The Roman Empire

Presented by:Deepak Kumar ( 10 )

Ashish Singh( 11 )Sandeep Kumar ( )

Roman Empire

Struggle for control■ Alexander died in 323 B.C.■ Rome dominated most of the Italian peninsula■ Expansion southward brought Rome into collision

with Carthage, the greatest power in the western Mediterranean

■ Second Carthaginian war (218-201 B.C.): Rome’s southern Italian allies defected to Hannibal

■ Third war with Carthage in 201 B.C.: Rome emerged not merely victorious but a world power

Rome’s transformation into world-power

■ Roman transformation of Greek tradition through contact with Greek cities in southern Italy, Sicily and mainland Greece

■ Greek culture began to permeate Roman ■ The military victories brought in huge numbers of

enslaved war captives■ Wealthy businessman exerted control over the

government■ Growing gulf between the wealthy and the poor

How was the Republic replaced by imperial rule?

■ General prosperity masked the potential conflicts■ Civil war■ By the end of the first century B.C., Rome was the

capital of an empire that stretched from the Straits of Gibraltar to the frontiers of Palestine

■ It gave peace and orderly government to the Mediterranean area for the next two centuries

Rome in first century B.C.

Rome’s legacy■ The ideal of the world –state, an ideal that was taken over by

the medieval Church■ The Church claimed a spiritual authority as great as the

secular authority it replaced■ How did they achieve success?■ Talent for practical affairs (aqueducts)■ Not notable political theorists, but they organized a stable

federation■ Conservative to the core: gravitas■ The great body of Roman law is one of their greatest

contribution to Western civilization

Aquaduct

Compare Roman and Greek civilizations

■ Rome: manliness, industry, discipline■ Greece: adaptability, versatility, grace■ Greek history begins with an epic poem■ The Romans conquered half of the world before they

began to write■ Latin literature began with a translation of the

Odyssey■ Latin writers borrowed from Greek originals openly

and proudly (Virgil)

Odyssey

Roman emperors■ The civil conflict ended in the establishment of a powerful

executive■ The Senate retained an impressive share of the power in the

Republic, but the new development led to autocracy■ Augustus, after the murder of his uncle Julius Caesar in 44

BC., controlled the western half of the empire by 31 B.C.■ Battle with Mark Anthony, ruler of the eastern half of the

empire■ Augustus’s victory united the empire under one authority

and ushered in an age of peace and reconstruction

Roman emperors■ The successors of Augustus ruled the ancient world for the

next 200 years with only occasional disturbances■ Nero who abused his immense power was overthrown■ A.D. 96-180 “Five good emperors”:■ Longest period of peace that has ever been enjoyed by the

inhabitants of an area that included Britain, France, southern Europe, the Middle East, North Africa

■ Yet the literature of the second century reflects a spiritual emptiness described in Petronius’s Satyricon: the new rich can think only in terms of money and material possessions

Religion■ New religions were imported from the East that made their

appeal to citizens of the world: to all nations and classes■ Worship of the Egyptian goddess Isis■ Hebrew prophet Jesus, crucified in Jerusalem, risen from the

dead■ Christianity, persecuted and working underground, finally

triumphed and became the official religion of the Roman world

■ The Church in Rome, by converting the new inhabitants, made possible the preservation of much of that Latin and Greek literature that was to serve as a basis for the Middle Ages and the Renaissance

The Roman Republic

Rome began as a city-state that was heavily influenced by Greek culture

The Roman Republic

By 509 B.C., Rome was ruled by

elected Senators who served in the Roman Republic

The Roman Republic During the Republic, Rome expanded by defeating Carthage in the Punic Wars & later under generals

like Julius Caesar

The Roman Republic But, the Republic weakened due to

corruption, civil wars, & the assassination of

Julius Caesar in 44 B.C.

The Roman Empire

After Caesar’s death, Rome became an

empire ruled by the Emperor Augustus

The Roman Empire

Pax Romana

Under Augustus, Rome entered an era

of peace & prosperity known as

the Pax Romana

The Roman Republic

Pax Romana

Era of decline

After 207 years of prosperity during the Pax Romana, the Empire began to decline & was

conquered in 476 A.D.

