• Describe the physical and cultural settings in which
Roman civilization arose.
• Outline how the Roman republic was structured and
governed.
• Understand the rights and religious practices that
characterized Roman society.
• Explain how the Roman republic grew and maintained its
conquests.
• The Italian peninsula is centrally located in the
Mediterranean Sea, and the city of Rome sits toward
the center of Italy.
• This location would benefit the Romans as they
expanded—first within Italy and then into the lands
bordering the Mediterranean
3
• Because of its geography, Italy proved much easier to
unify than Greece.
• Unlike Greece:
• Italy is not broken up into small, isolated valleys.
• The Apennine Mountains, which run down the length of the
Italian peninsula, are less rugged than the mountains of Greece.
• Italy has broad, fertile plains in the north and the west. These
plains supported the growing population.
• The ancestors of the Romans, the Latins migrated into Italy about
800 B.C.
• The Latins settled along the Tiber River in small scattered villages
• Greek colonists to the south and Etruscans in the north shared the
peninsula and contributed engineering and religious ideas to Roman
civilization.
• Legend held Rome was founded by twin brothers, Romulus and
Remus, the sons of a Latin woman and the god Mars, giving Romans
divine origins.
• In Star Trek Romulus and Remus are the name of the two
planes where the Romulans lived in. In fact the entire
culture of the Romulan Star Empire is based on the
Roman Empire.
• 509 B.C., Romans rejected Etruscan king (monarchy) and
established a republic.
• Power rests with the citizens who have the right to vote for their
leaders.
• In Rome, citizenship with voting rights was granted only to freeborn male citizens.
• Struggle For Power: Class Conflict.
• Patricians – Wealthy landowners who held most of the power:
inherited power and social status.
• Plebeians (Plebs) – common farmers, artisans and merchants who
made up the majority of the population: can vote, but can’t rule.
• Tribunes – elected representatives who protect plebeians’ political
rights.
• The Roman Republic – A “Balanced” Government.
• Rome elected two consuls – one to lead army, one to direct
government.
• Senate – chosen from patricians (Roman upper class), make
foreign and domestic policy.
• Popular assemblies elect tribunes, make laws for plebeians
(commoners).
• Dictators – leaders appointed briefly in times of crisis (appt. by
consuls and senate).
• In the early republic, the most powerful governing body was
the senate. Originally, its 300 members were all patricians,
or members of the landholding upper class. Senators, who
served for life, strongly influenced the republic’s laws
10
• Each year, the senators nominated two consuls from the patrician
class.
• Their job was to supervise the business of government and command
the armies.
• Consuls, however, could serve only one term. They were also
expected to approve each other’s decisions.
• By limiting their time in office and making them responsible to each
other, Rome had a system of checks on the power of government
11
• In the event of war, the senate might choose a
dictator, or ruler who has complete control over a
government. Each Roman dictator was granted
power to rule for six months. After that time, he had
to give up power.
12
• Romans particularly admired Cincinnatus as a model
dictator.
• Cincinnatus organized an army, led the Romans to
victory over the attacking enemy, attended victory
celebrations, and returned to his farmlands—all
within 15 days.
13
• At first, all government officials were patricians.
Plebeians (plih bee unz), the farmers, merchants,
artisans, and traders who made up the bulk of the
population, had little influence. The efforts of the
plebeians to gain power shaped politics in the early
republic
14
• In time, the plebeians gained the right to elect their own
officials, called tribunes, to protect their interests.
• The tribunes could veto, or block, those laws that they felt
were harmful to plebeians.
• Little by little, plebeians forced the senate to choose plebeians
as consuls, appoint plebeians to other high offices, and finally
to open the senate itself to plebeians.
15
• Another breakthrough for the plebeians came in 450 B.C.,
when the government oversaw the inscription of the laws of
Rome on 12 tablets, which were set up in the Forum, Rome’s
marketplace. Plebeians had protested that citizens could not
know what the laws were because they were not written down
16
• The Laws of the Twelve Tables made it possible for
the first time for plebeians to appeal a judgment
handed down by a patrician judge.
17
• The family was the basic unit of Roman society.
• Under Roman law, the male head of the household had
absolute authority.
• Women could own property and run businesses, but most
worked at home.
• Children were educated. The wealthy often hired Greek tutors.
18
• Roman women played a larger role in society than did Greek
women.
