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Ancient History
Theory:
Discourse-an individual’s “frame of
mind” as they write history-Determined
by their personal beliefs and the world
around them.
Narrative- The story behind the events
which an individual is describingDetermined by the individual’s
discourse.
Sources for ancient history:
1) Ruins/artifacts
2) Inscriptions-original writing
3) Coinage
4) Historical Writing-may have
changed over the centuries as it was
copied and re-copied
Ancient Near East:
Up until 9000 B.C. all humans were
hunters + Gatherers- There were many
limitations to this mode of life:
a) limited to small groups
b) had to follow herds
c) couldn’t store food (no containers)
d) limited personal items
- 9000 B.C., this changed as cultivation
of plants(agriculture) and
domestication of herd animals
(pastoralism) began in the ancient
Near East- small settlements sprang
up all along the fertile crescentsettled life gave several advantages:
a) larger social groups-better
protection
b) more direct control of food + water
supply-ceramics, storage buildings
c) reduced childhood mortality
d) not just meat from herds but wool,
milk
Jericho- 8000 B.C., homes made of
mud bricks- 1,500 people- walled for
defense or perhaps flooding- Evidence
for agriculture but not domestication of
animals.
After 7000 B.C. pottery becomes
widespread.
Chatal Huyuk- Huyuk is a mound
created from layers of eroded mud
bricks.
1) Wall paintings- Giant bull
2) Bull’s head- religious
significance
3) Fertility Statues- religious
significance
4) Copper Jewelry
5000-6000 people- Cattle bonessource of meat-wheat cultivated.
-No walls but entrance to buildings
were on roofs.
_____________________________
-3500-Birth of cities-Uruk is
considered the First city ever-Early
city culture is called Uruk Culture
4000-3000-Characteristics of cities:
A) society divided by class- ruled
by a religious, military + political
elite who accumulated wealth based
on the imposition of taxes and
tribute- some of this wealth was
redistributed to the people- Some
was used to erect monumental
public buildings-had middle class
of merchants – poor class of
farmers – had slave class
B) Job specialization- ex: weavers,
millers, weapon/armor craftsman,
potters - Full-time craftsmen
emerge - most people still farm.
- Slavery begins.
C) Increase in technology:
a) Wheel
b) Arsenic added to copper
to make it harder
D) City acts as a point of
collection and redistribution of goods
and provides a number of central
services-City is a center in its
geographical setting, the focal point
both for its own inhabitants and for
the people living in the countryside.
E) invention of writing- used to
keep track of financial transactionsused clay tablets- writing was for
economic transactions such as
transfer of grain, beer, livestockcould keep accurate records of
transactions-didn’t need to
remember details of transactions- Early writing was in Pictographs
(simple pictures which represented
objects) some exceptions: + =
sheep
- Eventually cuneiform became the
ubiquitous way to write various
Near Eastern languages-(by-2350
B.C.)
----------------------------------------Early Dynastic Period (29002350)
- Writings called royal inscriptions
make their first appearance- these
writings tell us about the names of
kings and their deeds…they tend to
be extremely exaggerated
- City-state (city + 15km radius) was
the basic element of the political
organization of Babylonia- roughly
35 city-states existed in Babylonia- An important element in
Mesopotamian ideology ( How
people think of themselves and
others) regarding cities was the
concept that each city was the
dwelling of a particular god or
goddess- Each city had a patron deity
(e.g. Nanna for Ur, Ihanna for Uruk,
Enlil for Nippur) This concept was
linked to the role of the temple in the
city- The god’s house hold was the
temple and the tribute (agricultural
resources) paid to the god was
collected at the temple and
redistributed to the people.
-Eventually kings took over job of high
priests of temples and kings became the
god’s representative on Earth.
- Kings proclaimed that their powers
derived from the gods- Kingship was
very Theocratic in Babylonia (upper
Mesopotamia was more secular) citystates fought wars against each other as
their territories expanded + overlappedDisputes were usually over farmland,
surplus food supplies, access to waterWarfare – Organized violence conducted
by centralized states involving uniformly
equipped troops. Before cities were
around, there was no warfare by this
definition- why not?
- According to texts, wars were fought
to avenge insults to gods- kings went
to war at command of his god-
- Famous example- Lagash vs. Ummaover a period of 150 years (25002350) the kings of Lagash fought
their neighbor Umma- Royal
inscriptions describe the conflict in
terms of a dispute between Ningirsu(
god of Lagash) and Shara( god of
Umma) over a borderland area called
Gu’ Eden- the kings of Lagash
portrayed themselves as deputies
acting on behalf of the gods- Most
famous king was Eannatum.
Standard of Ur and Vulture Stele are
two famous inscriptions showing
characteristics of true warfare
- In addition to wars, there was also a
lot of trade occurring between
Babylonian cities at this time period.
- _____________________________
Akkadian Empire-(2350-2230)Founded by Sargon who was king of
Kish- First king to establish the
dynastic system of kingship
inheritance-He conquered cities all
over Babylonia + upper MesopotamiaPolitically, the original city-rulers
mostly remained in place, only now
acting as governors for the king of
Akkad- A new tax system was
instituted in which part of the income
of each region was siphoned off and
sent to the capital- Sargon tried to
incorporate his family into the religious
ideology of the Babylonian cities- (exhe installed his daughter as high
Priestess of Nanna at Ur- she was made
Nanna’s wife. The daughter took on the
name Enheduanna and she wrote some
literature, making her the world’s first
identifiable author!)- Distant areas
beyond the empire were tied to it
through marriage alliances- Sargon’s
grandson Naram-Sin actually deified
himself. Horned helm implied divine
status- But continual opposition to Akkadian
rule by cities of Mesopotamia and
beyond may have led to the Akkadian
empire’s downfall- After it fell, the
land became fragmented again until
the 3rd Dynasty of Ur arose- How did Sargon conquer cities?Cities had walls- Armies could lose
battles but cities were still usually
safe behind walls during Early
Dynastic period- Sargon may have
had some new technologies to work
which involved siegecraft-
- 1) He had a standing army (full time
jobs-he says they ate in his presence,
implying they were full time
employees) which could lay siege to
cities for longer periods-They used a
new type of bow called a composite
bow which was made of strips of
horn and bone, (and wood?) glued
together-much more powerful (range
500-600 feet)than the standard wood
bow (150 feet less)
- 2) Earthen Ramps
- 3) Sapping-poking holes/digging
under walls.
- 4) Siege towers
After he captured a city the inhabitants
were enslaved thus adding to his labor
pool.
Ur III(2100-2004 B.C.) Third dynasty
of Ur- only lasted 5 generations.
_______________________________
Hammurabi’s Babylonian Empire-1792-1600 B.C.- Most famous for its
law code, recent evidence suggests that
this isn’t actually a law code but rather
a monument presenting Hammurabi as
an exemplary King of Justice- the code
has about 300 statements in an if …,
then… pattern.(e.g. If a man commits a
robbery and is caught, that man will be
killed).
Topics covered: crime, punishment,
price controls, property rights, slave
ownership, inheritance laws- penalties
accessed according to social class
(Freeman, dependant, slave) reinforced
class structure.
-The code is a vivid expression of
Hammurabi as a king who provides
justice in his land- Hammurabi lists
300 cases to prove his ability to
guarantee justice and thus urged future
kings to study + follow his examples-Babylonians were great
mathematicians- they knew the
Pythagorean Theorem (way before
Pythagoras!)
- In 1595 the Hittites sacked the city of
Babylon and brought Marduk statue
back to Anatolia.
-Egyptian History- insulated and isolated
from Mesopotamia until the 2nd
millennium B.C.(after 2000 B.C.)Agriculture first began in about 5000
B.C. along the Nile Valley- Nile annual
flooding provided fertile plains(irrigation not needed) Never developed
city-states- Just had local settlements
which coalesced into 2 states in 4th
millennium: Upper Egypt and Lower
Egypt- First king we know of was the
Scorpion King(3150 B.C.), he ruled
Upper Egypt- known only from
Maceheads-Around 3100 Upper Kingdom(ruled by
Narmer) conquered the lower kingdom
and united all of Egypt- the Narmer
Palette celebrates this achievement-Overview of Egyptian History:
1) Old Kingdom-2660-2181
2) First Intermediate Period 2181-2040Nile Valley divided among warring
principalities/Raiders seized Delta.
3) Middle Kingdom-2040-1782
4) Second Intermediate Period 17821570- Hyksos rule Egypt.
5) New Kingdom 1570-1070.
_________________________________
- See board- Osiris was wise- he gave agriculture to
mankind-Seth tricked Osiris into getting
inside a chest- Seth sealed the chest +
threw it into the sea- Isis searched for her
brother/husband- she found him dead +
turned herself into a bird- the motion of
her wings brought Osiris back to life
long enough to impregnate Isis- Horus
was born- When Horus grew up he
challenged Seth to a duel, Seth ripped
out Horus’ eye + tore him into bitsThoth(and Ibis-headed god) put him
back together-The Pharaoh is Horus in human formHe must subdue Seth + keep the
Egyptian Kingdom in balance- essence
of Egyptian Kingship.
- Old Kingdom- the Pyramids were built- Khufu(2589-2566)- built the Great
Pyramid up until 1800’s A.D. it was the
tallest man-made structure.
Khafre- son of Khufu (2558-2532)
Sphinx face may be his- sphinx
represents sun god rising at dawn.
Menkarre(2532-2504)- built 3rd smaller
pyramid.
Old Kingdom armies do appear to be
standing professional armies-troops were
levied and raised when neededmercenaries also may have been
employed-main weapons were
axes/spears
-2181-2040- First Intermediate Period.
-2040-1782- Middle kingdom- Senusret
III united Egypt once again- secured
southern border against Nubia- built
Fortresses along Egyptian borders -Most
famous fortress was Buhen it had 30 foot
mud brick the walls, thicker at the
bottom to prevent sapping
- Up to 1700 Egypt + Mesopotamia
isolated from one another.
- Second Intermediate Period- Group of
people called the Hyksos (originally
Hurrians from Northern Syria)
established themselves in Egypt and
proclaimed a new (Non-Egyptian)
dynasty (1782-1570)- They introduced
the horse drawn war-chariot to Egypt.
-The composite bow (made of wood and
horn) becomes popular- Around this time (Mid-2nd millennium
B.C.) the Hittite king Hattusilis creates a
powerful state controlling central
Anatolia- His successor Mursilis
extended Hittite rule into Syria + led an
army all the way into Mesopotamia +
sacked Babylon- Hittites were to become
great rivals to the Egyptian New
Kingdom.
_________________________________
- Egyptian New Kingdom(1570-1070)
1) Hatshepsut- one of several female
Pharaohs- 1498-1483, stepmother and
aunt (See board) of Thutmosis IIImarried her half-brother (T2)Hatshepsut governed Egypt in T3’s name
because he was only 9 when he became
pharaoh.
-T1 was a new lineage (unrelated to
previous Pharaohs) Hatshepsut had to
keep the lineage strong:
a) Used title “wife of Amon”- Intimacy
with god Amon-Re (sun god) gave her
more legitimacy.
b) Claimed her Royal Ka (life force,
soul) was masculine.
c) Female Horus
d) Her Statues slowly show a more
masculine trend- bearded.
2) Thutmosis III (1504-1450) - hated
Hatshepsut- had her images destroyed
once she was dead- May have had
something to do with her death
Conquered Levant region- led campaigns
into Syria- over 350 cities are said to
have fallen to him- called the Napoleon
of Ancient Egypt- “created the Egyptian
Empire”. Initially, he may have led
conquests to get out from Hatsepsut’s
shadow and prove himself a powerful
leader-but he was probably just being
imperialistic-Most famous battle was at
Meggido against a coalition of Syrian
forces-first “well”recorded battle in
history3) Akhenaten (servant of Aten) 1353 1336 - Originally named Amenhotep IVElevated the sun disk (Aten) to Preeminent status in Egyptian religion- this
was a radical heresy- He was a
philosopher king who was worried about
the growing power of the priesthood of
Amun-introduced monotheism (centered
on Aten)- Sun worship- This took power
away from the priests of Amun- Aten is
portrayed as a solar disk whose
protective rays terminated in hands
holding the Ankh (symbols of eternal
life)- Aten was only accessible to
Akhenaten so there was no need for an
intermediate priesthood- Closed Amun’s
temples- Founded a new city called
Akhetaten (Horizon of the sun disc)Only upper classes seem to have gone
along with the new religion- common
people continued polytheism.
- According to the new religion the old
underworld was swept aside- Now the
afterlife was brightly lit by Aten who
was a loving, life-giving god not a god of
conquest- Soon after his death, the new
religion of Akhenaten was abandoned.
________________________________
- Ramesses II -1279-1212- Most famous
pharaoh- Ramesses II is in story of
Exodus from Bible- After 400 years of
living peacefully within Egypt- Seti I
(Ramesses II’s father) enslaved the
Hebrews- Forced to build temples (Not
pyramids!) – He conducted huge
campaigns into Syria to fight the HittitesBattle of Kadesh(1275)(show video)-
Propaganda shows victory on walls of
temples but really a draw, and the
Egyptians almost lost- Hittite king was
Muwatallis II-1259 the treaty of Kadesh was signed
between Ramesses II and the new Hittite
king Hattusilis III peace was promised
from both sides + each state would help
the other if needed- Also, the Syrian
territory of Amurru switched allegiance
from Egypt to Hittites- Kadesh is the
best documented battle before classical
Greece- 500 B.C.
Warfare in the New Kingdom – Army
had chariots and infantry-sword becomes
popular-Infantry split into four divisions
of 5000 men each- the divisions are
named after the gods: Amun,Re,Ptah,Set
Chariots fight in groups of 10-50 – they
are the prestige weapon and are used by
the nobility and royalty-they get all the
attention in the accounts of battle-the
infantry is rarely mentioned-chariots are
led by two horses and are equipped with
a composite bow, a spear/javelin, an ax,
and a shield-they probably served as
mobile missile platforms and were not
designed to crash into the enemies ranks
-1200 Sea Peoples(?) swept into Anatolia
+ destroyed the Hittite Empire- They
also weakened Egypt- Age of Chariots
ends- replaced by infantry + cavalry1000 B.C.- Egypt virtually bankrupt- So
weak that foreign rulers such as the
Nubians occasionally take power(747656) + Macedonians (330-31).
- Minoan Greece (2000-1400)- Centered
on islands of Crete and Thera- Cities not
walled- No images of warfare- no
weapons found - Palace civilizationsvery luxurious, elegant.
- At Knossos on Crete the Queen had her
own private bathroom with running
water + the equivalent of a flush toiletBig trade industry with Egypt + Near
East- Collapsed around 1400- No one
knows why: Earthquake, Tidal wave,
The Myceneans probably were a big
factor in the collapse of the Minoan
civilization
- Mainland Greece- Earliest farmers
reached Greece in 6000’s- Metalworking began 3000-2500.
Greece- Not one country or kingdomMountains split landscape into plains and
valleys- Communities were isolatedIndo Europeans swept in from beyond
Danube/Black Sea from Central
Asia/South Russia- brought
chariots(2100-1900)- These invaders set
up a new civilization:
- Mycenean Age peaks 1500-1300 but
total span 1900-1100, Greece split
into a number of small but heavily
administered districts- The
Myceneans were the “Vikings” of the
late Bronze age – They were sea
raiders and conquered territories in
the Aegean sea and the western coast
of Anatolia – this broad them into
conflict with the city of Troy – Troy
controlled a major trade route from
the Aegean sea into the Black sea –
The Trojans grew rich off ships
requiring harbor space – They were
also horse breeders - Trojan War
mid-13th century?- Mycenean cities
fight against Troy in Asia MinorTroy was culturally connected to the
Hittite empire. By 1100 Mycenean
civilization collapses- Sea Peoples?
