Overview of Roman Civilization, 509 B.C. - 476
The Birth of Rome and the Etruscan Kings
The Latins were the first people to settle in the Campagna, or the region surrounding what is now Rome. An
Indo-European group who survived by herding and farming, the Latins migrated down the Italian peninsula
sometime before 1000 B.C., building villages of simple clay huts covered with thatch. While much of the
Campagna consisted of swampy, malaria-infested land, the southern bank of the Tiber River offered a more
hospitable environment. There a group of seven hills rolled above the Campagna, granting both suitable
land for herding as well as a strategic prospect over the river and nearby lowlands. The Latins built villages
on these hills, and over several centuries these villages grew together to create the city of Rome.
By the seventh century B.C. a new people had gathered strength to the north of Rome, whose influence
would play a great role in shaping the identity of Roman civilization. To this day the Etruscans remain
veiled in mystery. Despite significant archaeological records and a lasting impact on Roman art, religion,
and social institutions, historians still do not know precisely when or from what region the Etruscans came
to dominate central Italy. We do know that they were skilled iron-workers, and with the use of advanced
weaponry they conquered territory extending from the Po River in the north to Campagna in the south. At
the height of their power, the Etruscans came in close contact with Greek culture flourishing in the many
colonies established throughout Italy. By 600 B.C. the Etruscans had assumed control over Rome as well,
ruling the city under a series of kings until the last was overthrown by the Latins around 500 B.C.. After that
time, the Etruscans disappeared as strangely as they had arrived, becoming absorbed by the other cultures of
Italy. Still, their legacy was far-reaching. From them the Romans adopted many aspects of Greek
civilization, including an alphabet based on Greek characters. In addition, the Etruscans introduced civil
engineering techniques in architecture, irrigation, and sewer and road construction. But the Etruscans' most
lasting mark may have been on Roman culture. Even as the Etruscan kings roused in Romans a mistrust of
despotism (unlimited power of a ruler), many customs that we now consider characteristically Roman
descend directly from Etruscan influence, including triumphal parades and even gladiatorial contests.
The Foundation of the Republic
Roman tradition holds that the last Etruscan king, Tarquin the Proud, was overthrown by the Latins in 509
B.C.. According to the Roman historian Livy, the revolt was sparked by a scandal: Lucretia, the wife of a
Roman noble, was seduced by Tarquin's son and his wife Tullia, inciting the mob to assassinate both the
king and prince. From this point we mark the era of the Roman Republic, a period of political stability and
military expansion that established Rome as the foremost power in the western world.
The republic itself was a government set up to replace the autocratic state maintained by the Etruscans.
Rather than in the hands of a single hereditary ruler or king, sovereignty in the republic rested with citizens
who had the right to vote for their leaders. In the early republic, these voters and leaders included only adult
male citizens of whom a single class of wealthy landowners, the patricians, wielded most of the power. To
oversee the government, two patricians were elected annually to the office of consul, a position whose
duties also included military command. While the consuls enjoyed a great deal of power, Romans were also
aware of the dangers of placing too much authority in the hands of one or two individuals. As a result, a
series of checks and balances was devised to ensure no consul became an autocrat. One of these checks was
the right of one consul to veto (the Latin word for "I forbid") the proposals of the other. A second important
check was the right of the citizens -- through their representatives in a body called the Assembly of
Centuries -- to vote a consul out of office after one year. With such short terms of office, it was politically
impractical for a consul to stray far from the wishes of the people.
A third check on the power of the consuls was the Senate, the most powerful governing body in Rome. In
the early republic, the Senate consisted of 300 elected patricians who controlled government funds, decided
foreign policy and, for times of crisis, retained the right to name a dictator, a single citizen who could
exercise absolute power for a period of six months. Because of the Senate's control over Rome's public
funds, it could effectively undermine any consular act with which it disapproved. Therefore, the consuls
worked closely with the Senate to ensure a smooth-running government.
