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Around 500 BC, just as democracy was getting started in Athens, the Roman aristocrats
(the rich people) decided they didn't want to be ruled by Etruscan kings anymore. The
kings were doing okay for the poor people, but the rich people wanted more power for
themselves. But the rich people couldn't get rid of the kings all by themselves. They
needed the poor men to fight for them. So they promised the poor men that they could
have a lot of power in the new government, if they would help get rid of the kings. The
poor men agreed to help, and together the Romans threw out the Etruscan kings.
But once the kings were out, the Roman aristocrats didn't want to give the poor men any
power. They said no way! So the leaders of the poor men moved outside the city and
went on strike. They refused to work any more unless they got some power. The Roman
aristocrats had to give in, and they let the poor men (but not the women or slaves) vote.
Still the poor men of Rome did not get as much power as the poor men of Athens. Instead
of voting about what to do themselves, the Romans voted to choose leaders, who decided
for them, the way the United States President and Congress do today. These leaders were
supposed to vote the way the people they were representing wanted them to vote. This
was called a representative government. The only people who could be elected to the
Roman Senate were the rich people!
After another few years, the poor people of Rome still felt they were not being treated
right. They made the aristocrats agree that the poor men could also elect tribunes.
Tribunes had to be chosen from the poor people, and they went to all the meetings of the
Senate. They could veto anything the Senate did which would be bad for the poor people.
Veto means "I forbid it" in Latin, and it meant that the tribunes could forbid any law
that was bad for the poor.
The poor people also made the aristocrats write down the laws and put them in a public
square where anyone could read them (though not very many people could read). These
were called the Twelve Tables. Like the Babylonian Code of Hammurabi, this stopped
the aristocrats from pretending that there was a law about something when really there
was not.
Meanwhile, the Roman army had been little by little conquering the cities around them.
Now most people at this time, when they conquered a city, just took all the stuff they
wanted, wrecked some buildings, and then went home and left the city alone. But the
Romans, when they conquered a city, did something new: they made that city part of the
Roman Empire. The people who lived in that city got the right to vote in Rome (at least
sometimes), and they paid taxes to Rome, and they sent men to be in the Roman army.
Because of this new idea, the more the Romans conquered, the richer they got, and the
more men they had in their army, so that made it easier for them to conquer the next city.
Soon the Romans had taken over most of the middle of Italy.
Rome knew four classes of people. This division was very important to the Romans.
The lowest class was the slaves. They were owned by other people. They had no rights at
all.
The next class was the plebeians. They were free people. But they had little say at all.
The second highest class were the equestrians (sometimes they are called the 'knights').
Their name means the 'riders', as they were given a horse to ride if they were called to
fight for Rome. To be an equestrian you had to be rich.
The highest class was the nobles of Rome. They were called 'patricians'. All the real
power in Rome lay with them.
Only Patricians and Plebeians could be citizens; slaves and women could not. Citizens
had rights and responsibilities. They had to pay taxes and had to serve in the military.
Rome: The Twelve Tables
The patricians not only administered the law, the magistrates (consuls) themselves were the only
authority who could declare what the law was. The next plebeian demand therefore was for a published
written code. In 451 BC a commission of ten men, the Decemviri, was appointed as a temporary
government, to refine, standardize and record a statutory code of law. The result, known as the Twelve
Tables, was engraved in copper and permanently displayed to public view. The tables constituted a clear
set of rules for public, private and political behavior.
If a thief was a freeman, he was to flogged and bound over to the plaintiff. If he was a slave he was to be
flogged and thrown off the Tarpeian Rock. Other laws ruled over hygiene and fire-hazards. No burials or
cremations were allowed within the city limits. The upkeep of roads was deemed the responsibility of
those on whose property they bordered. There was a statutory maximum rate of interest. Anyone
adjudged to be a debtor was given thirty days to pay, after which he could be sold into slavery by his
creditors.
It was an offence to cast or have cast any spells on someone. Also to demonstrate in the streets against
an individual (instead of for or against a cause) was forbidden. You could remove any part of a neighbor’s
tree which overhung your property.
There was a fixed penalty for assault, which was reduced if the victim was a slave. Stealing crops was a
capital offence, so was slander (by clubbing to death). According to Pliny the Elder (a chronist of the time)
the penalty for murder was less than that for stealing crops.