• They could own property, and, in later Roman times, women from all classes ran a
variety of businesses, from small shops to major shipyards.
• Those who made their fortunes earned respect by supporting the arts or paying for
public festivals.
• However, most women worked at home, raising their families, spinning, and
weaving
• Over the centuries, Roman women gained greater freedom and
influence.
• Patrician women went to the public baths, dined out, and attended the theater or
other forms of public entertainment with their husbands.
19
• Both girls and boys from the upper and lower classes, all learned to
read and write.
• By the later years of the republic, many wealthy Romans would hire
private tutors, often Greeks, to supervise the education of their
children.
• Under their guidance, children memorized major events and
developments in Roman history. Rhetoric was an important subject
for boys who wanted to pursue political careers.
20
• Roman religion develops out of Greek and Etruscan
religions
• The Romans believed in numerous gods and
goddesses, many of whom they adapted from Greek
Mythology and Religion.
21
• Throughout Rome, dozens of temples housed statues
of the gods.
• In front of these temples, Romans took part in ritual
activities such as worshipping the gods and asking
for divine assistance.
22
• The Roman calendar was full of feasts and other celebrations
to honor the gods and goddesses and to ensure divine favor for
the city. As loyal citizens, most Romans joined in these
festivals, which inspired a sense of community
23
• As Rome’s political and social systems evolved at home, its
armies expanded Roman power across Italy.
• Roman armies conquered first the Etruscans and then the
Greek city-states in the south.
• By about 270 B.C., Rome controlled most of the Italian
peninsula
24
• Rome’s success was due to skillful diplomacy and to its loyal,
well-trained army.
• All citizens were required to serve
• The basic military unit was the legion, each of which included
about 5,000 men.
• As in Greece, Roman armies consisted of citizen-soldiers who
originally fought without being paid and had to supply their
own weapons
25
• Eventually, they received a small stipend, or payment, but
their main compensation was always a share of the spoils of
victory. Roman citizens often made good soldiers because they
were brought up to value loyalty, courage, and respect for
authority.
26
• To ensure success, Roman commanders mixed rewards with
harsh punishment. Young soldiers who showed courage in
action won praise and gifts. If a unit fled from battle, however,
one out of every ten men from the disgraced unit was put to
death.
27
• Rome generally treated its defeated enemies with justice.
Conquered peoples had to acknowledge Roman
leadership, pay taxes, and supply soldiers for the Roman
army. In return, Rome let them keep their own customs,
money, and local government.
28
• To a few privileged groups among the conquered people, Rome
gave the highly prized right of full citizenship.
• Others became partial citizens, who were allowed to marry
Romans and carry on trade in Rome.
• As a result of such generous policies, most conquered lands
remained loyal to Rome even in troubled times.
29
• To protect its conquests, Rome posted soldiers throughout the land.
• It also built a network of all-weather military roads to link distant
territories to Rome.
• As trade and travel increased, local peoples incorporated Latin into
their languages and adopted many Roman customs and beliefs.
Slowly, Italy began to unite under Roman rule.
30
• When Octavian came to power in 31 B.C., he ended the
Roman republic and made Rome an empire
• Rome added many conquered lands to the republic and
gained control of important trade routes
• Roman civilization spread to faraway lands
• Romans also borrowed ideas from other cultures
• The blending of Greek, Hellenistic, and Roman cultures is
called Greco-Roman civilization
• Roman artists, architects, and writers borrowed ideas
from these different cultures
• The Romans used Greek statues in their homes and public
buildings
• Romans adapted the realistic Hellenistic style
• Statues should every detail of a subject, even warts and veins
• Roman builders used Greek columns
• However Roman buildings were mighty and grand rather than
simple and elegant
• Many Romans spoke Greek and used Greek writing styles
• Still, the greatest Roman writers such as Virgil, Horace, and
Livy used the Roman language of Latin for literature
• Romans were practical
• They built excellent roads, bridges, harbors, and aqueducts, or
bridge-like stone structures that brought water from the hills to
the cities
• The Romans did little scientific investigation
• They did, however, put science to practical use
• The used geography to make maps and medical
knowledge to improve public health
• The Romans also developed an important system of
law
• Under this system, people were innocent until proved guilty
• Decisions were based on fairness
• Roman law influenced the modern legal systems of the Americas
and Europe