Rome: From Village to Empire

c. 750 BCE: Latins (tribe) settle what becomes Rome 753 B.C. – legend says that Rome was founded by Romulus and Remus (Latins) c. 750 BCE: Latins (tribe) settle what becomes Rome

Topography and Geography: Long peninsula shaped like a boot. The Po is the principal river on the peninsula. It flows from the Alps in the west and crosses the Padan plain before emptying into the Adriatic Sea. Appenine Mountains traverse entire peninsula north to south. Also, the Alps form Italy’s northern boundary. Topography and Geography: peninsula mountains rivers

Rome is west of Apennines Mts: more fertile land & river access At the confluence of Aniene and Tiber Rivers. Rome was built on seven rolling hills at a curve on the Tiber River near the center of the Italian peninsula. Rome is west of Apennines Mts: more fertile land & river access

The early Romans were mostly… Typical Mediterranean climate makes farming convenient and ideal. farmers

Etruscans Conquer Rome… c. 600 BCE: Etruscans Conquer Rome… …Romans adopt Etruscan alphabet, art, gods, building techniques (including the arch) 3 groups battle for control of the Italian Peninsula – Latins, Greeks, Etruscans Etruscans native to northern Italy – skilled metalworkers and engineers 600 BC – an Etruscan became king of Rome – allowed Rome to grow from a collection of hilltop villages to a city that covered 500 square miles

…the Romans overthrew the Etruscans In 509 BCE... …the Romans overthrew the Etruscans Last Etruscan king was Tarquin the Proud – very harsh tyrant who was driven from power by the Romans Romans declare they will never be ruled again by a king – leads to the establishment of the REPUBLIC

Unlike the Athenians, who had a direct or participatory democracy, the Romans established a representative democracy, or, a REPUBLIC… Republic comes from the Latin phrase res publica (public affairs) Power rests with the citizens who have the right to vote for their leaders …like we have today

Roman Social Structure in the Republic Patricians: wealthy landowners and office-holders Plebeians: farmers, artisans, traders. Could vote but not hold political office Patricians and Plebeians struggled for power. Plebeians outnumbered Patricians. Slaves: mostly prisoners of war. Not citizens and had no rights

Roman Religion Polytheistic: belief in more than one god Absorbed gods of others, including the Greeks Most important Roman gods/goddesses were Jupiter (father of gods), Juno (watched over women) & Minerva (goddess of wisdom & arts) In time, worship of emperors also became part of the official religion of Rome. Lots of public festivals

Roman Women Educated just like boys Could NOT vote, but could testify in court Gained property rights More influence in family than Greek women

THE TWELVE TABLES 451 BCE: First Roman Law Code Why was this important? Big victory for the plebeians. Twelve Tables established the idea that all free citizens had the right to the protection of the law.

Gradually, the Romans began to expand their control…

…until they had conquered the entire Italian peninsula …until they had conquered the entire Italian peninsula plus the islands of Corsica, Sardinia and Sicily

As they expanded their control… …the Romans built an excellent network of roads Roads were initially built by and for the military, but helped with trade and communication at large as the republic and then empire grew.

Here’s how they built them:

Their road system is one of the Romans’ greatest achievements Why do you think they built them?

The Roman Road System Allowed easy military transport Enabled trade and commerce Helped unify expanding Roman territories

Back to Roman expansion…who do you think would be a likely rival for control of the Mediterranean Sea?

Between 264-146 BCE the Romans fought three wars with Carthage, known as the Punic Wars. 264-146 BC – control of Sicily and the western Mediterranean 218-202 BC – Hannibal attempts to law seize to Rome – loses ½ men and most of his elephants AND then Roman general Scipio attacks Carthage (or close by…Zama) and defeats Hannibal, who commits suicide instead of being captured. 149-146 BC – Rome laid siege to Carthage – city set to fire and its 50,000 inhabitants were sold into slavery – territory was made a Roman province

Rome won…and went on to conquer the rest of the Mediterranean world. By 70 BC, Rome’s Mediterranean empire spread from Anatolia in the east to Spain in the west.

PAX ROMANA The period 27 BCE-180 AD (the last map) is known as the: Pax Romana = Roman Peace This was a time of great peace and prosperity for the Roman empire (included 3 million square miles and population was 60-80 million, with 1 million in Rome)

During this period: Romans thought they were the entire civilized world Rome enjoyed military dominance The population of the city of Rome reached 1 million Trade increased, bringing a wealth of resources into Rome The arts flourished

the influence of Greek culture upon the Romans Well, that’s it for our quick overview of Rome’s journey from small village to huge empire. Over the next few weeks we will concentrate on the following: the influence of Greek culture upon the Romans Roman contributions to politics, technology and the arts Influence of Greeks upon the Romans left a legacy of Greco-Roman culture the rise of Christianity within the Roman Empire reasons for the decline and collapse of the Empire