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CHAPTER 5
The Rise of Rome (ca 750–44 B.C.)
INSTRUCTIONAL OBJECTIVES
After reading and studying this chapter, students should be able to discuss the role of land in the
development of Rome. They should be able to describe the nature of the Roman Republic. They should
be able to explain how and why the Romans expanded the territory under their control. They should
also be able to connect Roman expansion to shifts in Roman values. Finally, they should be able to
describe the strengths and weaknesses of the late Republic.
CHAPTER OUTLINE
I.
II.
The Land and Its Early Settlers
A. The Etruscans and the Roman Settlement of Italy (ca 750–509 B.C.)
1. The Etruscans established permanent settlements that evolved into the first Italian
cities.
2. The Etruscans played a major role in Italian life.
3. They engaged in active trading relationships with the Mediterranean world.
4. The Etruscans drew the Romans into their sphere of influence.
5. The Romans embraced many Etruscan customs.
6. Under the Etruscans, the Romans gained contact with the wider Mediterranean world.
B. The Roman Conquest of Italy (509–290 B.C.)
1. The Romans built a political system that facilitated their expansion.
2. Rome’s founding legends underscore the importance of gender norms to Roman ideals.
3. Between 509 and 390 B.C., the growth of Roman power was slow but steady.
4. Between 390 and 290 B.C., the Romans consolidated their gains and reorganized their
army.
5. The Romans spread their culture through sharing their religious cults, mythology, and
drama.
6. Rome’s success in diplomacy and politics was as important as its military victories.
7. The Romans gave their Latin allies considerable local autonomy and, for some, the
possibility of full Roman citizenship.
The Roman Republic
A. The Roman State
1. The Roman constitution was an ever-changing mix of traditional beliefs, customs, and
laws.
2. In the early republic, social divisions determined the shape of politics.
a.
Political power was in the hands of wealthy landowners called patricians.
b. The common people were called the plebeians.
3. The most important political institution of the republic was the senate.
4. The republic also had several assemblies that elected magistrates and passed
legislation.
5. In 471 B.C. the plebeians won the right to their own assembly, the concilium plebis.
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Chapter 5: The Rise of Rome (ca 750–44 B.C.)
29
Contact with foreigners lead to the development of a theory of “natural law,” law that
applied to all societies.
B. Social Conflict in Rome
1. The Struggle of the Orders was the attempt by the plebeians to win political
representation and to protect their rights from patrician domination.
2. Rome’s need for plebeian soldiers led to early reforms.
3. The lex Canuleia made it legal for patricians and plebeians to marry.
4. The Law of the Twelve Tables was codified as a result of plebeian agitation.
5. The struggle ended in 287 B.C. with the passage of the lex Hortensia.
6. The Struggle for the Orders made all male citizens equal before the law, but individual
independence was limited by the power of the paterfamilias.
III. Roman Expansion
A. Italy Becomes Roman
1. Between 282 and 262 B.C., the Romans built on their earlier successes.
2. Rome and the rest of Italy began to share similar views of their common welfare.
B. Overseas Conquest (282–146 B.C.)
1. With Italy under their control, the Romans embarked on a series of wars that left them
rulers of the Mediterranean.
2. These wars were not part of a grand plan for world conquest.
C. The Punic Wars and Beyond (264–133 B.C.)
1. The struggle with Carthage for Sicily resulted in the First Punic War.
2. During the Second Punic War Carthage expanded its power into Spain.
a.
Carthage’s greatest general, Hannibal, lead an army all the way to the gates of
Rome.
b. He was ultimately defeated by the Roman general Scipio Africanus.
3. The Third Punic War ended with the destruction of Carthage itself.
D. Rome Turns East (211–133 B.C.)
1. At the same time as the Punic wars, Roman armies conquered much of the eastern
Mediterranean.
2. The Romans used the discord and disunity of the Hellenistic world to divide and
conquer it.
IV. Old Values and Greek Culture
A. Cato and the Traditional Ideal
1. Marcus Cato (234–149 B.C.) was born a plebeian, but rose to prominence in the
Republic.
2. Cato’s legal career served his political ambitions.
3. Cato was married, but never mentions his wife in his writings.
4. Roman mothers were responsible for the raising and early education of children.
5. An influx of slaves from Rome’s wars and conquests upset the economic and social
balance of the countryside.