There was a distinction between an intentional and an accidental killing. The father had to right to kill his
deformed child.
The Roman code lasted as long as the Roman Empire itself. Though more importantly, it
was the first time that written code was put down which applied right across the social
scale from the patricians to the plebeians. The Twelve Tables are generally seen as the
beginning of European law.
A Brief History of Rome
Early Rome was governed by kings, but after only seven of
them had ruled, the Romans took power over their own city
and ruled themselves.
They then instead had a council known as the 'senate' which
ruled over them. From this point on one speaks of the 'Roman
Republic'.
A speech in the Roman senate
The word 'Republic' itself comes from the Latin (the language
of the Romans) words 'res publica' which mean 'public matters'
or 'matters of state'.
The senate under the kings had only been there to advise the
king. Now the senate appointed a consul, who ruled Rome like
a king, but only for one year. There would usually be two men
chosen for consul. This was a wise idea, as like that, the consul
ruled carefully and not as a tyrant, for they knew that otherwise
they could be punished by the next consul, once their year was
up.
The Roman Republic was a very successful government. It lasted from 510 BC
until 23 BC - almost 500 years. In comparison the United States of America
only exist since 1776 - less than 250 years.
The greatest challenge the Roman Republic faced was
that of the Carthaginians. Carthage was a very powerful
city in North Africa which, much like Rome, controlled its
own empire. The fight between the two sides was a long
one and took place on land and on sea.
The most famous incident came when the great
Carthaginian general Hannibal crossed the mountain
chain of the Alps to the north of Italy with all his troops,
including his war-elephants !, and invaded Italy.
Though Rome in the end won and Carthage was
completely destroyed in the year 146 BC.
Hannibal, the great
Carthaginian general
Julius Caesar
Museo della Civilta
Rome
Rome's most famous citizen was no doubt Julius Caesar. He
was a Roman politician and general who, without having any
orders to do so, conquered the vast territory of the Gauls to the
north of his province in France.
In the year 49 BC Caesar crossed the small river between his
province and Italy, called the river Rubicon, and conquered
Rome itself which he then ruled as a dictator.
His military campaigns also took him to Egypt where he met
the famous Cleopatra.
His life though was ended as he was infamously murdered in
the senate in Rome.
So famous and respected was Caesar that a month of the year
is still named after him and his heirs today, July (after Julius
Caesar). Also the great English poet Shakespeare wrote a
famous play called Julius Caesar about his famous murder.
Julius Caesar
Rome was a huge and very rich empire after the second Punic War, but the Senate did
a poor job of running the republic. The senate was designed to
govern a city, not a growing empire. The senators often took
bribes or were not careful about how they voted in the forum.
Many Romans wanted a strong leader, and the ambitious Julius
Caesar was an obvious choice.
Caesar sought the office of consul in 60BC. He had recently
returned from Spain where he served a year as governor. The two
consuls at the time were Crassus and Pompey, the leaders of the
war against the slave revolt. Rather than become involved in a
struggle, Caesar convinced Crassus, Pompey, and the Roman
Senate to name him a third consul. This coalition of three equal
rulers later became known as the First Triumvirate.
When Caesar's year-long term as consul ended, he used his
influence to get himself appointed governor of Gaul. Gaul was a territory northwest of
the Italian peninsula. He led an army that captured most of Western Europe. Caesar's
successes on the battlefield made him the most popular man in Rome.
In 49BC, the Senate ordered Caesar to return to Rome, but to leave his army behind.
Caesar feared that his opponents would destroy him, so he ignored the order and marched
his army back to Rome. Caesar's orders clearly told him not to bring his army across the
Rubicon River. When he marched the army across the river, he knew he faced an
important decision. Caesar knew that if he obeyed the senate and disbanded his army, his
career would be over; but if he marched his troops across the river, the Senate would
order Pompey and his army to retaliate. Today when people say they are "crossing the
Rubicon," they refer to a very significant decision that cannot be
undone.
Caesar's army seized control of Italy while Pompey and his army
fled to Greece. Caesar hunted Pompey and defeated his army.
Pompey then escaped to Egypt with Caesar in pursuit. When Caesar
arrived in Egypt, the ten-year-old king of Egypt, Ptolemy XIII,
presented Caesar with Pompey's decapitated head.
