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Ancient Rome
Unit 1: Part 2
• Explain the difference between Direct and
Representative Democracy.
• What city state first introduced democracy
and why?
Location of Rome
• Rome is in modern day
Italy
• Area controlled by Roman
Empire
The Roman Republic: 509 B.C.- 27 B.C.
• Like Athens, Greece; Rome began as a citystate controlled by a king
• 509 B.C. kings of Rome overthrown and
replaced by a form of democracy; a republic
• Roman Republic: power was held by the
citizens who elected officials to represent
them
– This introduced the idea of representative
democracy
• Representative Democracy
– The people elect officials to represent them
– The U.S. is an example of this
– Romans divided the powers of the republican govt
among different bodies of the govt called
branches
• Branches: divisions of a government
– Ex: Executive, Judicial, Legislative
Wait…this all sounds familiar
(at least I hope it does)
• Through the creation of the Republic and
branches the Romans established:
– Checks and Balances: none of the 3 branches of
the Roman Republic could act without the
permission or supervision of the other branches
– Separation of Powers: the act of spreading a
government’s powers among its branches
Social Structure of Romans
• Patricians: landowners and ruling class
– Only group elected to office
• Plebeians: craftspeople, merchants, small
farmers, less wealthy landowners
• Both groups could vote, only patricians could
be officials/elected representative
• Roman Senate
– Select group of 300 patricians elected for life
Equality? Yes and no.
• By 287 all male Roman citizens were equal
under the law
• However, select patricians and plebeians for a
separate ruling class (not very democratic)
• Wealthy families compete for power leading
to disorder
All “good” things come to an endEnd of Roman Republic
• Roman Republic was constantly at war
• Roman Legions: Rome’s armies that fought to
increase Rome’s territory
• Political rivalries
• Army allegiance to their general, not Rome
• Civil War
The Empire Strike Back…Again!
• Julius Caesar
– 49 B.C. Caesar and his Legions seized Rome
• Caesar becomes Dictator of Rome
– Dictator: ruler who assumes sole power over
his/her state
• -marked the end of the Roman Republic and the
beginning of the Roman Empire.
‘
Ides of March
• March 15, 44 B.C.
• Julius Caesar was assassinated
• Assassination: to murder someone for political
reasons
• Reason: Roman Senators wanted to restore
the Republic
Establishment of the Roman Empire
27 B.C.-1453 A.D.
• Marked the end of democracy in Rome
• Rome became an autocracy
– Autocracy: government ruled by one person
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Rome would be ruled by an Emperor
The Senate lost most of its power
Rome continued to conquer territory
Emperor Augustus: period of Pax Romana
(Roman Peace)-200 years
Roman Republic
Roman Empire
Hadrian’s Wall
• 73 miles across the
border
• “Separate Romans from
the [Celtic] Barbarians”
Divide and Conquer?
• Partition of the Roman Empire
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Partition: to divide
The empire was partitioned in 286 A.D.
Roman Empire became too large for one man to rule
Partitioned into 2 parts
• Eastern Empire and Western Empire
• Byzantine Empire: name given to Rome’s Eastern
Empire
• Constantinople: became the most important city
in the East. Would eventually become the capital
of the Roman Empire
Fall of the Western Roman Empire
• Romans had to hold the barbarians of
Germany back; strain on military
• 300 A.D. Roman soldiers removed from
German border; Germans move in and
conquer last of Western Roman land
– No army=bandits and criminals roaming freely
Results of the Fall of the West
• People were afraid to travel and trade
• Movement of people, goods, and information
slowed
• Economic growth and learning greatly
decreased
• Western Europe became “backwards” and fell
into the Middle Ages
Fall of the East
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500-600s German Tribes raid East
600-700s Arab tribes raid East
Warfare damaged agriculture and education
Empire could not maintain its power, hold or
govern the entire Mediterranean world after
these invasion
• Small and weak Constantinople is all that
remains
The Final Straw
• The Ottoman Empire began invading the
Eastern Roman Empire in the 1400s
• The Ottomans were Turkish Muslims
• 1453: Ottomans capture Constantinople
• This marks the end of the Roman Empire