Ancient Rome: Geography and the Romans

• Ancient Rome was in modern Italy, Southern Europe
• Ancient Rome started on seven hills near the Tiber River

Physical features of Italy

• Italy is a peninsula, which is a landform mostly surrounded by water
• The Italian Peninsula is shaped like a high-heeled boot
• Italy includes islands like Sicily and Sardinia
• Mountains and hills cover most of Italy
  • The Alps surround Italy's northern border and are the highest mountain range in Europe
  • The Apennines extend across the center of the Italian Peninsula
• Several rivers, including the Po, Arno, and Tiber flow from the Italian mountains

How Italy's geography affected the ancient Romans

• Rome's location near freshwater and Italy's warm climate created good conditions to grow crops
• The hills, mountains, and seas created natural barriers that made it difficult to invade Rome
• The Mediterranean Sea gave Romans access to trade routes and other civilizations beyond the Tiber River

Who were "the Romans"?

• Ancient Rome included the city of Rome and the Italian Peninsula and surrounding territories
• At its height, ancient Rome covered about 2 million square miles (5 million square kilometers), covering Europe, Asia, and Africa
• Regions were divided into provinces supervised by a Roman governor
• People in Greece, Gaul (France), Spain, Britain, Egypt, North Africa, Asia Minor, Syria, and Mesopotamia were considered "Romans"

Religion

• Ancient Rome had multiple religions practiced in its provinces
• Romans practiced polytheism--worshipping many gods
• Their religion heavily influenced by ancient Greek mythology
• Followers pleased gods by saying prayers, offering sacrifices, building temples, and celebrating festivals
• Monotheism, the belief in a single god, also became more widespread due to religions like Judaism and Christianity.
• The Greeks had established colonies in Italy and Sicily by the 700s BCE
• In 146 BCE the Romans had adopted many of the Greek gods over the centuries for themselves
  • Zeus became Jupiter
  • Ares became Mars
  • Hades became Pluto
  • Hera became Juno
  • Poseidon became Neptune
  • Hestia became Vesta
  • Artemis became Diana
  • Aphrodite became Venus
  • Hermes became Mercury
  • Dionysus became Bacchus
  • Athena became Minerva
  • Demeter became Ceres
  • Apollo became Apollo
  • Hephaestus became Vulcan

Why was mythology important to the Romans?

• Romans used mythology to explain unknown events and highlight Rome's greatness
• The most famous legend was the founding of Rome by twin brothers Romulus and Remus
  • The brothers were abandoned as babies in the Tiber River.
  • They were rescued by a wolf and adopted by shepherds
  • They restored their grandfather to the throne after a conflict with the king
• Romulus and Remus later fought about where to build their city
• Romulus killed Remus and created the city of Rome, and named himself its first king.
• Romulus and Remus were said to be descendants of Aeneas, a Trojan warrior who led followers to Italy after the destruction of Troy.
• Some provinces did not agree with the Romans' religious ideas, such as Judea in Southwest Asia.
  • The Romans were polytheistic, which became the official state religion, with emperors also worshipped as gods.
  • The Jews only believed in the existence of one God.
• Rome conquered Judea in 63 BCE, including Jerusalem.
• Jews were upset about losing their independence and statues of Roman gods and emperors in Jerusalem.
• The Romans collected high taxes from the Jews without improving Judea, which led to poverty.
• Judea revolted against the Romans multiple times during the Roman-Jewish Wars, including;
  • The Great Revolt (66-73 CE).
  • The Bar Kokba Revolt (132-136 CE). - The Romans won both wars, resulting in many deaths and severe punishments for surviving Jews The Roman army burned the Second Temple, stole valuable items to display in Rome
• Roman Emperor Hadrin made policies to wipe out Judaism.
  • All Jews were forced to leave Jerusalem and live elsewhere.
  • All Jews were forbidden from entering Jerusalem except once per year
  • The Torah and Hebrew calendar were banned across Roman territories
  • A temple dedicated to Jupiter was built on the former site of the Second Temple
  • Jerusalem was rebuilt and renamed Aelia Capitolina
• The religion of Christianity began to develop around 30 CE from the teachings of Jesus of Nazareth.
• Christianity evolved from Judaism because both practice monotheism and believe in one God
• Christians believe that Jesus is the Messiah and God in human form, but Jews do not share the same belief
• A messiah is a person who Jews and Christians believe was chosen by God to save people and bring peace.
• Jesus is know as Jesus Christ in Christianity because ‘Christ’ is the Greek Translation for ‘Messiah’
• Christian beliefs and teachings are written in a collection of texts called the Bible
  • The Bible is divided into two major sections known as the New and Old Testament
  • The Old Testament has the same texts as the Hebrew Bible of Judaism
• The New Testament has writings of accounts about the life of Jesus and the early history of Christianity
• The first four books in the New Testament is the Gospels, that show the 4 different accounts of the life and teachings of Jesus
• Most of the other books in the New Testament is called the epistles, that are letters written by the followers of Jesus to explain Christian beliefs and ideas

