Chapter 5The Roman World

Ancient Italy and the City of Rome

Emergence of Rome Greek colonization, 750-550 B.C.E. Etruscans Early Rome, 753-509 B.C.E.

Romulus and Remus, 753 B.C.E. Roman Republic

Conquest of Italy Roman State

Two consuls, imperiumPraetor, imperiumSenate , 300 men serving for lifeCenturiate assembly, Roman army

Struggle of the Orders

Roman Conquest

Roman Conquest of the Mediterranean (264-133 B.C.E.) Punic Wars

First Punic War, 264-241 B.C.E.Second Punic War, 218-201 B.C.E.

Hannibal Battle of Cannae, 216 B.C.E. Battle of Zama, 202 B.C.E.

Third Punic War, 149-146 B.C.E. Eastern Meditrranean

MacedoniaPergamum

Remains of Carthage

Decline and Fall of the Roman Republic (133-31 B.C.E.) Reforms

Gracchi brothers Roman army

Marius and Sulla Collapse of the Republic

Crassus, Pompey, and Julius Caesar Age of Augustus (31 B.C.E.-14 C.E.)

GovernmentPrinceps

SocietyClasses

senatorial, equestrian, lower

Expansion of Roman Territories to 100 C.E.

Expansion of Roman Territories to 100 C.E.

1. The first war between Rome and Carthage (264-241 B.C.E) centered on Sicily and the Straits of Messina between Sicily and Italy. The defeat of Carthage forced it to surrender Corsica and Sardinia. In a second conflict, Hannibal, a Carthagenian general, in 218 B.C.E. organized in Spain an invasion force of 30,000-40,000 infantry, 6,000 cavalry, and about forty war elephants. Crossing the Alps, Hannibal annihilated the Roman army at Cannae in 216 B.C.E. thereby gaining control of most of Italy. The city of Rome, however, did not fall. In 202 B.C.E., Hannibal was forced to abandon Italy and defend Carthage from a Roman army. The Carthagenian defeat at Zama resulted in the surrender of Spain to the Romans.

2. In order to protect Rome's ally Massilia (Marseille) from the Gauls, the southern region of Gaul in was annexed 121 B.C.E. After Julius Caesar became the governor of Cisalpine and Narbonese Gaul in 58 B.C.E., war was waged on the Gauls for two years. Caesar proclaimed conquest in 56 B.C.E. and the Senate prematurely declared it a Roman province. The region was not fully conquered by Caesar until four years later.

3. In 67 B.C.E. Pompey was sent against the pirates of the Cilician coast who were ultimately defeated. Pompey then turned his attention to Bithynia, Pontus, Syria, and Judea that were soon conquered, much to the joy of Roman businessmen and merchants.

4. In late summer 31 B.C.E. the forces of Octavian defeated those of Antony and Cleopatra at Actium. Following the death of Cleopatra, Octavian took the Egyptian throne for himself and did not make Egypt a province. Also after Actium, Augustus personally completed the conquest of Spain and between 19 B.C.E. and 9 B.C.E. Illyricum, Pannonia, and Rhaetia were subjugated. Rome expanded into Germany in 15 B.C.E when its forces crossed the Rhine River. By 9 B.C.E. they had reached eastern Germany. In 9 C.E., the Roman governor of Germania led three legions (16,200 men) into a trap at Teutoberg Forest and all were killed by a coalition of Germanic tribes. In the aftermath of the defeat, the army on the frontier was reorganized and by the order of Augustus withdrawn to the Rhine River, which was to be the boundary between the Germans and Gaul. The Danube River would serve the same purpose further east.

5. The provinces were divided into two classes by Augustus (Octavian), those that did not require active defense and those that did. The first category, ruled by the Senate, included Sicily, Baetica, Narbonensis, Macedonia, Achaia, Asia Minor, Bithynia, Pontus, Cyprus, Crete, Cyrenaica, and North Africa. Augustus’s own representatives governed all the other provinces. This division allowed Augustus to retain control of the army in difficult provinces and draw upon their wealth.

6. The defensive imperialism established by Augustus was generally pursued by his successors. Claudius (41-54) made Britain a province and annexed Mauritania, Lycia, and Thrace (all of which had been dependencies left under native princes). Vespasian (69-79) annexed the angle between the Rhine and the Danube Rivers. Trajan (98-117), after a prolonged war with the Dacians, made Dacia a province. In the east, he warred against Parthia annexed Arabia Petraea and made provinces of Armenia, northern Mesopotamia, and Syria. Overextended and facing revolts by Jews in the east and counterattacks by the Parthians, Rome had to withdraw its troops from Armenia.

