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World History
Ancient Rome
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Geography and Rome
Rome is located in the center of
the Italian peninsula. This
location helped the Romans
expand in Italy and beyond.
The Apennine Mountains run
down the center of Italy but are
not too rugged.
Fertile plains supported a
growing population.
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Ancestors of the Romans
settled along the Tiber River.
These villages eventually grew
into Rome.
How was Greco-Roman civilization
formed?
The Romans borrowed heavily from Greek culture after
they conquered Greece.
At the same time, Roman generals carried
achievements of Roman civilization to conquered lands.
The blending of Roman, Hellenistic, and Greek
traditions produced Greco-Roman civilization.
Trade and travel during the Pax Romana helped spread
this new civilization.
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The Roman Republic:
In 509 B.C., the Romans drove out the Etruscans and set up a new
government, which they called a republic. In a republic, some
officials are chosen by the people.
In the early republic, the senate dominated the government.
Its members were patricians, or members of the landholding
class.
Little by little, the plebeians, or common people, gained some political
power. These included the right to elect their own officials, called tribunes.
The tribunes could veto, or block, laws that they felt harmed plebeians.
More than 2,000 years later, the framers of the United States
Constitution would adapt Roman ideas of government, such as the
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3 Important Groups in the
Roman Republic:
 The
Senate
 The Assembly of the
Centuries
 The Assembly of the Tribes
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The Roman Senate

The Senate was the most powerful
group in the government.
Composed of three hundred men
 Controlled public funds
 Controlled political appointments
 Determined foreign policy
 Sometimes acted as a court
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Expansion in Italy
By about 270 B.C., Rome controlled most of the Italian
peninsula.
Why was Rome’s
expansion in Italy
successful?
Skilled diplomacy
 Loyal, well-trained army
 Treated defeated enemies fairly
 Gave rights to conquered people

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Roman Society:
FAMILY
WOMEN
The family was the basic unit of
Roman society.
Women gained greater freedom
and influence over the centuries.
Male was head of household and
had absolute authority.
Some women ran businesses.
Most worked at home, raising
families.
EDUCATION
Both girls and boys learned
to read and write.
Education was highly
valued
.
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RELIGION
Gods and goddesses resembled
those of Greeks and Etruscans.
Religious festivals inspired sense of
community.
Romans built many temples for
worship.
Pompeii and Vesuvius
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Pompeii was an ancient city in Italy that
became famous by its destruction
following the eruption of Mount Vesuvius.
Pompeii became a Roman city in 91 B.C.
It was located on a plateau of ancient lava
near the Bay of Naples, less than one mile
from Mount Vesuvius.
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The
Colosseum
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Romans
marveled at
the shows put
on at the
Colosseum,
ancient Rome’slargest stadium.
Spectators watched
the slaughter of exotic animals, gladiators
battling to the death, and mock naval battles.
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An Architectural Marvel!
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The Colosseum was an architectural
marvel. Its floor was about the size of
modern football field.
As many as 50,000 spectators could crown
onto the Colosseum’s marble and wooden
benches.
There, they were protected from the hot
Roman sun by a giant canvas roof.
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In the summer of A.D. 79, Mount Vesuvius
erupted violently.
Hot ashes, stones, and cinders rained
down on Pompeii.
Remains of about 2,000 victims out of a
population of 20,000 have been found in
excavations.
About three-fourths of the city of Pompeii
has been uncovered by archeologists.
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Decline of the Republic:
Conquered people forced to work as slaves
Huge quantities of grain
Small farmers no longer needed to produce food
New wealth increases corruption
Farmers flock to Rome and other cities looking for jobs
Greed and self-interest replace virtues of simplicity,
hard work, and devotion to duty
Civil wars
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From Republic to Empire:
Civil wars
Julius Caesar forces the Roman senate to make him dictator.
Caesar institutes reforms to try to solve Rome’s many problems.
Caesar is killed by enemies who feared that he planned to make
himself king of Rome.
More civil wars break out.
Octavian defeats Mark Antony in a struggle for power.
The Roman senate gives Octavian the title of Augustus, or
Exalted One, and declares him first citizen.
The 500-year republic comes to an end. The age of
the Roman empire begins.
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Winning an Empire
After gaining control of the Italian peninsula, Rome began
to build an empire around the Mediterranean Sea.
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The Romans followed a policy of imperialism,
establishing control over foreign lands and
peoples.
Carthage, Macedonia, Greece, and parts of Asia
Minor became Roman provinces, or lands under
Roman rule.
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HANNIBAL
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When Hannibal was born in 247 BCE,
his birthplace Carthage was losing a
long and important war.
 Carthage had been the
Mediterranean's most prosperous
seaport and it possessed wealthy
provinces.
 However, it had suffered severe losses
from the Romans in the First Punic
War.
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Hannibal Becomes General!
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In 221 B.C., Hasdrubal was murdered and
Hannibal was elected commander by the
Carthaginian army in Iberia.
The Carthaginian government confirmed
the decision.
Hannibal returned to his father's aggressive
military politics and did whatever possible
to build up Carthage and make it strong.
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Tensions
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Tensions between Carthage and Rome
were still strong after the first Punic War.
Rome felt threatened by Carthage’s
expansion and power
Rome also felt that it was necessary to take
territory from Carthage in order to subdue
Carthage and to expand itself.
In addition, Rome wanted to control more
of the Mediterranean.
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The Punic Wars

