Download File - History with Mr. Bayne

The Roman Conquest of Greece
Rome:
From Republic to Empire
Geography
Location of Rome
• Italian Peninsula
(Italy today)
• The Alps and Mediterranean Sea
protected Rome from invasion
• Rome prospered due to trade on the
Mediterranean Sea
Roman Gods
Based on Greek Gods
•
•
•
•
Jupiter (Zeus): Chief god
Juno (Hera): Goddess of marriage; wife of Zeus
Apollo: God of light, the sun and music
Diana (Artemis): Goddess of hunting and wild
things
• Venus (Aphrodite): Goddess of love
• Minerva (Athena): Goddess of wisdom and war
Roman Religion
Roman Republic
• Republic: rule by the people (re=by, public=people)
• Representative democracy: legislators
(representatives) are elected by the citizens to
represent their interests
Roman Citizens
• Paid taxes
• Men had the right to vote
• Men had to serve in the military
Patricians:
• Land-owners of noble Latin birth
“Patricia is a rich snob”
Plebeians:
• Majority of Romanscommon people
• Artisans, shopkeepers,
and small farmers
Slaves
• The property of
their owners
• Were taken by
conquest
• Had no freedom
or rights
The Assemblies
• Patricians and plebeians met
in the assemblies to vote for
tribunes, magistrates (judges),
and consuls.
• The assemblies were more
democratic but less powerful
than the senate.
The Senate
• The most powerful
lawmaking body in
Rome.
• 300 members were
chosen (for life) from
the Patrician class
• Later plebeians were
allowed to join
Tribunes
•
Were elected by
the plebeians to
protect the rights
of ordinary
people.
Consuls
• Two officials elected to
command the army
and direct the
government
• Served for a one-year
term.
• One consul could
always veto (overrule)
the other’s decisions.
Dictator
One whose word was law
• In a times of crisis, a
dictator would be given
absolute power to
command the army and
make laws
• A dictator’s power lasted
for only six months
Twelve Tables
Laws carved on tablets and hung in the forum
• The laws of Rome.
• Established ideas seen in
modern laws such as the
principle of innocent until
proven guilty.
Punic Wars
264 to 146 BC
• 3 wars fought between Rome and Carthage
Carthage was a Trading empire located in North
Africa (present-day Tunisia) that competed with
Rome for control of trade on the Mediterranean Sea
• Hannibal was the
general of Carthage
Second Punic War
• His army
crossed the
Alps and
invaded the
Italian
Peninsula
• Hannibal was defeated when Rome attacked
Carthage
• Rome destroyed Carthage
• Increased trade brought great wealth to Rome
Growth of Rome
• Following the Punic wars, Rome grew rapidly,
taking control of the Mediterranean basin
(including Greece and the Hellenistic world of the
Eastern Mediterranean, North Africa, and Spain).
Punic Wars
Spread of Slavery
• Romans made slaves
of captured peoples
during the wars and
conquests which
followed
• By 100 BC slaves
made up one-third
of Rome’s population
Roman Slave Collar
Expansion and Wealth
Creates Problems
• The spread of slavery caused small farmers
(former soldiers) to lose their land.
• The influx of wealth caused prices to rise
(inflation)
Unemployment
Loss of jobs
• Landless former
farmer-soldiers flocked
into the into cities
looking for jobs and
joined the ranks of the
restless urban poor
(25% of the population)
• The gap between the
rich and the poor
widened.
Decline of the Republic
• The end of democracy
in Rome
• Civil wars erupted due
to class conflicts and
rivalries between
politician-generals
• Another civil war
erupted over the power
of Julius Caesar
Roman Republic Grows
The First Triumvirate
• Three rulers who joined forces to take power
from the senate and dominate Rome.
Caesar,
Crassus, and Pompey
Julius Caesar
• He conquered Gaul
(France today)
• He had the support of the
masses and the army
• Caesar went to war with Pompey and won
• He returned to Rome with his army and forced the
senate to make him dictator for life.
Julius Caesar Emerges as Dictator
Julius Caesar is
Assassinated
• A group of senators stabbed Julius Caesar to death
in the senate chamber
More Civil Wars
• After Julius Caesar’s death civil war erupted
• Octavian (Augustus) joined forces with
Mark Anthony and Lepidus and together
they took control of Rome for ten years.
Octavian vs. Marc Anthony
• Civil war
erupted again
between
Octavian and
Mark Anthony
• Octavian won.
Octavian
(Augustus)
Anthony and
Cleopatra
Julius Caesar is Assassinated
Octavian Caesar Becomes Emperor
Augustus Caesar
• Octavian assumed
absolute power
and accepted the
title “Augustus”
• Rome became an
empire ruled by
an emperor (no
longer a republic
or democracy).
The Pax Romana
• 200 years of peace and
prosperity established
by the rule of Augustus
(pax = peace, Romana =
Roman)
• The Roman Empire
continued to expand and
solidify
Roman Empire
• By the end of the
second century, the
Roman Empire
stretched from
Spain to
Mesopotamia, and
from North Africa
to Great Britain.
Economic Impact
• Augustus established a
uniform system of
money helping to
expand trade.
• It was safe to travel and
trade on Roman roads.
Social Impact
• Augustus returned
stability to the
social classes
• Increased
emphasis on the
family
Political Impact
• Augustus created a civil service: He paid
workers to manage the affairs of government
(postal system, tax collection, etc.)
• He developed a uniform rule of law
Problems With Succession
• Succession – selection
of the next emperor
• Because Rome had no
written law for
choosing a new
emperor, crisis or civil
war could occur when
an emperor died.
Octavian - Augustus
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