Chapter Five “Roman Empire” 600 B.C. – A.D. 500
Welcome to Ancient Rome: Video
The Roman Empire
“All roads lead to Rome”
Building Roman Roads… slaves at work.
United by Great Road system
large flat stones
concrete
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gravel and sand
Introduced standard coinage throughout the Empire
Enforced standard weights and measurements throughout the Empire
•Italy is a peninsula about 750 miles long •Apennine (A PUN NAY) Mountains run down the center Not rugged like in Greece, provides Good Farming
The Land and Peoples of Italy • 3 important fertile plains ideal for farming are along the Po River; River the plain of Latium, Latium where Rome is located; and the plain of Campania, Campania south of Latium. ⇓ • farmland allowed it to support a large population.
Etruscans
Greeks
Carthaginian s
Daily Life in Ancient Rome
The Impact of Geography
•Rome located 18 miles inland on the Tiber River •Easy access to the sea but safe from pirates •Built on 7 hills
The Impact of Geography
•Italian peninsula was a natural stopping point for trade & travel •Center of Mediterranean Travel Turn to page 149, “Voices from the Past”
Romans: For all their war, not one puts on a crown, but instead builds a senate where they consider the best for all people.
The Roman Republic • Early Rome ruled by kings, some Etruscan • 509 B.C. overthrew the last Etruscan king
•Republic – a form of government in which the leader is not a monarch & certain citizens have the right to vote
Roman Values & Virtues
3 virtues: duty, courage & discipline Livy Roman historian wrote of Cincinnatus
Why Rome Was Successful?
1. Good diplomats 2. Extending Roman citizenship & allowing states to run internal affairs 3. Skilled persistent soldiers & brilliant strategists
Why Rome Was Successful?
4. Built towns connected by roads 5. Soldiers were deployed quickly
6. Law & politics: Roman were practical & created institutions that responded to problems
Roman Soldiers!
The Birth of Rome
VIDEO:
• “Building an Empire” • Size, Culture, Customs, Pompeii, Technology, Religion, Laws, War
The Government of Rome
Two groups: •1. Patricians – great landowners, who became Rome’s ruling class •2. Plebeians – landholders, craftspeople, merchants & small farmers *Only patricians elected to public office
Patrician carrying busts of his ancestors in a parade
The Government of Rome •Chief executive officers •Consuls (2) – ran the government & led the Roman army into battle •Praetors – in charge of civil law
The Government of Rome
•Senate, about 300 patricians served for life •Centuriate assembly, elected consuls & praetors & passed laws •Organized by classes based on wealth
Roman Law
•First code of law:
Twelve Tables •Law of Nations : Issues of Roman and Non-Roman citizenship •Standards of justice applied to all people equally & used principles recognized today
Law of Nations
•Innocent until proven otherwise •The accused has a right to a defense before a judge •Judges should decide cases based on evidence
Punic Wars – Rome Becomes Powerful
Rome Conquers the Mediterranean
• Rome faced a strong power in the Mediterranean–Carthage. ⇓ • Founded by the Phoenicians around 800 B.C. on the coast of North Africa, Carthage had a large trading empire in the western Mediterranean. ⇓ • The presence of Carthaginians in Sicily worried the Romans. ⇓ • The two groups began a long struggle in 264 B.C. for control of the Mediterranean area.
Rome Conquers the Mediterranean
• The First Punic War ⇓
(cont.)
• Romans realized that to win the war they needed a large navy, which they built. ⇓ • Rome defeated Carthage’s navy, and in 241 B.C. Carthage gave up its rights to Sicily and paid money to Rome. ⇓ • Sicily became Rome’s first province.
Video: 1st Punic War
1st Punic War
Rome Conquers the Mediterranean • Carthage wanted revenge. ⇓
(cont.)
• Hannibal, the greatest Carthaginian general, began the Second Punic War, which lasted from 218 to 201 B.C. ⇓ • To take the war to Rome, Hannibal entered Spain, moved east, and then crossed the Alps with a large army, including a large number of horses and 37 battle elephants. ⇓ • Many soldiers and animals died during the crossing, but Rome was still under a real threat.
Video: Hannibal’s Revenge
Video: 2nd Punic War
Rome Conquers the Mediterranean
(cont.)
• At the Battle of Cannae, Rome lost 40 thousand men. ⇓ • In response, Rome raised another army. ⇓ • Meanwhile, Hannibal roamed throughout Italy but could not successfully attack the major cities. ⇓ • In a brilliant move, Rome attacked Carthage, forcing the recall of Hannibal. ⇓ • At the Battle of Zama, Rome crushed Hannibal’s forces. ⇓ • Spain became a Roman province, and Rome controlled the western Mediterranean.
Hannibal
The Defeat of Hannibal at the Battle of Zama
Video: Battle of Zama
Rome Conquers the Mediterranean
(cont.)
• 50 years later, the Romans fought the Third Punic War. ⇓ • In 146 B.C., Roman soldiers sacked Carthage. ⇓ • 50 thousand men, women, and children were sold into slavery. ⇓ • The territory of Carthage became a Roman province called Africa.
Rome Conquers the Mediterranean
(cont.)
Hannibal famously crossed the Alps with elephants to be used in battle. Few of them survived the trip, but some did. What do you think the reaction was of the Roman soldiers to elephants in battle?
The few elephants that survived terrified the Romans, as one could imagine on being faced with a charging elephant. Who knows how history would have been different if all of Hannibal’s elephants had survived?
Ruins of Carthage
Rome’s new empire