After 350 B.C. the Romans began
to expand their rule beyond their
city.
The first objective was to capture
the rest of Italy
 By 275 B.C. Rome ruled much of it.
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The power of Rome soon came in
contact with Carthage, a large
and powerful city on the coast of
North Africa.
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Carthage feared that Rome
would try to take Sicily, and
Rome feared that Carthage
would close the Strait of Messina
between Italy and Sicily.

The result was a series of three
wars.
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The First Punic War
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Began in 264 B.C. and ended
twenty three years later when
Rome gained control of Sicily.
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At the Battle of Zama, Romans stampeded
Hannibal's 80 war elephants using
trumpets to scare and confuse them.
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Carthage often used war elephants and
trained them to fight by trampling
prisoners
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The Second Punic War
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Began in 218
B.C. and ended
in 202 B.C.
when Rome
defeated
Hannibal.
As a result, it
gained control
of Spain
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The Spanish soldiers who helped
Hannibal wanted the severed hands
of the enemy as trophies.
 Before entering the Pyrenees,
Hannibal lost thousands of men in
battles and desertions.
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The elephants
crossed the Rhine
river in France by
walking across on
their hind legs,
swimming, and
tricked onto rafts
with dirt that
looked like solid
ground.
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Between the Pyrenees in Spain and
the Alps in Italy Hannibal had lost
44,000 men.
 Finally in Italy, Hannibal had only
26,000 men (he started with 70,000)
 Enemies of Rome in Italy gave
Hannibal thousands of soldiers to
help defeat Rome.
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Defeat for Hannibal
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After the 1st battle in Italy, only one elephant
was left.
Swamp fever in northern Italy killed many
soldiers and animals and caused Hannibal to
lose one eye.
Brother Hasdrubal came with an army to help
but was defeated - his head was cut off by
the Romans and sent to Hannibal.
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Hannibal did not attack the city of Rome
because he knew it was no use.
One of Hannibal's generals said: "You
know, Hannibal, how to fight. You do not
know how to win." - He had wanted
Hannibal to attack and destroy the capital
of the Romans.
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The Third Punic War
Began in 149 B.C. when Rome
declared war on Carthage.
 After a bitter siege, the city fell to
the Roman Empire in 146 B.C. and
was totally destroyed.