- 1100-800 Dark Age- No major
kingdoms or centralized governments
in Greece
- Iron Age Begins-1200-1000- Assyria(1350-612)- Split into Middle Assyrian period
(1350-1100) We’re not going to
discuss this period
- But only really an empire during the
Neo-Assyrian period (900-612)
Political hierarchy shaped like a
pyramid with king at top- His
primary role was to conduct war for
the benefit of the god Assur and the
state- Pattern of expansion:
- 1) Territories approached with
Massive forces
- 2) If they did not surrender
immediately small cities + towns
were attacked (easy targets)
- 3) Once conquered the inhabitants
were severely punished: tortured,
raped, beheaded, flayed, and their
corpses put on display- 4) If capital city still did not yield, it
was put under siege- This policy was
called “calculated frightfulness”
- If any subjects ever tried to rebel they
were severely punished: Eyes gauged
out/burned alive/impaled on
spikes/hands cut off- This policy was
probably designed to keep other
subjects in line and prevent future
rebellions
- Prisoners were often deported from
their native lands to distant parts of
the empire- This lessoned the chance
of future rebellions since people were
in unfamiliar lands- 4.5 million
people deported- 3 Types of Political Arrangements in
Empire 744-612.
- 1) Vassal States- local leader
remained in charge but was to deliver
annual tribute.
- 2) Puppet States- a local man
considered to be faithful to Assyria
was placed on throne.
- 3) Provinces- Ruled by a governor
directly under Assyria’s controlActually part of empire- Assyrian
territory
- ______________________________
- Kings often appointed eunuchs to
high government positions so there
would be no pressure or temptation
for duties to be passed from father to
son- Offices reverted back to king for
re-assignment.
- Babylonia never fully subdued.
- There was religious tolerance- Huge libraries found that were kept
by Assyrian kings- Assyria created a
pony express- First really BIG
Empire- The key to Assyrian military success
may have been the successful use of
specialized forces integrated together:
Chariots,Cavalry,Infantry (Heavy
Spearman wearing metal mail
armor/Light Archers often recruited
from subdued peoples),Engineers
- Ashurbanipal (668-627)- was last
strong Assyrian king- his sons began
a civil war to succeed him + this
severely weakened the empire.
- Assyrian Capital- Ninevah- sacked in
612 by Neo-Babylonians- they came
from the south- Another group (the
Medes) came from the North Eastthey were pastoral mountain peopleAlso, tribes of Cimmerians and
Scythians from the Black Sea region
harassed Assyria from the North- by
610 Assyria is gone- Neo-Babylonia
takes over Western Part of empirethe Medes take over Eastern part- A
kingdom of Lydia was established in
Western Anatolia.
- 550-Cyrus (1st king of Persia)
overthrew Median king and
established the Persian Empire- Soon
the Persians conquered Lydia and
took all of Asia Minor(547-539)Cambyses (Cyrus’s son) took Egypt539 Babylonia also fell to the
Persians.
- In contrast to the Assyrians, the
Persians embraced the cultural
diversity of the inhabitants of their
empire- They did not have to become
“Persian”- The king of Persia had
special royal agents which acted as
his “eyes” and kept local powers in
line- The willingness to adopt local
customs and to insert the Persian king
into existing traditions of rule made it
possible to bring unity to this vast
empire-
- The main Persian deity was
Ahuramazda.
- ______________________________
- Archaic Greece- (800-479 B.C.)
- Iliad/ Odyssey- long oral traditionFinally written down by Homer(750-700) reflects societal values of
Dark Ages + early Archaic Period.
The following list distinguished the
civilized Greeks from the
“barbarians” of foreign lands:
1) Hospitality to strangers
2) Gift exchange
3) Friendship ties
4) Marriage ties
5) Respect for gods
6) Agriculture
- No coins until 600’s- wealth was
measured in cattle + land.
- Status was key- King’s rule was not
absolute- could be challenged- ex.
Achilleus’ strike- Assembly- Nobles gave opinion to
king- Staff/scepter passed around
only holder could speak- king first
among equals.
- Colonization- all over Mediterranean
- Olympics-(776)- Greeks met +
exchanged ideas- spread Greek
culture- Unity of culture among citystates-also unity of religion
- Oikos- Household- included servants,
slaves, soldiers, lesser nobles- Herodotus- concerned with culture as
well as politics- sees the Persian wars
as a cultural clash between
Democratic Greeks (who have
allegiance to laws) + Persians (who
have blind allegiance to an absolute
king)/ also has supernatural element
(Hubris, Ate, Nemesis: Rise and Fall
of power/(omens important) History- comes from historia
(inquiry) not his story- wrote 430.
- Hoplite Tactics- In Archaic Period!!
- Hypothesis One- Soldiers fought in
loose formation- light troops (poor)+
missile weapons present on
battlefield – Hoplites fought as
individuals as well as in groups- Not
everyone equipped the same.
- Hypothesis Two- only middle class
farmers- All armed alike- Argive
shield, spear, bronze chest plateFought in tight rigid phalanx, each
man protected by part of the shield of
the man to his right- No light troopsNo missile weapons.
- ______________________________
- Works + Days (written by Hesiod)
shows friction between common
people + local nobility- during
Archaic period power shifted from
nobility to common people- steps:
- 1) Coinage introduced
- 2) More complex economy + trade
- 3) Nobles began to lose power as
trade became important
- Aristocracy based on birth began to
be replaced by Aristocracy based on
wealth.
- Poor free men strove for changeTrade centralized in towns-
Agriculture less important- A new
town population starts growing- leads
to growth of city-state.
- Natural landscape of Greece has a lot
of mountains with valleys in
between- city-states grew in valleys.
- Sparta- 3 classes of people:
- Helots -in 8/7th century enslaved the
Messenians (reduced them to Helot
status) Helots did all farming
- Perioccoi- craftsmen, merchantsgave military service if required- Not
part of Spartan Government- lived
outside of actual city
- Spartiates- could focus purely on
fighting- Conservative, paranoid
society- Feared Helot revolts
constantly-
- Agogi- Age 7 encouraged to be
tough, to steal, beaten if caught- Age
12 adopted by 18-20 year oldInstitution of Homosexuality
- Didn’t use coins- Men lived in
communal quarters- Not with wives- Krypteia- secret police- allowed to
kill helots- kept helots “in-line”.
- Some Helots served as light-armed
troops- could gain freedom if they
fought well.
- Sick infants left out to die (?)- very conservative – didn’t like to take
risks – concerned only with Sparta
- xenophobic – fear of strangers
- Culture of simplicity-no luxury, no
coinage
- Women enjoyed rights- encouraged
to be strong- breed for the state-they
could own land
- Lycurgus- 885 B.C. (Myth?) Gave
laws to Spartans
- Spartans claimed to be descendents
of Heracles
- __________________________
- Spartan Government:
1) Kings (2) commanded armyMonarchy aspect-chosen by
assembly- appointed for life.
2) Council- 30 members- criminal
court- only nobles could be elected
(by assembly) Aristocratic elementserved for life.
3) Assembly- every Spartiate over 30elected other officials- Democratic
element
4) Ephors (5)- served one yearguarded rights of people- civil
courtSpartan Government was a mixed
constitution- but really oligarchy.
- Athens- Attica was unified as a result
of a synoecism- (this is when a group
of independent towns/cities unite
politically or physically into a single
state)- surrounding communities had
surrendered independence to Athens
and with her formed a single stateAll male citizens (30,000) could voteNot slaves, women, foreigners
(Metics).
- Evolution of Athenian Democracy:
-
-
-
Originally many small farmers were
dependent on wealthy landowners
(feudal system)
Solon- 594- became Archon
instituted
Democratic reforms of Solon:
A) Cancelled all debts- small
farmers no longer obligated to
wealthy landowners
B) You could not be enslaved for
debt
C) 4 classes based on wealth (Not
Birth)
Peisistratus- Tyrant- 560-527- good
ruler- people liked him.
His son Hippias ruled harshly- a
group of Democrats led by
Cleisthenes appealed to Sparta for
help overthrowing Hippias.
510- Hippias was exiled- eventually
went to Persia.
Reforms of Cleisthenes:
He reorganized how citizens votedcreated 10 tribes- each tribe had
citizens from 3 different regions of
Attica- City, Coast, Inland- like a 3
layer cake- The system ensured that
various people of different interests
had to unite as a tribe (No local
community interests).
Athenian Government:
Boule- 500 men (50 from each tribe –
each group of 50 was called a
prytaneis) members picked by lotteryserved one year- Boule was supreme
administrative authority of statecontrolled finances of state- conducted
foreign negotiations- Initiated laws +
sent them to Assembly for votePrepared all business to be presented
before the Assembly- Each group of 50
(Prytaneis) led Boule for 1/10 of yearAssembly- All 30,000 voters - met at
pynx-legislate
Generals- Elected by Assembly- there
were 10 generals
Ostracism- A means to eliminate
conflict + gridlock- Assembly
inscribed name of individual they
wanted out- loser was exiled for 10
years- kept citizenship + property.
Athens was the opposite of Sparta in
many ways – They welcomed
foreigners into their city – Athenians
were enterprising, bold capitalists who
tended to take risks in order to make a
profit – They enjoyed luxury and being
rich- Women had very few rights in
Athenian society-they were told who to
marry and couldn’t own land
Persian Wars- After fall of Lydia, Persia
conquers Asiatic Greece- Subjugated
cities obligated to serve in Persian army,
but no restrictions were placed on
commerce- Ionian Greek cities were left
alone as long as they paid tribute +
provided military troops- Many Ionian
cities were ruled by Tyrants who liked
and were supported by Persian rule522- Darius takes over Persian Empirehe conquers Thrace- Macedonia
acknowledges allegiance to Darius.
Part of the Persian system was the
support of local tyrants- there was
widespread hatred of these tyrants who
owed their position to Persia.
Aristogoras was tyrant of Miletus- He
fell out of favor with the Persians and
in order to regain his power he decided
to lead a widespread revolt of the
Ionian Greeks against Persia- He gave
up his tyranny to gain widespread
support of the Ionian people.
He went to Sparta to ask for aid from
King Cleomenes- When he was refused
he went to Athens + they agreed to
help- Eretria also agreed to help
_____________________________
Strategy – your plan to win a war- what
you do before you see the enemy
Tactics – your plan to win a battle-what
you do while you are fighting
Athens sent 20 ships/ Eretria sent 5.
After Sardis was burned down, the
Athenians + Eretrians retreated back to
Greece + the Ionian revolt is put down
by Darius but he allows Democracies
to be set up in many Ionian states as a
concession-
Darius now wants revenge against
Athens + Eretria492- Mardonius sent to re-establish
Persian Hegemony over Thrace +
Macedonia- afterwards he intended to
punish Athens + Eretria but his fleet
was destroyed in a storm off the Athos
PromontoryHippias (exiled Athenian tyrant) urges
Darius to launch another attack490- Datis/ Artaphernes led another
expedition- went to Eretria + burned it
down- enslaved inhabitants- they
landed at MarathonAfter victory- Spirit of Athens soaredSparta came to visit battle field- New
confidence + ambition for Athens-
489- Cleomenes + Demaratus quarrel
whether to interfere in a fight between
Athens + Aegina - Demaratus declared
illegitimate as king + fled to Persia.
Naval power- Trireme- 3 levels of
rowers- 170 oarsmen, 10 marines
(hoplites), 4 archers, 16 crew.
Bow to side ramming
Kyklos- defensive formation- see
board.
Periplous- flanking attack- see board.
Deikplous- cutting through line + ram
from behind- see board.
Themistocles- 483-482- Huge silver
mine discovered at Laurion- wanted to
spend $ on building a fleet- Aristides
wanted to distribute $ to all citizens-
Aristides ostracized- $ spent on
building 200 ships.
490-480- Darius dies- Xerxes becomes
king- Planned land + sea attack against
Greece- dug a canal through Athos
promontory- showed power +
facilitated contact between Navy +
Army.
-481- Sparta + Athens hold PanHellenic conference (first instance of
Pan- Hellenic Policy) at Isthmus of
Corinth- discussed matters of
resistance- 31 city- states took oath to
resist Persia- Thessaly + most Boeotian
states (ex-Thebes) didn’t attendThessaly would be invaded first +
would be hopeless to withstand Persia
alone- Oligarchs of Thebes were
sympathetic to Persia- Medize- join
Persian side- Sparta elected leader of
both land + sea- Political feuds buriedexiled leaders recalled- Wooden wall prophesyA) Acropolis would survive (protected
by wooden fence)
B) Navy would save the Greeks
- Themistocles convinced Athenians it
was B
- Persians advance through ThessalyNext point of defense is Thermopylae.
- Spartans may have picked
Thermopylae due to obligation to
Athens + importance of Athenian Navy
to overall defense- May have only sent
300 since their hearts were really set on
a defense at the Isthmus- They claimed
Leonidias’ small army was only an
advance guard (4000 Peloponnesians,
700 Thespians, 400 Thebans, 1000
Phocaeans and a bunch of Helots) Greek Navy moves to Artemesium
(North Coast of Euboea)
- A storm destroys 200 Persian ships
since there were too many to find safe
harbors- The Persians send 200 more ships
around Euboea to surround Greek
Navy + these are also destroyed in
another storm.
- Battle of Artemesium fought
simultaneously with Battle of
Thermopylae- After Thermopylae defeat,
Greek Navy sails to Attica (378 ships)
- Themistocles convinces Athenians to
abandon Attica- Persians occupy Boeotia
+ Attica- Athenians flee to Island of
Salamis- Xerxes arrives at Athens- kills
small acropolis garrison- Temples
plundered + burned
- Greek Army building wall at Isthmus.
-Two strategies available to Greeks
1) Send fleet to Isthmus alongside armycould retreat + support army if
necessary- At Salamis if they lost they
couldn’t retreat- trap- Opposed by
Athenians, Aeginteans, Megarians (All
north of Isthmus)
2) Fight in narrows of SalamisThemistocles convinces Eurybiadas this
plan would not allow the superior
numbers + speed of Persian fleet to make
a difference
- Big Debate- Themistocles threatened to
remove Athenian fleet (200 ships) and
settle Athenians in southern Italy if his
plan was not adopted.
- Persians move into position- Greeks
panic and are flip-flopping to move fleet
to Isthmus.
- Themistocles’ trick- Greeks win at
Salamis- Xerxes + Navy flee back to
Ionia- Persian Army under Mardonius
stays.
- 479- Persians winter in Thessaly- offer
peace deal to Athens who refuse- love
Democracy + freedom.
- 479- Spring- Persians invade Attica
again- Sparta (at first) doesn’t send helpAthenians must evacuate Attica again!
Sparta eventually sends whole army to
Plataea where the combined Greek
forces defeat the Persian army under
Mardonius- A few days later the Greeks
defeat the Persians once again along the
Ionian coast (at Mycale) and many
Ionian cities are freed from Persian
Hegemony.
479-431- Prelude to Peloponnesian War.
- Thucydides- Main source for
Peloponnesian War- No myths or
legends- Just ‘The Facts’- No culturejust political History- 2 Main Themes:
A) Morality + Justice thrown out
window- Advantage is what dictates
policy
B) Erosion of civilized behavior + honor
in times of war
- He was a commander in Thrace but was
banished (424) for losing a battle- After Battle of Mycale Ionian cities
were freed from Persian rule- Sparta
went home.
- Athens continued war against PersiaDetermined to recover more territory +
corn routes to Black Sea.
478-477 - Delian League formed
- Ionian cites place themselves under
protection of Athens- Voluntary
enrollment (at first).
- Objects:
1) protect Ionian cities from Persian
reconquest
2) Gain vengeance/ plunder to offset
expenses + losses to Greece during
Persian War
- Oath of loyalty taken by all members
(lasts forever) - unusual
- Each city pays Athens tribute $- a few
supply ships instead
- At first each member had equal vote on
policy but Athens had great influence
since they were doing the protecting1) Navy- citizens row
2) Democracy- citizens vote
3) Empire- Navy allows empire to exist
- All connected- See Board.