One group, however, threatened the stability of the early republic. The plebeians, a class of common people,
made up the vast majority of the Roman population yet lacked all the rights of patricians. Though they could
vote, the plebeians were excluded from high office and even from marrying patricians. Over time, the
plebeians exercised their power by staging strikes and refusing to serve in the army. With Rome on the
brink of civil war, the patricians finally allowed the plebeians to form their own government body, the
Assembly of Tribes. This assembly elected ten tribunes, and although these officials had no policy-making
authority, they retained the right to veto any public acts that ran contrary to the interests of the plebeian
class.
One particular problem the plebeians faced was the manner in which Roman law was administered. Judges,
called praetors, ruled cases according to both legislative law and judicial precedent, yet no law was written
down. For the plebeians, who were not privy to the actions of the Senate, this represented an injustice -many plebeians, for instance, were tried for laws they did not know existed. In 451 B.C. the plebeians
demanded that some laws be put in writing. The resulting Twelve Tables provided the plebeians protection
against the judicial authority of the ruling class.
In subsequent years the plebeians continued to gain rights. Debt laws were relaxed, poor citizens won the
opportunity to receive land, and plebeians earned the right to marry patricians. Eventually plebeians were
granted membership in the Senate and could run for any high office, including consul. But although
plebeians now shared equal rights with patricians, the lot of the common people did not change. A new class
of patricians and wealthy plebeians dominated the government while the majority of Roman citizens -urban poor as well as rural peasants -- had little hope of improving their lives.
Roman Expansion
By the end of the sixth century B.C. the Romans had already become a prosperous people. One hundred
years of Etruscan rule had left the city with six miles of fortifications, a strong army, and a flourishing
economy based not only on agriculture but also on trade with other cities of the region. As the republic
succeeded in stabilizing affairs at home, Roman armies began marching abroad, first conquering the city's
nearby rivals and later an expanse of territory that made Rome the greatest power in the ancient world.
The army of the early republic was manned strictly by patricians. As Rome's need for soldiers increased,
however, plebeian foot soldiers became a mainstay of Rome's war machine. The army was filled through
conscription. Every landowning male citizen was subject to service, and terms of obligation ranged from ten
years for cavalry soldiers to sixteen years for infantrymen. The forces were organized into legions of 6,000
foot soldiers accompanied by a few hundred horseman. Each group of infantry, armed with shields and long
spears, fought at first in a phalanx, a tight Greek formation that required great discipline but also made the
Romans seem nearly invincible to their poorly organized foes.
As its territory expanded, Rome soon faced the task of maintaining its possessions. Despite the strength of
its legions, the Roman army could not hope to govern so vast an array of conquered peoples strictly with the
sword. Instead, Rome hoped to earn the loyalty of its subjects by granting them political power and
therefore an interest in Roman fortunes. To this end, the inhabitants of nearby cities were offered full
Roman citizenship, including the right to vote. For more distant peoples, partial citizenship was granted.
This included the right to own property, though not to vote. Finally, Rome established a series of alliances
with cities at the periphery of its territory. In exchange for protection, these cities offered military support in
Rome's campaigns. For the most part, the cities not offered an equal part in Roman politics were allowed
self-government so long as they remained loyal. Yet Rome had little patience for turncoats. The proud
Greek city of Syracuse on the island of Sicily, for instance, was punished for her rebellion during the second
Punic War by the loss of her independence.
Rome's policies toward conquered peoples had several important effects. For one, they enabled Rome to
gain troops for further expansion. By the late third century B.C., over half of the soldiers in Rome's legions
were supplied by allies. In addition, the sharing of Roman citizenship encouraged the spread of Roman
language, law, and culture throughout the Italian peninsula. By 265 B.C., Italy was for practical purposes a
single political entity governed and inhabited by people who called themselves Romans.