The Roman people admired Caesar as a war hero and a strong
leader. In 46BC, they elected him dictator of Rome. A dictator is a
ruler with complete control. In that time, dictators were temporary
rulers elected in times of crisis, but Caesar was elected because of
his popularity. The last Roman dictator had been elected almost 150
years earlier, at the end of the second Punic War.
Caesar used his power to make many changes in Rome, often without approval from
the Senate. He instituted the Julian calendar of 365¼ days. Caesar's calendar is closely
related to the calendar we use today. The month of July is named in honor of Caesar. A
year after his election as dictator, the Roman people elected Caesar "dictator for life."
The Roman senators were outraged at Caesar's power and popularity. On March 15,
44BC, Caesar was met by a mob of sixty senators who stabbed the dictator to death.
MARC ANTONY •
Roman General
Latin name: Marcus Antonius
Antony was a daring general in the army of Julius Caesar who rose to become one of Caesar's closest
colleagues. After Caesar was assassinated in 44 B.C., Antony jumped into the struggle for control of
Rome. (At the funeral of Caesar he spoke out strongly against the assassins; William Shakespeare
later dramatized this moment in the play Julius Caesar, with the famous oration beginning "Friends,
Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears.") Antony joined forces with Caesar's adopted heir Octavian
to purge Rome of their common enemies. They formed the so-called Second Triumvirate with
general Marcus Lepidus and divided the empire, with Antony being given control of Egypt. There he
met and became the lover of the Egyptian queen Cleopatra. Their meeting, with Cleopatra dressed as
the love goddess Venus and arriving on a lavishly decorated barge, is a famous story recorded by
Plutarch and others. Antony and Cleopatra joined forces and the triumvirate dissolved. At the battle
of Actium in 31 B.C.E. the naval forces of Antony and Cleopatra were routed by those of Octavian.
(Cleopatra fled the scene while the battle was still underway, and Antony followed; their departure is
often regarded as one of naval history's great blunders.) A year later, with Octavian's forces nearing
Alexandria, Antony committed suicide by falling on his sword. Cleopatra followed suit (allegedly
killing herself with the self-inflicted bite of a poisonous snake) and Octavian was left in final control
of Egypt and Rome. Antony's life and tragic end was immortalized by Shakespeare in his play
Antony and Cleopatra.
Marc Antony's name is sometimes modernized to "Marc Anthony," and he is sometimes called
simply "Antony"... Marc Anthony is also the name of a popular modern salsa musician.
Caesar Augustus
With the death of Marc Antony in 31BC, Octavian became the sole ruler of
Rome. Octavian took measures to earn the loyalty of the Roman army. He
encouraged the soldiers to retire from the army by providing them with land.
Once the soldiers retired, Octavian did not have to be concerned with the army
turning on him. Further, Octavian knew he could count on the soldiers' support if
he was challenged by the Senate.
Octavian restored peace and order to Rome. He made sure the lands throughout the
empire were well run and taxes were fair. Octavian built massive roads and bridges,
government buildings, and huge public baths. He said, "I left Rome a city of marble,
though I found it a city of bricks." The Roman people awarded Octavian with the title
Augustus, which means, "respected one." Many Romans deified Augustus after his death.
This means they worshipped him as a god.
Augustus ruled Rome for 41 years, though he did not call himself
an emperor. He was careful to not meet the same fate as his great
granduncle. Augustus was very respectful to the senators, but the
Senate knew he controlled the army and could do as he pleased.
The Roman army was so strong that it protected citizens from
attacks from the tribes who lived beyond the empire. The powerful,
professionally trained forces were divided into large units called
legions. Each legion would have as many as 6,000 soldiers. The two hundred year period
that began with the rule of Caesar Augustus was known as the Pax Romana, or the "Peace
of Rome."