- Shortly after Plataea - Walls are built
around Athens from Persian rubbleThemistocles’ plan
- 470’s- political schism- Themistocles
(pro- Persian/ anti- Sparta) vs. Cimon
(pro- Sparta/ anti- Persian)
472- Themistocles ostracized- went to
Argos (traditional enemy of Sparta) +
continued anti-Spartan propagandaAccused of plotting with Persia- Both
Athens + Sparta sent soldiers to arrest
him- he fled + eventually landed in
Persia!
- 470’s to 460’s- Confederacy of Delos
(Delian League) becomes harsh +
imperialistic:
1) 472- Carystos- subjugated + forced to
join
2) 469- Naxos- wants out of leagueforced to rejoin
3) 465- Thasos- Had mines on mainland
Athens wanted them- revolted- Cimon
defeats Thasian Navy- walls torn downforced to give up claim to mines
464- Helots revolt- Sparta asks for
Athenian aid- Cimon sends army but
shortly after they are sent home- Sparta
does not like the adventurous +
revolutionary spirit of the AtheniansHUGE insult to Athens- Cimon’s policy
is disgraced- 461- Cimon ostracized.
461- Pericles takes over- Anti-Spartan
policy instituted- Alliance with Sparta
ended + alliance with Argos beginsPericles institutes pay for
government jobs (offices) so poor
people could afford to quit their job
for a year + serve in Boule or other
offices- Big Democratic reform
458- Long walls built to vital port of
Piraeus- protects vital Navy +
Commercial fleet
454- Delian treasury moved to
Athens- Athens no longer consulting
other members on policy- No more
voting
Persia no longer a threat by 449-
According to Plutarch (Not
Thucydides) – Pericles stages Panhellenic conference to discuss:
1) rebuilding temples in Athens
2) Paying gods for Persian defeat
3) Clearing sea of Pirates
_______________________________
Peloponnesian city-states refused to
come- Pericles used the meeting as
an excuse to maintain Delian League
so Athens could use money to
rebuild temples, to maintain its fleetHe reasoned the temples had been
burned in the common cause so they
could be rebuilt by common fundsSince Athens was still protecting its
allies they could use tribute $
however they wished- Many
Athenians were against this policy
but Pericles was too popularMassive rebuilding program gave
jobs to many poor- (Parthenon,
Erecthium)
Delian League gets even more
imperialistic
Pericles starts Clerachies- Sent poor
Athenians to allied lands- took away land
from allies- helped keep hold on allies.
440-439- Samos revolts + is subjugated
- Eventually all allies forced to use
Athenian coinage under threat of deathEconomic Dominance of Athens
empire furthered the extension of tradePeloponnesian War 431-404- Ultimate
Cause- Spartan fear of growing Athenian
power
Proximate Causes:
A) Conflict between Corinth +
Corcyra- Athens sides with
Corcyra- Sparta sides with
Corinth
B) Athens lays siege to Potidaea(A Corinthian colony)
C) Megara excluded from all
Athenian Ports_______________________________
Initially, war is conflict between sea
power (Athens + its allies = whale) and
land power (Sparta + its allies =
elephant)
Athens and its allies are the Delian
league/ Sparta and its allies are called the
Peloponnesian league
- Spartan army raids Attica each year but
Athenians hide behind their walls +
aren’t badly affected- Meanwhile the
Athenian fleet sails around the
Peloponnese + raids the coastal towns.
430- Plague breaks out in AthensPericles dies the next year
429- Cleon (Hawk pro-war) + Nicias
(Dove- Peace Party) rise to prominence
428- Mytilene revolts- when revolt is
put down a big debate is held as to
what to do with Mytilenians-Cleon- Death- They deserve itenslave women and children.
Diodotus- Death only to leaders of
revolt- This is NOT mercy, but what is
best for Athens- Justice Not the issue(executing all the males would actually
be just) It will be easier to defeat future
rebellions if they show moderation
now/continue getting paid
425- Sphacteria- Cleon boasts he can
capture or kill Spartan Garrison on
island in 20 days- He does it using
light-armed troops and archersCleon’s influence soars- Spartan image
of invincibility is shattered- 120 full
Spartiates surrender.
- Cleon begins policy of land conquest
(contrary to Pericles’ strategy)
Athenians lose at Delium (424) and in
Thrace- Cleon killed in 422- Truce
declared between Athens + Sparta but
the Peloponnesian allies don’t
recognize it415- Sicilian Expedition- Alcibiades
has risen to great power- he pushes for
expedition- Nicias against it:
1) closer enemies at hand
2) Sicily hard to retain even if
conquered
3) Athens can’t afford to squander
resources
4) Alcibiades motivated by personal
ambition
- Nicias says 60 triremes not enoughexpedition will fail- So people vote for
100 triremes (his plan back fired)
- People carried away with dreams of a
western empire- People elected Nicias
in charge of expedition (mistake #1).
- Eve of Expedition- Hermes statues
are mutilated- Alcibiades accused since
he was involved in Mystery cults- Trial
delayed
- Expedition leaves for Sicily with
Alcibiades 30,000 men.
- When they got to Sicily, Alcibiades
was recalled to stand trial (Mistake #2)
- He escapes + is condemned to death- Alcibiades goes to SPARTA- tells
them to take two actions:
1) Send a Spartan general to Syracuse
to organize defense
2) Occupy Decelea in Attica- deny
Athens use of silver mines-
- He may have wanted the war to turn
against Athens so he could come to the
rescue as a tyrant
- Sparta sends Gylippus to SicilyCorinth also sends ships
- Meanwhile (414) Syracuse under
siege - Athenians build wall to cut off
supplies from inland
- Athens already controls the harbor- 2
attempts at counter wall are thwartedSyracuse in despair + prepare to
surrender- Nicias, in premature elation,
neglects to finish the wall around
Syracuse (Mistake #3)
- All thoughts of surrender are
abandoned when word gets out that
Gylippus is coming- He gathers army
north of Syracuse + marches to the high
ground above the city + captures it- He
immediately begins a 3rd counter wall
which is successfully completedSyracuse can now get supplies
Syracusans gain control of shore of
harbor- Athenian ships become water
logged + slow- Syracusans redesign
ships for bow to bow rammingSyracusans block harbor with bunch of
ships chained together- Athenian fleet is
destroyed in harbor battle.
- Athenians flee overland- 23,000 killed/
7,000 enslaved.
- Athens at all time low- Meanwhile Alcibiades flees Sparta +
goes to Persia- came under suspicion of
sleeping with King Agis’ wife- In Persia,
plots to ally Persia with Athens so
Athenians will take him back with
Persian backing…
- But plan doesn’t work- instead Sparta
allies with Persia- Treaty of Miletus
(412).
- Sparta sells out Asiatic Greeks- Sparta
recognized right of Persian king to
reclaim Ionian cities- In return Persia
agrees to fight alongside Sparta- Sparta
now has a fleet!
- After Sicily disaster Athens is
shaken- Navy sent to Samos to prevent
Ionian cities from revolting- Navy
(Democratic element) not in AthensOligarchs in Athens seize control and
dissolve Democracy-411- Set up
council of 400 oligarchs- But fleet
rejects new government and elects
Alcibiades as general- He abolishes
400 oligarchs and Democracy is reestablished_____________________________
410-407- Athens’ navy rebounds- wins
several victories against
Spartan/Persian fleet.
406- Huge Athenian victory at
Arginusae- But Athenian captains fail
to rescue some ship wrecked sailors
due to a storm.
8 Generals (including Pericles’ son)
are executed- crowd thirsted for
vengeance-danger of radical
democracy
405- Aegospotomai (goat river)
Spartan commander Lysander
captures Athenian fleet on shoredestroys most of it- Athens
surrenders- war over- Corinth +
Thebes wanted Athens destroyed but
Sparta could use Athens as a buffer
against them so walls were torn
down, fleet limited to 12 ships but
Athens was allowed to remain
Rise of Thebes
379-378- Thebes allies with AthensDemocratic government installedOligarchs killed- Ascendancy of Thebes- Two Generals
(Pelopidas and Epaminondas)
revolutionized Battle Tactics- See boardSacred Band
- Crushed Spartans at Leuctra 371 –Spartan prestige destroyed- Thebes
invades Peloponnese- Megalopolis
founded (Synoecism) Helots freedSparta now severely handicappedEconomic/social system destroyed
Thebes crushed Spartans again at
Mantinea (362) but Epaminondas is
killed at Mantinea + Theban power
crumbles371-362- Theban Hegemony over
Greece- While Thebes was on top, a young
prince from Macedonia (Philip II) was
sent to Thebes as a diplomatic hostagehe learned about tactics from
Epaminondas
________________________________
- Rise of Macedon- 358 Philip II
becomes King of Macedon- asserted
authority over all of Macedonia +
western Thrace- Over next 20 years by
use of politics and a highly trained
professional standing army he came to
dominate the rest of Greece – Alexander
born in 356 to Olympia (bride of Philip)
Charonea-338- Greeks unite to fight
Philip- Theban Sacred Band
annihilated
See boardCorinthian league establishedMacedonian hegemony over all
Greece- Sparta refuses to join (left in
isolation) –
Friction develops between
Alexander,/Olympia and his father
Philip – Philip takes a full blooded
Macedonian bride named Cleopatra
(not the famous one) – Olympia was
from Epirus and was not Macedonian
– the threat of a full blooded
successor presented competition for
Alexander as to whom would be the
next King - Philip assassinated in
336, Alexander becomes KingOlympia roasts Cleopatra’s son and
she is killed-Olympia will tolerate no
competition for the throneShortly after Alexander becomes
king, Thracian tribes (sensing
weakness) become hostile- While
Alex is in Thrace fighting them, a
rumor of his death sweeps over
Greece- This causes a rebellion led
by Athens + Thebes- Thebes would
not surrender when Alex arrives
With his army + Thebes is totally
destroyed- A warning to other Greeks.
Philip II originally planned to invade
Persian empire- Alex follows the
planPretext- Revenge for Persian wars
- Liberate Ionian cities
- Real Reason- Glory, Power, Treasure,
love of conquest
Strategic Genius
1) Secured Greece/ Thrace before
leaving
2) Secured Ionian Coast (to neutralize
Persian fleet)
3) Secured Mesopotamia before India
Always secured Rear!
_______________________________
_
Parmenio- 2nd in command- older
general close with Philip II
Hephaestion- Best friend
Seleucus, Ptolemy, Perdiccas,
Craterus- all major generals
Initial worst enemy was Memnon- a
Greek mercenary from Rhodes
fighting for Persia- suggested
scorched earth policy
Persian strength was horsemen +
archers
334- Battle of Granicus- after battle,
Alex secures Ionian Coast
333- Memnon dies from disease.
Gordian Knot episode in Asia Minor –
whoever unties knot will be master of
Asia (great propaganda) - Alexander
cuts knot
- Issus- Alexander’s right Flank
destroys Persian left flank but he
doesn’t carry the pursuit too far- He
turns back to rescue his own left flank
which is in trouble- Darius fleesDarius’ wife + sisters are captured but
treated well-- Alexander wants
Persians to embrace him (as king of
Asia)- does not want to antagonize
them-he does not want to ‘conquer’
them-he wants to blend Persian and
Greek culture- Hellenistic Age –
Greek culture is spread throughout the
Persian territory.
Siege of Tyre- Great example of
siege warfare.Alexander goes to Egypt- founds
Alexandria- welcomed as liberatorgoes to Libyan desert to see oracle at
Siwa- hailed as son of Zeus331- Gaugamela- captures Babylon,
Susa, + Persepolis (Burnt down
intentional or accidental?) - led to
revolts in Eastern empire-- Darius
fled again after Gaugamelaeventually he is assassinated by his
own general (Bessus) Alexander
captures Bessus + executes him______________________________
Bactrian years- 331-326- guerrilla
warfare- Each day a new day of
discovery- Alexander is glue that
held army together- Alex starts
becoming unstable/paranoid- starts
drinking a lotSplit in officer coreYoung- Craterus, Hephastion,
Ptolemy- Cavalry core- young guys
all promoted after death of Philotas +
Parmenio.
Older-Parmenio- common soldier of
phalanx- the grunt- Phalanx base- old
style.
A) Philotas (Parmenio’s son)
executed for plotting against AlexParmenio also executed
B) Cleitus killed while Alex was
drunk
C) Proskynesis (Bow +kissing at feet)
introduced- led to great resentment
among Greek soldiers – Greeks only
bowed to gods
Hermoleus spears boar (took away
Alexander’s glory) and is whipped.
Alex heads east to Indus RiverBeyond Persian empire- crosses
Indus river
Battle of Hydaspes River-326- fights
against King Porus.
Men finally mutiny + demand that
Alexander turns the army around
Alex returns to Babylon via
Gedrosian Desert- very harsh, a lot of
men die- sends some men on Naval
route led by Nearchus. Alexander
dies (probably of a fever) in Babylon
in 323.
Successors- divide his kingdom(323-281)
Lysimachus- Thrace
Antigonus- Asia Minor
Selecus- Syria, Near-East, Persia
Ptolemy-Egypt
301- Battle of Ipsus- Antigonus killed
by coalition (Lysimachus + Selecus)
they split Asia Minor
281- Selecus kills Lysimachus + takes
over Asia Minor
- Power in Ancient world shifts to
Western Mediterranean- ROME
The Rise and Fall of the Roman
Empire
753 BC – Traditional foundation of
Rome – Roman history is divided into
3 main phases:
1) 753 - 509 – Royal Period – Rome
ruled by Kings (seven) first four were
Latin, last three were Etruscan
2) 509 - 31 – Roman Republic
a)509 – 264 Early Republic –
Conquest of Italy
b) 264 – 133 Middle Republic –
Conquest of Mediterranean/world
c) 133-31- Late Republic – Civil
wars and collapse of the Republic
3) 31BC -476 AD – Roman Imperial
Period (period of
Emperors)
a) 31 BC – 284 AD – Principate –
Imperial system founded by first
Emperor (Augustus) facade of
Senatorial power/republic
b) 284 - 476 – Dominate –
Autocratic system founded by
Emperor Diocletian (Dominus Latin
for master) ruled like a King with a
lot of ceremony
Post-Roman History:
476 - 1453 – Roman Empire continues
in East as the Byzantine Empire – In
the West, the Empire is replaced by
Germanic kingdoms
Four Sources of Roman (& other
Ancient) history
1) Written Accounts – Polybius, Livy,
Tacitus, Plutarch, Suetonius,
Ammianus, Procopius etc. – reflect
male-biased upper class – copied
(changed) over time.
2) Physical Remains – ruins, artifacts
3) Inscriptions – original not copied –
epigraphic evidence
4) Coinage – numismatic evidence
Founding of Rome – Early Myths +
Traditions
59 B.C. – 17 A.D. – Livy accepted a
tradition going back to Aristotle which
explained historical events by the
characters of the persons involved –
Livy relates events as moral episodes
designed to bring out the character of
the leading figures in the present – Past
events provide models of social and
individual behavior (good + bad) on
how to act in the present
Livy doesn’t like the present state of
Roman affairs- He blames it on moral
decline – continually looks at distant
past to demonstrate the honor, virtue,
bravery that Romans used to practice
On the other hand, Livy shows great
pride that Rome has risen to become
the greatest nation in the World –
Although leery of Augustus he admits
that Augustus brought peace to the
World by land and sea (after the chaos
of the civil wars) Tension between
evils of Modern Rome and Dawn of
New Golden Age.
