Download ANCIENT ROME

ANCIENT ROME
Where is Ancient Rome?
• Rome is located in Southern Europe.
• It is in the present day country of Italy.
• Italy is a peninsula, which means it has water on three sides.
• This allowed the Romans to trade with others in the region.
How was Rome founded?
• Rome has a mythical beginning.
• Twin brothers, Romulus and Remus, were sons of the war god Mars and left abandoned as babies.
• A she-wolf fed them and kept them alive.
• They grew up, fought over who would name the city.
• Romulus killed Remus; therefore, he called the city Rome.
How was Rome governed?
• Around 500 BC, Rome became a republic.
• A republic is a government where representatives are chosen by the people.
• The people of Rome were represented in the Senate.
How did Rome expand?
• Rome was able to expand because of its well trained and organized armies.
• In addition, Rome built roads that connected the Empire that allowed troops easy movement.
How were the people of Rome divided?
• Romans were split into two main social classes.
• The Patricians were the landholding upper class.
• The Plebeians were the commoners of Rome.
• The majority of the people were Plebeians but the Patricians had most of the power.
What happened to the city of Rome?
• Rome itself grew much larger than any city ever had before.
• Over one million people lived in and around the city.
• They had running water and sewers.
How did Rome get Water?
• The Romans built enormous aqueducts designed to bring water into the city.
• They used a new architectural technique called the arch.
• They had a very small slant that carried water downhill for miles and miles.
What did Romans do for fun?
• Romans enjoyed violent entertainment.
• They watched gladiators fight to the death in many arenas, most famously the Coliseum.
• They watched chariot races, which often involved bloody crashes.
The Roman Forum
• The Roman Forum was a place where people could express their ideas.
• It was also a place that decrees of the Senate and later the Emperor were announced to the people.
Roman Religion
• Romans had similar gods to the Greeks, except they had different names. For example: Zeus
becomes Jupiter, Ares becomes Mars.
• They built enormous temples, like the Pantheon.
Rome becomes an Empire
• After rising to prominence in a variety of military campaigns, Julius Caesar brings his troops to
Rome in 49 BC and makes himself a dictator.
• He keeps the Senate around but keeps all real power for himself.
• In 44 BC, he is murdered in the Senate by people who want to bring back the old government.
The Roman Empire
• After Julius Caesar is assassinated, there is a civil war fighting for control.
• Caesar’s nephew Octavian becomes emperor, and changes his name to Caesar Augustus.
Hadrian’s Wall
• Around 150 AD, the Emperor Hadrian builds a huge wall to separate the Roman part of what is
now England from the non-Roman part.
• Much of it still exists today.
The Decline of Rome
• After Augustus, there is a 200 year peaceful period called the Pax Romana, or Roman Peace.
• Around 180 AD, problems arose in the empire and the Empire begins to decline.
• In 476 AD, Rome is sacked and the Empire is officially dead.
Why did Rome decline?
• Government was corrupt.
• The government had huge building projects that cost lots of money.
• Tribes invaded from the North.
• Poverty and unemployment were very high.
• Moral values declined.
The Discovery of Pompeii
• In 1748, one of the greatest archeological discoveries of all times occurred.
• The Roman city of Pompeii had been destroyed by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD,
preserving the town forever.