ANCIENT ROME
The city of Rome began as a small farming village by a river called Tiber.
As time passed, more villages were built and eventurally they joined together to form a city.
The story of Romulus According to a Roman legend, the city was set up by a boy named Romulus. As babies, he and his twin brother Remus had been left to die near the Tiber.
They were found by a Wolf who fed them until they were rescued by a shepherd.
When the twins grew up, they decided to buld a city on the Banks of the Tiber.
They had a violent quarrel. Romulus killed his brother and named the city after himself. Tradition says this happened in 753BC.
The Roman Republic Until around 509BC, Rome was ruled by kings. Then, the last King was driven out of the city and Rome became a republic.
The Roman Republic was ruled by the Senate, a group of men (called senators) who came from the city’s most important families.
Led by the Senate, the Romans gradually conquered all of Italy.
Conquering Carthage In 264BC, a series of wars broke out between the Romans and Carthage in North Africa. Both sides fought over whom should control de Mediterranean Sea.
The Carthaginians invaded Italy using 40 elephants to cross the Alps.
The wars between Rome and Carthage are known as the Punic Wars. They ended in 146BC when Carthage were completely destroyed.
The Romans took over the Carthaginian lands and went on to conquer all the kingdoms around the Mediterranean.
Julius Caesar As the Romans won more land, the senators argued over how things should be run. Rival groups of senators used the army to help them fight for power.
In 49BC, a general called Julius Caesar marched with his army to Rome and seized power. Caesar brought peace, but some senators grew worriend that he planned to make himself King, so they killed him.
The first emperor After Juluis Caesar died, there were more struggles for power. In 31BC, Caesar’s greatnephew, Octavian, defeated his rival, Mark Anthony, and won control of Rome.
Octavian took the name of Augustus, which means “respected one”. He became Rome’s first emperor.
By the time Augustus became emperor, Rome controlled most of the land around the Mediterranean Sea.
Over the next 150 years, the Romans conquered even more land, creating an empire that streteched from Britain to the Middle East.
The Empire was at its largest in AD 117 during the rule of Emperor Trajan.
The Roman Army The Romans won wars because they had a strong, well organised army, and their soldiers fought in highly disciplined groups.
A group of 80 soldiers was called a century, centuries were grouped into cohorts, and ten cohorts made up a legion.
The soldiers had to build a camp to defend their position from enemies’ attacks. At the borders of the empire, where soldiers where needed all the time, permanent forts were built.
To keep the empire under control, soldiers had to be able to move quickly to wherever they were needed. A network of good roads was built linking every part of the Empire.
“All roads lead to Rome”
Life in a Roman Town Roman towns were very well planned. They had many different public buildings, such as temples and public baths (“thermae�), as well as houses, apartment blocks, shops and restaurants.
In the towns, most people lived in crowded apartment blocks of several floors. They were “insulae”
Rich people had spacious houses with shady gardens. The houses were beutifully decorated inside. They were “domus�.
Some rich Romans lived in the countryside. The houses were called “uillae�
Roman towns needed lots of fresh water to supply public baths, fountais, toilets. Acueducts took water to where it was needed.
Fun and Games Wealthy Romans had lots of free time because they had slaves to do all the work for them.
There were so many slaves working in Rome that poorer Romans could not find jobs. To keep them happy, the emperor handed out free food and put on spectacles shows, called “the games�.
Gladiators were slaves who were made to fight to entertain the crowds.
Fights took place in huge stadiums called amphiteatres.
The biggest amphiteatre was the Colosseum, in Rome, which held 50,000 people. The name came from a huge statue of emperor Nero placed next to the stadium.
The most popular of the games were chariot races. The races were exciting to watch but they were dangerous, as drivers were often thrown off and killed.
They were held a a racetrack called circus.
Romans liked drama. The first plays were copied from Greek ones. Many theatres were built all over the Empire.
The Spread of Christianity The Christian Religion began during the Roman Empire. Jesus’ followers spread His teachings throught the Empire.
Paul of Tarsus took the Christian message to Asia Minor (Turkey), to Greece and even to Rome
Christianity spread quickly around the Roman Empire. Some emperors saw the Christians as rebels because they refused the Roman gods. Thousands were arrested, tortured and killed.
The Emperor Constantine was the first Roman ruler to accept the Christian faith. After seeing the cross of light in the sky, he won a battle against his rivals. Then, he became Christian.
Constantine gave Christians the freedom to worship openly, and helped to spread Christianity across Europe. He built Christian churches. Finally, in AD391, the emperor Theodosius made Christianity the offial religion of the Roman Empire.
The Fall of Rome Around AD200, the power of Roman Empire began to weaken.
WHY? - The armies chose their own emperors - Fighting broke out between different groups of soldiers - The Empire was attacked by tribes from the northeast, known as Germani (“Barbarians�)
Many emperors tried to defend the Empire:
- Diocletian (3rd Century) reorganized the army. - He also split the empire in two (Tetrarchy) - Constantine (4th Century) moved the capital of the Empire to Byzantium, on the Black Sea. It was renamed as Constantinople.
Around AD370, Eastern Europe was invaded by people from central Asia, called the Huns
This is Attila, the Hun
As the Huns moved across Europe, they pushed the Germanic tribes off their land and into the Roman Empire.
The Roman Empire was invaded by the Barbarian Peoples‌
The Romans allowed some Germanic Tribes, such as the Visigoths, to settle inside the empire, as long as they helped to fight off other Barbarians.
In AD395, Emperor Theodosius split the Roman Empire permanently into East and West.
Western Roman Empire
Eastern Roman Empire
The city of Rome was attacked by the Visigoths in AD410 and by the Vandals in AD455.
In AD476, the last Roman Emperor, Romulus Augustulus, lost his Crown and the Roman Empire disapeared. A Visigoth chief called Odoacer made himself King of Italy, and the Western Empire came to and end.