1000 – 900 B.C.- Migrants arrived
from Balkans and settled in North Italy
– (Spina, Bologna, Tarquinia) – Those
people absorbed native populations and
their culture was called Villanovans
700 B.C. – A new wave of migration
occurred – These new migrants (called
Etruscans) had a taste for Greek and
Phoenician Artistic styles, new
techniques for metal work, and were
city builders – brought a new language
too – these new elements transformed
the Villanovans into Etruscans – Poor
simple agricultural people into an
urban nation of craftsman and traders –
Traded a lot with Greece, Egypt and
Phoenicia – Salt was an essential
commodity to the Etruscans and could
only be obtained at the big salt beds at
the mouth of the Tiber river – The saltroute led from these salt beds up the
Tiber through Rome – Rome thus grew
from an agricultural community into a
major commercial center
Etruscan influence is evident in Rome
by 625 – 600 – ex. Rome pottery and
Drainage systems – small groups of
Etruscans set up communities in Rome
– Rome became mixed population but
the superior skills and abilities of
Etruscans dominated
616 – Etruscans gain upper hand –
Etruscans kings gain throne
1)
Central Market place created –
Forum , communal buildings
2)
Primitive religion replaced by
Greek-like pantheon
3)
Pastoralism- Agriculture
4)
Greek/Trojan heroes present in
Etruscan Art – Aeneas connection-
kings had board of advisors drawn
from leading families (eventually
became the republican senate)
Latin Kings:
1) Romulus
2) Numa – very involved in religious
organization and reform
3) 673 – 642 - Tullus Hostilius –
warrior king – destroyed Alba Longa
and transferred its people to Rome
4) 642 – 617- Ancus Marcius
Tarquins (Etruscans come to
Rome)
5) 616 – 579- Lucius Tarquinius
Priscus – Gained control peacefully –
established horse racing games and
drainage system
6) 578 – 535- Servius Tullus –
Tarquinius’s son-in-law – A) Military
Reforms – hoplite warfare – property
classes introduced to military
B) Built stone wall around Rome for
protection
7) 534 – 510- Tarquinius Superbus (the
proud) – Portrayed as an evil tyrant –
Built Cloaca Maxima – allowed forum
to be drained and built upon
Etruscans kings brought Rome from
village to city – Built Temple of Jupiter
on Capitoline Hill
Etruscan influences:
Triumphs – Parades to celebrate
military victories – booty and prisoners
would be displayed
Gladiatorial combat- Originally
performed as funeral rites
Kingship in Rome not Dynastic –
conferred by the senate to individuals
without regard to family claims – kings
didn’t claim to be divine – had extreme
power- right to command unlimited –
symbols of imperium (power to
command) were the fasces (axe [right
of execution] and rods [right of
beating])
End of Period of Kings (End of
Etruscan Rome)
509 - Rape of Lucretia by Tarquinius
Superbus’ son provokes a conspiracy
of nobles led by Brutus who overthrew
Superbus – Superbus secures help of
Lars Porsenna to recapture Rome –
Despite Livy’s version, Porsenna does
capture Rome but fails to restore
Superbus – Shortly after Porsenna is
forced to abandon Rome to deal with
Latin revolts elsewhere –
Government of the Roman Republic
1)
After kings were expelled, the
leading land owning families took over
many of the kings’ duties – they
became the Senate – Senate couldn’t
legislate, only advise – Served for life
–
2)
Consuls (2) – held imperium
(power to command)
A- Convene Senate
B- Preside over senatorial meeting
C- Bring proposals to Senate
D- Raise and command armies
E- One year term
Praetors (4) – lesser imperium – one
year term
Dictator – only elected in times of
extreme crisis – 6 month term –
absolute power – By early 2nd Century
B.C. this office was no longer used
Pro-Consul - imperium extended
beyond a year (instead of Dictator) ––
Pro-Consuls served in provinces –
Once he left his territory his imperium
ended and he was a private citizen and
expected to disband his army
3)
People – the people legislated
via assemblies –
A) Centuriate Assembly – Older
assembly – 193 units – citizens
assigned to units based on wealth and
age – same grouping as military–
voting ended when majority (97) voted
one way – Rich units got to vote first
so rich had more power to legislate – a)
elected consuls – b) voted on war and
peace
Early Republican history was
dominated by an internal “struggle of
orders” between patricians (clubbish
privileged families) and plebeians ( less
privileged, excluded) – this struggle of
orders led to the creation of the :
B) Tribal Assembly – 35 tribes
determined by location not wealth–
patricians excluded – voting stopped at
majority (18) – couldn’t debate or
discuss legislation – just yes/no vote –
had to vote in person – led by Tribunes
of Plebs (10) Tribunes proposed
legislation – all legislation passed was
binding (even without senatorial
approval) – 287 B.C. laws passed by
Tribal Assembly binding on statute
with/without senatorial approvalHOWEVER, it was still tradition to get
senatorial approval before legislation
was sent to the assembly – Tribunes
had absolute veto power – could
prevent senatorial decrees from
reaching assemblies – Tribunes were
inviolate (no one could physically
touch them ) – The tribunes were
created as champions of the people in
494
Rome had no written constitution –
powers were based on precedent and
tradition (mas maiorum)
Cursus Honorum – the path of political
ambition for many wealthy young
Roman menQuastor > Aedile or Tribune > Praetor
> Consul > Censor
If you have a consul in your family tree
(an ancestor), then your family is
considered a noble family
Typical Path of Legislation:
A)
Consuls convened senate and
put proposal to it – Senate votes by
physically moving to one side or
another
B)
Senatorial Decree was issued
(just advice)
C)
Tribunes debated decree in a
series of informal meetings
D)
Decree brought to tribal
council (since this was natural choice
due to Plebs) and yes/no vote taken
SPQR – Senatus Romanus populasque
– Senate and People of Rome
Within the senate, some families
enjoyed greater political power than
others– long term cooperation between
elite families (Good Ole’ boy network)
few dozen influential families –
Oligarchy factors sustained by
adoption/inter marriage
ex.- from 250B.C. – 50 B.C. only
eleven men were elected consul who
didn’t belong to one of those influential
families – They were called Novus
Homo (new men)
In reality Rome was an oligarchy – the
senate had the greatest political powerPatronage – unequal arrangement
between the influential and the uninfluential – favors granted by patron
to client (a member of the assembly)
who had repayment obligation –
secured success in election and to get
favorable legislation passed using
patronage –
3 Key Features of Rome
1) In the absence of written
constitution, the republic relied on a
deep respect for tradition and precedent
– Politicians acted in ways sanctioned
by tradition rather than prescribed by
law
A) Libertas – freedom of political
action, freedom from domination by a
monarch – Natural hatred for kings
B) Concordia – maintaining political
civility by avoiding serious conflict via
compromise and a willingness to back
down if faced with resolute challenges
2) Consular lists leave no doubt that a
relatively few leading families enjoyed
the lion’s share of political prominence
in the republic
3) The republic was essentially a
city-state system of government, a
small-scale affair – conducted with
face-to-face meetings and
assemblies where physical presence
was required – This was a huge
problem when forced to govern a
huge empire
Chronology continues:
496 – Lake Regillus – Latins (allied
together) vs. Romans – Fought in Latin
territory suggests that Rome was the
aggressor – No clear cut winner –
External threat of Volsci and Aequi
(from Central Appenine Mountains)
led to Treaty of Cassius in 493 –
created the Latin league - mutual aid
between Latins and Romans to defeat
mountain tribes – Fact that Latins try to
break away suggests Latin League may
have been like Delian League involuntary
474 – Etruscan civilization declining at
hands of Latins, Greek and Gauls
Veii – Town 12 miles from Rome –
Competitor for control of Tiber river –
510-390 on and off fighting – Finally
in 390 after a 10 year siege Veii is
destroyed – Survivors sold as slaves –
booty taken – land becomes Roman
Public land
Gauls take territory from Etruscans –
start pushing into Etruria – City of
Clusium asks for help from Rome –
Romans decide to intervene and are
annihilated at Allia 390 - 387 – Gauls
take Rome except for Capitoline Hill –
Finally, they are bribed to leave –
Romans forever hold a deep hatred for
Gauls – As a result of this defeat
Roman prestige plummets and Latins
break away from Latin League treaty
340-338 – Latin Wars – Roman
Confederation replaces Latin League –
Terms of Roman Confederation:
1) Each Latin city now allied with
Rome not with one another
2) Latins required to supply troops –
Rome gains military control
3) No independent foreign policy
allowed – But domestic issues are still
sovereign – Rome didn’t have to deal
with economics of the allies – Can’t
escape from confederation
Samnite Wars
(326 – 290) – Compania is at stake –
rich agricultural land – Claudine Forks
(321?) major disgrace for Romans –
Forced to surrender and go under the
yoke – stripped of armor and weapons
officers in charge were sent to
Samnites in disgrace – This war may
have been the time when the Romans
changed its tactical structure (phalanx
to manipular legion)– they may have
copied the looser fighting style of the
Samnites who were used to fighting in
rough, uneven mountain terrain Eventually Romans allied with
companion towns to throw out Samnite
influence (even though during Latin
war Rome and Samnites were allies)
Roman Army changed from
hoplites/phalanx to manipular legion
sometime during 4th Century- probably
after the Samnite wars
1) velites – light-armed troops
2) hastati – younger soldiers armed
with javelins, scutum, and short
sword (gladius)
3) principes – soldiers in their prime
armed like the hastati
4) triarii – older veterans – armed with
spears and scutum
Pyrrhic War
(285 – 272) – Thurii appeals for help to
Rome against Lucania – Thurii didn’t
ask the city of Tarentum for aid even
though it was the major power in
southern Italy– Rome defeats
Lucanians but Tarentum went to war
with Rome since Rome was in their
territory – Tarentum appeals to Pyrrhus
of Epirus for help – Phalanx vs.
Legion- Pyrrhus wins several costly
battles against the Romans but his
losses are too much and he travels to
Sicily to fight Carthaginians- he later
returns to Italy and is defeated by the
Romans- He goes back to Greece and
is killed in a city riot when a woman
drops a piece of pottery (or a brick/roof
tile ?) on his head from a window – as
a result of the Pyrrhic wars, Rome
takes over all of southern Italy
Punic Wars
Punic is a latin word for Phoenician –
Carthage was originally a Phoenician
colony from Tyre – founded in 814 BC
– Came into prominence around 600 –
Carthage brought other Phoenician
colonies under its control – conquered
Sardinia, Corsica, ½ Sicily (west) –
Allied with Numidians in Africa –
Carthage established a maritime empire
(empire based on sea-power) – Trade
was vital for Carthage – powerful navy
protected merchant fleet and
Carthaginian interests throughout the
Western Mediterranean – Don’t know
much about Carthaginian government –
mixed constitution- they didn’t have
standard army, they used mercenaries
First Punic War- (264 - 241) –
Mercenaries called Mamertines (son’s
of Mars) took over Sicilian city of
Messana – They preyed on neighbors’
lands (Land Pirates) – Hiero II of
Syracuse decided to put an end to the
Mamertines activities and laid siege to
Messana – Mamertines appeal to both
Cars and Romans for help – Cars
respond first – Romans were debating
whether to help – (Earlier at Rhegium
they actually executed mercenaries
who had taken over that city) – Senate
lets people decide whether to help –
Straits of Messana were strategically
very important – people decided to
help (greed , loot) motives for war:
1) Defensive imperialism
2) Territorial Acquisitiveness
Cars arrive at Messana first but they
abandon the city when the Romans
arrive – Car leader is crucified for this
blunder – Cars try to retake Messana
and war begins – (264) – Rome
protects Messana against Syracuse –
Syracuse switches sides and joins
Romans – Romans lay siege to
Agrigentum (a Greek city reinforced by
Cars) – Agrigentum falls and the
Romans decide to kick Cars out of all
Sicily – Rome decides to build a Navy
– until now they relied on South Italian
Greeks for Naval Power – They build
100 quinqueremes
260 – First major Naval battle at Mylae
– the corvus boarding bridge is used
very effectively
257 – Romans decide to invade Africa
Consul Regulus leads Roman forces
256 – Naval battle of Ecnomus –
Romans blunder into victory – Romans
invade Africa – Regulus defeats Cars –
Cars ask for surrender terms but they
are too harsh (abandon Sardinia, Sicily,
get rid of fleet) – Cars are forced to
keep fighting – Some say Regulus
wanted to win in battle and purposely
gave harsh terms – He wanted glory
(Hubris) – Meanwhile a Spartan guest
named Xantihippus convinces the Cars
to allow him to command their troops –
He uses cavalry and elephants very
effectively and destroys the Roman
army at the Bagradas river in 255 –
Romans decide to fight only in Sicily
from this point (255)
249 – Naval battle at Drepana – only
Naval victory for Carthage during the
entire war – Claudius Pulcher (Roman
Commander) ignores omens and kicks
sacred chickens into water – gods are
angered and Romans lose battle – 247
– Hamilcar Barca arrives in Sicily to
command the car troops – by far the
best commander of the entire war –
uses fleet to raid the Italian coast –
waged guerilla campaign in Sicily –
did not have the manpower to defeat
Romans in a big battle
241- Final Battle (Aegates Islands) –
Car Navy is destroyed – Hamilcar
forced to surrender and returns to
Africa – He was never defeated
Rome emerges from the first Punic
War as clearly more powerful than
Carthage
Terms of Peace:
1)
3200 talents of silver
( 60 lbs of silver is one talent )
2)
Evacuate Sicily- Sicily became
first Roman province
Carthage is short on money so their
mercenaries revolt (241 – 238 is a
mercenary war) – Mercenaries finally
defeated by Hamilcar Barca As
mercenary war was waging, some rebel
mercenaries in Sardinia asked Rome
for help – Rome agrees and Carthage
protests, Rome declares war on
Carthage – Carthage is very exhausted
– they must give Sardinia and Corsica
to the Romans and pay another 1200
talents – Cars too weak to resist (237) –
Seeds of second Punic War are sown!
Cars replace Mediterranean loses with
conquest in Spain – Hamilcar Barca
leads Car forces across Pillars of
Hercules into Spain – (237 – 228)
Hamilcar creates new Car province in
Southeastern Spain – Hamilcar is
eventually killed in a battle with
Spanish tribes – His son-in-law
Hasdrubal takes over - Hasdrubal
establishes New Carthage in Spain –
Spain had great mineral resources
which allowed Car to pay off Romans
and pay mercenaries (226) – Romans
made a treaty with Hasdrubal – Cars
will not cross north of the Ebro river –
was there a “quid pro quo”? no one
knows
221 – Hasdrubal dies and Hamilcar’s
son HANNIBAL takes over
220 – Leads conquest of many Spanish
tribes
At some point (before or after 226)
Rome made a treaty with the city of
Saguntum which was 100 miles
SOUTH of Ebro river – Saguntum was
quarreling with towns sympathetic to
Carthage – Hannibal lays siege to
Saguntum – Rome issues ultimatum to
Hannibal to keep hands off Saguntum –
After 8 months Saguntum falls to
Carthage – Roman ambassadors at
Carthage demand “Turn over Hannibal
and Saguntum or we go to war”
Carthaginian response “OK we accept
war! ”
218- 2nd Punic War begins – Hannibal
crosses Ebro – He transplants African
troops to Spain and Spanish troops to
Africa to make mercenary revolt less
likely while he is attacking Italy – His
Main Goal – TO BREAK UP THE
ROMAN CONFEDERATION –
Hoped allies would turn against Rome
– He failed to realize that by this time,
the Roman Confederation was built on
alliance not subjugation – Puts his
brother Hasdrubal in charge of Spain –
He makes alliances with the Gauls –
Crosses Southern Gaul (France) and
then crosses Alps – makes alliances
with tribes in Cisalpine Gaul
Hannibal’s cavalry (Celtic/Spanish
were heavy and Numidians were light)
was very good – He won with his
cavalry – Hellenistic-style army
descended from Alexander and the
successors
Gauls revolt and join Hannibal:
1)
Ticinus River (only cavalry)
2)
Trebbia (used elements to his
advantage)
3)
Trisamene (entire battle was one
big ambush)
Moved army south / Lost an eye due to
an infection
Hannibal’s awesome trick!!!!
4)
Cannae (Famed Double
Envelopment, 50,000 Romans killed
worse-defeat ever?)