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At the end of the 3rd Punic War,
Carthage citizens fought from every
house and rooftop - 450,000 died or
were made slaves in the 3 year siege.
 Rome had won again!
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The Roman Empire at Its Height
By 133 B.C., Roman power extended from Spain to Egypt:
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Julius Caesar
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Julius Caesar
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Julius Caesar was one of
the greatest statesmen
and military leaders that
the world has ever
known.
His brilliant leadership
resulted in many
reforms and helped
make Rome the center
of a region that
extended across Europe.
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Caesar’s Accomplishments
Governed the empire
 Improved the calendar system
 Tried to reconcile opponents by
appointing them to office
 Set up colonies (such as Corinth and
Carthage) where poor people in
Rome could go to improve their way
of living
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Stopped dishonest government
practices
Granted Roman citizenship to many of
the conquered people
Planned a way to reorganize city
government in Italy
Replaced dishonest governors with
honest ones
Gave free gain only to the people who
really needed it
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Planned the founding of public libraries
Planned construction of a canal across
Isthmus of Corinth
Known as a great writer and orator
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Julius Caesar was able to accomplish
many things, but he also made
enemies of some important Roman
leaders.
 In 44 B.C. Caesar was murdered on the
steps of the Senate by a group of
Roman aristocrats who feared his
power.
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This marked the end of the Roman
Republic and the beginning of the
Roman Empire ruled by emperors.
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Caesar Augustus

In his will, Julius Caesar named his
grandnephew, Octavian (better known as
Caesar Augustus) as heir to rule Rome.
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Roman Empire and Roman
Peace
Augustus laid the foundation for a stable government that
would function well for 200 years. This period was called
the Pax Romana.
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Roman Advances in Literature, History, and
Philosophy:
History
Historians wrote about
the rise and fall of
Roman power.
Poetry
Philosophy
Writers imitated Greek styles in
prose and poetry.
Roman philosophers borrowed
heavily from the Greeks.
Virgil praised Rome’s heroic
past in the Aeneid.
Stoics emphasized acceptance
of one’s fate and concern for
the well-being of others.
Poets used verse to satirize,
or
make fun of, Roman society.
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Roman Advances in Art and Science:
Technology
Built roads, bridges,
and harbors throughout
empire
Built many aqueducts
Art
Sculptors stressed
realism.
Artists depicted life scenes
in frescoes and mosaics.
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Science
Romans left scientific research to
the Greeks.
Ptolemy proposed that Earth was
the center of the universe.
Galen used experiments to prove a
conclusion.
Architecture
Emphasized grandeur
Improved column and arch
Developed rounded dome
Roman Law:
During the Roman empire, these principles of law
fostered unity and stability:
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An accused person was presumed to be
innocent until proven guilty.
The accused was permitted to face the
accuser and offer a defense.
Guilt had to be established through
evidence.
Judges were expected to interpret the laws
and make fair decisions.
Centuries later, these principles would become the basis
for legal systems in Europe and the Americas.
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Roman Law
Roman law was an important tie that
bound the empire together.
 Romans published their first known
code of law about 450 B.C.
 This code, The Laws of the Twelve
Tables, set down accepted practices
in written form.

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The laws were inscribed on twelve
tablets which were fastened to the
speaker’s stand in the Roman Forum
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These laws formed the basis of
individual rights of Roman citizens.
 The laws dealt with:
 Legal procedures
 Property ownership
 Building codes
 Punishment for crimes
 And marriage customs
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Roman Military
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Ancient Rome was able to conquer a vast
empire because of its well-trained and
well-disciplined army.
The Roman army was organized into
legions.
A Centurion commanded a group of about
80 soldiers.
Most Roman soldiers were stationed in
forts.
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Gifts From Ancient Rome
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Rome has made many contributions to our
own society.
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The capital letters of our alphabet were given
their final form by the Romans.
Roman numerals
The names of the months on our calendar
also came from Rome.
In many areas conquered by Rome, the Latin
language became part of the native language.
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The Empire in Crisis
With the end of the Pax Romana, political and economic
turmoil rocked the Roman empire.
Political Problems
Emperors were repeatedly
overthrown or assassinated.
In one 50-year period, 26
emperors ruled, and only
one died of natural causes.
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Economic & Social Problems
High taxes to support the
army burdened business
people and farmers.
Poor farmers were forced to
work and live on wealthy
estates.
Over cultivated farmland lost
its productivity.
Foreign Invasions
A weakened Rome could not withstand the forces
of Germanic invasions.
The Huns dislodged other Germanic peoples and,
little by little, conquered the Roman empire.
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