Geography

Landscape

• The land is not very flat because Rome is on seven hills.

• The Tiber River wad nearby so farm land was fertile and had great water access.

• The green countryside was hilly and most farms were locater here along with some other homes.

Location

• Rome was on the west coast of Italy so Rome had great advantages with sea trade.

• North of Rome was the Alps, keeping Rome safe from attacks from the north.

• Because the Apennine Mountains ran through most of Italy, it got separated into two sections, the eastern part and the western part. Rome was on the western par.

Expansion

• When the Romans beat the Carthaginians in the First Punic War Rome gained the island of Sicily.

• By the end of the Third Punic War the Romans had the land of Spain, Macedonia, Greece and the islands of Corsica and Sardinia.

• By the time of Cesar's death, in 44 B.C. Rome had control of Gual, Asia Minor, Syria, the northern part of Egypt and the

north-eastern of part of Africa.

City

• The forum was the center of the city.

• The city also had many arches. These arches represented the victories of the military.

• The Coliseum was also a main part of the city. This is where the rich and poor could come for entertainment.

Religion

Christianity

• Christians were persecuted because thy refused to worship the Roman gods and emperors.

• Christians became martyrs.

• The Romans became so impressed with the martyrs that they started to convert to Christianity in large numbers.

Etruscan Mysticism

• Etruscan diviners used the stars to make the layout of their town.

• The diviners also read the insides of animals before conducting burial.

• The Etruscans also believed that the gods gave them signs of nature.

Roman Mythology

• The Romans believed in many gods from the Greek and Etruscan religions.

• Romans believes that the gods lived in places like rocks, trees and streams.

• When Rome became an empire, and got an emperor, they started to think of the emperors as gods.

Jewish Beliefs

• Jews didn’t believe in cremation because they wanted the soul to go to heaven.

• Jews only believe in one god.

• Jews only painted pictures because it was easier to depict a story from the Biblical Story Book.

Achievements

Aqueducts

• Romans got the idea of the aqueducts from the Etruscans.

• The aqueduct was used to transport water from a water source to most any other place.

• The aqueducts may have carried water to the farming fields or to the forum where everyone could have access to it.

Paved Roads

• The paved roads were mostly used for trade.

• The roads were also used to move the armies to where they needed to go, quicker.

• Rome’s roads varied from simple corduroy to paves roads with a rubber under layer to keep the roads from turning into mud and clay.

Language

• The main language of Ancient Rome was Latin.

• The language also made it easier to write.

• The Romans made the advancement in changing from a rolled script to a bound book.

Technology and Science

• Some types of technology and science are ship building, architecture, baths, sewage pipes and medicine.

• Medicine was a big advancement. The Roman physicians used tools such as scalpels and knives.

• Ship building was another advancement. Without ships the Romans wouldn’t be able to trade by sea or attack by sea.

Politics

Republican Form of Government

• Rome was set up a republican in 509 B.C. , a government which the citizens pick their leaders.

• The constitution of the U.S. is based on the Roman Republic’s system of of balancing the legislative, judicial, and executive powers of government.

• By 275B.C. no single class of people controlled the government.

Twelve Tables

• The Twelve Tablets were placed in the forum even though they only applied to the Roman citizens.

• One of the laws states that a person accused innocent was innocent until they were proved guilty.

• The main ideas of the Roman laws became the basis for many codes of law in other places such as European countries and America.

Hadrian

• Hadrian influenced Greek culture

throughout the empire by surrounding himself with the scholars and writers.

• Hadrian traveled more widely throughout the empire so he was able to listen to the concerns of the people of the different provinces.

• Hadrian was not all good, he made his 90 year old brother-in-law commit suicide then he ordered the execution of his brother-in-laws son both of which he thought were part of a plan to seize the throne.

Spartacus

• Spartacus believed that slaves were treated very badly.

• He also defeated nine different Roman armies in just a two year revolt.

• He believed that when Rome expanded it hurt Rome because it increased slavery.

Economy

Excessive Military Spending

• When the government spent a lot of money on the military there wasn’t enough money for the needs of the city.

• Later on, the Roman citizens got tired of defending the empire so they had to hire soldiers.

• When the government started hiring soldiers, it became a very expensive thing to do so the government raising the taxes.

Inflation

• Because the value of coins decreased people began to barter.

• Many people had to pay their salaries in food and clothing.

• Also the taxes were starting to be paid in fruit and vegetables.

Jobs

• Slaves usually worked on farms and got paid very little.

• Mining was a very dangerous job so the slaves and criminals did this job.

• When less gold was put into coins the shop owners had to raise the amount of coins they charge for good to equal the old price of less coins but more gold in the coin.

Unemployment

• Farmers who had to pay workers had to sell their crops for more money.

• Slave owners could sell their crops for less money therefore farmers lost their jobs because most everyone would buy the cheaper crops.

• At one point so many citizens had no jobs that the emperor had to import grain to feed more than one hundred thousand people in Rome itself.

Social Structure

Order of People

• The upper class was the patricians.

• The common people of Rome were the plebeians.

• At the very top, above all was the emperor.

Entertainment

• If the emperor went to a chariot race at Circus Maximus, he would get to sit in a chair with cushions and sit close to the field.

• The wealthy got to sit close to the field in cushioned chairs with linen shades over them.

• The poor had to sit farther way from the field on wooden benches.

Housing

• The way people lived varied on their money just like today.

• Wealthy people lived in fancy homes with beautiful furniture, indoor pools, gardens and plenty of space and light.

• The poor lived in one to ten story apartment building and were made of wood and were not very safe or sanitary.

Slavery

• Because slaves are a the bottom of the social order they are thought to be the least important.

• The slaves did all the house work for most families and helped with the kids.

• Sometimes families sold their children into slavery if they thought they were no good to the family.