After Cannae Hannibal does not march
on Rome – He may not have thought
he could take the city (which had very
strong walls) – Or he may have been
more interested in getting the allies of
South Italy to join his side – Many
cities in the south do switch but Central
Italy remains loyal to Rome – Cannae
was the high point for Carthage –
The Romans re-group and under the
guidance of Fabius Maximus
(cuncator: the delayer), the Romans
followed a policy of fighting where
Hannibal was not present– They
defeated Carthaginian forces in Spain
and in areas of Italy where Hannibal’s
other generals were commanding
armies – No major port cities switched
to Carthage’s side so it was very
difficult to get reinforcements to
Hannibal- Even though much of
southern Italy switches to the
Carthaginian side, central Italy (e.g.
Compania, Latium, Etruria) all remain
loyal to Rome – The only major city to
switch sides was Capua – After the war
they were severely punished for this
switch of allegianceHannibal remains in Italy until 202 –
The Romans slowly regain territory but
don’t face Hannibal directly – when a
Roman commander is foolish enough
to tangle with Hannibal, he pays for it Hannibal remains dangerous – in 212he destroys another Roman army led
by the Praetor Fulvius in Apulia –
roughly 16,000 men killed
The Roman escapees of Cannae (about
10,000 men) are sent to Sicily as a
“punishment” for not fighting to the
death – this was embarrassing for them
207 – A major army led by Hasdrubal
(Hannibal’s brother) traveled over land
across the Alps to re-supply Hannibal –
Rome intercepted their messengers –
(Claudius Nero steals a march) two
Roman armies meet the Carthaginian
force at Metaurus river – Hasdrubal
was defeated thanks to Claudius Nero’s
maneuver around the Roman line –
(just like Stonewall Jackson at
Chancerville) Hasdrubal dies fighting
and his head was sent to Hannibal –
Publius Cornelius Scipio, after
defeating Carthaginian forces in Spain,
invades Africa and threatens Carthage
directly – he uses the escapees of
Cannae (now in Sicily) in his army
since they really want to redeem
themselves – Scipio is a master
politician as well as general and gets
the more powerful Numidian tribes to
join his side – He also learns from
Hannibal’s previous victories and
develops counter-tactics - Hannibal is
recalled home to defend Carthage but
is defeated at Zama in 202 – Hannibal
winds up in Asia helping Antiochus III
–
Nature of Hannibal – Had a motley
crew of African, Spanish and Celtic
troops formed into a great army – They
spoke different languages and had
different cultures – They were
subjected to extreme hardships yet
never mutinied – All we know about
him was written by his enemies
In the end Rome just had too much
man-power – They could sustain many
defeats – Strategists such as Fabius
Maximus and Publius Cornelius Scipio
eventually wore Carthage down.
Rome next fought wars against
Macedonia and defeated Philip V (who
had sided with Hannibal) in 197 B.C.
and his son Perseus at Pydna in 167
190-184 – They also defeated
Antiochus III in Asia – Hannibal flees
and eventually commits suicide rather
than surrender to the Romans in 180
In both cases (against Philip V and
against Antiochus III) smaller
kingdoms asked for Roman aid thus
giving Rome an excuse to intervene
146 – 149 Third Punic War - Carthage
was not allowed to wage war without
Roman permission – The Numidians
(allies of Rome) were harassing
Carthage and a war began. The
Numidians complained to Rome and
Rome used this as an excuse to destroy
Carthage which was no longer a threat.
They destroy Carthage after a 3 year
siege.
Roman Revolution (133 B.C. – 31
B.C.)
Huge problems within Italy –
sometimes called “Hannibal’s Legacy”
1) As Rome expanded throughout the
Mediterranean, soldiers (poor
farmers) were forced to spend years
away from their farms (instead of
just seasonal farming). These farms
fell into ruins and were eventually
bought by the rich2) Huge import of slaves from
overseas conquests were brought to
Italy and provided cheap sources of
farm labor – put small farmers out
of business
3) Unused and ruined farm lands were
bought by rich families and huge
(over 500 acres) slave-worked
farms called Latifundia were
created – Imported wealth allowed
rich to get richer
4) By 133 imported corn (from Africa)
may have competed with small
farmers – Ironic since in 367 a law
was passed limiting farms to 300
acres but it was ignored – The result
of these problems was the drift of
landless (farmers that had lost their
land) to Rome where they formed a
“mob” – Farmers who gave up land
and drifted to Rome became useless
MASS of unemployed whose
presence led to political and social
unrest
5) Italian allies fought side-by-side
with Roman citizens but were
denied citizenship
6) Military Crisis (?) Not enough men
satisfied property requirements to
be drafted
Optimates – Conservative individuals
who wish to uphold the traditional
powers and exclusiveness of the Senate
– favored power in hands of a few (less
than 20) families
Populares – Blocked by Senate from
enacting legislation, the populares were
individuals who by-passed the Senate
and brought their bills directly to the
people via tribal assembly – But the
populares were not champions of the
people – Although they appealed to the
poor, and sought to pass legislation in
their favor, most populares sought to
gain personal power at expense of
Senate
139-138 – Secret ballot laws allowed
people to break from patrons – freedom
from pressure of nobles – patronage
weakened
133 – Tiberius Gracchus – Proposed a
bill to enforce 367 B.C. law limiting
farms to 300 acres – Brought bill
directly before people – Not Senate –
Very untraditional – May have just
wanted to save time or may have
thought it would be blocked by Senate
– Not illegal – Another Tribune named
Octavius, on the Senate’s side, vetoed
the bill – Tiberius called Tribal
assembly and proposed to depose
Octavius – Octavius was voted out –
The land bill was passed with support
of land hungry poor – Deposition of
Octavius was even more revolutionary
than bringing the bill to the people in
the first place
Senate refused to finance the law –
Attalus of Pergamen willed his
kingdom to Rome – Tiberius
threatened to introduce a bill to use
wealth of Pergamen to fund the land
law –
This interfered with Senate’s
traditional right to control finance and
foreign policy issues – Senate gave him
$ to finance his Land Law – Tiberius
sought re-election to safe guard himself
from prosecution and to make sure his
law was not annulled – Election to
same magistrate two years in a row was
forbidden – during debate of legality
riot broke out and Tiberius Gracchus
was killed along with 300 followers –
opposition was led by Scipio Nasica –
first blood drawn in 400 yearsConcordia was over
123 – Gaius Gracchus (Tiberius’
brother) was Tribune of Plebs:
1) re-affirmed Land Law of 133
2) storage of grain to stabilize price –
grain supplied to citizens sharply
criticized as state socialism
3) Transferred extortion juries from
Senate to knights [equite] (a business
class of non-political rich men) – These
knights had interests (such as tax
collection) in conflict with provincial
governors whose job was to protect
provincials from excessive tax – It was
more likely knights would find
governors guilty of extortion in court –
Knights gained great power – Jab at
Senate
4) Collection of taxes from Asia
auctioned off to knights in Rome – So
Gaius created system where knights
could collect excessive taxes from Asia
and prosecute anyone who tried to stop
them
5) In 122 he revived enfranchisement
bill for Italians – This bill was
unpopular with Roman masses who
didn’t want to share voting rights with
new groups – Gaius losses support of
Roman people – He runs for 3rd term as
tribune but a servant of Opimius (a
senator) is killed in a scuffle – Opimius
persuades Senate to pass Senatus
Consultum Ultimum –“Extreme
Decree” martial law – Gave power to
consuls to protect republic at all costs –
Gracchus resisted and he along with
3000 supporters were killed
120 – S.C.U declared legal Opimius
aquitted for putting citizens to death
without trial
120-110 – Metelli was the dominant
family – one client was Marius (Novus
Homo) –
111- Marius marries Julia (an aunt of
the not-yet-born Julius Caesar) –
Marius distinguished himself in
Jugarthine war serving Metellus
108 – Marius broke from Metelli and
personally appealed to people in Rome
to make him consul – They did and
sent him to Africa to continue war
against Jugartha – People took power
away from senate who had traditional
right of where to send consuls – People
override a senate resolution to keep
Metellus in command in Africa as
proconsul – Dangerous precedent
important step towards overthrowing
Senate’s authority – By 104 Jugartha
was defeated – Marius elected consul
five times in a row (104-100) broke
tradition – You were supposed to wait
10 years between consulships – He
defeated Germanic tribes ( Cimbri and
Teutones) who had been threatening
Italy
Marius Army Reforms – set stage for
civil war:
1) Accepted volunteers on large scale
2) No (or minimizes) property
requirements
3) Soldiers got paid (Generals
provided salary!!!!!)
4) Pensions
5) Got land after retirement
6) No more Hastati, Princeps, Triarii
Result of reforms– Soldiers have
allegiance to their generals not the
State!!
The homeless mob now has a place to
go! And allegiance to one man
90-88? Social War – Allies verse
Romans – very bloody since allies
fought just like Romans – eventually
the Romans agree to give many of the
allies citizenship and the war fizzles
out – the Romans were starting to win
anyway-
88- Mithridates of Pontus (a kingdom
in Asia Minor) orders the killing of
80,000 Roman civilians who were
living in Asia Minor. Although a
horrible act, the motivation for this
action was probably related to
extremely harsh taxes and economic
conditions forced on the natives by
Rome. Of course, Rome declares war
against Mithridates- The senate gives
command of the war to Cornelius Sulla
Sulpicious- Tribune proposed
unseating certain senators who owed
money – also transferred command of
war against Mithridates from Sulla to
Marius (Senate had appointed it to
Sulla) – This went against senate’s
authority – Senate responded by
declaring an Iustitium (suspension of
public business) but Sulpicious used
thugs and violently met the senate’s
opposition – Sulla barely escaped by
surrendering to Marius
Sulla appealed to his troops from the
Social War and invited them to march
on Rome – They agreed (personal
allegiance) – They took over Rome and
Marius and Sulpicious were declared
outlaws and their legislation was
negated
Sulla legislated that all business
brought before people had to have
senatorial approval – Sulla left for Asia
to fight Mithridates
87 – Marius and Cinna use old veterans
and ex-allies to retake Rome – Many
aristocrats put to death heads displayed
in forum – Marius dies (naturally)
shortly after
87-84 – Cinna and Carbo continually
elected consuls
83 – Sulla arrives back in Italy after
defeating Mithridates – Members of
Aristocracy flock to him – Young man
named Pompey raised 3 private legions
and joins him
82-80 – Marius’ forces defeated – Sulla
introduced proscriptions – Lists of
names of people wanted dead or alive
($ reward offered) – money and
property of the executed confiscated - $
used for pay and pensions for army –
Many innocent men killed just for
being wealthy – Mostly knights – price
on their heads – very vicious – teenage
Julius Caesar had to flee for his life
Restoration Government Legislation:
1) Sulla declares himself dictator (not
used for 120 years)
2) Tribune – A) Couldn’t run for
future offices
B) Lost power of
carrying Bills to
Tribal assembly
C) Veto limited?
3) Courts given back to Senate (taken
from equite)
4) Strict cursus honorum
5) Age requirements for magistrates
6) Senate could veto popular legislation
80 – Pompey wanted triumph (for
defeating Marian forces in Africa) –
delayed disbanding his army – Sulla
allows triumph
79 – Sulla resigns dictatorship
78 - Pompey defeats rebel Lepidus and
once again delays disbanding army
“suggests” to senate he be assigned to
Spain
77 - Although Pompey never held a
regular magistry, he is given
proconsular command in Spain –
Jumped the cursus honorum – opposite
of what Sulla had envisioned
75 – Tribunes regain the right to run
for other offices
73 – Spartacus/Slave War – Crassus
(richest man in Rome) assigned to
defeat him
71 – Pompey entered slave war toward
the end to mop up resistance and used
this as an excuse to keep his army from
Spain intact – He brought his troops
near Rome and asked for consulship
(he was never even a praetor!) the
Senate turned to Crassus but Crassus
aligned with Pompey and the two men
demanded the consulship of 70 – They
then disarmed their forces
67/66 – Pompey given unlimited power
in Mediterranean Sea and 50 miles
inland to defeat pirates – Bill was
passed by people over the Senate’s
head – After defeating pirates Pompey
is given command of the Eastern
Armies (to defeat Mithridates) – He is
supported by Cicero
62 – Pompey returns to Italy and
disbands army – Annual Revenue of
Republic jumps from 50 to 85 million
Drachmas as a result of Pompey’s
Asian conquests– However Senate
blocks Pompey’s requests:
1) Ratification of his settlement of
Near East
2) Land for his veterans
Meanwhile Julius Caesar holds
praetorship in Spain
60 – Caesar comes back to Italy to run
for consulship and celebrate triumph –
Senate denies him a triumph and said
consuls of 59 would take care of forests
in Italy (in anticipation of Caesar
winning the office)
Caesar offers alliance with Pompey –
Pompey married Caesar’s daughter
Julia – Caesar also got support of
Crassus – The First Triumvirate is
secretly created
59 – Triumvirate made public – Caesar
as consul got land for Pompey’s
veterans – Bill was opposed by Senate
and brought before people’s assembly
– Senate tried to block it but Caesar
brought in Pompey’s veterans (who
used physical threats) and got it passed
illegally– Settlement of East was also
ratified – Caesar got Governorship of
Gaul
55 – Caesar’s governorship of Gaul
extended another 5 years – Pompey
assigned proconsular command in
Spain and Crassus picked Syria
During 50’s Triumvirs virtually ruled
Rome by using picked men to get
legislation proposed and urban mob to
get legislation passed
54 – Caesar’s daughter (Pompey’s
wife) dies – bond between Caesar and
Pompey weakened
53 – Crassus killed at Carrhae against
the Parthians (show video)
Since 59 a group of optimates
(senators) led by Cato and
Ahenobarbus wanted revenge against
Caesar for his illegal activities – These
optimates wanted to ally with Pompey
against Caesar – Caesar sensed danger
and sent request to Senate to extend his
command in Gaul to 49 to close the
gap between proconsulship and his
second consulship (48) thus leaving his
enemies with no time to prosecute him
– Proposal was rejected – Pompey was
silent
50 – Marcellus pushed for Caesar’s
recall – But a tribune vetoed the
proposal – Curio put forth proposal that
Pompey’s command and Caesar’s
should end simultaneously – Joint
disarmament motion was carried 370 to
22– 22 extremists needed Pompey’s
army to enforce their planned
prosecution of Caesar – These
extremists were actually the proximate
cause of civil war –
Next day Marcellus appealed to
Pompey to ignore constitutional
scruples and “save the Republic” by
mobilizing his troops and putting
immediate pressure on Caesar –
Pompey acquiesced
Caesar made last ditch efforts for
diplomacy but Pompey ‘commands’
Senate (such a command was
unconstitutional per se) to stay firm
and Senate rejected Caesar’s offer –
Marc Antony vetoed this act and was
threatened – veto was overridden
Cicero tried compromise but extreme
optimates rejected his plan
49 – Senate passes emergency decree
gives command to Pompey – Caesar
could surrender but instead crosses
Rubicon river (treason) – A consul
could not leave his province at the head
of his army - Caesar has to choose
between self-defense or political
extinction - He makes 6 further
overtures in the next 8 months all
rejected by either Pompey or the
extremists
Caesar’s forces were battle hardened
veterans – Caesar advanced with great
rapidity and seized two of the principal
Apennine Passes – Pompey retreated
from Rome to Capua (his troops were
not well trained) Caesar progressed
down the east coast of Italy – Pompey
raced to Brundisium and left for
Greece (Caesar had no ships) – The
rest of 49 Caesar secured his rear
Caesar himself went to Spain and
defeated Pompeian army
Lepidus obtained authorization of
Popular Assembly to nominate Caesar
as dictator
48 – Caesar elected as consul gave up
dictatorship – Caesar went to Greece
Dyrrhachium and Pharsalus – Pompey
defeated – but some of his officers fled
to Africa – Pompey himself fled to
Egypt where he was killed by ministers
of Ptolemy XII
Caesar arrived in Alexandria – Caesar
settled dispute between Cleopatra and
Ptolemy XII in a way that angered
Ptolemy XII who than besieged Caesar
in Palace at Alexandria
48-47 – Caesar is rescued – then he
stormed Ptolemy XII camp with his
troops and put Ptolemy XIII on throne
(but Cleopatra was the effective ruler)
Then he went to Zela to fight Pharnases
- Vendi Vidi Vici – I Came, I Saw, I
Conquered
48 – After Pharsulus he became
dictator a second time
46 – Elected consul again went to
Africa – Thapsus - Cato killed
himself – Dictatorship extended for
10 year period –
45 – Labienus and younger Pompey
rallied troops in Spain - Caesar defeats
them at Munda
Caesar’s reconstructionNo Proscriptions – No plundering
Reduced the number of free corn
recipients from 320,000 to 150,000 –
80,000 disqualified were sent to
colonies overseas
1) He drained off to provinces
superfluous proletariat of Rome and
gave veterans provincial land –
Romanized overseas provinces
2) 100,000 Roman citizens received
new homes in provinces
3) Gave Rome franchise to provincials
who had earned it by service to
republic or by voluntary acceptance
of Roman culture – Broke down
distinctions between Italians and
provincials
He assumed many titles and called
Sulla an ignoramus (idiot) for giving
up dictatorship
1) Put his portrait on coins –
Hellenistic King practice
2) Allowed his statues to be set up –
one even in temple of deified
Romulus – blurred human and
divine
3) Personally recommended all
magistrates
4) Did not ask Senate for help in
decision making
44 – Dictator for perpetual duration –
When he was hailed a king he shrugged
it off – Two tribunes removed a diadem
off his statue and he threatened to
punish anyone who spoke of him as
king
Feb. 44 – Refused diadem from Antony
– perhaps he would have taken it if
crowd cheered for him – Senate was
obsequious and included many of his
own nominees – Caesar refused to
stand when senators greeted him –
showed a lack of respect
Certain Senators resented him – Cicero
called him a Tyrant
Caesar planned a Parthian expedition
for 18th March Opponents had to strike before that
date- led by C. Cassius / M. Brutus
backed by 60-80 Senators
44 – Killed him on Ides of March 15th –
Antony was consul along with Caesar –
He secured Caesar’s will and convened
the Senate – Antony agrees to amnesty
for conspirators – This had been
Cicero’s proposal
At funeral his will was read – great
nephew Octavius was named chief heir
– every Roman citizen was left 300
sesterces – This stirred mob to frenzy
of grief and Tyrannicides fled Rome
In April Octavius arrived in Italy and
on discovering he was heir, he went to
Rome – Octavius’s grandfather had
married Julius Caesar’s sister – He
visited Antony in Rome to claim his
share of Caesar’s estate – Antony
readily refused
May 44 – A dual began as Octavian
tried to steal sympathies of Caesar’s
old soldiers from Antony and played
on Antony’s forgiving Tyrannicides –
the name of “Caesar” and his relation
to the dead dictator helped him gain the
support of Caesar’s veterans.
