Roman Geography
- Built over rolling hills
- Midway point between the Alps and Italys southern tip
First Romans
- Three groups inhabited the region from 1000 to 500 BC
- Latins, Greeks, and Etruscans
- Latins built the original settlement in ROme
Greek Influence
- Greeks established colomis along the southern part of Italy
- Cities becam very active
- Brought all of Italy closer contact with Greek civilization
Etruscans
- Native to North Italy
- Skilled metal workers and engineers
- Influential in the development of Roman Civilization
- Roman adopted their alphabet and architecture
Republic- Form of Gov't in which the power rests with citizens who have the right to vote for their leaders
- In Rome, citizenship with coting rights was granted only to free-born adult male landowners.
Patricians and Plebeians
- In the early republic, different groups of Romans struggled for power
- Patricians-the wealthy landowners who held most of the power
- Plebeians- The common person but could still vote, usually farmers and merchants
- The Patricians barred the Plebeians from holding high offices in Government
- In time they could though
Roman Government
- Two Consuls vs One President
- 1 year term
Legislative
- Senate
- - High and Social economic status
- -Serve for life
- -Advises Consuls
- Centuriate Assembly
- -Soldiers only
- -Chose consuls
- -Serve for life
- Tribal Assembly
- -Ordinary citizens
- -serve for life
- -make laws
Judicial
- 8 judges
- 1 year appointed by Centuriate Assembly
- Two oversee civil and criminal courts (others govern provinces)
Legal Code
Twelve Tables
- This was a list of rules that was the Supreme law of the land in Rome
- In America, this is equal to the Constitution
Army
- Romans took great pride in military
- All men who owned land were required to serve
- Some of the high office positions required 10 years of military service
Legions
- Large military units
- Made up of 5,000 soldiers
- A group cavalry supported each legion
- Military organization and fighting skill of the Roman army were key factors in Romes rise to greatness
Expansion
- The roman dominated Central Italy by the fourth century BC
- Had defeated the Etruscans to the north and the Greek city-states to the south
Treatment
- Latins on the Tiber became full citizens
- In territory farther from ROme, the conquered people were citizens as well but didnt have voting power
- The remaining became allies of Rome.
Discuss who fought the Punic Wars and Hanibal
Series of Wars fought between Rome and Carthage
-Key Players
King Pyrrus- The king of Epirus who won a battle but might as well have lost
Hamilcar Barca- Carthaginian General, father of Hannibal
Hannibal- General of Carthage who took his armies to Italy. He incorporated elephants into warfare
Cato- Advocated the destruction of Carthage
Mark Antony- Caesar's right hand man, joined forces with Octavian
-Who won?
In the end the Romans won the wars. They won each of the 3 wars and gained more land of the Carthage Empire each time.
-Lasting effects?
The Romans gained control of Spain, Italy, and North Africa. Carthage was destroyed by Rome in 146 BC
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