Pax Romana
The Pax Romana, or Roman Peace, is a Latin term referring to the Empire in its glorified
prime. From the end of the Republican civil wars, beginning with the accession of
Augustus in 27 BC, this era in Roman history lasted until 180 AD and the death of
Marcus Aurelius. Though the use of the word 'Peace' may be a bit misleading, this period
refers mainly to the great Romanization of the western world. The Roman legal system
which forms the basis of many western court systems today brought law and order to the
provinces. The Legions patrolled the borders with success, and though there were still
many foreign wars, the internal empire was free from major invasion, piracy or social
disorder on any grand scale. The empire, wracked with civil war for the last century of
the Republic, and for years following the Pax Romana, was largely free of large scale
power disputes. Only the year 69 AD, the so-called 'Year of the Four Emperors',
following the fall of Nero and the Julio-Claudian line, interrupted nearly 200 years of
civil order. Even this was only a minor hiccup in comparison to other eras. The arts and
architecture flourished as well, along with commerce and the economy.
For the enemies of Rome, however, the Pax Romana didn't signal peace or tranquility.
The legions saw considerable action bringing previously un-pacified territory under
control, spreading Roman influence in the Balkans, and attempting expansion in
Germania.
Christianity and the Romans
When Christianity first reached the Roman world around 30AD, it was treated as an outlawed
religion to the extent where Christian believers were persecuted to the point of execution. Yet by
325AD, it had become the norm as the religion of the Roman empire.
To understand why the Romans hated Christianity, we need to examine the basic differences
between the two religions.
The Celts and Romans did not understand nature and life. To the pagans a thunderstorm was the
gods expressing their opinion their followers had done something to upset them and this was the
gods’ way of letting them know. Infant mortality was extremely high as Iron Age people had no
knowledge of germs, disease, in fact anything that could lead to an early dead. They saw a death
as the gods punishing the family for an indiscretion. Failed crops were the gods exacting
punishment for something the tribe had done to cause the gods to become angry. A good harvest
was the gods rewarding the tribe for outstanding service. A birth was the gods rewarding the
family. No matter what happened, the gods were behind it.
Christianity held completely different beliefs about life. A thunderstorm was a natural occurrence.
The death of an infant not punishment, it was 'God's will'. The family had not upset the Christian
God, he had just willed it should happen. No reason needed to be given.
The pagans believed in many gods, each representing a different aspect of life. The Christians
believed in one almighty god who oversaw the whole world. To the pagans, this was against their
ingrained convictions. Although the pagan gods were considered perfect, no one god could
control the whole world.
The pagans accepted killing as part of human life. It was necessary to kill to survive and prosper.
The Romans also deemed killing was acceptable and, even worse, enjoyable as a sport. The
more bloody and drawn out the death process, the more they liked it. The Christians believed that
all killing was wrong.
No history of Christianity is complete without the inclusion of the horrible persecution
which believers suffered at the hands of Roman authorities - but just how bad were
those persecutions and why were they instituted?
The first mass persecutions seem to have been at the hands of Emperor Nero in the
year 64, apparently because he needed someone to blame for the burning of Rome
and they were simply very convenient. After Nero, neither Vespian nor Titus really
bother with the Christians, not finding them the least bit interesting, much less
dangerous.
Normally, non-Romans who refused to sacrifice to the state gods were simply
executed and Roman citizens who did the same were sent back to Rome for trial.
And the Christians? Trajan explained that their crime was so insignificant that it
simply wasn't necessary for government officials to waste precious time trying to find
them or track them down in any way. If any were actually accused by someone, it
could only be by someone willing to give their name - no anonymous accusations
could be permitted.
Once found, they were to be given a chance to "repent" and make a sacrifice to the
Roman gods. Only when they refused to do this could they be punished. And why?
Not for religious reasons, but for political reasons. The punishment was because the
Christians involved were showing a complete lack of respect for Roman courts and
Roman authority. This was regarded as a sort of "hatred of humanity," representing
contempt for Roman civilization. Even today, religious persecution is very often a
mask for more political concerns - a refusal to submit to religious authorities is
normally the same as a refusal to summit to the proper political authorities. Only
when church and sate are separated is it possible to dissent from traditional religion
without also incurring the wrath of political rulers.
During the 2nd century there were few persecutions and those which happened were
relatively localized. In the 3rd century, however, the empire began to enter a period
of decline, and political authorities needed a scapegoat to divert the people's
attention - that scapegoat turned out to be the Christians. Another common reason
for persecution was that some officials hoped to restore Rome to its former glory.
