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Chapter 35
Daily Life in the Roman Empire
“All Roads Lead to Rome”
• Romans had built and extensive network
of Roads.
• Expression became common throughout
the Roman Empire.
Forum
• “gathering place”
• Originally was an
open air market
place in the center of
Rome
• Over time numerous
government
buildings, plazas,
reigious and other
buildings built.
35.2: Daily Life in Ancient Rome
• City of great contrasts
• Over 1 million people in Rome
• Most people lived in tiny apartments
35.2: Daily Life in Ancient Rome
• Wealthy Romans
– women shopped at the forum with their slaves
– Wealthy Senators used body guards for protection
– Silks, perfumes, jeweled weapons, and musical
instruments
– Homes with statues, fountains, and fine pottery
35.2: Daily Life in Ancient Rome
• Slaves:
– Hundreds of thousands of slaves
• Escorted women in the forum
• Forced to fight in gladiator games
• Teachers and other skilled labored
• Soldiers and Craftsmen
• Foreigners
– Britain, Spain, Europeans, Egypt, and the rest of the
empire
35.2: Daily Life in Ancient Rome
• City Life (Poor)
– Filthy neighborhoods
– Most children died by the age of 10
– “Bread and Circus”
• Most poor could not find jobs because slaves had
taken them
• Given food and entertainment free by the government
such as gladiator games and chariot races
35.2: Daily Life in Ancient Rome
• Rural or Country Living
– Most people lived in the countryside
– Most of the people in the countryside were
poor
– Some small family farms
– Some worked on huge estates owned by the
rich
35.3: Law and Order
• Rule of Law
– Law applies to everyone equally at all times
– The intent and spirit of the law must be
maintained and applied
– Bedrock founding principle of the United
States
35.3: Law and Order
• Senate and Assemblies created most
laws in the Roman Republic
• Emperor was the final authority/source of
law in the Roman Empire
– “whatever pleases the emperor is the law”
35.3: Law and Order
• Old time honored traditions were followed
– Senate continued to meet even in the empire
– Senators had many privileges because of their position
– Important senators had bodyguards
• Fasces
– Bundles of sticks with an axe in the center
– Symbol that government could use force, physical
punishment, and strict enforcement of the law whenever
necessary (martial law principle)
35.3: Law and Order
• Law Enforcement and Crime
– Laws were strict
– Crime was common
• Most common: Stealing, assault, and murder
– Rich neighborhoods protected
– Lack of protection in the poorer parts of town
– Some streets closed at night due to dangers
35.3: Law and Order
• Protection Against Crime:
– Rich wore old dirty togas when they traveled
at night
– Wealthy women warned not to go out alone
even during the daytime
35.3: Law and Order
• Criminal Proceedings/Trials
– All citizens could bring charges against another
– Jury of Roman citizens decided the case
• “jury of your peers (U.S.)
– family and personal appearance used to get
sympathy
• Dress poorly
• Have children/wives cry before the jury
35.3: Law and Order
•
Rule of Law
–
–
–
–
–
Belief that law should apply to everyone equally
In realty, wealthy received special treatment under the law
Poor people punished more harshly including torture
Law stated torture could not be used against a Roman citizen
Law was thrown out if the poor person were convicted by a fair trial
• Used to find out who accomplices were and to ease the conscience
of the judges who issued the conviction
• Common methods: Crucifixion, lashes,
– Salves testimony could only be used if obtained by torture
35.4: Religion
•
Adopted Greek gods and gods from other cultures to create a set of Roman
gods
– Names of some planets came from Roman gods:
• Mercury, Venus, Saturn, Mars, Neptune
•
Believed gods controlled daily life
•
Offerings and promises
– gifts of food, honey cakes and fruit
– sacrificed animals such as bulls, sheep, and oxen
– Left offering for the sick and injured sometimes in the form of the body part that was
affected
•
Festivals and Holidays
•
Home altars by the family hearth or fireplace
– goddess Vesta: Threw small cakes into the fire
•
Emperors honored as gods
– Caligula: built his own statue and had it clothed the same as himself everyday
•
New religions accepted as long as it didn’t encourage disloyalty to the
emperor:
– Christians would not recognize the emperor as god
35.4: Reading Notes
• 1. Answer the trivia question.
– Romans would put a little clay foot by a statue at
a temple to remind the god which part of the
body needed to be healed.
• 2. List two key differences between ancient
Rome and modern times.
– (1) Romans believed in Greek gods; people today
have different beliefs.
– (2) Romans honored the emperors as gods; we
don’t honor our leaders as gods.