The Punic Wars
As Rome solidified its control over Italy, it became apparent that a showdown was at hand with the greatest
other great power in the western Mediterranean, Carthage. A city founded by Phoenicians on the northwest
coast of what is present-day Tunisia, Carthage had exploited its naval power to amass an empire that
included parts of North Africa, Spain and Sicily. As Rome moved into southern Italy, Carthaginians feared
their Sicilian colonies would come under Roman attack. Rome, on the other hand, felt both its southern
allies and its grain supplies from Sicily to be under Carthaginian threat. The resulting tension led to three
conflicts known as the Punic Wars, so called because the Latin word for Phoenician was punicus. The wars,
which took place over more than a century, were trying for both sides, and at times the very survival of
either city became a matter of great doubt. In the end, however, Rome was the clear victor and poised itself
to become a greater empire than Carthage had ever been.
When the first Punic War broke out in 264 B.C., the sides seemed evenly matched. Rome boasted a stronger
army but had never concerned itself with developing a navy. Carthage, meanwhile, had built its strength on
the seas. Immediately upon the outset of hostilities, Rome constructed a new navy based on the design of a
captured Carthaginian ship. With its new fleet it captured Sicily and established a presence on the islands of
Corsica and Sardinia. In 241 B.C. Carthage sued for peace, but the Romans were not generous in their
terms. They forced Carthage to cede all their possessions on Sicily, which, along with Sardinia, became the
first Roman province outside the Italian mainland. In addition, Carthage was required to pay a large
indemnity, or money to cover Rome's cost in the war. The Carthaginians were weakened and greatly
humiliated, but they were not finished. They still had vast holdings in the Mediterranean, including much of
Spain. For twenty years up until the start of the next war, they plotted revenge.
The second Punic War is remembered chiefly for the exploits of one of history's greatest generals, the
Carthaginian Hannibal. A rugged and passionate leader who swore his hatred of Rome at the age of nine,
Hannibal was equally feared, despised, and respected by the Roman people. Of him, the Roman historian
Livy wrote the following assessment in his History of Rome:
Fortunately for Rome, Hannibal lacked the troops necessary to capture Rome. Instead, he campaigned in the
Italian countryside, exhausting his resources and allowing Rome to mount a new offensive. Rome's
counterattack, led by the general Scipio, came first in Spain and then in north Africa. Hannibal was forced
to move his army back to Carthage, but in 202 B.C. he was defeated by Scipio in the Battle of Zama. The
battle ended the war and also changed the balance of power in the entire region. Carthage turned over all her
colonial possessions to Rome, including Spain. Rome was now the foremost power in the western
Mediterranean, but more importantly she now set her sights on further expansion. Slaves and wealth from
the new provinces made Romans aware of the potential profit in empire-building, and for the first time
Rome began to view conquered people as resources rather than allies. The provinces were heavily taxed,
with little of the wealth returning to the subjugated peoples. In addition, Roman armies began dividing the
spoils of victory among their soldiers, creating a new breed of profit-driven military leaders and fighting
men.
Victory also made Romans a more aggressive people, and although Carthage no longer posed a threat after
the second Punic War, many in Rome listened to the senator Cato, who concluded every speech with the
words "Carthago delanda est" -- "Carthage must be destroyed." In 146 Cato's pronouncement became a
reality. The third Punic War, declared by the Roman Senate based on false grievances, lasted only three
years. After a long siege, the once-great city of Carthage finally fell to Rome. Remembering the victories of
Hannibal, the Roman soldiers felt little mercy. They burned Carthage to the ground, plowed its remains into
the ground, and sowed the earth with salt so that nothing more could grow. The Carthaginians who survived
the siege were shipped away as slaves.
