Ancient Rome The Roman Empire (Continued). Key Terms Augustus Pax Romana.
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Transcript of Ancient Rome The Roman Empire (Continued). Key Terms Augustus Pax Romana.
Ancient Rome
The Roman Empire (Continued)
Key Terms
• Augustus• Pax Romana
Rise of the Empire
• Following Caesar’s death, another civil war broke out
• Three of Caesar’s supporters worked together to get rid of the senate that killed him
Second Triumvirate
• Octavian was the 18-year old grandnephew and adopted son of Caesar
• Mark Antony was an experienced general who was friends with Caesar
• Lepidus who was a powerful politician
• Took control of Rome and ruled for 10 years
Triumvirate Falls Apart• Violence and jealousy• Octavian forced Lepidus to
retire• Antony met Cleopatra while
guiding troops to fight in Anatolia
• Antony fell in love and followed her to Egypt
• Octavian accused him of trying to rule Rome from Egypt and civil war broke out
Octavian Defeats Antony
• Octavian’s forces defeated Antony’s and Cleopatra’s joined forces in the naval battle of Actium in 31 B.C.
• Antony and Cleopatra later committed suicide
Augustus• Octavian returned to Rome
and became the unchallenged ruler of Rome
• The Senate gave him the title of consul and dictator for life
• He changed his name to Augustus which meant “chosen one” and became the first Roman emperor
• Rome was now ruled by one man
Pax Romana
• Rome was at peak of it’s power from 27 B.C. (beginning of Augustus’ rule) to A.D. 180
• Empire at peace, except for fighting with tribes near Roman Empire’s borders
• Time period known as Pax Romana, which means “Roman peace”
Government
• Empire had population of 60 to 80 million people, with about 1 million in the city of Rome
• Augustus stabilized the frontier, glorified Rome with spectacular buildings, and created a long lasting government
Civil Servants• Set up by Augustus• Paid workers to manage
the tasks of government- examples are grain supply, collect taxes, and the postal system
• Senate still functional• Civil servants, made up of
plebeians and former slaves administered the empire
Agriculture and Trade
• Agriculture was most important industry
• About 90% of people were farmers
• Most Romans survived on produce from local area
• Additional food and luxury items for the rich were obtained by trade
Trade
• Silver coins called denarius was used as money
• Common money made trade easier in the different parts of the empire
Trade Networks• Ships traveled the Mediterranean
Sea to trade with Roman controlled cities on the coasts
• Rome also traded with India and China
• A network of roads connected Rome to inland parts of the empire
• Roads initially built for military, but used for trade and spread of Roman culture
Reflection
• Describe how Caesar Augustus changed Rome into a peaceful and prosperous empire.