Sept 44 – Quarrel between Cicero and
Antony – Cicero produces scolding
Philippics which criticized Antony –
Cicero accused Antony of having
ambitions to rule as a brutal military
dictator
Oct 44 – Antony accuses Octavian of
assassination plot on his life Feb 43 - M. Brutus was in Greece
gathered Pharsalus survivors – took
over Macedonia –he went East to hook
up with Cassius – They collect Eastern
forces –
Senate declares Antony a public enemy
Senate rift with Octavian began – it
failed to provide $ for his troops
July 43 – Octavian ask for consulship
which of course the senate rejected
Octavian marches his troops on Rome
staged elections and became consul –
Revoked the conspirator’s amnesty –
appealed to plebs, veterans and some
knights including Agrippa – Officially
adopted as Caesar’s son – Made secret
overtures to Antony – annulled
sentence of outlawry of Antony
Antony/Octavian/Lepidus passed law
putting them on equal footing used
tribal assembly
2nd Triumvirate – Gave them free hand
in pursuing further wars – unlimited
rights of conscription – nominated
magistrates – Senate packed with their
cronies – They were basically 3
military dictators working together
Nov 43 – Republic was over according
to Cary and Scullard
Proscriptions take place 300 Senators
and 2000 equite (knight)– mainpurpose was probably to provide $
previously promised to huge armies
Cicero was executed (for his earlier
attacks on Antony) – Triumvers
instituted a state cult around Julius
Caesar – Apotheosis – a person
becomes a god
Jan 42 – Octavian became a son of a
god –
3 men portioned areas to control –
Italy was shared
Chief purpose of the alliance between
Antony and Octavius was to defeat the
Tyrannicides (M. Brutus/Cassius)
Antony and Octavian head east
42 – Battle of Philippi - Cassius and
Brutus defeated and kill themselves
Antony was largely responsible for
Philippi victory – he was more
powerful at the moment Antony got all
of East – Octavian got all of West –
Lepidus was allowed Africa – Antony
married Octavia (Octavian’s sister)
After Philippi, Antony made eastern
provinces pay huge indemnities for
their unwilling submission to Cassius
and Brutus – This $ would fund his
Parthian Campaign
41 – He also summoned Cleopatra with
treasure of Ptolemies in mind – Caesar
had made her a “friend of Roman
People” and she lived in Rome with her
infant son (Caesarian) – After he was
assassinated she went back to
Alexandria – She killed her brother
Ptolemy XIII – she went to see Antony
and induced (seduced?) him to spend
winter in Alexandria
40 – When Antony returned to Italy
to Brundisium he was refused
admission by Octavian and another
civil war almost began but
mediation prevailed and Peace of
Brundisium was put in place
40 – She bore him twins – In spring he
left her and didn’t see her again for
four years
39 –– Octavian married Livia who
already has one kid (Tiberius – 2nd
emperor) and was expecting another
(Drusus)
36 – Antony sets forth on Parthian
Campaign with horsemen and light
infantry but his artillery train
coming from Armenia was
intercepted by the Parthians – He
couldn’t take any towns and in
Autumn was forced to retreat – Lost
22,000 men
36 - Octavian now had fleet of 500-600
ships and 45 legions– Became more
powerful than Antony – Peace in
Western Mediterranean – People
looked to Octavian as imposer of
orderly government and stability –
Lepidus kicked out of Triumverate
after trying to keep Sardinia, but
treated well –
34 – Antony overran Armenia for loss
of siege train – The fiasco on the
Parthian Campaign made him
dependent on Cleopatra – need $ made him “unRoman” - on his return to
Alexandria he made his “Donations of
Alexandria” – He and Cleopatra (robed
as Isis) sat on golden thrones with their
3 kids and Caesarian (Julius’s kid) –
Antony declared Caesarian was
Caesar’s legitimate heir – direct
challenge to Octavian who was now
declared a Usurper –
33 – Octavian’s relationship with
Antony turned sour –Caesarian
declared King of Kings – Cleopatra
declared Queen of Kings
Eastern Empire divided among them
and 3 other kids:
- Alexander Helios
- Cleopatra Selene
- Ptolemy Philadelphus
33 – Cleopatra’s influence over Antony
angered Octavian who deliberately
prepared to break with his partner –
After 35 Antony refused to see Octavia
(his wife and Octavian’s sister) –
Antony divorced her in 32 – Sometime
between 37-33 he wanted to become
Cleopatra’s prince – Antony’s rejection
of Octavia for a nonRoman wife really
pissed off Octavian
32 – Propaganda Wars began – Second
Triumvirate reached its legal end –
Senators and consuls favoring Antony
were driven from city
Antony’s will published reaffirmed
Caesarian as legitimate heir – Also
rumor that Antony would make
Cleopatra queen of Rome and move
capital to Alexandria
The west took oath of allegiance to
Octavian personally – Octavian elected
consul in 31 and declared war on
Cleopatra – important propaganda:
war was against a foreigner, not a civil
war – Cleopatra and Antony were
portrayed as decadent “eastern
monarchs” who were into drunken
parties and weird unRoman gods (ex story of Glaucus)
31 – Actium – Agrippa was Octavian’s
Main general/admiral/friend – He was
responsible for Octavian’s victories Cleopatra’s presence in Antony’s camp
was resented by many of his officers –
weakened their loyalty to him –
Antony took sails on his ships – He
may have been attempting to escape
but got caught up in preliminary
skirmishing as they broke through lines
– Antony and Cleopatra broke away to
Egypt – Most of his army deserted to
Octavian
Antony and Cleopatra killed
themselves in Egypt – Caesarian was
executed but other kids were raised by
Octavia – Octavian carried off royal
treasure
Antony’s preoccupation with the east
made him lose touch with public
opinion in Italy – His attachment to
Cleopatra made him lose goodwill of
his own troops
Octavian fostered respect for Italian
tradition and thought- he appealed to
new men as well as old aristocratic
families – Expelled astrologers and
banished Eastern rites
29 BC – Octavian celebrates triumph in
Rome – Unlike Caesar, he gave serious
thought to political situations – Named
himself Augustus (Rome first emperor)
– Looked after troops – It was
imperative that the army’s loyalty not
stray – Kept troops busy on campaign –
Toured provinces – Propaganda value –
Provinces were treated better under
Augustus – They weren’t being taken
advantage of like during republic –
Taxes systemized – Embassies from
provinces could complain to Augustus
about their governors
Senate set at 600 – Role of senate
changed from leading organ of Roman
state to pool of individuals from which
Augustus might draw appointees for
various offices (key element of
Augustan regime was to disguise this
fact) – Unlike Caesar, Augustus treated
Senate well, listened to their advice,
respected Senate
Augustus refused excessive honors and
titles – Increased number of consuls to
open prestige of office to more
individuals and form a pool for
administrative duties
He was a “Protector of Tradition” – 82
Temples restored – At least 12 ancient
priesthoods revived – Excessive
displays of wealth were curbed –
Marriages between some different
classes were banned – childless couples
were punished: Accused of murder by
omission and treason by stripping the
state of future citizens – Adultery
severely punished – But he was a
hypocrite
Powers of Augustus
27 BC – First Constitutional Settlement
– “Transferred the res publica from my
power to the dominion of the Senate
and people of Rome” Res Gaestae –
Carefully planned – Gave republic
back to Senate and people – Gave up
all powers, retired to private life
Senators were shocked- they feared
that civil war would re-occur –
Augustus persuaded to “help out” with
running empire – He was given control
over all provinces where armies were
kept – Senate gained the other
provinces – There would now be no
confused and divided army loyalties
like during late republic – All armies
answered to one man – Armies ran by
generals picked by Augustus – (i.e. –
Empire split between imperial
provinces (which had the big armies)
under Augustus and public provinces
(under the Senate) – Illusion that
Senate still shared power and they were
important – He took no powers for life
but his 10 year rulership of imperial
provinces kept getting renewed
23 BC – Second Constitutional
Settlement – Augustus relinquished the
consulship he held since 31 – In return
he received two important powers:
1) Greater proconsular power –
Interfere legally in any province with
power greater than the governors and
commanders on the spot
2) Tribunician power – Could summon
Senate, propose legislation, exercise
absolute veto over all government
procedures – Not a tribune, just had the
power of one
Twin Pillars established for all
subsequent Emperors:
1st Constitutional Settlement Gave up: rule back to people
Got: Imperial provinces (control of
army)
2nd Constitutional Settlement –
Gave up: Consulship
Got: 2 powers
Augustus would suggest courses of
action to the Senate, not order them –
His Auctoritas gave him power –
Auctoritas is a combination of: birth,
achievement, wealth, offices held,
personal qualities – Allowed him to get
his way with the Senate
Root of power was 350,000 man army
–
Equipped by state – Soldiers took oath
of loyalty to Augustus himself
Augustus’ position was personal and
crafted overtime – What would happen
once he died? –Technically once he
died, his power should return to the
Senate and people –
Succession woes – Augustus wanted
principate to continue but his position
was based on Auctoritas which can’t be
passed on – It was personal can’t just
choose a successor – This was the
succession dilemma – Solution: look to
own family and raise relatives to
positions of power in their own right –
Soldiers were loyal to name Caesar –
Made sense to keep loyalty in Caesar
family name – But he could only
indicate his choices which left room for
great machinations for centuries
(constrained by legal fictions that
masked military rule)
Augustus created a pool of princes
from which he drew immediate
successors and indicted his preferences
for the 3rd generation of the Principate
– Under this system there was at any
given time an immediate successor and
behind him, a stable of viable
candidates
Within 30 years of Augustus’ death (14
AD), political realities of Autocracy
became more obvious – Method of
creating pools of princes opened
factional fault lines at the court as
circles of supporters formed around
potential candidates for promotion – It
soon became obvious that whom ever
the army supported was in a position of
power – Emperors had to appease the
army to keep power – First becomes
obvious with Claudius – Tacitus called
this the “Secret of Empire”
A History of Later Roman Empire
284 – 641
The History of the Later Roman
Empire (late antiquity) was forged in
an environment of warfare, battle and
military activity – more than two-thirds
of the annual state budget was
expended on soldier’s wages, Army
supplies, and army infrastructure
Throughout the 4th century the aims
and motives of Roman wars were 3
fold:
1) Maintain the borders of the empire
against barbarians
2) Fight usurpers in Civil Wars
3) Wars provided the army with their
chief occupation and were the
source of the spoils and booty that
motivated the soldiers
Rome had grown accustomed to, and
had made use of, German barbarians
since the beginning of the empireJulius Caesar had used Germanic
cavalry- In the 3rd and early 4th
centuries AD the proportion of
barbarians serving the armies increased
dramatically – Individuals of barbarian
origin such as Arbogast, and Stilicho
rose to officerships of the highest
degree-Members of the imperial family
intermarried with leading barbarian
families throughout late antiquity- ex.
Stilicho married the niece of
Theodosius I – Such alliances were
based on mutual benefits not on shared
culture
To most barbarians conditions of life
appeared much better in the Roman
Empire than outside of it – Large scale
immigrations across the Rhine and
Danube occurred since the 1st century –
These immigrants were broken into
small groups and were integrated into
Roman culture – Barbarians living
adjacent to the empire grew richer due
to trade and subsidies – Weakness
within the empire led to widespread
barbarian raiding in the 3rd and 4th
centuries
The burdens of warfare were without
question the main reason Diocletian
created the tetrarchy – Its main
objective was to achieve a manageable
division of imperial power and it led to
an unofficial territorial division of the
empire (West and East) – The tetrarchy
was formed between 286-293
The Tetrarchy (1) Diocletian –
Augustus – ruled in Nicomedia
(Turkey) gave him access to Eastern
Provinces and lower Danube, A)
Galerius – Caesar – was in Sirmium
facing Central Danube, Thessalinica in
Greece or Antioch in Syria (2)
Maximian – Augustus – based in
Milan, access to upper Danube and
Rhine, A) Constantius – Caesar – at
Trier – covered central and lower
Rhine – could deal with many different
threats at one time – Famous statue
collegiality and morality –
Other major reforms of Diocletian –
Declared himself of Jupiter and
declared Maximian of Hercules –
These new titles represented a way of
orienting political and religious
ideology firmly around the rulers – Sol
Invictus – (the unconquered sun god)
was also heavily worshipped especially
in the army – Was often fused with
Mithras – Under Diocletian and the
tetrarchy , the Roman emperor became
an absolute monarch, divinely
mandated and held aloof from his
people by ceremony and formality –
The Principate, or rule by a leading
citizen had given way to the Dominate,
or rule by a lord - subjects had to
prostrate themselves in the emperor’s
presence-Emperors wore “Eastern”
exotic silk robes rather than Western
cotton.