6. Religion played an important role in Cato’s life.
B. Scipio Aemilianus: Greek Culture and Urban Life
1. Rome’s conquests brought great wealth to the city.
2. Hellenism dominated the cultural life of Rome.
3. Scipio embraced Hellenism and embodied a new Roman spirit: imperial, cultured, and
independent.
4. The new Hellenism stimulated the growth and development of Roman art and
literature.
5. Conquest brought the Romans leisure and Hellenism shaped the way they used their
free time.
6.
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30
V.
Chapter 5: The Rise of Rome (ca 750–44 B.C.)
The Late Republic (133–31 B.C.)
A. Unrest in Rome and Italy
1. Factional politics and civil wars resulted from Rome’s acquisition of empire.
2. Rome’s Italian allies sought full citizenship.
3. A growing number of urban poor led to further problems for the Roman state.
4. The Gracchi Brothers sought land reform for the Roman poor and full citizenship for
Rome’s Italian allies.
5. The Social War resulted from the agitation of the Italian allies for full Roman
citizenship.
6. The reforms of powerful leaders such as Marius and Sulla had dangerous implications
for the republican constitution.
7. Political leaders such as Marius, Sulla, Pompey, and Julius Caesar acquired enormous
power.
8. Powerful generals jeopardized republican government.
B. Civil War
1. Two political alliances, called the First and Second Triumvirates, undermined the
power of the republican constitution.
2. Caesar, Crassus, and Pompey jockeyed for power.
3. In 45 B.C. Caesar defeated Pompey and assumed supreme power.
4. In 44 B.C. Caesar was assassinated, setting off a civil war that pitted the Caesar’s
murderers against Octavian, Marc Antony, and Lepidus.
5. Victory over the conspirators did not end the fighting, however, as Marc Antony and
Octavian soon came into conflict.
6. Octavian defeated Marc Antony and Cleopatra at the Battle of Actium in 31 B.C.
LECTURE SUGGESTIONS
1.
“Romans and Aliens.” How did Romans view foreigners? Was the Romans’ view of foreigners
similar to that of the Greeks? What institutions did the Romans develop to incorporate noncitizens
into the “Roman family”? Sources: C. J. Smith, Early Rome and Latium: Economy and Society, c.
1000–500 B.C. (1996); N. Morely, Metropolis and Hinterland (1996); R. Kallet-Marx, Hegemony
to Empire (1995).
2.
“Roman Imperialism: Fact or Fiction?” Did Rome pursue a policy of aggression or merely “back
into empire”? Historians have long debated this aspect of Roman history. Sources: R. KalletMarx, Hegemony to Empire (1995); E. T. Salmon, Samnium and the Samnites (1967); J. Heurgon,
The Rise of Rome to 264 B.C. (English translation, 1973); W. V. Harris, War and Imperialism in
Republican Rome, 32770 B.C. (1979).
3.
“The Gracchi: Radical Reformers.” Why were the Gracchi brothers perceived as radicals? What
were their real intentions in seeking social reform in the second century B.C.? Were the Gracchi
brothers genuinely interested in the plight of the disadvantaged of Rome, or were they selfseeking opportunists plotting personal gain and increased political power? Sources: J. K. Evens,
War, Women, and Children in Ancient Rome (1991); P. A. Brunt, Social Conflicts in the Roman
Republic (1971); A. W. Lintott, Violence in the Roman Republic (1968); H. C. Boren, The
Gracchi (1968).
USING PRIMARY SOURCES
“How to Win an Election—Roman Style.” Have students read part or all of The Handbook of
Electioneering by M. T. Cicero’s brother Quintus. The book provides graphic insights into the details of
Roman politics in the late Republic. Use the reading as the basis for a discussion of Roman political
Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Chapter 5: The Rise of Rome (ca 750–44 B.C.)
31
life. Then have students write a short paper comparing Roman political techniques in Quintus Cicero’s
book with those of contemporary American society. Finally, have students discuss their insights in
class.
CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES
I.
Classroom Discussion Suggestions
A. How did the Romans win battles against such able commanders as Pyrrhus of Epirus and
Hannibal the Carthaginian?
B. What was a “new man” in Roman politics, and what implications did this designation have
for an individual entering the Roman political arena?
