Download Chapter 8 Section 2

Chapter 8
Section 2
The Roman Republic
I. Rome’s Government (pgs. 269-273)
A. Early Romans were divided into two classes:
1) Patricians (pa*trih*shunz) – noble ruling class/wealthy
landowners
2) Plebeians (plih*bee*uhnz) – artisans, shopkeepers, and
small farmers
B. Both patricians and plebeians were considered Roman citizens who:
a)
Had the right to vote
b)
Paid taxes
c)
Served in the army
C. Plebeians had a lower social status and could not hold office.
Marriage between the two classes was forbidden
D. Top government officials were called consuls (kahn*suhls)
E. Two consuls were chosen every year and were in charge of
the army and ran the government
F. Consuls could also veto, or reject, the other’s decisions
The word veto is Latin for “I forbid”
G. Praetors (pree*tuhrz) were gov’t officials whose main job
was to interpret laws and act as judges
H. Rome’s most important legislative, or lawmaking, body was
the Senate
The Senate was a select group of 300 patrician men who
served for life.
I. The Senate could:
a) Propose laws
b) Hold debates
c) Approve building
programs
J. Another important legislative body was the Assembly of
Centuries
K. This assembly elected important officials ,such as consuls
and praetors, and passed laws.
L. Like the Senate, the Assembly of Centuries was under the
control of the patricians
Plebeians Against Patricians
M. Plebeians were unhappy about having so little power
N. In 494 B.C. may plebeians went on strike:
a) they refused to serve in the army
b) they left the city to set up a republic of their own
O. The patricians were frightened into agreeing to share power
P. In 471 B.C. the plebeians were allowed to set up their own
body of representatives called the Council of Plebs
Q. In 455 B.C. plebeians and patricians were allowed to marry
R. In the 300s B.C., plebeians were allowed to become consuls
S. The most important change came in 287 B.C. when the
Council of Plebs finally gained enough power to pass laws for
all Romans
Who Was Cincinnatus?
T. Cincinnatus (sihn*suh*na*tuhs) was the best-known early
Roman dictator
U. Today, a dictator is an oppressive ruler, but in Rome, a
dictator was a person who ruled temporarily during
emergencies
V. In 460 B.C., Cincinnatus defeated a powerful enemy who
had surrounded Rome
W. Cincinnatus was greatly admired
and inspired many future leaders
such as George Washington
Questions in notes
What were the two classes of people in
Rome?
What separated the two classes from each
other?
What was the name of the top government
officials of Rome?
This was an early dictator of the Romans
who influenced people like George
Washington.
Bellringer
Write about laws in our country. What do
you know about obeying them? What
happens when you disobey the law? Do
laws keep people from doing bad things?
Why or why not. 5-6 sentences
Ship this time to finish
questions
II. Roman Law
One of Rome’s chief gifts to the world was its system of law
A. The legal system of the United States owes much to the
Roman system
B. Rome’s first code of laws was the Twelve Tables which was
adopted about 451 B.C.
C. The laws were carved on bronze tablets and placed in
Rome’s marketplace, or the Forum (fohr.uhm)
D. Another collection of laws, the Law of Nations, were created
to address the issue of conquered people
E. The idea that the law should apply to everyone equally is
called the “rule of law”
F. It is the key idea that Romans gave to the world and is still
the basis of our legal system today
III. Rome Expands (pgs. 274-276)
A. Carthage, a state on the coast of North Africa, was a
powerful enemy of Rome
B. Both Rome and Carthage wanted to control the island of
Sicily
C. In 264 B.C. The First Punic War began
and dragged on for more than
20 years
D. Finally, in 241 B.C., Rome
crushed Carthage’s navy off
the coast of Italy.
E. The Second Punic War began 218 B.C.
F. Carthage had expanded into Spain and Rome helped the
people of Spain rebel
G. To punish them, Carthage sent its greatest general, Hannibal
(ha*nuh*buhl) to attack Rome
H. Hannibal’s strategy was to take the fighting to Italy
I. He took about 46,000 men to Spain and marched east to
attack Italy
J. Hannibal lost almost half of his men before even reaching
Italy due to crossing the steep and snowy Alps and attacks from
mountain tribes
K. At the Battle of Cannae (ka*nee), Hannibal’s forces
overpowered the Romans badly.
L. In 202 B.C., a Roman force led by a general named Scipio
(sih*pee*oh) invaded Carthage
M. Hannibal had no choice but to leave Italy and return home to
defend his people
N. At the Battle of Zama (zay*muh), Scipio’s troops defeated
the Carthaginians
O. Carthage gave up Spain to Rome
P. In 146 B.C., Rome finally destroyed its
great rival of Carthage in the Third Punic War
Q. Roman soldiers burned Carthage
and enslaved 50,000 men,
women, and children
R. Rome also took all of Greece
and Macedonia, parts of Africa,
and a province in Asia during
the Punic Wars
Questions in notes
What system modeled much of their laws
from the Romans?
These collections of laws were needed for
the conquering of other people.
Who did Rome go to battle against in the
Punic Wars?
Who was the famous general of the
Carthage people?
At which battle did Rome finally put an end
to the 2nd Punic Wars?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BZrjXEo
mBXM&noredirect=1