratic because citizens voted for the people who would represent them. The Roman Republic was
a model of our own democratic system of representative government.
The members of the Roman Senate were usually wealthy landowners. Once elected they held office for
life, as such some of the Senate members were very old and considered by many Roman citizens very
wise. The word Senate comes from the Latin word that means old.
The early years of the republic were not peaceful. At first the Romans were the victims of invasion from
the outside. However, later it was Rome who grew powerful and began its own campaign of conquest.
Roman Warriors
The Romans became an army of skilled warriors. Every Roman male spent some time in the army. As
Rome’s military power grew so did its desire for more land. By about 270 B.C., Rome had taken over the
whole Italian peninsula.
One of Rome’s greatest enemies was Carthage. Carthage was a Phoenician city on the north coast of
Africa. Carthage was a great trading nation and as such quarreled often with the Romans over
Mediterranean trade routes.
Rome fought three wars with Carthage. These were called the Punic Wars. The first clash between the
two states came in Sicily. They battled for the city of Messina. Rome finally won this war in 241 B.C.,
after 23 years of fighting!
Over the next 50 years, Carthage grew strong again. Once more Rome felt threatened. So Rome
declared war and sent its army back to Africa. This time in the final Punic War, the city of Carthage was
totally destroyed.
During the second Punic War between Carthage and Rome, Macedonia sided with the Carthaginians.
Macedonia was still the most powerful state in Greece. After taking Carthage, Rome sent armies into
Greece. Roman armies conquered the Greek city – states. They brought Greek treasures back to Rome,
introducing Roman citizens to Greek art and style.
The Romans made slaves of the conquered Greeks. Many of the slaves were used as laborers. Some of
the Greek Captives were very well educated. They became teachers and doctors in Rome. Some Greeks
were able to earn their freedom. Therefore, in many ways, Roman culture was influenced by the Greeks.
By 140 B.C., Rome controlled all of the Mediterranean lands. Citizens of the Republic thought of the
Mediterranean Sea as a Roman Sea.
The Provinces
Rome conquered many lands. Some of them were very far from the city itself. To make the lands easier
to govern, they were divided into sections called provinces. Each province was ruled by its own
governor. Some of the people in the provinces accepted the Roman rule. Others were not happy with
their new rulers. Furthermore, they did not like Roman customs.
To keep the people in order, Rome sent large armies to each province. A general was at the head of
each of these armies. Because of the distance to Rome, most of the soldiers felt a loyalty more to their
leaders then to Rome, making these generals very powerful men.
Sometimes the generals and their armies fought amongst themselves. The most powerful of these
generals was a man named Julius Caesar.
Julius Caesar
The most powerful General in the provinces was Julius Caesar. Julius Caesar was a general in the
province of Gaul. Gaul is a land Northwest of Rome. A land we today call France. Caesar was popular
with the people. Caesar was a great military genius. He won many battles and captured large parts of
Gaul for the Romans. Because of his popularity Caesar was feared by the Senate. The Senate ordered
Caesar home back to Rome without his armies. Caesar did return home but brought his army back with
him in defiance of the senate.
The common people welcomed Caesar. Soon Caesar took over the government of Rome. Some of the
other Roman Generals were not happy about Caesar taking over the government of Rome. They decided
to fight Caesar. This led to civil war with one General’s army fighting another. Julius Caesar was always
the winner. He won battles in Greece, Spain, and North Africa. While fighting in Egypt Caesar met
Cleopatra. A princess of the Egyptian court, Julius Caesar fell in love with Cleopatra and helped place her
on the throne of Egypt. By 45 B.C. Caesar controlled the Roman world. The people hailed him as their
ruler. For the most part he used his power wisely.
Caesar made citizens of many of the people in the provinces. Caesar also allowed some provincials to
rise to the rank of Senator. He made sure that the Governors ruled the provinces fairly. Caesar made
more jobs for the people of Rome. He set up colonies where poor Romans could start their own farms
Other Accomplishments
Caesar improved the Roman calendar. Borrowing from the Egyptians, he changed it to a system of 365
days a year. He added an extra day each four years, thereby creating a leap year. He also added the
month of July to the calendar naming the month after himself. Mark Antony, a senator and friend of
Caesar offered Caesar the crown of king. Caesar refused the crown.
Death to Caesar
Many in the Roman Senate feared that Caesar wanted to destroy the Senate and the Republic. Some
Roman Senators led by Brutus and Cassius plotted to kill Caesar. Many of these men were friends of
Caesar. On March 15, 44 B.C. Julius Caesar was stabbed to death as he entered the Roman Senate.
The Emperor Augustus
After the death of Caesar there was a struggle for power and a civil war broke out. First Brutus and
Cassius fought against Mark Antony and Octavian. Octavian was Caesar’s nephew. Mark Antony and
Octavian remained loyal to Caesar.
When Octavian and Marc Antony won they turned on each other. Antony fell in love with Cleopatra
and together they fought Octavian for control of Rome. Octavian defeated them in a major battle. The
defeat led to Antony and Cleopatra to kill themselves. Octavian became the first emperor of Rome.
Octavian to his people was only one step below a god. In 27 B.C., the Roman Senate gave Octavian the
name of “Augustus”. The title meant that he was above all others. He was to be worshipped. Augustus
held complete power. Though the Senate still met it was powerless. Under Augustus the Roman Empire
flourished. Augustus ended civil wars. The time of peace he brought about was called the “Pax
Romana” (Roman Peace).
