Download The Roman Republic

The Roman
Republic
 The Legend of Rome time it’s founding in the year 753
BC by twin sons named Romulus and Remus by the
god Mars and a Latin princess. The boys were
abandoned and raised by a she-wolf.
 Rome the city was built on the hills by the Tiber River in
the middle of the Italian Peninsula and was chosen for
its Strategic location and fertile soil.
 Protected in the north by the mountains of the Alps
 Protected in the south, east, and west by the
Mediterranean Sea
 The people who built Rome were members of an Indo-
European tribe called the Latins around 1000 BC
 The city prospered due to its location on the Tiber
 Three groups inhabited the area and battled for control.
These were the Latins, the Greeks, and the Etruscans.
Both Greeks and Etruscans influenced the Latin’s, but it
was an Etruscan who became king of the Roman.
 A series of Etruscan kings constructed many of Rome’s
temples and public centers including the famous Forum,
which is the heart of Roman Political Life.
 heavily influenced by the Greeks
 The toga, gladiator games, and Chariot races
 Introduced the alphabet and number system, also
built Rome’s first walls and sewer, the arch
 In the year 509 BC, Rome drove the last Etruscan king
from power and declared they would never again be
ruled by a king and instead established a Republic –
power of the government rests with citizens who have
the right to vote for their leaders (only free-born mail
citizens had the right to vote)
 At first Rome had two groups struggle for power, the
Patricians = rich landowners who controlled the gov’t and
society and the Plebeians = commoners, mostly farmers and
merchants
 Men in both groups were citizens who could vote but in the
beginning, only patricians could be elected to governmental
offices.
 Slowly changes were made and the plebeians set up their
own assemblies called the Plebeian Council to protect their
rights. One important victory for them was the written law
code the the Twelve Tables - Rome’s first written law code,
was displayed in the Roman Forum (central square)
 The patricians and plebeians created an unwritten and flexible
constitution – framework for gov’t or political structure.
Executive
 Who was in charge?
 Consuls – two elected each year, one to run the gov’t
and one to lead the army
 Censors – recorded the city’s population and how
much property people owned
What did it to?
In charge of enforcing civil law
Recorded the city’s population and property ownership
Ran the gov’t and lead the army
Legislative
 What did it do?
 Advised elected officials, handled all foreign
relations, and controlled public finances
 By the third century it had the force of law
 Who was in charge?
 The Senate = a select group of 300 hundred patricians
who served for life
 Various popular assemblies – Tribal Assembly,
Centuriate Assembly
 All citizens voted on/make laws and elected officials
Judicial
 Praetors – magistrates that could act as consuls when the
consuls were away at war
 8 judges choses for one year by the Centuriate Assembly
- 2 to oversee civil and criminal courts, 6 to govern other
provinces.
Times of Crisis
 The republic could appoint a dictator – leader who had
absolute power to make laws and command the army.
 The dictator’s power only lasted for 6 months and they
were chosen by the consuls and elected by the senate.
 Roman Military might
 All men between the ages of 17 and 46 with a minimum amount of
property were required to serve in the army during times of war
 Army was organized into units called legions
 The backbone of the legions were centurions
 Centurions = commissioned officers who usually commanded a
century of a 100 men
 Conquests
 Romans defeated the Etruscans and the Greek cities in southern Italy
by 256 BC
 Rome fought and defeated the Hellenistic kingdoms of Macedonia and
Persia, making them Roman provinces
 Rome also annexed Greece as another province
 Annex = incorporate territory into an existing country
 Adopted many elements of Greek culture, especially religion
 Why was Rome successful
 Romans were good diplomats
 Extended Roman citizenship and allowed states to
run their own internal affairs
 Only had the conquered people supply troops
 Romans excelled at military matters
 Accomplished and persistent soldiers
 Fortified towns and built roads
 Defeated the enemies surrounding Rome
 Rome sought to expand its territories through trade and
conquest.
 One city, Carthage, that was former colony of Phoenicia
and located on he Northern coast of Egypt, interfered
with Rome’s goals.