C. How were conquered peoples assimilated into the Roman system?
D. What do historians mean by the phrase Struggle of the Orders?
E. What were some of the major reasons for the destruction of the Roman Republic?
II. Doing History
A. Have students read selections from the literature of the Roman republic and find descriptions
of daily life in ancient Rome. Use these descriptions as the basis for a class discussion
and/or a term paper about Roman social life. Sources: Livy, History of Rome, 3 vols.
(Penguin paperback edition); Plutarch, Lives of the Noble Romans (Penguin paperback
edition); Virgil, Aeneid (Penguin paperback edition); R. M. Ogilvie, Roman Literature and
Society (1980).
B. Although the historical actuality of characters such as Aeneas, Dido, Romulus, Remus,
Horatius, and Cincinnatus is in doubt, Romans of the mid- to late Republic seemed to
believe in these “fathers and mothers of the republic.” What role did myth play in the
development of the Roman state? Do myths usually have some basis in historical fact? Have
students read some of the Roman myths as preparation for a class discussion or for a short
paper. Sources: H. H. Scullard, A History of the Roman World, 753–146 B.C. (1961); M.
Morford and R. J. Lenardon, Classical Mythology (1971); N. Lewis and M. Reinhold,
Roman Civilization: Sourcebook of The Republic (1966); Larousse Encyclopedia of
Mythology (1960).
III. Cooperative Learning Activities
A. The Republic Creates an Empire
Organize the class into the jigsaw teams of six students each. Charge each team with
learning about the wars that Rome fought that led to the creation of an empire: the Latin
Wars, the Samnite Wars, the Punic Wars, the wars against the Greek and Macedonian world,
the conquests of Gaul and Britannia. Each group should present its findings in class. Each
group should create a chart in which members present their answers to the questions below.
Charts might be affixed to the classroom wall or a bulletin board. Each team should answer
the following questions:
B.
1. Who were Rome’s significant military leaders at the time?
2. What were the strategy and tactics employed?
3. Whom did Rome fight?
4. What battles were decisive in the war?
5. What outcomes resulted from the war(s)?
The Ever-Lovable Toga Party
If fraternities and sororities are going to maintain this tradition, why not make sure their
parties are historically accurate? Try to assign each student a particular Roman of the
Republic (either a real character such as Julius Caesar or a semifictional one such as
Horatius). Their task is to learn about the character and come to class (on an appointed day)
dressed as the character. You might also ask students to decorate the classroom and bring
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32
Chapter 5: The Rise of Rome (ca 750–44 B.C.)
refreshments (based on students’ understanding of what Romans of the republic ate and
drank). The students’ tickets to the toga party are their costumes and oral presentations on
their particular characters.
MAP ACTIVITY
1.
Using a map of the Roman world, have students identify the Roman provinces on an outline map
of the Mediterranean world.
2.
Using Map 5.2 (Roman Expansion During the Republic) as a reference, answer the following
questions.
a.
What role did personal ambitions play in Roman expansion? What does this tell us about
Roman politics in general?
b.
How did the relative speed of travel by boat facilitate Roman expansion? What challenges
did the Romans face as they attempted to push their zone of control inland in Asia and in
Gaul?
c.
Why did the Romans perceive the Carthaginians as a threat? What Roman ambitions did
they threaten?
AUDIOVISUAL BIBLIOGRAPHY
1.
Julius Caesar: The Rise of the Roman Empire. (22 min. Color. Encyclopedia Britannica Films.)
2.
Julius Caesar. (116 min. Color. Republic Pictures Home Video.)
3.
The Etruscans. (27 min. Color. Films for the Humanities and Sciences.)
4.
Pompeii: Daily Life of the Ancient Romans. (45 min. Color. Films for the Humanities and
Sciences.)
5.
Cleopatra. (186 min. Color. Films, Inc.)
6.
Life in Ancient Rome. (Videodisc. Color. Britannica Videos.)
7.
Thine Is the Kingdom. (52 min. Color. Films for the Humanities and Sciences.)
8.
The Robe. (135 min. Color. Films, Inc.)
9.
Claudius: Boy of Ancient Rome. (Videodisc. Color Britannica Videos.)
