World History Roman Empire   

Chapter 6

Roman republic

                Three groups made up the original Romans, Latin, Greeks and Etruscans founded a settlement on the Tiber River. The Greeks settled in the south and the Etruscans settle in the north the greeks taught them how to grow olives and grapes. The Etruscans brought metal workers and engineers writing, alphabet

Architecture using the arch in buildings.

                The early republic was basis of our government. A republic is the power rests with citizens who have the right to vote to select their leaders.  Voting rights were given only to free born men. The government was divided into two different houses the landowners and aristocratic patricians held most of the power, and the plebeians the common farmers, artisans and merchants who made up the majority of the population.  The tribunes protected the plebeians from the unjust treatment of the patricians.

                The twelve tables were laws that were passed saying the all-freeborn men had equal protection under the law.

The two leaders of t the government are called consuls and rule over the armies and the government.

The senate held 300 people at times and appointment was for life.  The military was served in for ten years by landowners 

The legion is made up of 5000 trained foot soldiers

Rome spreads its power conquering Italy

                Rome was just a city-state

                Commercial network through the empire

                                Italy needed to trade for goods

Punic wars thee were three of them

                Fight with Carthage for control of the Mediterranean Sea

                Hannibal went to avenge the roman defeat of Carthage

Going through Spain with 50000 men and 60 elephants he fought Romans throughout the alps and up and down the length of Italy. Living off the land Hannibal never reached Rome

When Rome attacked Carthage Hannibal returned to protect it  

Section 2 Roman Empire and change

                Expansion brings trouble

                The large farms are ran by slaves ad the small land owner cant compete sale their homes to wealthy land owners and move to the cities couldn’t find work and joined the growing number o f urban poor

                A civil war was fought after two brothers tried to pass resolution to the poor problem and they killed

With a triumvirate a group of three leaders Julius Caesar joined with others Crassus and Pompey

Julius Caesar ruled as consul with the other two and then he conquered Gaul and named himself as the governor of Gaul

With his former friends, Caesar becomes a threat to their power and he is ordered to disband his army and return home, when he returns home he does so by starting a civil war against Pompey in 44B.C. Caesar became dictator for life     

As absolute ruler, he granted roman citizenship to many people in the provinces, he expanded the senate adding friends an supporters from Italy and the provinces, he helped the poor by creating jobs building new public buildings, he started colonies where the landless could own land and increased pay for soldiers.

Fearing the loss of more power, the senate assassinated Caesar on March 15, 44 B.C., Marcus Brutus and Gaius Cassius stabbed him to death, 23 times he was stabbed. His last words were “et tu Brute”

Civil war developed after his death. Octavian became Augustus the exalted one then ruled Rome. One man, his former allies and now enemy Mark Anthony fell in love with Cleopatra

Pax Romana roman peace economy based on agriculture and trade

                Ships and roads throughout the Mediterranean Sea area and the empire of Rome aided in this trade

Huge empire stretching from Spain to Mesopotamia, North Africa to England and was ruled by able rulers during this time civil servants were established to collect the grain taxes, and postal system

Roman rights were given to all people of the empire

A day in the life of women they could own land and testify in court but they could not vote

They ran the household and went to the social areas the public baths plays festivals and games the lower class women cold work as spinners, weavers, shop keepers, midwives and entertainers and waitresses

Children were treated differently, boys went to school and girls learned at home, became adults at 16, girls married at 12 to 15 to much older men, poor children worked and remained illiterate

Slaves could be punished rewarded set free or put to death as their master saw fit. Worked on teh farms and were treated terribly, some became gladiators

Gods and goddesses Jupiter was the greatest god and his wife Juno the Romans became more interested in the religions of Southeast Asia

The rulers had free games contests races mock battles, and gladiator contests to keep the people from thinking of the poor conditions in the empire  

Section three the rise of Christianity

Roman empire controlled Judea around 63 B.C. with Jewish kings ruling as representatives of Rome after a revolt in 6 A.D. religious matters were turned over to the Jewish court called the Sanhedrin, zealots wanted Romans out of Judea, others believed the messiah was coming

The life of Jesus he was a carpenter living in Nazareth, surrounded himself with 12 apostles

Paul one of the apostles spread his religious convictions. Anyone could be accepted as a follower of this new religion

 The Jews were persecuted by the Roman Empire 500,000 were killed in a revolt in Masada Nero blame the burning of Rome on the Jews. The Christians were used as entertainment in the arena with the tigers and lions

Missionaries traveled throughout the empire spreading the Christian religion

Fives reasons for the spread of Christianity

1.      Embraced all people men women slaves, the poor, and nobles

2.      Gave hope to the powerless

3.      Appealed to those who were repelled by the riches of imperial Rome

4.      Offered a personal relationship with a loving God

5.      Promised eternal life

The leader of the early church was peter he was the first bishop

He was looked at as being the first pope and the leader of the church whose center was to be in Rome

The Roman Empire religion became Christianity after Constantine put crosses on his shields and his followers won the battle.

Section 4 the decline of the Roman Empire

The pax romana lasted 200 years and ended with the growth of the empire

Inflation was one thing that lead to the downfall of Rome, as well as the many trade routes that were being attacked by hostile enemies

Diocletian was the new emperor and divided Rome up. He took the eastern part of Rome the Greek speaking Greece, Anatolia, Syria and Egypt the other was Latin speaking was controlled by Maximian it contained Italy Gaul Britannia and Spain

Constantine moves the capital of the Roman Empire to Byzantine, then named Constantinople

The Huns following Attila the Hun attacked the heart of Roman Empire

Section 5 Rome and the roots of western civilization

Combination of Greek, Hellenistic, and roman culture produced a new culture Greco-Roman culture

Sculpture from the Greeks, mosaics were pictures by setting small pieces of stone and glass or tile onto a surface the art of the painting

Literature writing by Virgil, homer, and Tacitus

Roman achievements Latin was considered language of the empire and the learned

Architecture, engineering and technology

Roman law 5 enduring important things

1.       All persons had the right to equal treatment under the law.

2.       A person was considered innocent until proven guilty

3.       The burden of proof rested with the accuser rather than the accused

4.       A person should be punished only for actions, not thoughts

5.       Any law that seemed unreasonable or grossly unfair could be set aside