Who was Jesus of Nazareth?

• Nearly all the information about Jesus comes from the
• It is estimated that he was between 6-4 BCE and Scholars estimate that he was
• Jesus grew up in Nazareth
• He began teaching when he was 30 years old
• His teaching was mainly in Galilee

What happened durning Jesus's ministry?

• Jesus spoke about the kingdom of God for about 3 years.
• According to the Bible, Jesus performed numerous miricles that some people believed he was the Messiah.
• Jesus taught his followers through parables by telling short stories that show values and positive behaviors.
• Some people did not agree with the ministry by Jesus and arrested him in Jerusalem during the Jewish holiday of Passover.
• The Roman governor, Pontius Pilate ordered that Jesus die by crucifixion Jesus was said to reveal himself to the Apostles before they were sent to the Christian afterlife called heaven.

What are the major religious beliefs of Christianity?

• The Trinity, in which God is in three forms:
  • God- the creator of the world.
  • Jesus- God in human form
  • The Holy Spirit- God's presence on Earth and in people’s lives
• One Roman emperor named Constantine converted to Christianity in 312 BCE.
• He issued the Edict of Milan in 313 CE, which gave the religion recognition and ended Christian persecution in ancient Rome.
• Constantine gathered a group of leaders called bishops to the Council of Nicaea in 325 CE, to share their personal interpretations of religious ideas and establish consistency among all the Churches.
• Another Roman emperor named Theodosius made Christianity the official religion of ancient Rome in 380 CE.

Achievements

• The Romans built a network of public roads covering 50,000 miles (80,000 km)
• Roman engineers built tunnels and bridges to keep roads straight
• The road systems helped the Roman Empire travel with the army and also moved people, goods, and ideas.
• They also create a sense of unity for the people living under Roman control
• There are roads that are well paved and still in operation today, for more than 2,000 years • Some architectural achievements:
  • Amphitheatres- Used to host entertianment events, and have special features
  • Aqueducts- Carried water into the Roman cities from the Italian mountains
  • Basilicas- Used for religious or legal events
  • Triumphal Arches- Used as grand entrances.
  • Homes-Private Roman homes featured walls with frescos, gardens, and fountains.
  • Walls- Used to defend borders, and sometimes as monuments.
• Roman art included sculptures, mosaics, and paintings with a range of styles
• The Romans showed people as their real selves, not as flawed or idealistic.
• Roman often copied from the Greeks and these copies helped preserve the history of Greek sculptures due to the ancient originals getting lost over time. • The language of the Romans:
  • Latin- the language of the people living along the Tiber River
  • Language of Roman Empire as it increases
  • Romance languages-such as French, Italian, Portuguese, Romanian, and Spanish, developed out of Latin
  • Used in Catholic Church
  • Used to name animals and plants.

Achievements in literature, history, and science

• Biography: Plutarch wrote about important leaders from ancient Greece and Rome
• Natural History: Pliny the Elder wrote an encyclopedia that covers geography, plants, animals, the human body, and more
• Satire: Juvenal wrote satirical poems making fun of challenges and corruption in the cities
• Poetry: Virgil (who wrote the Aeneid), Horace (who wrote Odes), and Ovid
• Astronomy: Claudius Ptolemy created the Ptolemaic system for Astronomy, which modeled that earth was in the center of universe.
• Oratory: Cicero and Julius Caesar were skilled public speakers
• Philosophy: Seneca’s believes the importance of self-improvement and living a just life through Stoicism Medicine: Claudius Galen was the doctor and surgeron for the Roman government who dissected and understand blood flow of artieries and Veins.

