Download Rome`s March to Empire

The Roman Empire
From the Republic to the Silk Roads
Early Stages
 Rome grows in influence on peninsula after
the Rape of Lucretia. Consolidates control
over Peninsula.
 2nd Century B.C.E Rome victorious in
regional war with Carthage-Punic Wars.
Northern Africa acquired.
 Roman government known for tolerance
becomes popular.
Civil War: fuels fire
 After the failed Gracchi Brothers reform
efforts to equalize classes. A War breaks out
in 87 B.C.E between rival generals; Gaius
Marius (Plebians) and Gaius Sulla
(Patricians). Both men wrought destruction
upon the state.
 Sulla murdered tens of thousands in the wake
of Marius death.
Violence and Republic
 Not compatible.
 Rome is thrust on a path of strong centralized
leadership.
 Caesar marches on Rome and replaces the
Republican Constitution with a centralized
Imperial Government.
 Rise of gladitorial games.
Caesarian Politics
 Building projects to support lower class
 Centralization
 Assassinated in 44 B.C.E
 Rise of his grand nephew (not related)
Octavian Augustus.
 Birth of the Pax Romana (Peaceful Rome) and
the Age of Empire.
Expansion and Integration
 Roman Roads (Appian Way)
 Dramatic impacts on
areas…Roman expansion
unlike Hellenistic had been
into “newer” more rural
areas such as Iberia,
Germany, and Britannia.
 Tempo of society increased
dramatically.
 Roman traditions took root.
 Cross cultural interactions
increased.
Empire and Commerce
 Mare Nostrum (our sea): dominance in
Mediterranean
 Communication and exchange united
 Urbanization movement—Rome and Beyond
 Wealth and commerce concentrated in cities
 Diversification and specialization of labor
Innovation
 Roman Aqueducts
 Buildings such as the
Colliseum
 “Bread and Circuses”
Roman Religion and
Philosophy
 Early religion saw a parallel to Greek Religion
 During Hellenistic age their religion was the
subject of diffusion, as they acquired faiths
from the region such as Mithraism.
 Primary philosophy was Stoicism which was
embodied by Cicero and Cincinnatus, this
prescribed civic virtue as a great good.
Greatness of Cicero
 Prior to the rise of
Augustus
 Consul whose Caitiline
Oratories saved the
republic.
 Become a model for the
stoic brilliance of
Roman culture and
philosophy.
Literary Flowering
 Aeneid by Virgil: a
heroic tale about the
virtue and greatness of
Rome.
 Livy: the History of
Rome a comparable
work to Thucydides
History of the
Peloponnesian War.
 Horace: essayist who
promoted the simplicity
and brilliance of Roman
culture and life.
Religions of Salvation
 Appealed to the masses
 Mithraism: Zoroastrian god identified with
sun and light. Romans associated him with
virtues such as strength, discipline, and
courage.


Rewarded military and moral virtue
Promised a union with Mithras
Cult of Isis
 Mithraism not open to
women.
 Isis had become the most
popular faith in the region
during the Hellenistic age.
 Seen as benevolent and
tolerant, her worship seen as
salvation.
 Rome moving away from
Greco-Roman traditions,
setting the stage for
Christianity.
Jews and Rome
 State cults were blasphemous
 Refused to worship Roman Emperors
 Judea suffered greatly economically and
politically.
 Resistance and conflict were common: Jewish
War 66-7.
 Essenes and other groups looked for a savior
who would deliver them from Roman rule.
King Herod
 A “client king” or
“puppet king” of Judea.
 Hated by the Jews for
his taxes, harsh laws,
and religious
interference.
 Promoted the “cult of
Roma”.
 Anti-Roman
movements emerge:
Zealots
Jesus of Nazareth
 Born in 4 C.E
 Arrived during a time
of tension between Jews
and their emperor.
 “Kingdom of god” in
direct contrast to the
Roman Empire.
 Political v. Religious
overtones
 His death in the early
30’s C.E didn’t put an
end to the movement.
Teachings
 His teachings were in the Jewish tradition
 His teachings amended Jewish traditions
 Taught his followers not to revolt against
Rome.
 Pontius Pilate the Roman Prefect (Governor)
put him to death not for his religious
teachings but in his mind to quell
disobedience and promote social order.
Spread of Christianity
 Peter continued the teachings of Jesus. His
leadership in the Apostles led to the creation
of Bishoprics and the Papacy.
 Paul of Tarsus (purple pages) brought the
church outside of Judea through his
missionary activities and made it applicable
to all peoples not just Jews.
Appeal of Christianity
 Open to all, including




non-Jews, women, and
commoners.
Held out a promise of
salvation
Gave each person a
sense of community.
Contrast with pagan
(Greco-Roman) faiths of
the day.
Spread quickly
Acceptance of Christianity
 Martyr stories suggest that





the degree of hostility
towards them was savage.
Roman citizens
misunderstood Christianity.
Distrusted the exclusivity of
the faith.
Didn’t understand the rituals
and sacraments, thought of
them as atheists.
Emperor Constantine, in the
Edict of Milan removed
religious intolerance from
Roman law and granted
religious freedom.
Theodosius 391 CE made it
the official faith of Rome.
Fall of Rome
 Reign of Commodus
after the brilliance of
the Philosopher
Emperor Marcus
Aurelius.
 Barracks Emperors
Period (235-284, 26
Emperors!)
Diocletian’s Division: 284 CE
 The Empire was
growing too large to
effectively governing.
Barbarian Groups
 Barbarians found gaps
in Roman defenses.
 Goths burst into Europe
in 285.
 Franks, Saxons,
Visigoths, and other
groups looted the
empire.
 Rome West ceased to
exist after 476 CE.
Germanic invasions and the fall of the
western Roman empire, 450-476 C.E.
 Page: 316