The Decline of the Republic
During the Punic Wars, many Romans believed the greatest threat to the republic was defeat at the hands of
Carthage. In fact, victory may have played as great a role in steering the republic toward demise. The cost of
the second Punic War was high. Much of the land in southern Italy had been destroyed, and soldiers who
returned to their ravaged farms had little choice but to look for work in the cities. This created a new social
problem: masses of urban poor came to rely on the government for sustenance. Those who had gotten rich
during the Punic Wars and the subsequent colonization of the eastern Mediterranean invested their money in
the cheap land abandoned by poor farmers. As a result, the gap between rich and poor grew, and the class of
small farmers who had been the backbone of Roman society quickly disappeared. In its place grew a new
breed of estate owners who relied on inexpensive slave labor from the provinces to work the land.
Though the early republic had drawn strength from the values of its people, those values seemed to be fast
eroding. The votes of poor urban dwellers were often sold to politicians, and government corruption became
rampant. Because ambitious men knew that the road to riches lay in the spoils of empire, political office was
often sought as a means to lucrative military command rather than as civic duty. Property ownership had
long been a prerequisite for service in the legions, but since many farmers had lost their property, Rome was
beginning to suffer from a lack of men to conscript. In 107 B.C., military reforms introduced by a consul
named Marius helped to relieve the shortage of soldiers: the property requirement for service was
eliminated, and poor volunteers flocked to the army. But the effect of this was to further undermine
republican values. Service for profit meant soldiers pledged more loyalty to their commanders than to the
republic itself. As a result, military leaders grew in power and threatened to become the kind of autocratic
rulers Rome had not known since the days of the Etruscans.
Reforms aimed at correcting the inequities in Roman society failed brutally, usually ending in the deaths of
the reformers themselves. The most famous of these were the Gracchus brothers, Tiberius and Gaius. Both
men attempted to limit the size of estates and to grant a larger share of government to the equites, a class of
businessmen. But the interests of the wealthy proved too strong. Elected tribune in 133 B.C., Tiberius and
300 of his followers were killed by a mob of senators and their supporters. A decade later, Gaius saw 3,000
of his sympathizers murdered in similar fashion and committed suicide to avoid his own execution. The two
events marked an ominous turn in Roman affairs: violence had supplanted the civilized mechanisms of
government as a means toward political power.
The Rise and Fall of Julius Caesar
Along with enacting his military reforms, Marius seized upon various crises abroad to convince the Senate
to elect him consul for five consecutive years. This shift in power to one man caught the eye of other
ambitious leaders, and in 82 B.C., after Marius died, the consul Sulla led an army from Asia Minor to seize
control of Rome, executing thousands of Marius' followers. Sulla convinced the Senate to appoint him
dictator, and upon assuming the role he launched a brutal proscription of his opponents -- an act which made
the murder of them legal. Though the constitution allowed for a dictatorship to last no longer than six
months, Sulla remained in power for two years. From this point, control of the republic seemed simply a
matter of intimidation.
In 60 B.C., three generals -- Pompey, Crassus, and Julius Caesar -- joined forces to form what is called the
First Triumvirate, or rule of three. Though rivals, these men shared in common their suspicion of a Senate
that had become too easily manipulated. An aristocrat and the nephew of Marius' wife, Caesar was elected
consul in 59 B.C. and given command of the armies in Gaul, where he campaigned for ten years. The young
leader saw advantages in his absence from Rome. For one, he could gain strength through the loyalty of his
army, which he commanded with great skill and courage. Secondly, he understood the dangers of political
ambition in a capital where assassinations and corruption had become commonplace.
Eventually, the Senate became wary of Caesar's long absence and called him back to Rome to face charges
of corruption. Caesar did return -- but he brought with him his army, which constituted an act of civil war.
The Senate sent word to Caesar that if he led his troops across the Rubicon River, the southern boundary of
his province, then he would be considered a treasoner. Caesar deeply considered the consequences of the
action but then moved ahead. Knowing civil war was at hand, the Senate ordered Pompey to defend Rome
against Caesar's advance, and Pompey left for Greece to assemble a force of his own. Rather than wait for
Pompey to attack, however, Caesar instead moved to Spain, where he easily defeated legions loyal to
Pompey, and then to Greece to pursue Pompey himself. Pompey fled to Egypt, where he was killed by
Egyptians and his head presented to Caesar, who is said to have turned away from the murderers in disgust.