7. During the Empire some cities grew to be quite large, particularly in the east, Alexandria in Egypt had over 300,000 inhabitants; Ephesus in Asia Minor counted 200,000; and in Syria, Antioch had about 150,000 residents.

Questions:1. What will be the consequences of an empire so spread out in the Mediterranean?2. What were the barriers that prevented further expansion of the Roman Empire?

Products of the Roman Empire, c. 200 C.E.

Products of the Roman Empire, c. 200 C.E.

1. Italy was poor in minerals, having no gold and little silver but a fair supply of iron, some copper, lead, tin, and zinc. All, however, was inadequate to support industrial development. Moreover, metallurgy and technology made few advances; therefore, during the Republic bronze was employed more frequently than iron. The most prosperous industries were bronze work in Capua, manufacture of weapons and tools in Campania, and pottery in Arretium.

2. One of the most significant problems holding back early Rome from industrial production was the difficulty of transport. Traffic moved along canals and rivers while coastal towns imported by sea rather than from the interior. This was alleviated during the republic when Rome began to build a road system. The Appian Way between Rome and Capua was eventually extended as far as Brundisium thereby facilitating greater trade with Greece and the East.

3. Goods from the Far East came by two routes. One route was by sea from India to the Persian Gulf, up the Tigris River to Seleucia and then on to Antioch. The second route also came from India by sea but went around the Arabian Peninsula, up the Red Sea, overland by caravan to Coptos on the Nile, and then to Alexandria.

4. Movement of goods by sea was very risky at best. The ships were small and made only about six miles an hour by sail or rowing. They typically hugged the coast since the compass did not yet exist and navigation was very rudimentary. Because the weather in the Mediterranean could be treacherous in the winter, most ships stayed in port from November to March. When the ships did sail, typically it would take nine days to travel from Ostia, the port for Rome at the mouth of the Tiber River, to Gades (Cadez); five days from Ostia to Carthage; twenty days from Ostia to Caesarea in the East; and fifteen to twenty days from Puteoli on the Bay of Naples to Alexandria.

5. Internal peace and a single currency throughout the provinces during the Empire brought unprecedented levels of trade and accompanying prosperity. The trade, however, was unbalanced. Exports included Arretine pottery, some wine, olive oil, metalware, glass, and perfumes from Campania, and, significantly, silver to pay for vast imports. One of the most important imported products was grain needed to feed the burgeoning population of Rome. This primarily came from Spain, North Africa, Egypt, and Asia Minor. Some of the other imported products included black slaves and wild beasts for the arena from Africa; gold, silver, and horses from Spain; timber, textiles, wine, and pottery from Gaul; amber, slaves, and furs from Germany; fine linen and woolen fabrics from Asia Minor; wine, silk, and linen from Syria; and textiles, perfumes, and drugs from Palmyra.

Questions:1. What would be the consequence of Rome's dependency on imported grains and luxury goods?2. What factors inhibited Roman industrialization?

Early Empire (14-180) Reign of Julio-Claudians, 14-69 Five Good Emperors, 96-180 Roman Empire at Its Height

TerritoryProsperity

Culture and Society in the Roman World Literature

Plautus (c. 254-184 B.C.E.)Catullus (c. 87-54 B.C.E.)Cicero (106-43 B.C.E.)Virgil (70-19 B.C.E), AeneidHorace (65-8 B.C.E.)Ovid (43 B.C.E.-18 C.E.), MetamorphosesLivy (59 B.C.E.-17 C.E.), History of RomeSeneca (c. 4 B.C.E.-65 C.E.)Tacitus (c. 56-120)

Imperial Rome

Imperial Rome

1. The center of Rome and the empire was the Forum that housed the Temple of Saturn where the treasury was kept, the House of the Vestal Virgins, and the Basilica Aemilia and Julia where the most important legal cases were heard. At the north end of the Forum was the curia (Senate house) and the cometium (meeting place of the assemblies). The cura was a small and simple building with three rows of uncomfortable marble seats for the senators. Immediately next to the cura was the cometium, a paved space featuring a platform from which an orator might speak. The streets were lined with shops.

