Rome Geo:
-was built on 7 rolling hills around the Tiber river
-midway point between the Alps and Italy's southern tip
First Romans:
-groups inhabited the region nd fought for control of it
-Latins, Greeks, and Etruscans
-the original settlement was a cluster of wooden huts on top or the hills
Greek Influence:
-established colonies along southern part of Italy and Sicily
-cities became very prosperous
-brought all of Italy into closer contact with Greek civilization
Etruscans:
-Native to northern Italy
-skilled metal workers and engineers
-Romans adopted their alphabet and some of their architecture
Republic:
-Republic- is a form of government in which the power rests with citizens who have the right to vote or their leaders
-citizenship with voting rights was granted to free-born adult male landowners
Patricians and Plebians:
-Patricians-the wealthy landowners who held most of the power from Rome
-inherited their power and social status
-Plebians-the common person, but could still vote (farmers, merchants) from Rome
-in time, the leaders of Rome, allowed the Plebians to form their own assembly and elect their own representatives to protect their rights from the Patrician officials, they called this their tribunes
Executive Branch:
-two consoles vs one president
-1 yr term vs 4 yr term
Legislative:
-Senate: high social economic status, serve for life, advises consuls
-Centuriate Assembly: soldiers only, chose consul, serve for life
-Tribal Assembly: ordinary citizens, serve for life, make laws
Judicial:
-8 judges
-1 year by Centuriate Assembly
-two oversee civil and criminal courts (the others govern provinces)
Legal Code:
-Twelve tables- the list of rules that was the Supreme law of the land in Rome
-like the Constitution
Army:
-Romans took pride in their military
-all men who owned land were required to serve in army
-some of the high public office positions required 10 years pf military service
Legions:
-the Roman soldiers were organized into large military units called legions
-legions were made of 5,000 foot soldiers
-a group of cavalry support each legion
-the military was a key factor in Rome's rise to greatness
Expansion:
-by fourth century B.C., the Romans dominated central Italy
-they had defeated the Etruscans to the north and the Greek city-states to the south
Treatment:
-Latins on the Tiber River became full citizens
-in territory farther from Rome, the conquered people were citizens as well but didn't have voting power
-the remaining people became "allies" of Rome
Punic Wars:
-series of three wars
-Rome vs Carthage
-1st-was for control of Siciliy
-2nd-when Hannibal became general and wanted to avenge first defeat; attempted sneak attack
-3rd-Scipio attacked Carthage and Hannibal retreated and fought back at native city
-Rome defeated Carthage every war
-key players: Hannibal, Scipio, Cincinnatus
Lasting Effects:
-showed civilizations in the Mediterranean that Rome was a dominant force
-by 70 B.C, Rome had conquered a lot of land around the Mediterranean coast
Roman Republic:
-shortly after victory in Punic wars, expansion began to hurt the empire
-the land was going to large estate and small farmers were not making money and out of jobs
-was a reason leading to civil war
Julius Caesar:
-another civil war broke out because of his death
Avengers of Caesar:
-Octavious Mark Antony, Lepidus avenged Caesar and became 2nd triumvirate
-even jealously here, Octavious forced Lepidus to retire his power
Mark Antony fell in love with Cleopatra and followed her to Egypt
-leaving Octavian to be sole leader
Augustus:
-term given to Octavian "exalted one"
-Rome was the peak of its power and had peace throughout Augustus's Rule and even to 180 A.D
-Pax Romana- "Roman Peace"
Roman Life Hannibal Crossing the Alps:
-greatest military achievement of ancient warfare
-happened during 2nd Punic War
-took 16 days to cross
Why he cross?:
-thought it would give him a better chance against the Romans if he came down with all his war elephants
-the wars were fought over pure hatred by one side against another
We think it was a good idea because it was one of the greatest military achievements. There was the element of surprise which was a smart choice.
Roman Trade:
-vital to Roman Empire
-common trade items-beef, corn, glassware, iron, lead, leather, marble....
-main trading partners-Spain, France, Middle East, North Africa
-used Tiber river, Mediterranean Sea, and Black Sea for trading route
-two-way trade routes extended to other commercial centers in lands as far away as Egypt, Germany, China
-the empires location around the Mediterranean ea helped make all this commercial activity possible
We think that location matters for trading purposes because if it's in a bad spot obviously it's not going to be an easy place to trade. Location is an essential part of trading.
Roman Ag:
-used crop rotation
-sometimes imported food because of mountains
-most of crops raised on large estates called latifundias
-Cicero considered farming the best of all Roman occupations
-main crop was wheat and bread was present during almost every meal
-majority of work done was done by slaves and servants
-farm was main source of income
-certain types of food were given out to public for free (corn, wheat)
-Romans had 4 systems of farm management- work done by owner and fam, tenant farming, and other arrangements in which farm owner lended farm out
I would prefer to be a small farmer because I definitely would not want to be a salve!
Slavery General Info:
-ancient Rome depended on slaves
-most slaves were foreigners and unlike most places it did not depend on race
-not uncommon for desperate Romans to sell their children into slavery
-when freed, they could work the same jobs as the Plebians
-some slaves were forced to become gladiators
-debt slavery was common
-Saturnalia- a Christmas for the salves in which the slaves and masters switched places
-during Saturnalia the master performed all the tasks a slave would
-it was a masters way to show appreciation
Slavery:
-manual labor and domestic services
-could be highly educated and skilled, worked as teachers and physicians
-slave tasks: working on farms to produce food and materials
-business:managed shops for store owners, selling and lending money
-public buildings: worked on adequate systems, built roads, bridges
I would rather be a slave now that is treated nicely because it sounds like they have an okay life and are treated well.
Gladiatior:
-gladiator games were fought between man and a criminal, wild animal, or another soldier
-fought in the Colisseum with large audience
-they had costumes and scenery which had to be put up as well
Gladiator games:
-thumbs up means save the gladiators that's down and thumbs down means let him die
-order: animal hunts, the bestiarii, then criminals were sentenced to fight wild beasts without skills, weapons, or armor
I would rather be a fighter and at least give it a chance to try and die a fun and exciting way.
Emperors:
Tiberius-adopted son of Augustus-22 yrs-possibly assassinated by Caligula-was cruel
-Caligula-nephew of Tiberius-3 yrs-assassinated in conspiracy
Claudius I-nephew of Tiberius and uncle Caligula-13 yrs-probably poisoned by his wife
-Nero-13 years-stepson and adopted of Claudius-was a monster of cruelty
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