Caesar now turned his attention to opposing Roman armies in Africa and Spain, and in 46 B.C. he returned
to Rome where he made himself dictator for life. Though this was in blatant violation of the republican
constitution, the republic had ceased to exist in all but name. Senators had abused their powers for a century;
now Caesar began to dilute their authority, adding hundreds of new members from the equite class and from
all over Italy. His reforms angered the conservatives who had enjoyed power for so long. Greeks abroad
were given citizenship, Jews in the east were given fuller protection against persecution, and conquered
peoples all over the Roman world received fairer treatment. Even Caesar's much-needed reform of the
calendar met with bitterness among senators, who felt it simply another extension of the dictator's power.
The orator Cicero, upon being told that a certain constellation would rise the next morning, replied with
sarcasm: "Yes, in accordance with the edict."
In the end, Cicero's retort reflected the attitudes that led to Caesar's assassination. Though his character and
policies won favor with the people, Caesar had made many powerful enemies. On March 15, 44 B.C., a
group of conservative conspirators led by Marcus Brutus and Gaius Cassius stabbed Caesar to death in the
Senate. It is difficult to say these men were not driven by ambition and by the interests of their class. Yet at
the same time, their overthrow of the dictator can be seen as a defense of republican values. Either way,
Caesar's murderers were men whom he considered personal friends, in particular Brutus, who is said to have
stabbed Caesar in the groin. In Shakespeare's Julius Caesar, the dictator's last words express his
disillusionment with his friend's betrayal: "Et tu, Brute? -- Then fall, Caesar!"
The End of the Republic and the Age of Augustus
Following Caesar's death, three of his supporters -- Mark Antony, Lepidus, and Caesar's adopted son and
chosen successor, Octavian -- formed the Second Triumvirate to defeat the conspirators. Octavian moved
quickly to take control of Rome and force Lepidus into retirement. Meanwhile, Antony drove the armies of
Brutus and Cassius out of Syria and Asia Minor. He then went to Egypt, where he married Cleopatra, queen
of Egypt and former lover of Caesar. Octavian and Antony divided the Roman world in two, Octavian
ruling the west and Antony the east. Eventually, however, the two waged a civil war that culminated in 31
B.C. at the Battle of Actium. Octavian routed Antony's fleet off the west coast of Greece and later took
control of Alexandria in Egypt. Antony and Cleopatra soon committed suicide, and Octavian returned to
Rome the sole ruler of what was now, in effect, the Roman Empire.
In name Octavian kept many of the trappings of the old republic. The Senate retained its official position,
yet in reality all of its power was gone. Real authority now lay in the hands of the strongest military leader,
and since Octavian had ultimate control of armies all over the empire, the Senate prolonged his consulship
year after year until it finally granted him a title reserved for gods. His new name, Augustus -- which meant
"honored" or "sacred" -- signified the death of the republic. In fact, ancient Rome was to remain under the
rule of emperors for the remainder of its existence.
After years of political turmoil and civil war, however, Romans were willing to enjoy a period of stability
even at the expense of their former political values. And since Augustus proved a wise ruler, the transition
seemed an easy one. To end the threat from ambitious military leaders, Augustus established central control
over all the legions, promising bonuses and land to soldiers in exchange for their allegiance. The new
arrangement created a better and more efficient military, and Roman troops pushed the frontiers to their
farthest extent yet. In addition, Augustus centralized the provincial administrations, heading off corruption
and earning support of common people all over the empire. Perhaps his greatest mark, however, was on
Roman culture. Augustus' reign freed Romans from the constant fear of civil war, and as a result
architecture and the arts flourished. With the personal support of the emperor himself, authors such as
Virgil, Horace, Ovid, and Livy produced the many of the greatest works written in Latin.