Politics:

• The government of the Roman Empire evolved into three phases:
  • The Roman Kingdom
  • The Roman Republic
  • The Roman Empire
• During the Roman Kingdom:
  • Historians believe that the kingdom was founded by Romulus.
  • The Kings controlled the military led building projects, chief priests, and a judge in legal matters.
  • Seven Kings ruled Rome
• During the early Roman Republic:
  • The people elected leaders to govern the country
  • In temporary dictatorships, the leaders were were given almost all of the power
  • Cincinnatus becomes the most popular dictator
• There was conflict between the Roman Empire, who split them into two groups:
  • The particians- powerful and wealthy nobles
  • The plebians- common people
    • The plebians went on strike so they could participate in the government
• Goverment was a tripartite goverment with three parts, each with its own set of reponsibilites:
  • Magistrates, senates and tribunes
    • The magistrates elected the officials
    • The senates consisted of rich, wealthy and influential Romans
    • The tribunes are made of of patricians and plebians

Rule of Law

• Written down on bronze tablets that were on display

Citizenship:

• Citizens were able to vote
• Roman Republic policies inspired other govenments world wide example: U.S.A
• Fall of Republic :
  • The Punic Wars
  • The Romans conquered Carthage - The Carthaginians were killed or enslaved
• Why was it in decline?
  • Class Voilence- Riots and thousands were killed
  • Desire for Freedom the enslaved people lead revolts
  • Poverty- Romans could not afford food
  • Unstable Military- People were not loyal to the Roman
  • Desire for Power- Roman leaders killed for power, and worked together for power.
• Julius Ceasar: famous general, expanded on roman territory
  • Ceasar crosses The Rubicon and leads Italy to war since it's the rule to not enter with an army
• Julius Caesar was returning to the
  • Senate made him dictator until he was killed on March 15 BCE
  • It caused the assassination and chaos that made the city flee from the city to avoid the death
  • Marc Antony, (Ceasar's forner assitant) plan to avenge ceasar's death
• Octavian claimed would give up the power, the senate gave Octavian the name Augustus.
• Pax Romana - was a 200 year period between and within the Roan Empire that had a strong reign. -Roman Empire spread into parts of and -Imperial divided the three groups:
  • Empire - Middle East - Civil Wars - Lacked strong leadership
• Constantine reunited
• The new official was formed

How did the empire end?

The Empire became difficult and and the romans were unablw to Groups such as the entered and began The Romans were so large that they were unable to continue Resulted in the destruction of CE

Ancient Rome's Economy:

• Farmings was the more important part for the Romans- grew foods, vegetables and citrus
• Bread was also apart of the roman society
• The small farms were used in
• Government used a percentage of the farmś resources and gave to the people in to help keep everyone with in society

Craftspeople created several kinds of , One type vase called an was was used to transport large quantities of and across the provinces. extracted lead, tin, and other metals make goods such as coins, jewelry, tools. Other important products

How did the territory contribute to the the exploration?

Motivated the exploration- the more people to supply from labor The roams enslaved the wars- and often farmers would get demands work to get the

• The more you would contribute that you would get from food and government.
• Trade gradually expanded so that merchants used and transport goods between cities throughout the empire. The created with the romans would include money that could the everyone that made coins useful during with silver and gold

Traditional Roles in the society:

• Men were usually the head of the house hold and keep track of their family lines
• Women were respinsible that the head of the household were excluded
• Slvery- Many romas enslaved people including prisoners of war, children born in slavery

The Early People

• People were enslaved and would serve the houshold
• Most people wouldn't even attend school because they had to work and help their family out

Explore the geography of ancient Rome in Italy, including its peninsular shape, mountains, and rivers. Discover how these physical features influenced the Romans. Learn about the impact of natural barriers, climate and access to trade routes via the Mediterranean Sea.