Ms. SolesEurope & Russia

Lesson 43

Ancient Roman Empire:

Rise to Power

Buckle your seatbelts! We’re off again!

Google Earth

How would you like flying over and through the great city of Rome?

Here we go!

http://www.watchKnow.org/video.aspx?videoID=4078&categoryID=912

Early Rome was governed by kings, but after only seven of them had ruled, the Romans took power over their own city and ruled themselves. Instead, they then had a council known as the “senate” which ruled over them. From this point on we refer to the “Roman Republic”.

The patricians were the noble, wealthier families of Rome. In 509BC, a group of patricians expelled the Etruscan king and decreed that Rome would be a republic. A republic is a form of government with elected officials. The patricians elected senators to serve. The senate selected two people to serve as Consuls in place of the Etruscan king.

Representation of Roman Senate

The senate met in the Forum, a marketplace in the valley among the hills that surround Rome. The senators would rule on the military and foreign affairs, but the tribunes protected the rights of the plebeians. When a tribune objected to a law, he would shout “veto.” Veto means “I forbid” in Latin, the language of the Romans. If enough tribunes objected, they could stop the law from passing. The term is used today in political matters.

Oldest Part of the City of Rome:

Roman Forum

Artist’s painting of the Roman Forum as it May Have Looked During the Empire

Galius Gracchus, Tribune of the People, Presiding Over the

Plebian Council

This proved to be a wise idea, like that, the consul ruled carefully and not as a tyrant, for he knew that otherwise he could be punished by the next consul, once his year was up.

Rome included four classes of people. This division was very important to the Romans.The lowest class were the slaves. They were owned by other people. They had no rights at all.The next class were the plebeians. They were free people, however, they had little say at all.

The plebeians were the merchants, farmers, and artisans of Rome. They were allowed to vote, but only Patricians were allowed in the senate. In 471BC, the plebeians elected a tribune. Ten men represented the plebeians against any political oppression by the consuls or the patricians. By 287BC, the laws passed by the plebeians were binding for all Romans, including the patricians.

The second highest class were the equestrians (sometimes they are called the 'knights'). Their name means the 'riders', because they were given a horse to ride if they were called to fight for Rome. To become an equestrian you had to be rich.The highest class were the nobles of Rome. They were called 'patricians'. All the real power in Rome was held by them.

Roman guards: Usually Equestrians

The Roman equestrian order made up the lower of the two aristocratic classes of ancient Rome, ranking below the patricians, a hereditary caste that monopolized political power during the regal era (to 501 BC) and during the early Republic (to 338 BC). A member of the equestrian order was known as an eques. Equites in Latin has the general meaning of "horsemen" or "cavalry" (from equus = "horse"), but carries the meaning of "knights" .

Patrician in Fine Tunic

In ancient Rome, the cloth and the dress distinguished one class of people from the other class. The tunic worn by plebeians (common people) like shepherds and slaves was made from coarse and dark material, the tunic worn by patricians was of linen or white wool.

The Roman Republic was a very successful government for a very long time. It lasted from 510 BC until 23 BC - almost 500 years. In comparison, the United States of America has only existed since 1776 - less than 250 years.

The greatest challenge the Roman Republic faced was that from people called the Carthaginians. Carthage was a very powerful city in North Africa which, much like Rome, controlled its own empire. The fight between the two sides was a long one and took place on land and on sea.

Western Mediterranean Sea in 264 BC

Carthage – grayRome - red

Hannibal: The Great General of Carthage

Hannibal and His men Crossing the Alps

The most well-known event took place when the great Carthaginian general named Hannibal, crossed the Alps north of Italy. He travelled with his war-elephants and invaded Italy!

Carthage was eventually destroyed by 146 BC and Rome won the war.

Rome needed workers to maintain its wealth. The first conquered people were welcomed as Roman citizens, but after 265BC, many conquered people were auctioned off as slaves. A great deal of the grandeur of Rome was created by the grueling labor of slaves.

A slave named Spartacus led a revolt against the Romans 73BC. Spartacus built an army of thousands of soldiers from slaves he and his followers liberated. The slaves resisted the Roman army for more than two years and plundered the Italian countryside.

Spartacus

The Roman councils sent an army of 40,000 soldiers to defeat the slave revolt. Spartacus was killed in battle, but six thousand of his soldiers were taken prisoner and crucified. Crucifixion is a form of execution where the prisoner is nailed to a cross and left to die a slow, painful death.

Crosses stretched for miles along the Apian Way, one of Rome’s most traveled roadways. They served as a gruesome reminder of the strength and the brutality of the Roman army.

Remains of the Appian Way in Rome

Our fantastic visit to Ancient Rome is over for now!

I can’t wait to show you many more people and places from

there!

Google Earth

Resources

http://www.wikipedia.com

http://MrDowling.com

http://www.watchKnow.org