The Pax Romana
Though Augustus died in AD 14, his reign began a 200-year period known as the Pax Romana, or "Roman
Peace." During this time, Roman law, government, and military power brought to the Mediterranean world a
level of prosperity unrivaled until the modern era. Of the latter part of this period, the eighteenth-century
historian Edward Gibbon wrote, "If a man were called to fix the period of the history of the world during
which the condition of the human race was most happy and prosperous, he would, without hesitation, name
that which elapsed from the death of Domitian to the accession of Commodus (AD 96-180)."
Prosperity during the Pax Romana resulted from the great degree of order with which Romans managed
their empire. After the dissolution of the republic, Rome became an autocracy. A single emperor made all
policy decisions and appointed officials. Because of this, the empire's fortunes at any given time depended
on the skill and integrity of its ruler, and over the years Rome saw both good and corrupt emperors. The
empire had no law of succession, and after Augustus' death Rome was governed by a series of emperors
related to Julius Caesar -- the so-called Julian Emperors. Tiberius, the step-son of Augustus, ruled until AD
37 and maintained most of Augustus' policies. The next emperor, Caligula, proved to be as insane as he was
incompetent, and after Caligula's assassination the scholar Claudius ruled wisely until his own murder in
AD 54. The last Julian emperor was Nero, a violent and incapable ruler who is reputed to have set the fire
that destroyed Rome in AD 64. Nero's army soon rebelled, Nero himself committed suicide, and for nearly
thirty years a series of military leaders battled each other for control of Rome. Finally, in AD 96, the
appointment of Nerva ushered in the period of which Gibbon wrote -- that of the "Good Emperors." The
most notable of these were Trajan, who brought the empire to its greatest expanse, and Hadrian, who
fortified the frontier in England with a 73-foot wall that still stands today. The last of the Good Emperors
was Marcus Aurelius, a bookish ruler who spent much of his reign contending with border wars against the
Germans.
Life in the Empire
Despite the material well-being of the empire as a whole, the living conditions of average citizens depended
greatly upon their social status. As in the days of the republic, wealthy Romans enjoyed most of the fruits of
Rome's success. In comparison, working people, poor people, and slaves endured difficult living standards.
The upper classes consisted of old landowning families as well as a prosperous group of businessmen and
professionals. These wealthy Romans commonly owned both city and country homes, the latter for escape
from oppressive Roman summers. Their homes were often used to entertain other wealthy Romans; the
upper classes were famous for elaborate banquets that included entertainers and an array of exotic foods
imported from the provinces. Poor and working people, on the other hand, lived in humble, crowded
quarters with only sparse furnishings. In Rome itself, the large tenements in which common people lived
often proved structurally unsound. These buildings sometimes collapsed or caught fire, killing many people.
But while the lives of poor people were difficult, slaves suffered the worst lot in ancient Rome. As Rome
expanded, more slaves were imported from Rome's possessions. These slaves performed a variety of tasks
from domestic work to hard labor in quarries. A number of revolts occurred, and at times policies were
enacted to protect slaves. Still, the issue of slavery became one that concerned many Romans as the empire
began to wane.
Entertainment
In many ways, everyday life in ancient Rome featured customs and conveniences that modern people would
find familiar. The family was the primary social unit, yet Romans also enjoyed public lives, meeting friends
in the streets or at the baths, and gossiping over the latest political rumors. As do modern people, Romans
enjoyed sports and other amusements. Many exercised with weights to maintain their health, and in their
free time they cheered their favorite teams in chariot races run on a variety of tracks, or "circuses." The most
disturbing types of Roman entertainment took place in the vast Coliseum. There, before screaming crowds,
gladiators fought to the death with a variety of weapons. Just as modern sports fans support their favorite
athletes, ancient Romans transformed successful gladiators into celebrities, and sometimes star fighters who
had begun their careers as slaves or criminals were able to win their freedom. For the most bloodthirsty
spectators, Romans staged contests between humans and wild beasts. In some events, hungry animals were
let loose upon unarmed slaves or prisoners. In others, armed soldiers slaughtered exotic creatures captured
in the provinces.