 Rome fought three wars with Carthage collectively
known as the Punic Wars between the years 264 and 146
BC.
 First Punic War- Carthage Lost
 Romans sent an army to help some allies in Sicily –
Carthage considered Sicily a part of their empire. Roman
nave defeated the Carthaginian navy off the coast of
Sicily. Carthage gave up all rights to Sicily and vowed
revenge.
 Second Punic War- fought by Hannibal, the greatest
Carthaginian general, famous for using elephants to go
over Alps but was defeated by the brilliant Roman
general Scipio.
 Third Punic War- Rome laid siege to Carthage and won,
enslaved all of its people, set its city on fire (for 10 days),
and established Rome’s dominance in the area.
Carthage became a Roman province called Africa.
 As the empire grew so did its instability. They had
problems with social class struggles and military order.
 The republic of Rome became a Dictator-ruled empire.
 Slaves made up about 1/3rd part of the population who
were used as labor on farms and made it difficult for
small farmers (many of whom were former soldiers) to
compete.
 They were then forced to sell their land and became
homeless and jobless. Although many stayed in
countryside to work as seasonal farm help (migrant
laborers), many went to Rome where the others were
and became known as the Urban Poor, which made of
1/4th of the society of Rome.
 Two brothers, Tiberius and Gaius Gracchus tried to
make changes but were both Violently Killed and the
country went into a Civil War.
• tried to redistribute public land and were quite popular
• The Roman elite, especially the Senate, were unhappy
about this
– The Senate urged mobs to kill the two brothers
– For the first time, the blood of Roman citizens was
intentionally shed in the Forum
• Violence had become a political tool
 During the unstable period, military leaders were able to
gather troops loyal to their Commander and not to
Rome – Poor people joined in hopes of sharing in the
plunder from war.
 Three of generals (Julius Caesar, Pompey and Crassus)
were able to gain control by becoming the first
Triumvirate with one (Julius Caesar) leader serving as
consul (for one year) and then as the governor of Gaul
(now France)
 Caesar added Gaul – modern France
 Pompey added Syria and parts of Asia Minor
 Crassus was one of the wealthiest men in Rome but
dies.
 Took over Rome in 60 BC
 On his way back from Gaul, Julius Caesar was told to
stop and disband his army by the senate and his rival
Pompey. Julius Caesar defied the senate and marched
his troops across the Rubicon River and into Rome. He
defeated his rival and with the support of his troops and
the senate he was appointed Dictator for Life in 44 BC
 As ruler, Julius Caesar started many reforms, such as:
 Granted Roman Citizenship to people in the provinces
 Created Jobs for the poor (many through the
construction of new public buildings)
 Started colonies for people to own land (if they didn’t
own land before)
 Increased pay for soldiers.
 Many concerned with his growing power, success and
popularity, plotted his assassination in the senate, where
he was brutally stabbed to death [in the senate chamber
on March 15 (the Ides of March)], when he uttered
these last words… “et tu Brutus”.
 Again civil war broke out and a new (2nd) Triumvirate
was set up (43 BC) with Marc Antony, Lepidus and
Octavian (Caesar’s 18 year old grandnephew and
adopted son).
 They ruled for ten years until jealously and violence
ended with Lepidus being forced out, Marc Antony
siding with his girlfriend Queen Cleopatra of Egypt to
take over and rule both Rome and Egypt.
 Another civil war resulted in Octavian accused Antony
of plotting to rule Rome from Egypt, so Octavian
defeated the combined forces of Marc Antony and
Queen Cleopatra who both later committed Suicide.
 Octavian became the unchallenged ruler of Rome and
accepted the title of Augustus (exalted one), and Rome
was ruled by one man and ushered in the time known
as Pax Romana – Roman Peace for 207 years.
 He was able to stabilize the frontier, glorified Rome
with splendid public buildings, and set up a system of
government that lasted for centuries.