This, in turn, tended to involve reviving the pagan religion and suppressing the
competition. In both cases, however, persecution was a matter of seeking political
and social stability.
Like other religious, nationalistic Jews before and after him, Jesus angered the Roman
government.
The Romans considered the ideas preached by Jesus to be dangerous. As a result, the
Romans arrested Jesus during his Passover trip to Jerusalem. Then the Romans, upon the
order of the Roman procurator, executed Jesus.
Contributions of Rome
Ancient Roman aqueducts provided the
function of transporting water in the form of
simple, yet elegant, layered arches.
An aqueduct is an artificial channel through
which water is conducted to the place where it
is used. Most aqueducts of ancient
times were built of stone, brick or
pozzuolana, a mixture of limestone
and volcanic dust. Rome had many
aqueducts and was the only ancient
city reasonably supplied with water.
By A.D. 97, nine aqueducts brought
about 85 million gallons of water a
day from mountain springs. Later,
five others were built. About 200
cities in the Roman colonies had
aqueducts.
The Pantheon, meaning "Temple of
all the Gods") is a building in Rome
which was originally built as a temple
to the seven deities of the seven
planets in the state religion of Ancient
Rome, but which has been a Christian
church since the 7th century. It is the
best-preserved of all Roman buildings.
It has been in continuous use
throughout its history.
Roman Colosseum
The Colosseum, which stands near the center of
present-day Rome, is perhaps the finest surviving
example of ancient Roman architectural
engineering. One of the most famous ruins in the world, thousands of tourists
visit it every year.
The Colosseum is shaped like a modern football stadium and could seat 45,000
spectators. The four-story facility is 161 feet high, about 600 feet long and 500
feet wide. Events such as fights between gladiators and between men and wild
animals were held there. Awnings could be hung from the walls to protect
spectators from the sun.
The oval-shaped, sand-covered floor of the arena originally could be flooded for
water spectacles. Later, however, cages for people and animals were installed
beneath the arena. A wall separated the arena from spectators whose seats
rested on sloping concrete supports as in many stadiums today.
Construction of the Colosseum started during the reign of Emperor Vespasian, who ruled
from A.D. 69 to 79. Construction was completed in A.D. 80.
The Roman Forum was the political and economical
centre of Rome during the Republic. It emerged as
such in the 7th century BCE and maintained this
position well into the Imperial period, when it was
reduced to a monumental area. It was mostly
abandoned at the end of the 4th century.
The Forum Romanum is located in a valley between
the Capitoline Hill on the west, the Palatine Hill on
the south, the Velia on the east and Quirinal Hill and the Esquiline Hill to the north. The
Velia was leveled in Antiquity.
The importance of the Forum area is indicated by the presence of many of the central
political, religious and judicial buildings in Rome. The Regia was the residence of the
kings, and later of the rex sacrorum and pontifex maximus; the Curia, was the meeting
place of the Senate; and the Comitium and the Rostra, where public meetings were held.
Claudius Ptolemaeus (Greek: Κλαύδιος Πτολεμαῖος; c. 90 –
c. 168 AD), known in English as Ptolemy, was a Greek
mathematician, geographer, astronomer, and astrologer who
lived in the Hellenistic culture of Roman Egypt. He may have
been a Hellenized Egyptian or possibly of Greek ancestry.
Although no description of his family background or physical
appearance exists, it is likely he was born in Egypt, probably
in or near Alexandria.
Claudius is a Roman name. Claudius Ptolemy was almost
certainly a Roman citizen, and he or his ancestor adopted the
nomen of a Roman called Claudius, who was in some sense
responsible for the citizenship. If, as was not uncommon, this
Roman was the Emperor, the citizenship would have been
granted between 14 and 68 CE. The astronomer would also
have had a praenomen, which we do not know.
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The greatest Roman poet, Virgil is known for his epic,
the AENEID (written about 29 B.C.E., unfinished),
which had taken as its literary model Homer's epic
poems Iliad and Odyssey. The tale depicts Aeneas's
search for a new homeland and his war to found a city.
"It is easy to go down into Hell; night and day, the gates of dark
Death stand wide; but to climb back again, to retrace one's
steps to the upper air - there's the rub, the task." (from Aeneid)
Virgil was born on October 15, 70 B.C.E., in Northern
Italy in a small village.