Download Ancient Rome - Avery County Schools

Ancient Rome
From Republic to Empire
Growth of Rome
The Geography of Rome
• Geography helped Rome establish a great
empire in the Mediterranean region.
– The city of Rome was centrally located on
the Italian peninsula.
• Trade routes that linked the cities of Italy
passed through Rome.
• Unlike Greece, the mountains of Italy, the
Apennines, were not rugged and did not
prevent Rome from unifying the cities of
Italy.
• Rome was located 18 miles up the Tiber River and built on seven mountains.
• Since it was up the Tiber River, trade could come to the city, but it was hard to
attack from the sea.
• Since the city was built on seven mountains, it was hard to attack from land.
The Geography of Rome
• Italy was located in the center of
the Mediterranean world.
– Of the three great peninsulas of
southern Europe, Italy is the one in
the middle.
– Also, the Italian peninsula is only
100 miles from North Africa.
– Italy’s position in the middle of the
Mediterranean Sea made it easy for
the Romans to launch military
operations to the east or west.
Legend of Rome’s Founding
• Aeneas migrated from Troy to
Italy
• Two of his descendants,
Romulus and Remus, were
abandoned by an evil uncle in
the flooded Tiber River
• A kindly she-wolf found them
and nursed them to health
• The boys grew strong and
courageous and in 753 B.C.,
Romulus founded the city of
Rome and established himself
as its first king
Romulus and Remus being
nursed by the she-wolf
Early Settlers in Italy - Latins
• After 2000 BC, many
groups of people
invaded Italy and settled
throughout the
peninsula.
– Settlers called the Latins
built villages along the
Tiber River that later
joined to form Rome.
Early Settlers in Italy - Etruscans
• The Etruscans from Asia Minor captured Rome and
the surrounding areas and ruled until 509 BC.
– The Etruscans developed an alphabet and a written language.
– They were skilled in making, clothing, jewelry, metal,
pottery, and wood.
– They knew how to pave roads, drain swamps, and build
sewer systems.
– The Romans got their dress (toga) and army organization
from the Etruscans. The Roman Army was organized
around groups of 100 commanded by a centurion. 50 of
these groups, 5,000 men, formed a legion, commanded by a
general.
Early Settlers in Italy - Greeks
• The people of Greece started colonies in southern
Italy and spread their culture to the Romans.
– The Romans learned to cultivate olives and grapes from
the Greeks.
– The Greeks also influenced the Roman alphabet, art,
sculpture, architecture, literature and religion.
• In time, the Latins, Etruscans, Greeks, and other
people began to think of themselves as Roman.
Control of Italy
• Over a period of several hundred years, Rome
expanded beyond its borders.
– In 509 BC, the Romans overthrew the last Etruscan
king and set up a republic.
– Roman armies were well organized, well trained, and
had a high moral.
– Rome took control of most of Italy.
– The defeated peoples in Italy usually became allies of
Rome.
The Roman Republic
• A republic is a type of government in which people elect
their own leaders.
– The government was controlled by powerful aristocrats called
patricians.
– All other people belonged to the lower class, or plebeians.
– Men in both groups were citizens and could vote, but only
patricians could be elected to public office.
– Rome’s first set of laws were engraved on tablets known as the
Twelve Tables and displayed in the Forum, the main public square.
The Roman Republic (continued)
• The Senate, made up of 300 patricians, made the law and
controlled tax policy and foreign policy.
• The Assembly, which represented the plebeians, had little real
power at first, but gradually gained more responsibility.
• In times of emergency, a dictator was chosen and given
absolute power to act quickly and decisively.
• Two consuls, both patricians, ran the government and
commanded the army.
• There were two praetors (judges) over civil law. One for cases
involving Roman citizens and another for cases between noncitizens.
The family was the center of
religion, morals, and education.
– The typical Roman family was an extended family that included
unmarried children, married sons and their families, certain other
relatives and family slaves.
– The father led the religious services, taught his son farming, and
made all important decisions.
– The mother managed the household and taught the children
reading, writing and arithmetic.
– Children were trained to obey their elders and be good citizens.
– The Romans believed the spirits of the gods had to be kept happy
through ritual and sacrifices.
– The father of the gods was Jupiter, and his wife Juno.