 Divided power between himself and the senate
 Created a police force and fire brigades
 Restored old temples and built new ones
 Sponsored Latin literature
 Pax Romana = Roman Peace
 Age of peace and prosperity
 Started off with the reign of Augustus in 27 BC and
ended with the death of the last Good Emperor,
Marcus Aurelius, in 180 AD
 Stable gov’t, strong legal system, widespread trade
 Not much war or invasion
 The Roman gov’t was the strongest unifying force in
the empire
 Maintained order and enforced the laws
 Extensive road network – 50,000 miles
 How did people become slaves in the Roman world?
 Most were conquered people from Roman victories –
men, women, and children.
 Children born from slaves became slaves.
 They could be punished, rewarded, set free, or put to
death.
 Many were not treated well. Many strong, healthy
males, were forced to become gladiators (professional
fighters).
More than 1 million slaves died trying to become free. The
most famous slave revolt was led by Spartacus and involved
70,000 slaves – they managed to defeat several armies before
being caught and crucified
 What role did Roman gods and goddesses’ play?
 Government and religion were linked in Rome. The
deities were symbols of the state. Romans were expected
to honor and worship them in rituals to gain favor and
avoid misfortune
 Jupiter – Father of the gods
 Juno – Jupiter’s wife who watched over women
 Minerva – goddess of wisdom and of the arts and crafts
 What was Roman society like?
Classes had little in common. Very rich or very poor.
Rich – homes, gardens, slaves, luxuries, banquets that
lasted for hours – boiled ostrich and parrot-tongue pie
Poor – barely had the necessities. Unemployed. Rations
of government grain.
 What did the government do to distract and control
the masses?
Provided free games, races, mock battles, and gladiator
contests (in the coliseum)
 What ”new” religion spread through Rome during
this time? Christianity
 How did the Romans persecute Christians?
Christians would not worship Roman gods. So they
were exiled, imprisoned, and executed – Crucified,
burned, and killed by wild animals in circus arenas.
Some people considered these killed Christians martyrs
– people willing to sacrifice their lives for the sake of a
belief or cause.
 What ruler ended Christian persecution with the Edict
of Milan? Constantine
 What ruler made Christianity the official religion of
the Roman Empire? Theodosius
 Whose rule ended the Pax Romana? Marcus Aurelius
(161-180 AD)
 1st Ruler Diocletian – 284 AD
 Reforms severely limited personal freedoms, restored
order, increased strength, doubled the size of the
Roman army, controlled inflation (a drastic drop in
the value of money and a rise in the price of goods) by
setting fixed prices for goods, created elaborate
ceremonies to present himself as godlike. Divided the
empire into Greek-speaking East, and Latin-speaking
West each with its own leader.
 Results – civil war broke out as soon as he retired in
305 AD. By 311 AD 4 rivals were fighting for power.
 2nd Ruler - Constantine
 Reforms – continued mnay of the social and economic
policies of Diocletian, gained control of the East
restoring a single ruler, moved the capital from Rome
to Byzantium (in what is not Turkey) and was
renamed Constantinople
 Results – the empire is divided after Constantine’s
death and the West falls.
 Causes of the fall of Rome:
 Political – Weak leadership after 200 AD. Civil War.
Division of the empire. Moving the capital from Rome to
Byzantium. Between 235 to 284 there were 20 emperors, all but
one died violently
 Social – Disloyalty, corruption, widening gap between the
rich and the poor, decline in population because of disease
and food shortages.
 Economic – bad harvests, no wars so no plundering,
inflation, tax burdens, widening gap between the rich and
the poor.
 Military – Invasions from northern European tribes. Lack of
money for defense, not enough citizens to recruit, decline in
patriotism and loyalty among soldiers and citizens.
 How were the Huns part of the immediate cause of
the fall of Rome? The Huns (feared nomadic warriors
from Asia) moved west destroying everything in their
path, causing Germanic tribes to enter Roman territory
around 370 AD.
 Who was Attila The Hun? Chieftain of the Huns in 444
AD with 100,000 soldiers. He terrorized the entire
Roman empire.
 14 yr old Romulus Augustulus was the last emperor of
the Western Empire in 476.
 The Byzantine Empire or eastern empire continued to
flourish until taken over by the Ottoman Turks in 1453.