Roman Republic History Test Study Guide

People

• Romulus, the legendary founder of Rome
• Romulus, the first king of Rome
• Numa Pompilious, the second king of Rome
• Lucius Tarquinius Superbus, the last king of Rome
• Hannibal, the Carthaginian general who led Carthage in the Second Punic War
• Scipio Africanus, the Roman general who won the Second Punic War for Rome
• Scipio Aemilianus, the Roman general who razed Carthage in the Third Punic War
• Tiberius and Gaius Gracchi, the brothers who proposed land reforms
• Cato the Elder, who famously ended all of his speeches, “Carthago delenda est”
• Crassus, the general who put down Spartacus’ slave revolt
• Julius Caesar, who was kidnapped by Cilician pirates on his way to college in Rhodes
• Cleopatra, the famous lover of both Julius Caesar and Mark Antony
• Cato the Younger, a strong opponent of Julius Caesar
• Augustus, the emperor after Julius Caesar

Things

• The founding myth of Rome is the story of Romulus and Remus, twin brothers who founded the city
• The Sabine women were abducted to provide wives for the early Roman settlers
• Numa Pompilious introduced religious and calendrical reforms to Rome
• The Vestal Virgins were a group of priestesses who maintained the sacred fire of Vesta
• The pontifex maximus was the chief priest of Rome
• Rome transitioned from a kingdom to a republic after the expulsion of the last king, Lucius Tarquinius Superbus
• The cursus honorum consisted of the major offices of the Roman Republic, including quaestor, aedile, praetor, and consul
• The Punic Wars fundamentally changed Rome by expanding its territory, increasing its wealth, and establishing it as a dominant power
• The populares were a group of politicians who supported the interests of the common people, while the optimates supported the interests of the aristocracy
• The latifundia were large estates that emerged as a result of the Punic Wars, leading to the displacement of small farmers
• The land reform bills put forward by the Gracchi aimed to redistribute land from the latifundia to the poor
• The “Conflict of the Orders” was a struggle between the patrician and plebeian classes in Rome
• The First Triumvirate was a political alliance between Julius Caesar, Pompey, and Crassus, formed to advance their individual interests
• Ptolemy XIII assassinated Pompey the Great due to fears of Pompey's growing power
• Julius Caesar marched on Rome after being declared an enemy of the state by the Senate
• Marcus Junius Brutus was inspired by Lucius Junius Brutus, who had expelled the last king of Rome
• The Second Triumvirate was a political alliance between Octavian, Antony, and Lepidus, formed to avenge Julius Caesar's death

Places

• Lavinium, a city founded by Ascanius before Rome
• Tunisia, the modern-day country where Carthage was located
• Sicily, the island where Rome and Carthage went to war in 264 BC
• Spain, the country where Carthage began to colonize, leading to the start of the Second Punic War
• Cannae, the site of Rome's worst military defeat, where nearly 50,000 soldiers were lost in one battle
• Gaul, the country conquered by Julius Caesar immediately after serving as consul in 59 BC
• Egypt, the country where Pompey was assassinated
• The Curia of Pompey, the building where Julius Caesar was assassinated
• Egypt, the country where Marc Antony and Cleopatra committed suicide

Dates

• 753 BC: The legendary founding of Rome
• 509 BC: The expulsion of the last king of Rome, Lucius Tarquinius Superbus, and the establishment of the Roman Republic
• 264-241 BC: The First Punic War
• 218-201 BC: The Second Punic War
• 149-146 BC: The Third Punic War
• 133 BC: The year of the land reform bills put forward by the Gracchi
• 100 BC: The year of the Jugurthine War
• 60 BC: The year of the formation of the First Triumvirate
• 59 BC: The year Julius Caesar served as consul
• 44 BC: The year of Julius Caesar's assassination