Download Roman Empire

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In times of civil
or military
crisis, the
Roman
constitution
allowed for the
appointment of
a dictator who
wielded
absolute power
for a term of six
months
Cincinnatus, shown here handing
the rods of power back to the city
fathers, served as dictator of
Rome twice
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Rome
expanded from
central Italy, to
the Italian
Peninsula, to
the
Mediterranean
basin
Defeated the
Carthaginians
in the Punic
Wars between
264 and 146
B.C.
Territory under Roman control near
the end of the republic, 44 B.C.
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Imperial expansion brought wealth to Rome,
but the wealth was unequally distributed
which aggravated class tensions
◦ Conflicts arose over political and social policies
◦ During the 1st Century B.C. and the 1st Century A.D.,
Roman civil and military leaders will gradually
dismantle the republican constitution and replace it
with a centralized imperial form of government
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Conquered lands usually fell into the hands of
wealthy elites who organized enormous
plantations known as latifundia
The owners of latifundia enjoyed great
economies of scale and used slave labor to
drive the owners of smaller holdings out of
business
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Tiberius and Gaius
Gracchi worked to
limit the amount of
conquered land an
individual could
hold
They met strong
resistance from the
wealthy and ruling
classes and were
both assassinated
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The problem of land distribution was a
symptom of a bigger problem
◦ The constitution of the Roman republic had been
designed for a small city-state
◦ It was not suitable for a large and growing empire
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Roman politicians and generals began
jockeying for power and several raised
personal armies for support
The two most
important generals
were Gaius Marius
and Lucius
Cornelius Sulla
◦ Marius sided with
social reformers who
favored
redistribution of land
◦ Sulla sided with the
conservative and
aristocratic classes
Marius
Sulla
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In 87 B.C., Marius marched on Rome, placed
the city under military occupation, and began
hunting down his enemies.
When Marius died the next year, Sulla moved
to replace him.
In 83, Sulla seized Rome and began
slaughtering his enemies.
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Sulla initiated a reign of terror that lasted
almost five years until he died in 78.
During that period he killed some ten
thousand individuals.
He imposed an extremely conservative
legislative program that weakened the
influence of the lower classes and
strengthened the hand of the wealthy.
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Sulla’s program did not address Rome’s
most serious social problems
The latifundia continued to crush small
farmers and poverty was rampant
There were many social eruptions when
times were especially hard
Julius Caesar stepped into the chaos and
inaugurated a process that replaced the
Roman republican constitution with a
centralized imperial form of government
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Caesar was a
nephew of Marius
and he favored
Marius’ liberal
policies and social
reform
In the 50s B.C.,
Caesar led an army
that conquered
Gaul and made him
very popular
Gaul (now mostly France)
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In 49 BCE Caesar
marched his army
to Rome and by
early 46 he had
named himself
dictator
But instead of the
constitutional six
month term, Caesar
claimed to be
dictator for life
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Caesar centralized military and political
functions and brought them under his
control
He confiscated property from conservatives
and distributed it among veterans of his
army and other supporters
He launched large scale building projects to
provide employment for the poor
He extended Roman citizenship to people in
the imperial provinces
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Caesar’s reforms
alienated many of
Rome’s elite who
considered him a
tyrant.
In 44 B.C. they
assassinated him.
However it was too late
to return to the old
conservative ways and
a new round of civil
crisis ensued for
thirteen years.
◦ Octavian emerged in
power.
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Octavian was a
nephew,
protégé, and
adopted son of
Julius Caesar
He defeated his
principal rival,
Mark Anthony,
and Anthony’s
ally Cleopatra at
Actium, Greece
in 31 B.C.
Anthony and Cleopatra by Sir
Lawrence Alma-Tadema
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Octavian consolidated his
rule and in 27 B.C., the
Senate bestowed upon
him the title Augustus
◦ “Augustus” has religious
connotations suggesting a
divine or semi divine
nature
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Augustus ruled virtually
unopposed for 45 years
in “a monarchy disguised
as a republic”
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Augustus
centralized
political and
military power like
Julius Caesar did,
but he was careful
to preserve
traditional
republican offices
and forms of
government and
included members
of the Roman elite
in his government
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Accumulated vast powers for himself and
ultimately took responsibility for all
important governmental functions
◦ Placed individuals loyal to him in all important
positions
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Reorganized the military system
◦ Created a new standing army with commanders
who owed allegiance to him
 Eliminated the personal armies of earlier years
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Stabilized the land after the years of civil
war and allowed the institutions of empire
to take root
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After Augustus, the
Roman Empire
continued to grow to
the point that it
surrounded the
Mediterranean
◦ Romans called the
Mediterranean mare
nostrum (“our sea”)
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Expansion brought
Roman soldiers,
diplomats, governors,
and merchants
throughout the region
Trade flourished
Roman Empire, 117 A.D.
