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Rome’s Rise to Power
Rome’s Mythical Beginnings:
Romulus and Remus
• Romulus and Remus were
believed to be the sons of a Latin
princess and the god Mars.
• The brothers taken from their
mother as punishment and left to
die on the Tiber river.
• They were found by a she-wolf
who fed them.
• A shepherd killed the she-wolf
and raised the brothers as his
own.
• When the brother grew older,
they built a city on the Tiber river.
• They argued over who would rule
the city, and so Romulus killed
Remus and named the city
ROME.
Rome’s Historical
Beginnings
• A group of people called the
Latins settled on Palatine about
1200 BC and developed a city
called Rome.
• Around 800 BC, a people called
the Etruscans settle north of the
Latins in a city called Etruria.
• The Etruscans were more
culturally advanced than the
Latins and ruled Rome for over
200 years.
• In 509 BC, the Romans overthrew
the Etruscans and set up a
republic.
The Expansion of the Roman
Republic
Battle of Zama
• Romans conquered &
controlled all of Italy by 275 BC
• Carthage ruled much of N.
Africa, Spain, & Sicily
• Rome felt threatened by
Carthage because they
controlled the Mediterranean
Sea.
• Conflict between Rome and
Carthage leads to the PUNIC
WARS: fighting for control of
the Mediterranean Sea.
• There were 3 Punic Wars and
Carthage lost.
• By 146 BC Rome controlled
land around the
Mediterranean Sea
The Final Years of the Roman
Republic: Julius Caesar
• Because of the wealth the
Punic Wars brought
Rome, a gap between the
rich and poor grew.
• The Gracchi brothers,
Gaius Marius, and Lucius
Cornelius Sulla attempted
to improve conditions in
Rome. They:
– Gave land & wheat to poor
– Gave power to the army
– Gave power to the senate
The Final Years of the
Roman Republic: Julius
Caesar cont.
• Julius Caesar, a Roman
general, believed Rome
needed a strong leader.
• He conquered Northern
France, Belgium, and Britain.
He then marched on Rome.
• Caesar defeated Pompey and
became dictator of Rome in 46
BC.
• Roman Senators feared that
Caesar was going to make
himself king so they plotted to
kill him.
• Julius Caesar was assassinated
on March 15, 44 BC.
The Roman Empire:
Cleopatra’s Death
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Octavian (Caesar’s grand-nephew)
and Marc Antony (Caesar’s general)
gained control of Rome and shared
leadership: Octavian controlling the
west and Antony controlling the east.
Antony wanted to make the East
independent and rule it with the
queen of Egypt: Cleopatra.
Octavian invaded Egypt and Antony
and Cleopatra commit suicide.
Octavian becomes the absolute ruler
of Rome takes the new name,
Augustus. He is seen as the first
Emperor of Rome.
Augustus introduced “PAX ROMANA,”
an extended time of peace.
The Roman Empire
• Augustus’s successors
continued to expand the
empire by conquering Britain,
Armenia, Assyria, and
Mesopotamia.
• The 5 emperors between A.D.
96 and A.D. 186 did many
things to improve the empire.
They:
– Introduced economic
programs
– Created programs to
support poor children
– Made it illegal to kill a
slave
The Roman Empire
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After the reign of the Five Good
Emperors, civil war breaks out
in A.D. 186. The ruling
emperors lost control.
In A.D. 284, Diocletian became
emperor of Rome and realized
its size made it too difficult to
govern.
Diocletian divides the empire
into two.
Eventually, Constantine
emerged as Rome’s leader in
A.D. 312. He moved the capital
to the east and converted to
Christianity.
Internally, gladiatorial games
were one sign of Rome’s
decline.