The Aeneid
 Written by Virgil
 Follows the Hero Aeneas
 He left the city of Troy
upon urging from one of
the gods
 Some gods helps and other
gods hurt Aeneas
 He is finally able to defeat
the rulers and gain control
of the central Italian
Peninsula
Romulus and Remus
 Circle – made-up/added info
 Underline – believable historical facts
 What attributes make Romulus and Remus good role
models?
 Are there traits that are not good?
 What are the similarities between the Aeneid and
Romulus and Remus story?
Romulus and Remus
 The Legend of the founding of
Rome
 Twins and sons of the God
Mars
 Raised by wolves and men
 Found the city of Ancient
Rome
 Remus is killed in a fight
 Romulus becomes the first king
Geographically
 Surrounded by
other peoples
 The Far North:
The Gauls
 To the North:
The Etruscans
 To the South:
The Greeks
Classes
Patricians (Upper Class)
“Parent-Like”
Plebeians (Lower Class)
“The Many”
 Born into wealth and
power
 Many people
 Ruling members of society
 Carried out wishes of the
patricians
 Formed the Senate
 Unable to move up in the
society
 Led the army as generals
 Served as soldiers in the
army
Early Rome
Early Kings had
control and
shared it with the
patricians. The
Plebeians had
very little power.
The Republic
The Patricians
overthrew the Kings
and ruled through
the Senate. The
Plebeians had little
to no power.
Rebellion
The Plebeians were
tired of being taken
advantage of. The
Plebeians rebelled and
seized control of the
army demanding
equality. The
Patricians had no army
to defend themselves.
Political Equality
The Twelve Tables
were laws written to
provide equality for
the classes. Plebeians
gained
representation in the
law making process.
Roman Government in 287 B.C.E.
Patricians
Plebeians
Consuls
Senate
Tribunes
Council of Plebs
Citizen Assemblies
Later Republican Period
 Rome is conquering many
lands in Western Europe
 Large differences between
the upper and lower classes
 The Senate no longer
represented the people well
 Conquered people felt the
weight of being part of Rome
Punic Wars
 After Rome had
conquered all of the
Italian Peninsula
 Wars between Rome
(Italy) and Carthage
(N. Africa)
 Both wanted control
over Mediterranean
Sea Trade.
Punic Wars
 1st Punic War
241 B.C.E.:
264-
 War fought at sea,
 Romans copied ship
plans
 Won Islands including
Sicily
Punic Wars
 2nd Punic War
218 B.C.E. – 201 B.C.E.:
 Carthagian General
Hannibal attacked
Rome through the
Alps
 For 15 years attacked
the Peninsula
 But Rome goes on the
offense and wins
Punic Wars
 3rd Punic War
149 B.C.E. – 146 B.C.E.:
 Carthage “breaks”
treaty
 Roman Senator
suggests attacking
Carthage
 Rome lays siege to
the city and burns it
to the ground.
Julius Caesar
 Raised from a patrician
family
 Became a well known
general
 Mediator between 2
various sides: the rich and
the poor
 Conquered much of Gaul
Julius Caesar
 Raised to one of 3 equal
rulers (tri-umvirate):
Pompey, Crassus, and
Caesar
 After Crassus died,
Pompey and Caesar fought
for power
 Caesar marched on the city
of Rome with an army loyal
to him
 Pompey forced out and
killed
Julius Caesar
 Caesar elected by the
people as dictator for life:
almost total control
 gave public lands to the
poor
 Increased food distribution
 broadened the Senate,
including former enemies
 The senators were angry at
Caesar’s power grab
So they stabbed him over 20 times on The
Ides of March (March 15, 44 B.C.E.)
Roman Governments
Republic
 Ruled by elected leaders
 Patricians ruled in the
Senate
 Senators abused power
and eliminated enemies
 The voice of the plebeians
was not heard
Empire
 A single leader rules
multiple people groups
 A single ruler, normally
selected by previous
emperor
 Life varied greatly
dependent on ruler
 Some: Kind, cruel, military,
vicious, strong, or weak
Octavian: Caesar Augustus
 What do sources say about Octavian?
 Your group will be assigned one reading
 Take Notes on the section:
 History Alive! pgs. 332-333
 Human Heritage pgs. 233-234
 A Message of Ancient Days pgs. 431-433
 Be Prepared to share and compare
Caesar Augustus
 Julius Caesar’s adopted son
 First official emperor of
Rome
 Created a period of Order in
Rome
 Expanded the control of
Rome
 Added the months of July
and August to the calendar
 Ushered in the Pax Romana,
a period of 200 years of
peace
Christianity Setting
 Roman province called
Judea
 Judaism is the major belief
 Caesar Augustus was the
Roman Emperor
 1 Century C.E.
 Modern day Israel
Christianity in Rome
 Main Text: The Holy Bible
 Monotheistic Religion
 Main Figure: Jesus of Nazareth
 Christ is Greek for Messiah
 According to Christian writings:
 Jesus was miraculously born
 John the Baptist proclaimed
Jesus as a savior
 Jesus taught in synagogues
 Taught some traditional
Jewish beliefs emphasizing
love and mercy
Christianity in Rome
 According to Christian
writings:
 Jesus did supernatural
works
 Jesus claimed to be
equal with God
 He was accused of being
a rebel and killed
 On Sunday, Jesus came
back to life
Roman Reaction
 Christians refused to admit
that the emperor was a god
 It was made illegal and
Christians were killed
 Christianity held the promise
of a better life after death
 By 300 C.E. there were 5
million Christians
 By the year 392, Christianity
was the official religion of the
empire
Jewish Antiquities by Josephus
bk 18 ch 3 p 3 …is this biased?
About this time there lived Jesus, a wise man, if indeed one
ought to call him a man. For he was one who performed
surprising deeds and was a teacher of such people as
accept the truth gladly. He won over many Jews and many
of the Greeks. He was the so-called Messiah. And when,
upon the accusation of the principal men among us, Pilate
had condemned him to a cross, those who had first come
to love him did not cease. He appeared to them spending a
third day restored to life, for the prophets of God had
foretold these things and a thousand other marvels about
him. And the tribe of the Christians, so called after him, has
still to this day not disappeared.
Create a Chart of the
Major Emperors
Emperor
How did he
rise to
Power?
3 Notable
Achievements/
activities
Rating
(1-10)
Worst best
Would this person make a
good leader today? Why?
(give reasons)
Division of the Empire
Western Empire
Eastern Empire
 Capital city: Rome
 Capital city: Constantinople
 Religion: Roman Catholicism
 Religion: Eastern Orthodox
Christianity
 Corruption/instability
 Unified people
 Falls in
476 C.E.
 Falls in
1453 C.E.
The Fall of Rome
 No one is entirely sure of the cause
 Most believe Rome fell for a variety of reasons
 Edward Gibbon wrote about the fall of Rome
The Fall of Rome
 Cultural Division
 Christianity – took power from the emperor
 Conflicting views with most Romans
 East and West held different values
 Barbarian Attacks




Germanic tribes put Rome under siege
Attila the Hun demanded money to stay away
Lost North Africa land
City of Rome defeated
The Fall of Rome
 Economic
 Inflation – the price of everything went up
 Some people hoarded their money (refused to spend)
 Poor management of Empire funds
 Decay and poison
 The Army was not well supplied and poorly trained
 Corruption in government became more common
 Possible lead poisoning from drinking water
Journal Entry
In your notebook, answer the following questions in
complete sentences.
 Think about all the Things the Roman Empire
accomplished:
 Did Rome have a satisfying ending?
 How was the fall of Rome like the game of Jenga