2. Overlooking the Forum to the south was Palatine Hill. Of the seven hills of Rome, this was by tradition the first to be settled, probably because there is an island at its foot which allowed easy fording of the Tiber River. Here were found the homes of the leading patricians.

3. South of Palatine Hill was the great chariot arena, the Circus Maximus that was first built during Etruscan rule. It was 2200 feet long and 705 feet wide with seats enough to sit 180,000. Near to it was the Hippodrome that served the same purpose.

4. The Great Fire of Rome in 64 started in the shops where the Palatine reaches the Circus Maximus. Because much of Rome at this time was made of wood, the fire spread rapidly and burned for six days, stopping just short of the Forum. Two-thirds of the city was destroyed. When rebuilt, a plan was utilized specifying building materials (marble and cement) and street layouts.

5. The population of Rome was about one million and included about 400,000 slaves and 300,000 free workers. Perhaps 200,000 were on the state dole for bread. Blocks of tenements near the heart of the city ranged six to ten stories high. By the fourth century there were fewer than 2000 private homes.

6. The Campus Martius (Field of Mars) featured theaters, baths, and stadiums. On this field athletes competed and the legions practiced. The assemblies would meet here to go through the motions of democracy.

7. The Walls of Servius were the first to protect Rome. Rebuilt after the raid of the Gauls in 390 B.C., they eventually lapsed into ruins as peace came. The new Walls of the Emperors was erected in 270.

8. By the fourth century there were 856 baths and 1352 public swimming pools. The Baths of Nero could accommodate 1600 people, the Baths of Caracella, 3000. Baths were opened from daybreak to one P.M. for women and from two to eight P.M. for men. Nevertheless, most emperors permitted mixed bathing. (Will Durant, Caesar and Christ, p. 375)

Questions:1. What urban problems could be expected in Rome?2. How did the city of Rome express the greatness of the empire?

Art and architecture Roman law

Twelve Tables, 450 B.C.E.Law of nationsLaw of nature

Roman familyPaterfamilias

SlaveryFearRevolts

Imperial Rome Gladiatorial contests

Rise of Christianity Roman religion Jewish religion

Judaea Christian religion

Jesus of Nazareth (c. 6 B.C.E.-29 C.E.), ChristosPaul of Tarsus (c. 5-c. 67)Growth

The Later Restored Roman Empire

The Later Restored Roman Empire

1. The increasing orientation of the Roman Empire to the East (wealthier and more defensible) is illustrated by Diocletian's (284-305) choice of Nicomedia on the Sea of Marmara as the seat for his rule of the eastern empire (Prefecture of the East). The Senate still met in Rome but the power lay with Diocletian. Moreover, he recognized that only by this reorganization could Europe and Asia of the Roman Empire be defended.

2. The co-ruler (through acknowledging the seniority of Diocletian) was the faithful general Maximian who was given the title augustus, a title synonymous with emperor. To be closer to frontier defenses, he chose as his capital not Rome but Milan on the northern frontier of Cisalpine Gaul.

3. Chosen as aid (caesar) and successor by Diocletian was Galerius who capital was Sirmium near the Danube River at the eastern end of the province of Pannonia. From here the Danube provinces could be defended from the Dacians.

4. Maximian (308-314) selected as his caesar Constantius Chlorus whose capital was Augusta Trevirorum in Belgica located in the northeastern sector of the Prefecture of Gaul. From here the Rhine River was to be protected from the Germans.

5. Because the reorganization of the Roman Empire did not work after Diocletian retired, Constantine (306-337) seized power following the battles of Milvian Bridge north of Rome (312), Adrianople (323) and Scutari (324) which allowed him to establish himself as sole emperor. Nevertheless, like Diocletian, Constantine recognized that the wealth and future of the empire lay in the East and therefore established his capital at Constantinople (old Byzantium) at the mouth of the Black Sea.

Questions:1. Why was the eastern part of the empire stronger than that of the western part?2. What were the implications of Rome being abandoned as the seat of government?3. Why will the attempts of Diocletian to establish a means of orderly succession fail?

Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire Civil war, 235-284 Invasions Diocletian (284-305)

Four administrative unitsEconomic policies

Constantine (306-337)Political reformsMilitary reformsConstantinople

Christianity Western Roman Empire