The Roman Family
As the period of empire progressed, Roman family customs became more liberal. In previous eras, the male
of the household exercised unlimited authority over members of his family. In later years, however, children
and women enjoyed greater freedom. By the second century AD, a woman could own property, receive an
education, and choose her own husband, though she was still not entitled to hold public office. Female
children received their educations in the home, and the quality of this schooling depended on the family's
wealth. Boys of privileged classes entered a formal school system in which they studied Greek, Latin, math,
music, astronomy, and public speaking.
Religion
Like the Greeks, Romans practiced a form of religion that recognized many gods. As Roman and Greek
culture came into closer contact, Romans began to borrow many Greek religious beliefs, and more ancient
Etruscan gods took on the characteristics of Greek gods. Thus, for instance, the Roman Jupiter, the king of
gods, became associated with the Greek Zeus. Ceremonies and superstitions played a significant role in the
daily lives of Romans. Omens from nature often influenced the actions of leaders, and priests divined the
intent of gods by observing the organs of slaughtered animals or the flight of birds. As time passed, Roman
religion began to lose favor among the people. As Roman society became more decadent, there arose the
need for a religion that offered greater moral and spiritual assurances. A new religion, Christianity, gained
in popularity and eventually became the primary faith of Rome.
In addition to Greek culture influencing religion in Rome, other facets of Roman culture were also affected
by the Greeks. The Romans held significant esteem for Greek life and adopted certain elements from it. The
examples range from sculpture to libraries, architecture to philosophy. The Romans did, however, preserve
some of their own valuable strengths. The result of this merging of ideas is known as Greco-Roman culture.
The Arts
Literature held an important place in Greco-Roman culture. Notable figures produced works that have led
historians to consider the era a golden age in literature. Cicero was an orator whose speeches and essays
gained him esteem in his position as a statesman. Often considered the greatest poet of his time, Virgil wrote
the Aeneid, an epic poem that recounts the legend of a Trojan hero who encounters various obstacles but in
the end founds the city of Rome. He followed in the Greek tradition of Homer, using Homer's Iliad and
Odyssey as a foundation for his work. Horace, a friend of Virgil's and a fellow poet, was the most notable
lyric poet of Rome. His poems would be models for Renaissance poets. Livy was a patriotic writer who was
later recognized for his historical accounts of Rome. The History of Rome (or From the Founding of the City
of Rome) is his most often cited contribution to Roman literature. Yet another distinguished poet was Ovid.
Since he was a few decades younger than Horace and Virgil, his poems do not show the same respect for the
empire. His version of classical myths, compiled as Metamorphoses, has been referred to and used by great
writers throughout history and continues to be studied today. Plutarch is remembered on the basis of the
biographies he wrote. His Parallel Lives uses the tool of comparison to provide important information on
the circumstances, personality traits, and achievements that made the great men he profiled famous.
Following a career in Roman civil service, Tacitus studied and recorded history as a way of dealing with his
personal losses and advocating traditional Roman values.
Art during the Roman Empire is noted for its realistic portrayal of people. The detailed carvings reflected a
variance from the Greek tradition of portraying humans as perfect. A major architectural innovation of the
Romans was the aqueduct, bridge-like structures used to transport water. The Romans also build spectacular
amphitheaters, temples, domes, bridges, and arches and constructed a network of roads that was used for
military purposes as well as commerce and travel.