– Diocletian broke up large provinces
into smaller provinces – This
dramatically reduced the scale of any
one official’s command – it also
dramatically increased the
governmental bureaucracy since each
governor had to have his own staff
Separated military and civilian
hierarchies – officials who collected
taxes and paid soldiers not the same
officials who commanded the troops in
the field
Price Edict of 301 – Set maximum
prices for goods and services as a
means of controlling military costs – it
flopped because prices were set so low
the plan was unsustainable
Wide spread Christian persecution
began 303 since they wouldn’t sacrifice
to Jupiter and this was interpreted as
political resistance
305 – Diocletian and Maximian retire
and Contantius and Galerius become
the new Augusti – New Caesars are
nominated : Maximinus and Severus –
But Constantius’ son Constantine and
Maximian’s son Maxentius protested
and a civil war broke out – Diocletian
was recalled from retirement and a new
compromise Tetrarchy was established
in 308 :
1). Galerius and Licinius – 2 Augusti
2). Maximinus and Constantine – 2
Caesars – shortly after these two were
also promoted to Augusti
310 – Maximian once again declares
imperial power and is defeated by
Constantine – Galerius dies of disease
in 311 – 3 Augusti briefly rule the
empire : Licinius, Constantine,
Maximinus – meanwhile, Maxentius
establishes himself as Augustus in Italy
and Northern Africa
312 – Constantine defeats Maxentius at
the Battle of the Milvian Bridge –
Senate recognizes Constantine as
senior Augustus – He makes a pact
with Licinius who marries
Constantine’s sister Constantia
313 – Maximinus invades Licinius’
territory but is defeated by Licinius –
We are now down to two Augusti
Constantine – Son of Constantius and
Helena (?) – (273 – 337) rise to power
from (305 – 312)
3 main themes:
1) Dynastic claims to power
2) Support of the armies
3) Harnessing of religious propaganda
Flimsy claims that he was the grandson
of Claudius Gothicus (emperor from
268 – 270) provided propaganda of
dynastic claims – helped secure him as
senior Augustus – Also his father was
an Augusti
Constantine was supported by his
father’s army – Religious propaganda
was rampant during this period –
World dominance was secured under
the guidance of two gods : Jupiter and
Hercules – Although these were
traditional gods, the religion of the time
assumed a radically new form
Constantine’s conversion to
Christianity must be seen in this
context – On the eve of Milvian Bridge
battle Constantine was convinced that a
solar apparition he had experienced
should be interpreted as a promise of
victory from the God of the Christians
Armed with this new conviction, and
placing, we are told, the sign of the
cross on the shields of his soldiers he
led his troops to victory – It is
generally acknowledged that there was
a close affinity between the
Christianity which Constantine
endorsed in 312 and contemporary
solar worship – The nature of his vision
suggests that at the decisive moment of
his imperial career, Constantine’s
belief in a supreme solar deity and
belief in the Christian God were
virtually convergent
By 324 Constantine had conquered
Licinius and was sole emperor – He
had 4 sons Crispus (with Minervina)
and Constantine II, Constantius II, and
Constans (with Fausta) – eventually he
executes Crispus and Fausta for
allegedly sleeping together –
Interestingly, the pagan historian
Zosimus, who is hostile to Constantine,
claims his conversion resulted from
these events since Christianity is the
only religion that will completely
absolve sin through the rite of baptism
– Constantine delayed baptism until his
death bed
313 – Compact at Milan proclaimed
religious toleration for all but
particularly favored Christians since it
brought an end to the persecutions
forever
Constantine changed the role of
emperor as he actively engaged in
church affairs – He saw himself
responsible to God for the unity and
harmony of the earthly kingdom which
he ruled – He exempted clerics from
taxation – He endowed church
construction to further the worship of
the Christian God
321 – He issued a law making Sunday
a rest day – This is an example of his
blurring of sun worship and worship of
the Christian god
325 – He arranged for the first
ecumenical council to be convened at
Nicea – Constantine publicly
announced his role “You are bishops
whose jurisdiction is within the church:
I also am a supervisor, ordained by
God to overlook affairs outside the
Church – The Council of Nicea was
held to resolve the Arrian controversy
– Constantine rule in favor of the
Orthodoxy against the Arrians but
Arrianism remained for several
hundred years
Arrian – God the father is superior to
his son the father existed before the
son-Christ was divine, but not quite the
equal of God the father
Orthodox – God the father and God the
son are equal
Constantine renames Byzantium
Constantinople and makes it the
Eastern capitol of the empire.
The successors of Constantine – The 3
sons fought each other and various
usurpers until by 354 Constantius was
the sole emperor – Barbarian raids
were a problem and Constantius
appointed Julian (his nephew’s halfbrother) as Caesar – Julian campaigned
against the Franks and Alemanni tribes
in Gaul – His victory at Strasbourg in
357 against the Alemanni secured the
Rhine for 50 years – in 360 Julian is
declared Emperor by his troops –
Constantius prepares to confront Julian
but dies on the way to Gaul
Julian was only emperor for 20 months
but his reign is well documented – He
held an extremely unorthodox religious
position : an opposition to Christianity
and a desire to rekindle pagan theology
– He refused to let Christians be
teachers
Julian’s father and family were
murdered by Constantius’ army
(probably at the order of Constantius)
back in 337 – His models were Marcus
Aurelius, Achilles, Alexander and
Julius Caesar – He was a passionate
student of Greek culture, imbued in the
literature, philosophy and religious
ideas of Classical Greece – He restored
certain city-state concepts such as the
right of cities to collect taxes from their
own lands
He believed a successful invasion of
Persia (which had recently defeated
Rome in the East) would demonstrate
the superiority of paganism over the
misguided imperial mission begun by
Constantine to bring Christianity to the
Roman world
363 – Julian marches into Persia – at
first everything goes OK but when
Julian enters a skirmish without putting
on his armor he is speared and dies the
next day – Jovian is elevated to
emperor but must surrender important
territory to the Persians in order to get
his army out safely
364 – Valentinian (in west) and Valens
(in east) became emperors – in 375
Gratian (Valentinian’s son) becomes
emperor in west
Valentinian and Valens lacked the
dynastic authority of Constantine and
his successors – They owed their
positions to the officers who had
organized the succession to Jovian in
364 – Army commanders and the
holders of the great offices of state not
only had key roles throughout this
period in forming and executing policy,
but also for arranging the composition
of the imperial house – During the
370’s and 380’s the destinies of
Gratian, Valentinian II (another son of
Valentinian) and Theodosius I were
decided not by the senior emperors at
the time but by cliques of senior
political and military figures
369 – Valens makes treaty with the
Greuthungi (a gothic tribe) Valens
meets their leader, Athanaric, on boats
in the Middle of the Danube River –
Valens had been unable to conquer the
Goths and thus an agreement on
Roman terms was the best solution –
Goths were only allowed to conduct
trade at two crossing points on the river
– tribute and subsidies that had
previously been paid to the Goths
ceased
376 – Huns from Central Asia begin
sweeping into Eastern Europe – The
Tervingi tribe asks for permission to
cross the Danube to seek asylum in
Roman territory – Some modern
scholars say the Huns “pushed” them
into the Roman Empire, others say they
were attracted to the life in the Roman
provinces and the Huns were not yet a
significant threat – The emperor
reluctantly (or not?) agreed to let
Tervingi cross into Roman territory –
The Greuthungi tribe crossed the river
without Roman permission and joined
their fellow Goths – The Goths were
not treated well by the Romans – They
were exploited (about 200,000 Goths
altogether) finally they rebelled and
began ravaging Roman territory – A
huge battle occurred at Adrianople
where Valens was killed and his army
destroyed – The Goths were led by
Fritigern – It was supposedly the worst
Roman defeat since Cannae – Valens
should have waited for Gratian and the
Western army – The Goths occupied
Thrace – Valens’ body was never
recovered
Emperors were expected to lead all
major campaigns in person and always
did until 378 when the Romans
suffered a catastrophic defeat at
Adrianople and the Roman Emperor
Valens was killed – This defeat
changed the role and character of
Rome’s monarchy – – For the next 250
years emperors did not lead their
armies into battle - From the accession
of Diocletian to the death of
Theodosius I (284-395) the Roman
state was ruled by warrior emperors
who fought against internal rivals and
defended its frontier against external
enemies – From 395-610 Emperors
evolved a style of ruling radically
different from what had gone before –
Emperors and their courts became
sedentary – Emperors from 395-610
were based in Constantinople in the
East and Ravenna in the West – As
emperors ceased to take part in
campaigns themselves and became
palace-based, the empire’s ability to
defend the Northern frontier and retain
the Western provinces was critically
reduced
378 – 382- Central issue for empire
was how to deal with Goths who,
although not able to subdue cities,
occupied the countryside of the whole
Thrace
379 – Theodosius was made Emperor
by Gratian
382 – Major occurrence – Treaty of
382 – The Tervingi and some
Greuthungi were allowed to settle on
the south bank of the Danube in the
provinces of Thrace RETAINING
THEIR OWN SOCIAL STRUCTURE
AND MILITARY ORGANIZATION –
The Goths were partners as well as
subjects even though Roman
propaganda claimed they surrendered
Why had Theodosius and Gratian
agreed to this treaty?
1) Major defeat at Adrianople
2) Unable to gain the upper hand
between 378 – 382
3) The line of defense against other
barbarian tribes such as Alans and
Huns was stretched very thin
4) Recruiting Roman man power was
becoming more difficult
The treaty was an epoch-making
foedus - (a full Roman treaty between
notionally equal partners) – The Gothic
position was profoundly ambiguous –
They were both subjects of Rome on
imperial territory and loyal subjects of
their own tribal rulers
Interlude – Rise of Christianity
4th Century: More than half the
inhabitants of the Roman world
converted to Christianity
325 (Nicea) and 381 (Constantinople)
Arrian debate was central issue – Was
Christ equal to God? Was there a
father before the son? Arrians said
Christ was divine but not equal to the
father – Orthodox Catholicism said
father and son were equal and both had
always existed
481 (Chalcedon) issue was nature of
Christ – Whether he had the duel
nature of God and Man (i.e. two
natures) or whether these two aspects
were fused into a single divine nature –
The first concept won out – All
Christians today believe Christ has duel
natures of God and Man except for a
small pocket of Christians in Egypt
Religious policies were changing – The
emperors were determined to establish
Christian Orthodoxy at all costs – This
led to them showing a much higher
level of intolerance towards pagans,
Jews and heretical Christian sects-
Rise in Power of Christianity-388 a
Christian mob led by their own bishop
destroyed a synagogue in a town along
the Euphrates river-Theodosius knew
the importance of treating all citizens
of the empire equally under the law and
ordered the local governor to punish
the criminals and compensate the
victims - Ambrose of Milan sent a
letter to Theodosius protestingAmbrose stated that Christians should
not be held responsible for
compensating people who denied the
divinity of Christ- Ambrose himself
said he would take responsibility for
the burning- Ambrose believed
Christians should be privileged and
supported against their enemies- it was
the duty of an emperor to show
solidarity with his fellow Christians-
Theodosius cancelled his punishment +
compensation orders- Here we see a
bishop overriding the rulings of an
emperor + a bishop “forcing” him to
reverse his decrees390-In Thessalonica there were riots in
which a garrison commander was
killed- Theodosius order widespread
retribution + many civilians were
killed-Theodosius’ reputation was hit
hard + he needed to redeem himselfAmbrose hinted that he would no
longer be able to give Theodosius
communion- In public at the Basilica
of Milan Theodosius asked for penance
from Ambrose- Here was the emperor
deep in sin, coming to church to be
purged of it- effectively an emperor
was accepting the supremacy of
church- within a few weeks of his
penance, Theodosius had passed laws
that in effect banned all expressions of
cult worship at pagan shrines395-The Olympic games were held for
the last time (Until 1896)
Religion during Justinian’s Reign (527560?) Pagans defined as those who
had not received or agreed to undergo
baptism – Those who refused were
banned from teaching or being
employed by the state – Their children
were to be FORCIBLY educated in
Christian doctrine – Those who defied
law would be punished by exile and
confiscation of their property
Back to chronological account
Imperial power (interpreted in the
narrow sense as the personal authority
of the emperor) diminished- Gratian
and Theodosius I were not military
figures –
Civil war occurred throughout the
Western Empire in the 380’s and 390’s
– Gratian killed in 383 by usurpers
under Maximus – Eventually
Theodosius defeats Maximus (391) and
sets up base temporarily in Milan – It is
during his stay in Milan that
Theodosius asks penance of
forgiveness from Ambrose, the Bishop
of Milan, thus symbolizing the growing
power of Christianity – Valentinian II
(who replaced Gratian) briefly sent to
Trier but he was a figurehead – the real
power was in the hands of Arbogast (a
Frankish general almost certainly
appointed by Theodosius) Arbogast
and a nobleman named Eugenius usurp
Valentinian II’s command (he
committed suicide in 392)
Eugenius attempts to win recognition
from Theodosius – He wooed support
of the largely pagan aristocracy of
Rome – 393 Theodosius rejects
Eugenius and sends troops against him
394 – Theodosius’ largely barbarian
troops (including 20,000 Goths)
overcame Eugenius’ men at battle of
Frigidus River – Eugenius troops, it is
said, entrusted their fortunes to the
pagan gods Hercules and Jupiter, while
Theodosius’ barbarians were protected
by the Christian god – 10,000 of
Theodosius’ Goths were killed in the
battle and their resentment that their
sacrifice had not been justly rewarded
by Theodosius was one of the chief
causes for the Gothic leader Alaric to
stage a revolt which would last 15
years – The treaty of 382 began to
splinter
Frigidus River saw the last great pagan
army – Theodosius dies in 395 –
Theodosius’ 2 sons Arcadius in
Constantinople and Honorius in Milan
(and then switching to Ravenna) don’t
serve as military commanders –
Ravenna and Constantinople remain as
the twin centers of imperial power for
the remainder of Antiquity –
Theodosius two sons: Arcadius (age 6
in 383) and Honorius (age 8 in 393)
were named Augusti – These 2 boys
were of course to young to be military
commanders – By placing the
dynasty’s hopes for the future in
children, Theodosius acknowledged
that senior and experienced political
and military men held the reins of
power
The year 395 is seen by modern
historians as the moment when the
eastern and western empires parted
ways – In the West the general Stilicho
became the major military figure –
Stilicho’s dominance was due to the
fact that Honorius was still only 10
years old
The large band of Gothic warriors that
had fought for Theodosius at Frigidus
River and had lost so many men were
not happy – They had demanded gold,
grain and land for settlement in return
for their loyalty and sacrifice – They
received none of it – Alaric emerged as
their leader – He took the Goths south
and invaded Greece and ransacked
Athens – The Gothic rampage
effectively cut off safe routes between
the East and West – The exact position
of the Goths is open to debate:
1) Alaric was a leader of national
movement who were in search of
more land and better living
conditions
2) Alaric was the leader of a large
group of Foederati, fighting in
Rome’s service, but potentially
biddable by the rival rulers of the
eastern and western empire –
always looking for the “best deal”
for his followers – In reality the
Gothic position probably fluctuated
between 1 and 2
399 – Alaric employed by Eastern
administration – Alaric could
legitimately acquire provisions from
Arcadius
399 – Gothic revolt in East – Revolt
was put down but barbarians were
excluded from major military
commands afterward – Appeasement
became a major policy in East for the
next 50 years
401 – East stops supplying Alaric and
he moves his people into Northern Italy
where Stilicho blocks his progress
402 – Stilicho begins employing Goths
as allies to secure Illyricum for the
Western Empire
405/406 – Stilicho’s plan to recover
Illyricum is interrupted by a huge
Gothic invasion across the Rhine and
Danube led by the Gothic chieftain
Radagaisus – Stilicho employs
Romans, Alans and Huns to defeat
Radagaisus – Thousands of Goths were
taken prisoner and enslaved while as
many as 12000 were enlisted in Roman