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By stopping the civil wars, Augustus
inaugurated an era known as pax romana
(“Roman peace”) which greatly facilitated
trade and communication
◦ Lasted from 27 B.C. to 180 A.D.
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Also included applying standards of justice
and a basic code of law throughout the
empire
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Under the republic
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Under the empire
◦ Representation (consuls and Senate)
◦ Resolution of conflicts between the patricians and
plebeians (tribunes)
◦ Dictators
◦ Julius Caesar centralized authority but alienated
elite
◦ Augustus continued centralization but placated
elite and ensured loyalty through patronage
◦ Pax romana stabilized region through trade,
communication, and law
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-Early on in Pax Romana, a new
religion, Christianity emerged
in a distant corner of the
Empire
-Romans allowed Jewish
-Many different religions in the
people to worship their one
empire
god
-By 63 B.C., Romans had
conquered
Judea
where lived
most
-Many Jews
reluctantly
Jewish
under people
Romanlived.
rule, however,
some wanted a revolt against
Rome and believed a messiah
would come to lead their
people to freedom
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-Born in 4 B.C. in Bethlehem
-worshipped God and followed Jewish law
-at 30 began preaching to villagers, used parables-short
stories with simple moral lessons to communicate his
ideas
-Recruited 12 disciples to help him spread his ideas,
called apostles, in Jerusalem
-Some Jews in Jerusalem welcomed Jesus, many of the
priests felt he threatened their leadership
-Roman authorities felt Jesus would lead the Jews in a
revolt against their rule
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-According to the gospels,
Jesus was betrayed by one
of his disciples, arrested by
the Romans, and killed by
crucifixion-a person was
bound to a cross and left to
die
-Rumors then spread that
Jesus had not died but had
risen from death and
commanded his disciples to
spread his teachings
-After the disciples reported
he ascended into heaven
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-Followers called Christians
-Disciples preach the messages
of Christianity throughout the
Roman world
-Peter
established
Christianity
He spread
Christianity
in
Rome
itself
throughout the
-Paul
played the most
Mediterranean
influential role in spreading
-His
letters became part of
Christianity
the New Testament in the
Bible
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-Romans were not tolerant towards Christians
because:
-they refused to honor the emperor with
sacrifices
-they refused to worship Roman gods to
protect the state
-Christians were used as scapegoats, blamed for
social and economic problems
-Many Christians became martyrs- or people who
suffer or die for their beliefs
-However, Christianity continued to spread due to
the fact that all people were welcome
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1.
2.
3.
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Political Reform: The Empire was divided
into four geographic regions.
Social Reform: Christianity was outlawed.
Economic Reform: The tax system was
modified and taxes increased
Following Diocletian’s retirement in 305,
Rome faced another Civil War. One man
emerged as the victor…
1. He consolidated power
and ruled by decree
2. The capital of the Roman
empire was moved to the
East— Constantinople
3.
The practice of Christianity was legalized
-Emperor Constantine issued the Edict of Milan in A.D. 313.
-The Edict granted
freedom of
worship to all
citizens of the
Roman empire
-By the end of the century, Emperor Theodosius made
Christianity the official religion of the Roman empire
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Temple of Zeus Destroyed
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Temple of Zeus
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There were many views as to the nature of
Jesus & Christian Doctrine.
Constantine called all religious leaders
(Bishops) together
Nicene Creed:
◦ Trinity: God, Jesus & Holy Spirit are one
◦ Virgin birth of Jesus
◦ He was crucified & rose from dead
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Name of the Roman Empire in the East; they
saw themselves as Romans
Constantinople = Capital (the city’s old
name was Byzantium)
Emperor = Justinian
(527-565)
◦ Motto – One God, one Empire, one Religion
1. He reunified most of the old Roman empire.
2. Christianity was the official religion; nonChristian worship was outlawed.
3. Established Code of Justinian.
1.
2.
Established a single code of laws for all.
Its influence today:
a) Laws should be written.
b) Punishments for a crime should be the same for
all.
Code of Justinian =
JUSTICE
1.
Political
2.
Social
3.
Economic
4.
Miltary
The empire was simply too big to govern
Civil war and unrest
Move Capital to Byzantium
Low Confidence
Disloyalty to the Empire
Decline in population – Disease and food shortage
Poor harvests
Gold and silver drained
Inflation
Threat from northern tribes
Low funds for defense
Decline in patriotism and loyalty
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Good
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Nerva – Began custom of adopting heir
Trajan – Enlarged social welfare, Empire greatest size.
Hadrian – Reorganized the bureaucracy
Antoninus Pius – Reign largely period of peace and prosperity
Marcus Aurelias – Defeated Invaders and height of economic
prosperity
Bad
◦ Caligula – Mentally disturbed.
◦ Nero – Persecuted Christians, Murdered many, good
administrator.
◦ Domitian – Ruled dictatorially, feared treason  executed
many.