The Sciences
Two scientists from the Greco-Roman era, in particular, are remembered for their contributions. Galen made
his mark in the arena of medicine. He studied anatomy, often dissecting animals to further his exploration of
the body's systems. His work was respected for many centuries and today is noted for its pioneering value.
Ptolemy was an astronomer, mathematician, and geographer. His theory of the universe, contained in the
Almagest, is based on the idea that the sun, planets, and stars revolved around the earth--an idea that was
widely held until the sixteenth century.
The Decline of the Empire
Many historians mark the beginning of Rome's decline by the succession to the throne of Commodus, the
incapable son of Marcus Aurelius. But the fall of an empire can seldom be attributed to a single person or
event. In fact, the seeds of Rome's decline were sown in her expansion, and even strong emperors such as
Diocletian and Constantine were unable to preserve an empire beset by external attacks, civil wars, social
decay and population decrease. While the best emperors could only address the symptoms of decline, the
worst were victims of it. Between AD 235 and 285, over twenty emperors served, and all but one were
murdered.
One of the major causes of the decline was the growing threat of foreign peoples, or barbarians, who lived
along the frontiers. The once-proud legions had become concerned with profit more than duty, and as a
result tribes swept across the boundaries of the empire on every front. Travel became unsafe, leading to
decreased commerce and tax collection. To make up for the inability to procure taxes from around the
empire, the government increased tax rates on those from whom it could collect. Still, the government
lacked money, and to make up for the shortage it minted new coins that contained less gold than previous
ones. To account for the lesser value of the currency, merchants raised prices, creating widespread inflation.
Eventually, confidence in the currency became so low that people ceased using it. As the economy
crumbled, those who lived in the city faced starvation and in many cases plague. These people began
migrating to the country in search of food, spreading disease and straining small communities. The
combined effects of poverty and plague led to a continual decrease in population, creating the danger of
decreased farming capacity and even greater food shortages.
By 284, a peasant's son named Diocletian had risen to the rank of general and was made emperor by his
troops. His able administration stemmed the decline, improving conditions within the empire and warding
off barbarian invasions. Recognizing that the empire had grown too vast to be managed by one man,
Diocletian appointed a co-emperor, Maximian, to rule the western half of the empire while Diocletian
himself ruled the east. The system worked well during Diocletian's reign, but after his retirement in AD 305
rivalries ensued over control of the empire. In AD 324 another capable ruler, Constantine, reestablished
stability, creating a new eastern capital at Contantinople, the former Greek city of Byzantium. After
Constantine's reign, however, the western portion of the empire fell into greater decline. Theodosius was the
last man to rule a united Roman empire. Afterward, the two empires went in separate directions, the west
falling within a century and the east continuing for another thousand years.
For centuries Germans living along the border had crossed peaceably into the empire along the Rhine and
Danube rivers. By AD 375, however, a threat from the east -- the Huns, a nomadic people from the steppes
of central Asia -- began raiding villages along the Roman frontiers. This pushed many Germans further into
the empire, where the Germanic Visigoths revolted in AD 378, destroying a Roman army and killing
Rome's eastern emperor at the battle of Adrianople. The Visigoths then moved into Italy, sacking Rome in
AD 410. After the success of the Visigoths, one tribe after another invaded the empire in various places. The
last Roman emperor of the west, Romulus Augustulus, was overthrown in AD 476, the year many assign as
the one in which Rome fell.
Although the last centuries of Roman rule saw the decay of many of the same values that had built the great
empire, the destruction of Roman civilization had disastrous effects on the lives of western peoples. Tribal
kingdoms replaced Roman government, but they were incapable of maintaining peace or prosperity. As a
result, anarchy swept Europe and the west entered a period known as the Dark Ages. Nearly a thousand
years later Europeans would begin to rediscover the advanced ways Romans perfected over the course of
their own millennium. This rediscovery would usher in the beginning of the modern era, a time during
which historians and students continually marveled at the stunning achievement and equally stunning
decline of a great civilization.