forces
New Years 406/407 – A huge force of
Vandals and Suebi crossed the frozen
Rhine – Western forces were powerless
to stop them
Meanwhile Alaric, who wasn’t getting
paid by Stilicho, heads back to Italy to
threaten Rome – Stilicho convinced the
Senate to pay off Alaric and not fight
him – appeasement
408 – Arcadius dies – A rift developed
between Honorius and Stilicho on who
would travel to Constantinople to
oversee the succession – Troops loyal
to Honorius assassinated Stilicho at
Ravenna and massacre thousands of
barbarians who were based in Italy
including women and children - the
victims were the individuals who had
been in Radagaisus’ army
Alaric now had to deal directly with
Honorious – Honorious refuses any
cooperation – Alaric scales down his
demands – He no longer requested
gold, just land and food for his people
– On these modest terms there could be
friendship between his people and the
Romans – Honorius rejects offer –
Alaric resumes his siege of Rome (first
began in 408) and cuts off supplies
from Ostia – Eventually Alaric sacks
Rome in 410 – HUGE EVENT ! – The
last time Rome was sacked was 390
BC by Gauls 800 years earlier –
Morale breaking event – Most Romans
take refuge in churches which weren’t
harmed because the Goths themselves
were Arrian Christian – After 3 days of
looting the Goths leave Rome –
Alaric’s predicament was still not
resolved – He just wanted land and
food for his people – He was not trying
to conquer Rome
411 – Alaric dies – Athaulf becomes
leader of Goths – In the meantime
Goths move all over Italy and fail to
cross into Africa – Running short of
food, Athaulf takes Goths into Gaul –
He marries Honorius’ sister Galla
Placida (who was captured in sack of
Rome) Honorius had no children –
Athaulf and Galla Placida had son –
Plan was for him to become new
emperor with Athaulf pulling strings
Honorius’ general Constantius III
attacked the Goths and blockaded them
– facing starvation the Goths rose
against Athaulf and assassinated him
along with his brother and children –
Eventually Theoderic became the new
Gothic king in 417/418 – A ruling
dynasty was established that would last
until 507 – The Visigoths had arrived –
The Visigoths were established in
southwest Gaul – They received no
payments from Rome and were not
awarded generalships – Rome
recognized the Gothic King as a
legitimate leader of an independent
kingdom – After Rhine Crossing of
406 other barbarians within the empire
were worse than the Visigoths – From
416 Goths and Romans cooperated
militarily in Spain attacking the
survivors of the Rhine Crossing – For
the empire, the Visigoths were the
lesser of two evils
In West Galla Placida marries the
general Constantius – They have a son
named Valentinian III born in 419 –
Constantius dies in 421 – Honorius
dies in 423 (Honorius outlawed
gladiatorial combat) – Valentian III
becomes new emperor – Val III rules
until 453 –Emperors of 5th Century
were basically confined to their
Imperial cities Constantinople and
Ravenna – Each was protected by land
and were able to be supplied from the
sea
408 – Arcadius’ son Theodosius II
becomes emperor in East at age of 7 –
Died in riding accident in 450 - Under
Theodosius II huge land walls were
built to protect Constantinople – Also,
during Theodosius’ reign the Codex
Theodosianus was published – This
work was a codification of Roman
public law used by magistrates and
judges for guidance – It was used by
both East and West which is a reminder
that no one in high office considered
the empire split
406 – Vandals, Alans and Suebi cross
the frozen Rhine – The Romans
employed the Visigoths against these
tribes, who had settled in Spain – As of
420 Rome had lost control of Spain and
had stopped defending Britain
Fall of the West:
1) The gradual secession of territory to
the invaders meant a loss of
revenue and power
2) The local landowning elites of the
western provinces began to make
compacts with the barbarian
newcomers or look to their own
defenses
3) This promoted a slow dissolution of
the old empire over two or three
generations
4) Goths, Suevians, Burgundians,
Alans and Vandals all claimed land
on which to settle, with the result
that the empire relinquished a
significant part of its revenue from
taxable land
5) As it became clear that the empire
was less able to protect them, local
landowners now began to waver in
their loyalty to Rome and their
readiness to pay taxes to Rome
6) Tax revenues also fell as areas,
including Britain in 410, seceded
and looked to their own defense
Institutionally, the 5th century
kingdoms combined Germanic tribal
practices with those of Roman
provincial society – The most
important of these was the retention,
usually in modified form, of Roman
legal practices, which were embodied
in new written law codes – For the
most part German kings ruled their
subjects with Roman methods and tools
– The populations of these kingdoms
were mixed – The majority were
evidently the indigenous Roman
inhabitants, of all classes from simplest
peasant to the great landowners, who
recognized Germanic tribal kings as
new governors – It appears that the
kings and their followers received 1/3
of the land from the territory they
occupied
At local levels, civic leadership was
undertaken by the church and its
bishops – The church played a major
role mediating between the Roman and
German people locally
In 439 the Vandals (who had earlier
crossed from Spain to Africa) took
Carthage and cut off the income that
the western empire derived from Africa
Valentinian III’s general is Flavius
Aetius (the last Roman general) –
Aetius employed Huns as a major
component in his army during the
430’s – Using Huns he obtained the
stabilization of Gaul
Attila rose to prominence during the
430’s in Illyricum – His threats toward
the east and Constantinople resulted in
a policy of appeasement as Theodosius
II provided a continuous flow of tribute
payments –
It was Roman wealth which
transformed Huns from individual
tribes into a united empire – Gold
allowed Attila to pay men to fight
under his leadership – Luxury items
increased his prestige and influence –
Allowed him to unite the Huns but he
had to keep pressure on the empire to
continue the gold supply – Attila’s
Huns were very different from the
Huns Ammianus describes – Gold was
obtained via tribute, looting during
raids, ransoming prisoners, also items
obtained via trade – Much of the tribute
would make its way back to the empire
through trade along the borders
435 – Theodosius II agreed to pay
Attila 700 lbs of gold tribute
440 – Huns under Attila and his brother
Bleda launched a major offensive
across Danube – Theodosian walls
saved Constantinople – A new
agreement in 447 forces
Constantinople to pay 6000 lbs of gold
and annual payments of 2,100 lbs
In 451 Attila turns toward the west and
invades but he is defeated by a Roman
force under Aetius and a Visigothic
force – Attila was defeated but not
destroyed – In 452 Attila invaded Italy
but Pope Leo convinced him to spare
Rome – 453 Attila dies of a
hemorrhage and the Hunnic empire
gradually dissolves
457 – Leo (not the Pope) became
Emperor in East – He was crowned by
the bishop of Constantinople – This
was the first coronation of an emperor
by a bishop and confirms the growing
authority of the church
474 - After Leo dies, Zeno becomes
emperor in East –he came from a semibarbarian pocket of territory called
Isauria located within the borders of
the eastern empire (specifically the
Taurus mountains in Asia Minor)
455 – Valentinian III murdered – His
successor Maximus was married to
Valentinian’s widow Eudoxia while
her daughter Eudocia was offered to
Maximus’ son Palladius – But Eudocia
was already betrothed to Huneric, son
of the Vandal King Gaiseric and the
Vandals intervened – they attacked
Italy and they plundered Rome for 14
days, inflicting greater losses than
Alaric’s Goths had in 410, thereby
earning themselves the reputation
which their name preserves today –
Maximus was killed and Eudoxia and
Eudocia taken back to Africa
A series of short-lived emperorships
followed- Ricimer (the grandson of the
Visigothic leader Vallia who ruled
from 415 – 418) is the military leader
of Rome and the real power behind
these puppet emperors – Ricimir
appeals to Constantinople for a new
emperor in 465 and Leo sends
Anthemius – But after a series of
military setbacks civil war breaks out
between Ricimer (who is backed by the
barbarian residents of Italy) and
Anthemius (backed by the civilian
population and the senators) – Among
Ricimer’s supporters was a Scirian
warrior named Odoacer
472 – Rome falls to Ricimer Anthemius is executed – Shortly after
Ricimer and Olybrius (the new
emperor) both die of natural causes
475 – A final attempt to assert control
over Gaul from Italy is made by the
emperor Nepos but his general Orestes
turns against him and after Nepos flees,
Orestes places his son Romulus
Augustulus (THE LAST EMPEROR
IN THE WEST) as emperor – But in
476 Orestes losses control of his
barbarian troops and they put their
leader Odoacar in charge (not as
emperor but as a Germanic king)
THIS MARKS THE END OF
WESTERN ROMAN EMPIRE
Meanwhile all this civil war and chaos
encouraged barbarians in the west to
make aggressive moves – Burgundians
established pacts with the Gallo/Roman
landowners – Romans in Gaul held
military and civilian offices appointed
by Gothic kings – The Visigoths (under
Euric) capture most of Spain from the
Seubi and expanded further into Gaul
The Franks in Northern Gaul expand
in the 460’s
Some Gallo-Roman elites sought to use
the Visigoths as weapons in political
disputes with the central imperial
authority – Economic motives to
cooperate with the Visigoths were also
important – Trade with Rome was no
longer practical
Gaiseric, the Vandal king, played a
vital role in the collapse of the western
empire – He ruled from 428 – 477 –
The Vandals were a formidable sea
power as well as land power – By the
capture of Carthage the Vandals
became the only barbarian group to
exercise lasting control over a major
Mediterranean city :
1) Attack on Rome 455 – proved Italy
was vulnerable to his sea-power
2) Navel expeditions from
Constantinople ( in 468 1,000 ships
were lost) failed to defeat him –
Along with 1,000 ships, 64,000 lbs
of gold and 700,000 lbs of silver
were lost – Economic disaster
3) Sea power of Vandals was
equivalent of land power of Huns in
440’s and early 450’s
4) The loss of Africa and Carthage
severely weakened the western
empire by the loss of tax revenue
and the loss of a major food supply
– Romans were forced to deal with
them diplomatically
The Goths began to rise in the Balkans
after the collapse of Hunnic powerthese Goths had been subjects of the
Hunnic empire - at various times these
Goths are employed by the Eastern
emperors
486 – Theoderic the Amal (an
Ostrogothic warlord) revolted against
Zeno (eastern emperor) – Theoderic’s
Goths cut off the water supply to
Constantinople and Zeno paid off
Theoderic – After negotiations it was
decided that Theoderic should go to
Italy and recover the western part of
the empire which hadn’t had an
emperor for 10 years – Theoderic’s job
was to over throw Odoacar –
Theoderic, with the help of Visigothic
forces, defeated Odoacar in 490 and
besieged him at Ravenna – After a 3
year siege Odoacar was tricked into
thinking the two men would co-rule
Italy – He allowed Theoderic into the
city and Theoderic murdered Odoacar
with his own hands – Theoderic was to
rule the Ostrogothic kingdom of Italy
until 526
491 – Anastasius becomes eastern
emperor – In 497 he recognizes
Theoderic as king in Italy
After Anastasius dies Justin becomes
emperor in 518 – He appoints his
nephew Justinian as co-emperor and in
527 Justinian becomes sole emperor –
The reign of Justinian is well
documented by the last great historian
of the ancient world – Procopius –
Procopius was a participant in many of
the wars he documents – His most
controversial work is the Secret History
in which he portrays Justinian and his
empress Theodora as corrupt and evil
individuals (even demonic!) who crave
power – Significantly, the Secret
History was not published during
Justinian’s life
Justinian was determined to
consolidate the Roman Empire as a
universal kingdom, ruled in justice
before God – A first step was to codify
and publish the entire body of Roman
law on a definitive basis: The Justinian
Law Code – Human law was explicitly
shaped by the guiding hand of God,
and the code began with the invocation
“in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ”
– It was a union of divine and secular
authority
Intolerance was the rule during
Justinian’s reign – Various heretical
sects were persecuted violently
(Montanists, Samaritans, Nestorians) –
Also Justinian mounted a final major
onslaught on paganism – In 529 he
passed a law to not only abolish pagan
practice but to force all pagan
households to be baptized into
Christianity – Pagan teaching was a
focus of attack and Justinian closed the
philosophical school at Athens, the
most important center of pagan
learning – The staff of the school fled
to Persia – The first years of Justinian
were marked by missionary terror, to
destroy all remnants of heresy or
paganism
532 – The Nika Riot – A blood-bath
that led to over 30,000 fatalities and the
burning down of much of
Constantinople – Chariot races were a
serious sport in Constantinople – There
were two main factions: The Greens
and Blues – There was intense and
violent rivalry between these two
groups – Riotous behavior, often
orchestrated by the factions, which
were capable of mobilizing large
numbers of followers, was a central
feature of life in the great cities of the
eastern empire – The circus factions
were the only means by which the
masses of the people could be
organized, and if necessary mobilized –
The style of government of the late
Roman Empire had removed the
constitutional buffers between the
emperor and his people – Political
business was carried out within the
walls of a palace far removed from the
people – The point at which the rest of
the population could make its feelings
known was precisely in the
hippodrome, where the emperor and
his leading officials appeared at the
races before the people – It was
inevitable that the circus should
provide the focal point for political
discontent – The majority of
inhabitants were poor and
underemployed
1) Partisans rioted after the races in
Jan. 532 and this led to the arrest of
seven ringleaders and execution of
five of them, (two prisoners
escaped and fled to a monastery in
Chalcedon)
2) At the next race the crowd asked
the emperor to pardon the escapees
– There was no response until later
during the races when the crowd
began to chant in union
“Nika”(victory) they went to
headquarters of the city prefect, set
the prisoners free that they found
there, and burned the place down
3) The emperor was unmoved and
scheduled games for the next day –
The crowd demanded that Justinian
remove the prefect from office –
Justinian agreed but the riot
continued and Justinian’s general
Belisarius was sent in to crush the
crowd – Many people were killed
and buildings burned – The church
of Hagia Sophia was destroyed
4) The next day the crowd went crazy
and burned many more buildings –
Justinian ordered a final
intervention by 3 military
commanders and they slaughtered
over 30,000 people – 2 potential
usurpers (grandchildren of
Anastasius) were executed
5) In the aftermath Justinian claimed
victory over Tyrants and Usurpers
but this propaganda hid his real
goal which was to curb the unruly
violence of the people – His real
target were the countless masses –
Some say his slow action was
designed to goad the mob into
violence so he could crush them –
After the riot a new Hagia Sophia
was built (completed in 537) which
still stands today
533 – After fighting an inconclusive
war with Persia, Justinian turned his
attention toward Africa in the hopes of
removing the Vandals and bringing
Africa back under Roman control – His
general Belisarius led the expedition –
Procopius went along – The Vandals
were unaware of the impending
invasion and were caught off guard –
Within a year Africa was reclaimed for
Rome – But they heavily taxed the
locals and there was resistance from
the Roman population and Moors
535 – Belisarius was sent to Sicily to
use it as a spring board to capture Italy
from the Ostrogoths – The resistance of
many major Italian cities against the
invaders showed that Gothic rule was
well routed in Italy – The “Roman”
invaders from the east were often
regarded as “Greeks” whereas many
Italians remained loyal to the Goths as
defenders of the “Roman” population
in Italy – Naples closed its gates to the
army of Belisarius and was taken only
after a bloody siege – Rome changed
hands several times and the local
population throughout Italy suffered –
Water supplies were cut off – Locals
were sold as slaves – Theodahad
surrendered in Ravenna in 540 – Worse
yet to come – The introduction of
direct Byzantine rule and the arrival of
tax officials provoked such opposition
that Italy soon flared up in rebellion
under the Gothic king Totila – Totila
recaptured most of Italy – In Rome the
Senate met for the last time during this
turbulent period – Many aqueducts
were destroyed – Plagues broke out –
Hunger was rampant – In 552, under
the general Narses, Justinian’s forces
defeat Totila – Parodoxically,
Justinian’s attempt to bring back
Roman rule to Rome and Italy did
more damage than any of the barbarian
invasions and weakened the basis for
Roman restoration
568 – The Lombards invaded Italy and
encountered very little resistance –
They conquered some areas but other
parts (mostly coastal cities) remain
Byzantine – Italy is never unified again
until the 1800’s
AD