Q4 HW 1

On to Rome!

 

Now that we have tested on Greece, time to sail across the Adriatic Sea to ancient Rome.

After you have completed your test, read and take fantastic notes on your blog, covering LO-1 City-State and Empire: The Roman Republic, found on p. 88-94. There is a lot of information here, including at least a dozen key terms you should be familiar with.

 

The rise of the Rome began as a continuation of Greece's early westward expansion through the Mediterranean Sea, which brought the Greek model of civilization to the peoples of Italy during the eighth century B.C.

The Romans not only imitated Greek civilizations but also improved on it at least so far as government and warfare were concerned. About 500BC, Rome became a Greek style city state that was no longer ruled by kings, but the Roman government system-the republic, as they called it-was for several centuries more stable and more effective than in any Greece. The war fighting methods of Roman armies were more consistently successful than those of the Greeks, and Rome's treatment of conquered enemies were usually more generous. As a result, in five centuries Rome became the center of an empire that stretched from the borders of Mesopotamia to the Atlantic Ocean. But by the time, endless expansion had also led to social conflict, political crisis, civil war, and unstable rule by powerful army commanders until one of these commanders, Augustus Caesar, managed to turn military rule into a workable system of government by one man.

 

• Patricians: upper-class citizens who belonged to the oldest and noblest Roman families
• Republic: In reference to ancient Rome, the system of city-state government in which decision making power was sheared between the Senate and assemblies of male citizens
• Plebeians: the roman common people, including workers, small farmers, and wealthy people who were not patricians
• Senate: in ancient Rome, a government assembly appointed by the Kind, and under the Republic by the consuls; originally all members were patricians, but in time wealthy plebeians were appointed as well
• Consuls: In the Roman Republic, two senators who led the government and military for one-year terms and appointed their own successors
• Dictator: In the Roman Republic, a single leader with full decision making powers, appointed for a maximum of six-month term during time of emergency
• Tribunes: magistrates elected by the plebeians, who eventually gained power to initiate and veto laws
• Client: a person who provides personal services in return for money and protection from a patron
• Patron: a wealthy person who supports others with money and protection in exchange for personal services
• Pontiff: In ancient Rome, one of the Republic's leading priests
• Paterfamilias: The "family father" in ancient Rome, who had unlimited power over his household
• Matron: title of honor given to a married women in ancient Rome

• The rise of Rome began as a continuation of Greece's early westward expansion through the Mediterranean Sea.
• The Romans imitated and improved Greek civilization.
• At 500 B.C., Rome became a Greek-style city-state that was no longer ruled by kings; it was ruled by the Republic.
• Was more stable and effective than Greece for several centuries
• They had excellent war-fighting methods and were very successful.
• By the time Rome became the center of an empire that stretched from the borders of Mesopotamia to the Atlantic, the expansion led to social conflict, political crisis, civil war, and unstable rule by powerful army commanders.
• Augustus Caesar managed to turn military rule into a workable system of government

Italy and its People

• Able to support a larger population
• Wasn't as mountainous as Greece
• Could have a larger army
• Tribal groups were the first to appear- settled at the Tiber River
• The Romans thought that Rome was placed there by the gods, therefore they were born to rule everything
• Perfectly located for trade, communication, war, ect.
• Located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea
• Latins, Etruscans, Greeks settled in Italy
• Romans got their alphabet from the Greeks

Italy and Its People

Tribes moved to Italy and they soon became stronger because they could control the waters. Around 750 BC the settlements joined to form a single city-state--Rome. The Etruscan's arrived in Italy sometime in the 9th century BC. The combined cultures of the Greeks and also were under the rule of kings. In the 7th century BC. the conquered Latium and ruled Rome itself. But that didn't last too long. Colonies that they planted in southern Italy began to spread northward almost to the borders of Latium. These people gave word the the Latins about the alphabet.

The Roman Republic: The Senate and the People

• Roman acquired the skills that enabled them to build their unique political institutions under the influence of the Etruscan and the Greeks.
• Roman overthrow its Etruscan rulers, and the monarchy was also abolished.
• Patricians were the aristocratic side in the conflicts of Republic
• The republic's original government system kept power in the hands of the patrician group as a whole by appoint a dictator.
• The plebeians became more numerous and often wealthier, the began to resent being treated as second-class citizens.
• The "Twelve Tables" served as the foundation for the elaborate system of Roman law that grew up in later centuries.
• The tribunes eventually gained the power to initiate laws in their assembly and veto laws passed by the Senate.
• The patricians gave way to the plebeians, until by 250 B.C.
• The separation of powers in the U.S. Constitution derives ultimately from the checks and balances between different branches of government in the Roman city-state.
• The leadership of the Republic still rested in the hands of the Senate.
• Senate governed firmly and effectively.
• The "mixed government" of Rome was not just a government system but part of a way of life.
• Pontiffs, a group of priests headed by the supreme pontiff, who were leading magistrates of the Republic
• The Romans shared other values specifically with Greek city-states.
• Some values were distinctive to Rome-among them, the qualities that the Romans most admired in the leaders of their city-state.
• The genius of the paterfamilias-the life-giving and life-upholding fatherly power that he embodied-was sacred and was worshiped by all in the household, including himself.
• The Romans revered the power of fatherhood not only in family life but also in the community life of their city-state.
• Matron was expected to contribute to the community as well as the family.
• Women were expected to help make sure that men had the qualities they needed to keep the Republic strong