Transcript The Roman Republic

The Roman
Republic
SECTION 3: THE LATE REPUBLIC
Growth of Territory and Trade
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Roman territory grew in response to outside threats.
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One reason for the Roman success was the organization
of the army
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Soldiers organized in legions – groups of up to 6,000 soldiers
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Each legion was divided into centuries – groups of 100 soldiers
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This organization allowed the army to be very flexible; could fight
as a large group or as several small ones
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Farming and Trade
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Before Rome conquered Italy, most Romans were farmers
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As the republic grew, most people left their farms for Rome
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Wealthy Romans then built large farms in place of these small
farms
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These farms were worked by slaves who grew one or two crops
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The owners usually didn’t live on the farms
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Trade also expanded as Rome grew
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Farmers couldn’t grow enough food to support the growing
population, so merchants brought food from other parts of the
Mediterranean
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Also brought metal goods and slaves to Rome
Rome Grows Beyond Italy
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The Punic Wars
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Fiercest was the Romans fought
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A series of wars against Carthage – a city in northern Africa
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Rome and Carthage went to war three times
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The wars began when Carthage sent its armies to Sicily
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Romans forced them out and took control of Sicily
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Carthage then tried to attack Rome
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Hannibal – general
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He was never able to capture Rome
Consuls would declare war on Carthage in fear of them growing
too powerful
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Romans would destroy Carthage
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Later Expansion
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During the Punic Wars, Rome took control of Sicily, Corsica, Spain, and
North Africa
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Rome would conquer the southern part of Gaul, along with Greece and
parts of Asia
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Romans would adopt ideas about literature, art, philosophy, religion,
and education from Greece
Crises Strike the Republic
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Tiberius and Gaius Gracchus
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Brothers that served as tribunes
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Tiberius wanted to create farms for poor Romans in hopes of
keeping poor citizens happy and preventing rebellions
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Wanted to use the land that wealthy citizens had obtained illegally
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Wealthy citizens opposed the idea and riots broke out; Tiberius was
killed
Gaius tried to create new farms and began to sell food at
cheaper prices
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Angered many Romans and was killed for his ideas
The violent deaths of the Gracchus brothers changed politics
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People then saw violence as a political weapon
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Marius and Sulla
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Gaius Marius - a consul
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Encouraged poor people to join the army
Lucius Cornelius Sulla
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A consul
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Used his army’s loyalty in a civil war against Marius
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Would later name himself dictator
Spartacus
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Was a former gladiator
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Led thousands of slaves in an uprising and demanded freedom
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Defeated an army and took over much of southern Italy
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Was killed in battle