Who do you think would be a likely rival for
control of the Mediterranean Sea?
The Punic Wars The First Punic War
• Rome expanded into the western Mediterranean
during the Punic Wars.
– Rome took the island of Sicily away from Carthage its
rival in North Africa in the first Punic War (264-259
BC)
The Punic Wars The Second Punic War
• During the Second Punic War, the great Hannibal of Carthage
won many battles against the Romans but was finally defeated.
– Hannibal crossed the Alps into northern Italy with about 46,000 men a
number of horses and 37 battle elephants, and overwhelmed the Roman
armies at the Battle of Cannae in 216 BC.
– Although Hannibal roamed Italy freely, he was unable to take the
cities.
– In 206 BC Rome drove the Carthaginians out of Spain and in 202 BC
they attacked Carthage.
– Hannibal was called back to Carthage and defeated by the Roman
General Scipio at the Battle of Zama.
– Carthage had to give up Spain and its rich gold and silver mines to
Rome.
The Punic Wars The Third Punic War
• In the Third Punic War (149-146 BC) the
Romans totally destroyed Carthage.
• Rome laid siege to Carthage – city set to
fire and its 50,000 inhabitants were sold
into slavery – territory was made a Roman
province
Rome Spreads East
• Rome’s conquests led
to its domination of
the Eastern
Mediterranean.
– Macedonia fell in 197
BC and the other Greek
city-states soon
followed.
– Other victories left
Rome as the sole
power in the
Mediterranean world.
As they expanded their
control…
…the Romans built an
excellent network of roads
Here’s how they built them:
Their road system is one of the Romans’ greatest achievements
Why do you think they built them?
The Roman Road System
 Allowed easy military transport
 Enabled trade and commerce
 Helped unify expanding Roman territories
Roman expansion led to
problems - Provinces
• Newly acquired territories, called provinces, were
poorly governed.
– The people were not granted citizenship or made allies,
as were the people of Italy.
– The provinces were heavily taxed.
– Roman governors in the provinces sometimes were
more interested in taking money for themselves than
providing for the needs of the people.
Roman expansion led to
problems - Poverty
• Farmers in Italy had a hard time competing against
farmers in the provinces.
– In the provinces, landowners could grow cheaper grain
because they used inexpensive slave labor.
– Many Italian farmers abandoned their land and moved
to the cities, but often could not find jobs.
– People came to be judged by their wealth rather than
their character.
The Gracchi Brothers
• The Gracchi brothers suggested reforms that
would help the poor.
– Tiberius and Gaius Gracchus proposed that public land
seized by wealthy nobles be returned to those Romans
who did not have any land.
– Gaius also wanted to weaken the power of the Senate,
which was controlled by the rich.
– Both brothers were killed in riots led by senator
opposed to reform.
From Republic to Empire:
Civil War
• The Roman Republic became the Roman
Empire
– A civil war broke out between the forces of
Marius and Sulla.
• Marius drew his support from the Popular party
which controlled the Assembly.
• Sulla represented the Senatorial Party.
• Sulla’s army won the war, and he ruled as a military
dictator for several years.
Rome was ruled by the
First Triumvirate
• Over ½ of the people in the Roman Empire were slaves.
Sparticus led a slave revolt in Italy.
• Gnaeus Pompey, one of Sulla’s generals, joined forces
with Julius Caesar (a military leader in Spain) and Marcus
Crassus (the richest man in Rome) to form the First
Triumphirate. They defeat and crucify the revolting
slaves.
• The three men controlled the government of Rome.
– Pompey ruled over Italy.
– Crassus was the leader of the eastern provinces.
– Caesar was the leader of the western provinces and brought Gaul
(France) under Roman control.
Julius Caesar became the
dictator of Rome
• Crassus was killed in a war in Asia in 53 BC.
• The Senate ordered Caesar to step down and allow
Pompey to rule alone.
• Caesar refused to step down. He and his army
crossed the Rubicon River (the southern border of
his provinces) and defeated Pompey to become the
sole ruler of Rome.
Caesar introduced a
number of reforms
• Public lands were given to the poor.
• Many people in the provinces were granted
citizenship.
• Improvements were made in the government of
the provinces.
