The Fall of the Republic Chapter 8 Section 3 World History Deborah Thompson

The use of enslaved labor hurt farmers, increased poverty and corruption, and brought the army into politics.

Dishonestofficials stole money Thousands of Farmers faced ruin. faced ruin. Rome’s armies were victoriouswherever they went, but problems were building at home : home : Cities were becomingovercrowdedanddangerous. The gap between rich and poor was growing.

Patricians ran the Senate and held governmen t jobs. What caused problems What caused problems in the Republic ? Patricians handled the Republic’sfinances and directed the wars. Wealthypatricians owned large farms worked by slaves that the common farmers could not compete with.

Many plebeians became unhappy Many plebeians became unhappy about this situation. Why? Privilegedcitizens were a minority. Small farmers were sinking into poverty because they were busy fighting Rome’s wars and many farms were destroyed by Hannibal. Small farmers could not compete with large farming estates called latifundia because they used slave labor. Many farmers sold their land, went to the cities, and worked for low wages, which caused anger.

Two brothers, Tiberius and Gaius Gracchus, asked the Senate to take land from the rich and divide it among the landless poor. Roman politicians began providing bread and circuses to win the support of the poor, but not all wealthy people ignored Rome’s problems.. The brothers were murdered by Senators.

The Army enters Politics Things changed when Marius became consul in 107 B.C. Various generals became very powerful and used their armies to seize power. He began to recruit soldiers from the poor and offered them wages and land for their service. Marius changed the Roman army from citizen volunteers to paid professional soldiers who fought for money. Soldiers became more loyal to their generals than to the Republic.

Main Idea: Military Hero Julius Caesar seized power and made reforms In 82 B.C. Sulla drove his enemies out of Rome and made himself dictator. In 60 B.C. Julius Caesar joined with Pompey and Crassus to form the First Triumvirate to rule Rome. A triumvirate is a political alliance of three people.

Each member of the Triumvirate had military commands in far-away areas of the Republic. Caesar became a hero by defeating the Gauls. Crassus was killed in battle.

Caesar chose to march to Rome by crossing the Rubicon, a small river on the boundary of his command area. The Senate feared Caesar was becoming too popular, so they chose Pompey to rule Rome. They ordered Caesar to give up his army.

Today “Crossing the Rubicon means making a decision you can’t take back. Caesar drove Pompey’s forces from Italy, destroyed his army, and was made dictator of Rome for one year. Caesar broke the Roman tradition by declaring himself dictator for a longer period of time. To strengthen his power, he filled the Senate with his supporters. This made him unpopular.

He granted citizenship to people living in Rome’s territories. He ordered landowners to hire more free workers. He started new colonies to provide land for the landless.. He created work for Rome’s jobless. He created a new calendar with 12 months, 365 days, and 1 leap year.

Caesar’s DEATH He was warned to “Beware the ides of March” ( March 15 th ) Caesar’s enemies, led by Caesar’s enemies, led by Brutus and Cassius, feared he wanted to be king and plotted his assassination. He was stabbed to death by Senators in 44 B.C.

The Roman Republic, weakened by civil war, became an empire under Augustus Caesars death plunged Rome into civil wars. Senate forces battled Caesar’s grandnephew, Octavian and Caesar’s two top generals, Antony and Lepidus for power.

After defeating Caesar’s enemies, these three men created the Second Triumvirate. Soon, these three were in were in conflict with one another. retired Lepidus retired from politics.

Octavian took the west and Antony took the east. Antony formed an alliance with the Egyptian queen, Cleopatra. Rome becomes an Empire Octavian declared war on Antony and Cleopatra and crushed their army and navy at the Battle of Actium. The couple fled to Egypt and killed themselves a year later. Octavian took all power and laid the foundation for a new system of government- the Roman Empire.

Rome becomes an Empire Octavian took over the entire Republic at the age of 32. He had the support of Cicero, Rome’s greatest public speaker. greatest public speaker.

Octavian appointed himself “imperator” which means commander in chief. He also took the title Augustus which means “the revered or “the revered or majestic one”.