Life in Rome
Rome was a busy place. The Population of Rome was over one million people. The city was a beautiful
place with wide main streets paved with stone. Fresh water came to the city through aqueducts. The
water was piped into houses and public fountains. Romans built over 300 beautiful temples in Rome.
One of the most famous of these was the Pantheon. The Roman Forum was a gathering place. It was
there that the Senate met in the Senate house. Columned temples lined the edges of the forum as did
merchant shops.
The Romans also built Roman baths. The baths were the center of Roman social life. The baths held
gymnasiums, small theaters and libraries. Wealthy Romans lived in big houses. These houses had
swimming pools and large dining halls. Many rich people also had country homes. The average Roman
family lived in a small house or apartment. Poor people lived in small rooms in big apartment buildings.
They often had to struggle for enough to eat. Free entertainment provided by the Emperors consisted
of chariot racing and gladiatorial games. The gladiatorial games were fought in the Coliseum. Chariot
races took place at the Circus Maximus.
Roman Builders
The Romans admired the Greeks. They put up statues taken from Greek cities in Rome. Many of the
building in Rome were also based on Greek style and form. Roman builder used sophisticated arches.
Arches were used to build bridges, in many buildings and the great aqueducts. Unlike the Greeks the
Romans wanted their art and architecture to be useful and was built to last. Some aqueducts that were
built over 2,000 years ago still stand today. Some of the ancient roads are still being used today. Roads
linked together the Provinces with Rome. The Romans also built a modern sewer system to serve
ancient Rome. Parts of the sewers are even being used today.
Roman Language and Law
Italian, French, Spanish, Portuguese, and Romanian are called Romance Languages. These languages
come from Latin the language of the Romans. Many of our ideas about laws and courts of law came
from the Romans. Roman laws and lawmaking served as a model for many other nations.
The Birth of a New Religion
All the dates before the birth of Jesus are labeled B.C. All of the dates after the birth of Jesus are labeled
A.D. A.D. stands for the Latin words, “Anno Domini”, or “In the year of our lord.” The Christian religion
began with the birth of Jesus. Jesus was a Jew. Jesus lived during the time of Emperor Augustus.
Jesus was born in Bethlehem, a little town south of Jerusalem. Jerusalem was a far off province in the
Roman Empire. Much of what we know of Jesus comes from the Bible. The first four books of the New
Testament are about his life.
The first four books are called the Gospels. The Gospels contain stories that are passed down over the
years. The Gospels speak of love and if people are good they will be rewarded in the afterlife. The
teachings of Jesus were most powerful with the poor and enslaved people.
Jesus was 33 years old when he was sentenced to death. His crucifixion did not end his teachings. In the
years that followed, the Christian religion spread to many lands.
Christianity in the Roman Empire
The Roman Empire had many religions. While Christianity had few followers, the Roman Emperors
allowed the Christians to rule as they pleased. However, because the Christians refused to worship the
Emperors, the Emperors soon recognized the Christians as a threat. As a result, the Roman Emperors
began to persecute the Christians. They blamed the Christians for everything that went wrong.
In 64 A.D. a terrible fire burned a large part of central Rome. Emperor Nero immediately blamed the
Christians for the fire. As a result, the Romans began to execute the Christians. For the next 300 years
the Christians were forced into Roman Arenas to fight wild animals. The persecutions were periodic in
that some of the emperors worried about the Christians more than others. Sometimes Christians were
safe other times they were in danger.
The Emperor Constantine
Constantine became emperor of Rome in A.D. 306. In A.D. 312 a Roman general named Maxentius
threatened to seize the throne. One night Constantine dreamed that he saw a cross in the sky.
Constantine recognized the dream as the Cross of Christ. In response, he decided to have a flag made
with a picture of the cross. Constantine defeated Maxentius.
In A.D. 286 the Emperor Diocletian divided the Roman Empire into two parts. As a result Rome was ruled
by a system of shared rule. In A.D. 324, Constantine decided to reunite the two parts into one large
Empire. He defeated Licinius, the ruler of the eastern half of the empire. That same year he became sole
ruler of the Roman Empire.
In 330 A.D. Constantine set up a new capital city in the East. He would call the city Constantinople.
Today this city is called Istanbul. In A.D. 313 Constantine made Christianity legal. Constantine himself
converted to Christianity in A.D. 337 and became the first Christian emperor of the Roman Empire.
The Roman Government and Christian church became very much a part of one another. Officials of the
church were powerful men. The largest churches chose Bishops as their leaders. The bishop of the
Church of Rome became the Pope. While the government of the Roman Empire was weakening, the
Christian church was gaining power.
The End of the Empire
Not all of the Emperors that followed Augustus were wise and good. In fact many were mad with power.
Other emperors were greedy. Royal families often fought amongst themselves over who would get the
throne. Yet despite these problems the Roman Peace would endure for two centuries (200 years).
Around A.D. 180, the empire began to weaken. The Roman world faced invaders from the northern and
eastern Europe. Rome had to double the size of the army and as a result taxes were increased. These
were taxes that the people of the empire could not afford. Because of the high taxes, prices rose and
trading fell off. People lost their work and life in Rome was no longer good. More and more wealthy
people left Rome to live in the country. Though the Empire did not fall in a day, the empire did weaken
with each passing year. Until the fall of the Roman Empire was inevitable.