• Roads were built, swamps were drained, and other
public works programs were undertaken.
• A new calendar was set up that had 365 days, plus
an extra day every four years for “leap year.”
The Assassination of Caesar
• Members of the senate who were jealous of
Caesar’s power stabbed him to death on the
“Ides of March” – March 15, 44 BC.
Augustus became the first
Roman Emperor
• Brutus and Cassius, two assassins of Julius Caesar, were
defeated by Mark Antony (Caesar’s main assistant general),
Lepidus (Caesar’s cavalry leader), and Octavian (Caesar’s
heir.)
– Mark Antony, Lepidus and Octavian form the Second Triumvirate.
• Octavian ruled the west, and Mark Antony, ruled the east.
They came into conflict and civil war broke out.
• Octavian defeated Mark Antony at the Battle of Actium in
31 BC. Mark Antony fled to Egypt where he and his
mistress, Cleopatra, committed suicide.
• The Senate gave Octavian the name “Augustus” meaning
“most high” making him Rome’s first emperor.
Emperor Augustus
• As emperor, Augustus had the authority to make
laws and veto any laws proposed by the Senate.
• Under Augustus, Rome experienced its “Golden
Age.”
–
–
–
His reign marked the beginning of “Pax
Romana”, or “Roman Peace” which lasted for
almost 200 years.
Augustus was the first in a line of emperors
who were worshipped as gods and allowed to
choose their own successors.
Jesus Christ was born during the rule of
Augustus.
Later Emperors
Later emperors enlarged the Roman Empire and
brought about important changes.
– Tiberius added to his own power by doing away with the
Assembly.
– Nero blamed the Christians for burning Rome and began
persecution of the Christians.
– Claudius made Britain a Roman territory and helped unify
the empire by letting people from the provinces sit in the
Senate.
– Vespasian built the Coliseum and sent an army to destroy
Jerusalem, a city in Palestine.
– The Roman Empire reached its largest size when Trajan
took possession of Dacia (now Romania).
Later Emperors (continued)
• Hadrian had a wall built, Hadrian’s Wall, along the
northern border of the empire (between what is now
England and Scotland) to protect against invasions by
barbarian tribes.
• Marcus Aurelius was the last emperor during the “Pax
Romana,” the period of peace when Roman culture
flourished and spread throughout the empire.
• After 100 years of warfare and disorder, Diocletian
brought peace once again to the Roman Empire, but he
took away personal freedom. He also divided the empire
into western and eastern halves each with its own emperor.
• Constantine temporarily reunited the Roman Empire and
moved the capital to Byzantium, renamed Constantinople
in his honor. He also was the first emperor to become a
Christian.
Fall of the Roman Empire
• The Roman Empire steadily declined in
power and finally collapsed.
– By 400 AD, the empire had once again divided
into two parts – The Eastern Roman Empire and
The Western Roman Empire.
The Western Romans Empire fell
for many reasons.
When the emperors limited personal freedom, they lost the
support of the people.
• The empire was too large to govern effectively.
• Civil wars also broke out between rival political groups.
• While some people were very rich, most were poor and often
did not own their own land.
• The increased use of slaves put many Romans out of work.
• The population declined because of war, hunger, and disease.
• The Huns, Goths, Angles, Saxons, Franks, and other barbarian
tribes overran the empire.
• Romulus Augustus, the last Roman Emperor, was overthrown in
476 AD.
The Fall of Rome

The Huns, under Attila, were eventually
defeated by the Romans, but Rome had to
use mercenaries to defeat the Huns.



The Pope met with Attila to keep him from
attacking the city of Rome.
The Visigoths under Alaric destroyed the
city of Rome in 410.
The Visigoths under Odoacer destroy Rome
and dispose the last Emperor, Romulus
Augustus.
The Byzantine Empire
• The Eastern Roman Empire, or Byzantine
Empire, lasted for another 1000 years. It
was defeated by the Turks in 1453.
Conclusion
• Rome grew form a small town to the most
powerful empire of the ancient world. No
people have united western Europe,
Southwest Asia and North Africa like the
Romans did. They ruled from the cold
mountains of Scotland to the hot deserts of
the Middle East. The controlled all of the
land around the Mediterranean Sea.