Ancient Rome and the Rise of

Christianity

Early People

• 800 BC Latin people

share the peninsula

with the Etruscans

• Etruscans rule north

and central Italy

• Romans take much

from them: their

alphabet; the arch for

construction

The Republic

• 509 BC Rome drives

out the Etruscans

• Beginning of the

Roman State

• Republic; ‘belongs to

the people’

• People choose their

officials

Structuring the Republic

• Senate-the most powerful body

• Patricians-serve for life; hereditary, wealthy landholders

• Two consuls-one year

• Dictator-wartime; six months

• Plebians-elect tribunes; veto

Structuring Society

• Patriarchal; father has absolute power

• Women can own property; businesses

• Most stayed at home with families

• All children were educated

• Polytheistic; feasts and festivals

Jupiter

The Republic Grows

• By 270 BC Rome

controls most of the

peninsula

• Legions; 5000 citizen-

soldiers

• Rome builds a

network of roads for

trade and military use

The Appian Way

Rome’s Early Road System

From Republic to Empire

• Conquest and trade

brings Rome into

contact with Carthage

• As Rome expands

westward, there’s

conflict

• 264-146 BC they fight

the Punic Wars

The Punic Wars

• First; Rome wins Sicily, Corsica, and Sardinia

• Second 218 BC; Hannibal marches over the Alps into Italy

• Romans send army to Carthage; Hannibal returns and is defeated

• Third completely destroys Carthage

Impact at Home

• Conquest and trade made Rome rich

• New class of wealthy bought huge estates

• Conquest brought slaves into Rome to work on the estates

• Slave labor hurt small farmers; debt, loss of land

The Republic Declines

• Civil wars between the senate and political reformers

• Slave revolts

• Legions became professional armies loyal to commanders

• 48-44BC Julius Caesar pushes reforms; assassinated

• More civil wars

The Age of Empire

• Antony and Octavian

hunt down the killers

• They quarrel and

Octavian becomes

Emperor in 31 BC

• Takes the name

Augustus and rules

as an absolute ruler

un 14 AD

Stable Government

• Kept the senate in place

• Civil service based on merit

• Allowed self-government for cities

• Census; taxes; postal service; coinage; public works; all this leads to Pax Romana

Pax Romana

• 200 years; peace,

unity, order,

prosperity

• Roman legions

maintain the roads;

Roman fleets control

the seas

• Trade flourishes

along the Silk Road

Bread and Circuses

• Gladiator contests

and chariot races;

free grain given to the

city’s poor

• Paid for by taxes to

pacify restless mobs

• Covers underlying

social and economic

problems Circus Maximus

Roman Achievements

• Greco-Roman blending; literature, history, philosophy

• Law code; rules of evidence; jury

• Architecture is grand; columns and arches

• Excel at engineering; aqueducts move water miles

The Colosseum

Rise of Christianity

• Rome tolerates

religions

• Need to acknowledge

the emperor and their

gods, too

• Zealots are waiting for

a messiah to free

them

• Rebellion in Judea The Destruction of Jerusalem

A New Religion

• Outgrowth of Judaism

• Jesus and his

apostles

• Monotheistic

• Rome sees it as a

threat to their rule

• Jesus is put to death

• His apostles spread

his teachings

Rome Accepts Christianity

• The conversion of Saul spreads Christianity

• Paul spreads the message in spite of persecution of Christians

• Christians blamed for trouble in the empire

• 313 AD Constantine makes it the official religion of the empire

The Empire Declines

• Political violence and instability

• High taxes to support the army

• Farmland loses its productivity

• Farmers leave their land

• Diocletian tries to stop the decay

Diocletian Splits the Empire

Byzantium

Barbarian Invasions

The Fall of Rome

• Political, economic, and social decay

• Migrating nomads attack

• Rome is sacked

• In 434 Attila, the Scourge of God, attacks

• In 476 the emperor is ousted

Istanbul