10. The Romans on the Rhine and Danube. (Videodisc. Color. Britannica Videos.)
11. The Roman Empire: Growth and Development. (Videodisc. Color. Britannica Videos.)
12. The Detroit Institute of Art: Rome (www.dia.org/collections/ancient/rome/rome.html)
13. Map: Roman Empire Expansion (darkwing.uoregon.edu/~atlas/europe/interactive/map26.html)
14. Roman Italy: Urbanization and Road Building
(darkwing.uoregon.edu/~atlas/europe/interactive/map27.html)
15. The British Museum: Rome
(http://www.thebritishmuseum.ac.uk/explore/world_cultures/europe/ancient_rome.aspx)
Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Chapter 5: The Rise of Rome (ca 750–44 B.C.)
33
INTERNET RESOURCES
1.
Exploring Ancient World Cultures: Ancient Rome (eawc.evansville.edu/ropage.htm)
2.
Rome: The Punic Wars (www.wsu.edu:8080/~dee/ROME/PUNICWAR.HTM)
3.
Life in Roman Times: Marriage and Family
(http://www.pbs.org/empires/romans/empire/family.html)
4.
Life in Roman Times: Home and Hearth (http://www.pbs.org/empires/romans/empire/home.html)
5.
Life in Roman Times: Religious Practices
(http://www.pbs.org/empires/romans/empire/religion.html)
6.
Territorial Expansion of the Roman World
(www.ucalgary.ca/applied_history/tutor/firsteuro/roman.html)
7.
Rome: The Etruscans (www.wsu.edu/~dee/ROME/ETRUSCAN.HTM)
8.
Detroit Institute of Art: The Etruscans and Their Influence
(www.dia.org/collections/ancient/theetruscans/theetruscans.html)
SUGGESTED READING
H. H. Scullard gives a broad account of Roman history in A History of the Roman World, 753–146 B.C.,
4th ed. (1993), to which should be added T. Cornell, The Beginnings of Rome (1995), which covers the
history of Rome from the Bronze Age to the Punic Wars. The Etruscans have inspired a great deal of
work. The best treatment is H. Barker and T. Rasmussen, The Etruscans (1997). E. Gabba, Dionysius
and the History of Archaic Rome (1991), is the study of the origins of Rome by an eminent scholar who
also looks at how the Greeks percieved it. A great deal of work has been done on the importance of the
Gauls and Celts, notably D. Rankin, Celts and the Classical World (1996).
Roman expansion continues to attract attention. Easily available is C. J. Smith, Early Rome and Latium:
Economy and Society, c. 1000–500 B.C. (1996). Many studies deal with Roman expansion throughout
the Mediterranean. T. Cornell, The Beginnings of Rome (1990), treats the period from the Bronze Ages
to 264 B.C. In Italy itself D. J. Gargola, Lands, Laws, and Gods (1995), examines how the Roman
magistrates regulated the publc lands of Rome. Similar is N. Morely, Metropolis and Hinterland
(1996), a study of how Romans and Italians integrated their economies between 200 B.C. and 200 A.D.
J. Lazenby addresses Rome’s conflicts with Carthage in two books: First Punic War (1996) and
Hannibal’s War (1978), dealing with the Second Punic War. R. Kallet-Marx, Hegemony to Empire
(1995), examines how Rome’s power in the eastern Mediterranean became established between 148
and 62 B.C. S. L. Dyson, The Creation of the Roman Frontier (1985), deals with the process by which
the Romans established their frontiers, and K. R. Bradley, Slavery and Rebellion in the Roman World
(1989), analyzes the slave revolts of Spartacus and others. C. Bruun, ed., The Roman Middle Republic,
ca. 400–133 B.C. (2000), examines anew many central issues of the period; unfortunately, many of the
chapters are in foreign languages. D. Shotter, The Fall of the Roman Republic, 2d ed., (2005), studies
the many facets of the causes of the Roman revolution.
