Download Roman Empire Part II - Northwest ISD Moodle

Welcome to World History
Rome
IT WASN’T BUILT
IN A DAY
The People
 Latins Settled around the Tiber River
 Etruscans north of Rome
 Borrowed alphabet and religion from them
 Ruled over the Romans until they kicked them out
Republic
 Kicked out Etruscans and set up a government “by
the people”
 Senate was governing body (patricians)

Consuls: supervised business of government
 Plebeians begin to rise…..plebeians who?
 Laws of the Twelve Tables – laws written down so that
plebeians could appeal a patrician judgment
 Plebeians would take higher positions in government
(tribunes) and even the senate
 Rome expanded into Macedonia, Greece, and Asia
minor
The Empire
 With expansion came wealthy class
 Gracchus Brothers (Who were these guys?)
 Rome was in series of civil wars
 ? Who should hold power? – Senate or Political leaders
 Chaos, war, greed, ambition…what is Rome to do?
Julius Caesar
 Ruled with Pompey
 Brought Gaul under Roman control
 Fought against Pompey for Rome
 Crossed the Rubicon River
 Put down rebellions across the empire

“veni, vidi, vici”
Julius Caesar
Reforms
Death
 Public works
 “Ides of March”
programs for
employment
 Granted Roman
Citizenship
 Julian Calendar
 Mark Antony (chief
general) and
Octavian
(grandnephew)
hunted down
murders
Octavian (Augustus Caesar)
Defeated Antony and Queen
Cleopatra
Was called Augustus (Exalted
One)
Ruled from 31 B.C.E. to 14 A.D.
Pax Romana
 200 year span of Roman peace
 Starts with Augustus and ends with
Marcus Aurelius
 Empire was from Euphrates River
(East) to Britain (West)
Roman Empire Part II
Greco-Roman Civilization
 The blending of Greek, Hellenistic, and Roman
traditions.
 Occurred due to trade during the Pax Romana
(remember?)
Art
Borrowed many ideas
from the Greeks, but
modified statues and
paintings to give their
subjects facial
expressions.
bobax.tripod.com
Architecture
Romans elaborated on
Greek columns
Improved the arch and
the dome (Pantheon)
crystalinks.com
Engineering
Built roads, bridges,
and harbors throughout
the empire.
Aqueducts: bridgelike
stone structures that
brought water from the
hills into Roman cities.
These water systems
were important to
Romans’ fresh water
supply and baths.
richmond.ashraechapte
rs.org
Science
Though the Romans did
not create scientific
ideas like Galen and
Ptolemy, Romans were
known to compile
works of geography,
zoology, ect.
Pliny the Elder
mlahanas.de
Roman Law
 Most similar to law in the United States
 Two systems:
 Civil Law: law applying only to the citizens
 Law of Nations: applied to all people under roman rule

The two systems would merge when Rome began extending
citizenship across the empire.
Principles of Law
People of the same status are equal before the law
2. An accused person is presumed innocent until
proven guilty
3. The accused should be allowed to face his or her
accuser and defend against the charge
4. Guilt must be established clearly through evidence
5. Decisions should be based on fairness allowing
judges to interpret the law
 Recognize any?
1.
Rise of Christianity
 Romans were typically tolerant of other religions as
long as they still recognized the Roman gods (most
people were polytheistic at the time)
 Jews were the exception once Rome conquered
Palestine (called it Judea)
Split in Jewish Faith
 Jews began to absorb Greek customs
 Jewish priests not happy
 Zealots wanted to split from Rome and have
independent Israel – they believed a messiah was
coming
Revolts
 66 AD, Jews tried to rebel – Rome ended up leveling
the city of Jerusalem…
 135 AD, Rome kicks the Jews out completely
(diaspora)
Who is this guy Jesus?
 Born in Bethlehem around 4 BC. (originally from
Nazareth)
 Angel appeared to mother that her son would be the
son of the “most high God”
 Worked as a carpenter, then at age 30 he began his
preaching near the sea of Galilee.
The Message
 There is only one true God
 He called himself the Son of God
 He was the messiah that the Jews had been looking
for.
 Love your enemies
 Non-violence
The Crucifixion
 Jewish priests believed that Jesus challenged their
authority
 Romans believed that he would lead the Jews into
another rebellion and must be stopped.
 Was tried and condemned to be crucified (death by
the cross)
 It is said that he had not died after all, his disciples
(followers) had seen and talked with him just before
he ascended into heaven
Christianity
 Originally a sect within Judaism
 Paul is given credit for the widespread teachings of
Christianity.
 Blamed by the Romans for everything that went bad
because of their “evil doings” – would not sacrifice to
the emperor
 Many became martyrs
The Church
 Each community had a Priest
 Priests answered to the Bishop
 Bigger cities had Archbishops (presided over other
Bishops)


Therefore, the Bishop of Rome (big city) became the Pope
Simon Peter is said to have been the first Pope (“upon this rock I will
build my church”)
 Councils convened to decide official Christian teachings
(put together the New Testament)

Battled Heresies
 Persecution ended 313 AD when Constantine issued the
Edict of Milan.
The Declining Empire
 After the death of Marcus Aurelius in 180, the Pax




Romana ended.
Constant change in emporor, high taxes – people
started to work for wealthy landowners
Infrastructure failing
Diocletian (284) – split the empire into two halves
(eastern and western)
Constantine (312) – moved capital to Constantinople
Theodosius
 Roman emperor from 379-395
 Made Christianity the official religion of the Roman
Empire.
 Recognized as St. Theodosius
Foreign Invasions
 Germanic tribes to the north
 Huns in East Asia
 Visigoths (Germanic tribe) seeking safety from the
Huns

In 410, Alaric (Visigoth general) overran Italy and plundered
Rome.
 434, Attila the Hun – called the “scourge of God”
 476, Odoacer (Germanic leader) ousted the emperor
of Rome (Rome has fallen).