The Decline of the Roman Empire■The fall of the Roman Empire happened

in 3 major stages:–An era of decline due to internal

problems within Rome

The Romans experienced political problemsThe empire was too large for one emperor to control

Emperors after the Pax Romana

were weak

Citizens experienced a loss of confidence, patriotism, & loyalty

to the Roman gov’t

The Romans experienced economic problemsOutside groups disrupted trade

Poor harvests led to food shortages

Rome had a trade imbalance (they bought more than they produced)

The gov’t raised taxes & printed new coins which led to inflation

The economic decline left many

Romans poor

The Romans experienced military problemsGermanic tribes outside Rome were gaining

strengthThe Roman military was growing weak: generals

were challenging the authority of the emperors

To save money, Romans hired foreign soldiers

but these “mercenaries” were not loyal to Rome

The Decline of the Roman Empire■The fall of the Roman Empire happened

in 3 major stages:–An era of decline due to internal

problems within Rome –A brief period of revival due to reforms

by Emperors Diocletian & Constantine

Attempts to Reform the Empire ■ In 284 A.D. Emperor Diocletian came to

power & made a series of reforms that temporarily halted Rome’s decline–To fix the military, he doubled

the size of the Roman army–To fix the economy, he fixed

prices for goods–To fix the lack of loyalty,

he presented himself as a godlike emperor

Diocletian’s most important reform was realizing Rome was too large & dividing the empire into

the Western Eastern Roman Empires The empire was divided

between Greek-speaking & Latin-speaking halves

The East was far wealthier than the West because it had most of the great cities & trade centers

But, the empire was also divided

by wealth

Attempts to Reform the Empire ■After Diocletian, the emperor Constantine

came to power & continued to reform Rome–To help unify Rome, he

ended persecutions & converted to Christianity–He moved the official

capital from Rome to a new city in the East, called Constantinople

Constantinople was a major trade center & was easy to defend; They city was built in the Roman

style but had a strong Greek & Christian influence

The Decline of the Roman Empire■The fall of the Roman Empire happened

in 3 major stages:–An era of decline due to internal

problems within Rome –A brief period of revival due to reforms

by Emperors Diocletian & Constantine–Continued decline, invasion by Germanic

“barbarians”, & the conquest of Rome

The Collapse of the Roman Empire After Emperors Diocletian & Constantine, the Western Roman Empire continued to decline

Disease, corruption, & declining economy exposed the West to attack from outside invasions

The Collapse of the Roman Empire

By 370 A.D., “barbarian” groups outside Rome, led by the Huns, began to attack

The weak Roman army in the West could do little to stop the invasions; By 476, Germanic

barbarians conquered Western Rome

The Fall of Rome

After the Fall of Rome The decline of the Western Roman Empire led to the Middle Ages

After the Fall of Rome The East became the Byzantine Empire & flourished for another thousand years

The Byzantine Empire kept alive the cultural achievements of

ancient Greece & Rome

The Classical Era

The civilizations of the Classical Era produced important achievements that are still used today

The combination of Greek & Roman achievements are

known as Greco-Roman culture

Reading Focus

• What problems did leaders face in the late Roman Republic?

• How did Rome become an empire?

• What helped tie the Roman empire together during the Pax Romana?

Main Idea

Governmental and social problems led to the end of the Roman Republic and the creation of a new form of government.

From Republic to Empire

By the mid-100s BC, Rome had no rival anywhere in the Mediterranean world. However, the responsibilities of running their vast holdings stretched the Roman political system to its limits.

• Revolution began in political, social institutions

• Tensions grew between classes of Roman society

• Gracchi brothers tried to resolve tension

Social Unrest

• Tribune Tiberius Gracchus noted mistreatment of soldier-farmers

• Many reduced to poverty

• Tiberius, brother Gaius tried to help soldiers

Soldier-Farmers

• Gracchi tried to redistribute public land to farmers

• Had public support, but Senate feared Gracchi trying to reduce its power

• Senate urged mobs to kill brothers

Public Land

Problems in the Late Republic

The Military in Politics

■ 107 BC, social unrest reached new level

■General Gaius Marius elected consul

– Eliminated property restrictions

– Accepted anyone who wanted to join army

■Armies, private forces devoted to general

– Poor hoped to share plunder at end of war

– Ruthless generals realized loyalty of troops could be used as political tool

• Social War revealed talent of General Lucius Cornelius Sulla

• Sulla became consul, 88 BC; after consulship ended, Marius tried to prevent Sulla from taking military command

• Sulla marched on Rome, won civil war, became dictator

• Carried out program of reforms to protect power of Senate

Civil War

• Rome’s Italian allies had been trying to obtain Roman citizenship

• Senate wanted to maintain monopoly on power, refused

• 90 BC, Social War broke out

• Italian rebels were defeated, but Senate agreed to give them citizenship

The Social War

Social and Civil Wars

Sulla paved the way for major changes in Rome’s government. The end of the Republic resulted from the ambitions of a few individuals.