One of the best studies of Rome’s political evolution is A. N. Sherwin-White, Roman Citizenship, 2d
ed. (1973), a classic work of enduring value. J. F. Gardner, Being a Roman Citizen (1993), is a broad
work that includes material on ex-slaves, the lower classes, and much else. E. S. Gruen explores the
effects of the introduction of Greek ideas, literature, and learning into central aspects of Roman life in
two books: Culture and National Identity in Republican Rome (1992) and Studies in Greek Culture and
Roman Policy (1996). The topic of Roman intellectual and cultural growth is one of the most studied
aspects of republican history. G. B. Conte, Latin Literature (1994), is a comprehensive work that begins
Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
34
Chapter 5: The Rise of Rome (ca 750–44 B.C.)
with the origins of Latin literature and continues into the early medieval period. E. Fantham, Roman
Literary Culture (1996), answers the question of who in Rome read the books that helped shape Roman
culture, and E.A. Hemelrijk, Matrona Docta: Educated Women in the Roman Elite from Cornelia to
Julia Domna (1999) looks at women’s learning. T.N. Habesich, The Politics of Latin Literature (1998),
studies the intimate relationship between the literature and politics of ancient Rome.
The great figures and events of the late republic have been the object of much work. E. S. Gruen, The
Last Generation of the Roman Republic (1974), treats the period as a whole. Very important are the
studies of E. Badian, Roman Imperialism in the Late Republic (1968) and Publicans and Sinners
(1972). R. Syme, The Roman Revolution, rev. ed. (1952), is a classic. Valuable also are P. A. Brunt,
Social Conflicts in the Roman Republic (1971); A. W. Lintott, Violence in the Roman Republic (1968);
and J. K. Evans, War, Women, and Children in Ancient Rome (1991).
Many works deal with individual Romans who left their mark on this period. H. C. Boren, The Grachhi
(1968), treats the work of the two brothers, and A. M. Eckstein’s Senate and Generals (1987) discusses
how the decisions of individual general affected both the senate and Roman foreign relations. A.
Keaveney, Sulla: The Last Republican, 2d ed., (2005), is a study of a man who thought of himself as a
reformer. A. E. Astin has produced two works that are far more extensive than their titles indicate;
Scipio Aemilianus (1967) and Cato the Censor (1978). J. Leach, Pompey the Great (1978), surveys the
career of this politician, and B. Rawson, The Politics of Friendship: Pompey and Cicero (1978), treats
both figures in their political environment. N. Wood, Cicero’s Social and Political Thought (1991), is
an original study of Cicero’s thought about the Rome of his day. E. G. Huzar, Marc Antony (1987),
offers a new assessment of the career of the man who challenged Octavian for control of the Roman
world. Caesar’s onetime colleague Marcus Crassus is studied in B. A. Marshall, Crassus: A Political
Biography (1976), and A. Ward, Marcus Crassus and the Late Roman Republic (1977). R. S. Weigel,
Lepidus (1992), covers the career of the third member of the Second Triumvirate. Lastly, A. Kamm,
Julius Caesar (2006), deals with his life as politician, orator, and writer.
K. D. White, Roman Farming (1970), deals with agriculture. Greek cultural influence on Roman life is
the subject of A. Wardman, Rome’s Debt to Greece (1976). H. H. Scullard, Festivals and Ceremonies
of the Roman Republic (1981), gives a fresh look at religious practices. R. Turcam, The Gods of Ancient
Rome (2000), provides a concise survey of the Roman pantheon. Work on Roman social history has
advanced in several areas. G. Alfoeldy, a major scholar, has written The Social History of Rome (1985),
an ambitious undertaking. G. G. Fagan, Bathing in Public in the Roman World (1998), carefully
explains the social significance of the Roman bath. S. Dixon, The Roman Mother (1988), focuses on
women’s roles as mothers within the Roman family. Three works concentrate on the family and
women’s domestic and religious roles in society: J. K. Evans, War, Women, and Children in Ancient
Rome (1991); A. Fraschetti, Roman Women (1993), which is devoted primarily to aristocratic women;
and E. D’Ambra, Roman Women (2006), which examines women from all social ranks and is especially
sensitive to the limitations of sources. A wealth of other research on the Roman family and related
topics has appeared, including K. R. Bradley, Discovering the Roman Family (1990), a series of essays
on Roman social history; S. Dixon, The Roman Family (1992); S. Treggiari, Roman Marriage (1991);
and R. A. Baumann, Women and Politics in Ancient Rome (1993), which explores the mores of youth of
the upper class. C. A. Williams, Roman Homosexuality (1999), argues that the stigma for the practice
was placed not so much on the physical act as on the social status of the participants.
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