35.5: Family Life
• Paterfamilias
– Father of the family ruled the family
– Father’s decisions/words were the law at
home
– Every child regardless of age or living at or
away from home had to follow his orders
35.5: Family Life
• Men
– Expected to provide for the family
• Rich: high paying political positions
• Poor: men/women both worked
35.5: Family Life
• Households
– Rich women ran the household
• Bought and trained slaves
• Many ran businesses
• Bought and sold property
35.5: Family Life
• Babies:
– Born at home
• Strong and healthy babies kept
• Weak or babies not meeting father’s approval
were left outside to die
– Named in a special ceremony after 9 days
and given a Bulla, or good luck charm, worn
throughout childhood
35.5: Family Life
• Boys (14-18 years old)
– Ceremony between 14-18 years old to end
childhood:
• Celebrated becoming a man by giving their
bulla, toys, and clothes to the gods
35.5: Family Life
• Girls
– No ceremony to end childhood
– Married between ages 12-18
35.5: Family Life
• Weddings/Marriages
– Held at a temple
– Bride wore white toga and long veil
– Groom wore white toga and leather shoes
shined with animal fat
• New husband did not become the
paterfamilias until his father died
35.6: Food and Drink
• Rich had kitchens in the home
• Poor used small grills in the home
• Fast Food
– Both rich and poor bought ready made hot/cold food from the
Thermopolia
• Diet
– Main foods were bread, beans, spices, some vegetables and
meat, cheese, honey, and wine
– Breakfast: bread and bowl of beans or porridge (oatmeal)
– Lunch: cheese, bread, olives, and celery
– Dinner:
• Poor: fish, asparagus, and figs
• Rich: special appetizers, mice cooked in honey, roasted parrots
stuffed with dates, slated jellyfish, and snails dipped in milk
35.6: Food and Drink
• Roman Markets
– Wide variety
– Playful monkeys and birds to attract
customers
– Fruits, live rabbits and chickens, geese,
baskets of snails, various meats, and fish
sauce
35.7: Housing
• Rich:
– large open homes made from stone and marble
– Thick walls to keep out the noise
– Atrium
• Inside the front door
• Used to welcome guests
• Small pool and opening in the ceiling kept it cool
– Dining Room
• Fanciest room in the house
• Covered with pictures, murals, and tiled mosaics
• Statues in the corners and some with fountains in the center for
cool drinking water
– Dinner Parties
• Guests lay on couches
• Dinners prepared by slaves
• Music played by slaves on the flute, lyre and lute
35.7: Housing
• Poor
– small dark crowded apartments made of wood
– Some lived in rooms above their shops
– Portable grills filled the apartments with smoke
– Cramped, noisy, and dirty
– Disease carrying rats spread sickness rapidly
– Fire was a constant danger
– 64 C.E./A.D. fire burned down most of the city
35.8: Education
• Poor :
– went to work instead of school
– Learned trades such as leather and metal working to support
the family
• Rich:
– Tutored by fathers or slaves
– Stopped by the breakfast bar on the way to school to buy
beans, nuts, and bread to eat on the way to school
– Learned Greek, Latin, math, science, literature, music, and
public speaking
– Girls: dentists, realtors, tutors, or midwives (nurses for
childbirth)
– Boys: soldiers, doctors, politicians, and lawyers
• Most went to school until age 13 but some stayed until 16 then
managed their own property
35.9: Recreation
•
Roman Baths
– Both poor and rich
– Bath, swim, exercise, steam, or massage
– Gardens, libraries, shops, and art galleries
•
Rich:
– Extra leisure time (slaves worked)
– Plays at the theater
– Musicals in the homes
•
Poor:
– “Bread and Circus” free public entertainment and food for the poor
provided by the emperor
– Chariot races and gladiator fights
– Attempt to keep them busy/out of trouble (lost jobs due to high number of
slaves)
35.9: Recreation
• Gladiator Games
– Held at the Colosseum
– Both men and women participated
– Slaves or prisoners of war fought each other
and wild animals to the death
– Thousands died painfully for entertainment
– Men and women sat in different sections
35.9: Recreation
• Circus Maximus
– Favorite entertainment of the Romans
– Huge racetrack held 200,000 people
– Gambled on chariot races
– Rich in the shade on cushions close to the
track
– Poor in the sun on wooden benches away
from the track
– Men and women sat together and it became a
popular meeting place
35.10: Country Life
•
90% lived out in the countryside
•
Rich
– Large villas to invest money in crops and livestock
– Came to relax during the summer months
– Checked on the work, read books, wrote, hunted, picnics, and long walks
•
Poor
–
–
–
–
–
Had small family farms
Many lost their jobs as they were replaced by slaves
Soldiers lost farms when they went to war
Lived in huts and life was hard
Many moved to the city for the “Bread and Circus” provided by the emperor
•
Slaves treated very harshly
•
Large farms produced:
–
–
–
–
–
most of the food, for Rome and other cities
Grain for bread, grapes for wine, olives for oil
Goats and sheep for cheese and clothing
Cattle and pigs for meat
Bees for honey