• Julius Caesar, Gnaeus Pompey, Licinius Crassus helped bring end to Republic

• Caesar, Pompey successful military commanders

• Crassus one of wealthiest people in Rome

• 60 BC, the three took over Roman state, ruled as First Triumvirate

The First Triumvirate• Crassus died; Pompey, Caesar fought

civil war

• Caesar defeated Pompey, took full control of Rome, became dictator for life, 44 BC

• Caesar brought many changes to Rome, popular reforms

• Senate feared he would destroy Roman Republic, murdered him, Ides of March

End of Triumvirate

Rome Becomes an Empire

Civil War• Civil war between Octavian, Antony broke out

• Octavian defeated Antony and his ally, Egypt’s Queen Cleopatra

• Cleopatra, Antony committed suicide; Octavian alone controlled Rome

• Republic effectively dead; new period in Roman history beginning

The Second Triumvirate• Caesar’s murder did not save the Republic

• 43 BC, Second Triumvirate took power—Caesar’s adopted son, Octavian; loyal officer Marc Antony; high priest Lepidus

• Lepidus pushed aside; Antony, Octavian agreed to govern half the empire each, Octavian in west, Antony in East

Octavian Takes Power• Octavian faced task of restoring order

in empire• Had no intention of establishing

dictatorship when he took power

Principate• Octavian careful to avoid title of king

or emperor• Called himself princeps, “first citizen”• Government called Principate

New Political Order• Octavian decided it impossible to

return Rome to republican form of government

• Created new political order, known today as the empire

New Title• 27 BC, Senate gave Octavian title

Augustus, “the revered one” • Title a religious honor; able to wear

laurel and oak leaf crown

From Octavian to Augustus

New Imperial Government• Augustus head of state more than 40 years, made smooth transition to new

imperial government with power divided between him and Senate• Most financial, administrative matters under Augustus’s control

Legacy• Created police force, fire brigades; stockpiled food, water• Began building program; presided over moral, religious reforms• Great period of cultural creativity; great writers like Horace, Ovid, Virgil

Foreign Affairs• Started program to bring peace to west, particularly to Gaul, Spain• Began series of conquests that pushed border eastward to Danube River• Also took special care of Rome itself

The Augustan Age

• Augustus died AD 14, empire ruled by Caesar’s relatives for 54 years• Julio-Claudian Emperors’ abilities varied widely• Tiberius a good soldier, competent administrator• Caligula, brutal, mentally unstable; appointed favorite horse as consul• AD 68, last of Julio-Claudians, Nero committed suicide

• Following Nero’s death, civil wars raged in Rome

• Four military leaders claimed throne in turn

• Last, Vespasian reestablished order, as did reigns of two sons

• Stability returned under Flavians

Flavians• AD 96, new line of emperors

established—Good Emperors• Five rulers governed Rome for almost

a century• From provinces different than Rome,

continued opening Roman imperial society

The Good Emperors

Julio-Claudians and Flavians

The Good Emperors

Empire grew tremendously under Good Emperors

■Reached limits of expansion under Trajan

■Added what are now Romania, Armenia, Mesopotamia, and the Sinai Peninsula

■ Successor Hadrian thought empire too large

– Withdrew from almost all eastern additions

– Built defensive fortifications to guard against invasions

– Built wall 73 miles long in northern Britain

Empire brought uniformity to the cities of the Mediterranean world, which were governed in imitation of Rome.

The period from the beginning of August’s reign in 27 BC until the death of the last of the Good Emperors in AD 180 is often called the Pax Romana—the Roman Peace. This era was characterized by stable government, a strong legal system, widespread trade, and peace.

• Roman government strongest unifying force in empire

• Maintained order, enforced laws, defended frontiers

• Aristocracy participated, but emperors made all important decisions

Government

The Pax Romana

• Empire divided into provinces ruled by governors appointed from Rome

• Provincial government fair, efficient• Government in Rome kept close check

on governors• Any citizen could appeal unfair

treatment directly to emperor

Provinces

Laws• Roman law unified the empire• Laws specified what could, could not be done; penalties for breaking law• Same laws applied to everyone in empire, wherever they lived

Manufacturing• Manufacturing increased throughout empire• Italy, Gaul, Spain—artisans made cheap pottery, textiles• Fine glassware made in eastern cities like Alexandria

Agriculture• Agriculture remained primary occupation throughout Pax Romana• Most farms, independent with little, no surplus to sell• Tenant farmers began to replace slaves on large farms

Legal System

Trade• Italy imported grain, meat, raw materials from provinces• Merchants brought silks, linens, glassware, jewelry, furniture from Asia• Rome, Alexandria became commercial centers

Military and Merchant Routes• Most roads built, maintained for military purposes• Cheaper to transport grain by ship from one end of Mediterranean to other than to

send it overland; most goods went by sea

Transportation• Commercial activity possible because of empire’s location around Mediterranean

and extensive road network• Ultimately about 50,000 miles of roads bound empire together

Opportunities for Trade

Closure Activity ■What were the important cultural

contributions of the Classical Era?–Match the achievement with the

appropriate classical civilization

A good beginning makes a good ending