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Government / Politics
Rome
- The Etruscans were the first people to rule Rome, and contributed to the rise of Rome
- There were seven kings of Rome, the first being Romulus, who had a twin brother, Remus
- The Roman Republic was the end result of the people’s unhappiness with the tyrannical Etruscan kings
- The Roman Republic was known to the people as the SPQR, the Senate and the People of Rome, which
means that there was tension between the aristocrats who made up the senate, and the citizens
- The Senate was a group of men who had control over most of the land, and advised the kings as well
and the assembly was made up of male citizens, separated into five electoral classes, according to wealth
- The Republican laws distinguished between the rich and the poor, male and female
- The Roman Republic came to an end in 27 BCE, after the death of Julius Caesar, and twenty years of civil
war
- It was replaced by the Roman Empire, which was ruled by emperors, until 476 CE, and which improved
the lives of the Romans slightly
- Augustus was the first emperor of Rome, and brought about peace, and a society that flourished in all
areas
- The rule of his successors was much more harsh and cruel; the power of the emperor began to increase,
and the Senate was not respected
- The Roman Empire was changed to the Christian Roman Empire once Constantine freed the Christians
from persecution, and this led to many people wanting control of the Empire
- The Roman Empire finally collapsed in 476 CE, due to the adoption of Christianity, which abolished the
Roman gods and the belief of the people, and because of an unstable economy
Greece
-The word politics comes from the Greek word “polis”
-The study of the government was first started by Plato and Aristotle
- In Ancient Greece there were four forms of government that were practiced: monarchy, aristocracy,
oligarchy and direct democracy
- In Ancient Athens they had a direct democracy, which allowed the citizens to participate in political
decision-making
- The government worried more about the citizens of its city-state then its own well-being
- Both decision-making and decision enforcing were the duty of every free adult male citizen, and not just
of those elected by them or by their leaders
-In ancient Athens, the origin of democracy, not only were children not allowed vote, but so were women,
foreigners, and slaves
- Political leaders were often also religious leaders
- Every citizen could speak and vote on every piece of legislation in the Assembly
- Every citizen had an equal chance to hold public office (except for army generals, which was an elected
position)
- The leader was elected annually
- Other civic officers, such as archonships, were also one-year positions and candidates were selected by
a lottery from a list made by the tribes
-The Spartans produced a very complex government, mixing democracy and oligarchy
-The government was made up of four parts: ruling class, the Council of Elders, the Ephorate, and the
Assembly
-For this specific time period, the oligarchy government used in Sparta was better for the Ancient Greeks
than the democratic government in Athens
Arts (art, literature, philosophy)
Rome
- Style: Neo-Greek classicism and antique (ex. Arch of Constantine.)
- Roman art was eclectic, and no single period has a unified “Roman style.”
- Statues were produced in great numbers in bronze and even in gold and silver (ex. Aurelius on the
Campidoglio)
- Every temple had a cult statue: marble and bronze images of the gods and heroes—Roman originals and
copies of famous Greek statues
- A Roman tradition during the Republic was to have family members carry images of the deceased during
the funeral procession as cultural statements about the deceased
- Little survives today of Roman panel painting (modern canvases), which were paintings of historical
events, myths, scenes of daily life, portraits, and still lives
- First Style (120 and 80 BCE), is based on Greek interior decoration
- Second Style (80 to 15 BCE), sought to create the illusion of vast spaces beyond the surface of the wall
by using perspective.
- Third Style (15 BCE to 63 CE), is a highly refined style in which the illusionism of the Second Style is
suppressed in favour of delicate linear arabesques on monochrome grounds
- Fourth Style (63 to 79 CE), is the last and most complex style developed before the Vesuvian eruption
- Roman art and architecture had a profound impact not only on the succeeding art of the Middle Ages,
but on the Renaissance and baroque periods as well, and even much of the art produced today has
obvious roots in the Roman past.
Greece
- Located on a pedestal in front of the wall in the centre of the Acropolis stands the bronze statue of
Athene. This statue allows Athenian sailors to know they are close to home, but seeing the sunshine off
the statues helmet and spear.
- Early Greek figures are known as kouroi. They are inspired by Egyptian sculptures. They show their
subjects standing stiffly, one foot in front of the other.
- In 490BC, artists began to create more lifelike statues.
- By the first century BC, Greek sculptors began to use their understanding of the body muscles, to give a
more realistic effect to the human body.
- The Greek’s considered architecture to be art. They built temples for the gods and goddesses.
- Greek buildings were constructed of local white marble, and reddish rock (natural concrete), which was
used for foundations
- Finished buildings were decorated with friezes and statues. They were also painted in gold, blue, green,
and red.
- Greek art is mainly in four forms: architecture, sculpture, painting, and painted pottery.
- Sculptures made mostly of limestone and marble, but both limestone and marble can be burned and
turned into lime, which is one of the ingredients of cement.
Science / Technology
Rome
- They had great swords, spears and a lot of mechanisms that were able to project objects such as rocks
and fireballs
- They had invented the Manu ballista, which was a hand-cranked catapult that could launch objects up to
50 feet or more per second and delivered a very accurate force against its enemy
-Their armour had been one of the strongest out there and was a bit larger than the body so there was
less impact on the soldiers
- Roads were needed for the armies to march quickly through the land; the Romans were able to build
straight roads by placing a cane in the ground and placing another one along the same line
- The Romans had developed an alphabetic system, which allowed them to write letters to one another,
making a common form of writing among the people
- The Romans also developed the roman numerals and this is still in effect today
- Romans are strongly known for their great architecture; they had discovered that the arch was a strong
shape and could hold a lot of weight due to its centre of gravity
- The Romans also had invented the water mill, and cloth-weaving devices
- This also helped the Romans for creating metals, as that is very difficult and laborious task.
Greece
- Best known are the works of Pythagoras and Euclid in geometry but algebra and even trigonometry were
also well developed
- Famous mathematician and inventor Archimedes, developed a device we call the Archimedean screw
which is used today to draw water up out of streams to irrigate fields
- In science, biology progressed well, especially through the efforts of Aristotle
- Developed more complicated devices based on simple machines such as the pulley, and the lever
- Clock like mechanisms with complex gears, perhaps to measure astronomical data have been found and
large siege machines for hurling various projectiles against an enemy have also been found
- Aristarchus, a Greek astronomer discovered that the earth rotated on its axis and revolved around the
sun
- Eratosthenes discovered that the earth was round and accurately calculated its circumference
- Euclid wrote a book called The Elements, which is the basis for modern geometry
- Han scientists also invented the process to make paper from wood pulp
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