Transcript Chapter 5, Section 2

Chapter 5, Section 2
From Republic to Empire
Big Idea: The internal instability of the
Roman Empire eventually led to civil
wars and increased power for the
military.
*Factors leading to the end of the Roman Republic
• Growing power of the elites
• Landless farmers
• changes in army recruitment
• Soldier loyalty to generals not the state
• Generals competing for power
The Roman Senate
• By 150 BC the Senate had become the
governing body of Rome
• Senate mostly controlled by a small group
of wealthy families
Roman Army
• Army recruitment changed from conscription
(forced service) to a volunteer army.
• Soldiers were recruited from the poor and
promised land for service
• Soldier loyalty was to their general, not to the
government
General Sulla
• In 82 BC seized power in Rome
• He conducted a reign of terror to wipe out
opposition.
• He then restored power to the Senate
• He wanted to restore a traditional Roman
republic.
• In reality, he set an example of generals using
their armies to gain power and control
The First Triumvirate
• From 82-31 BC the Roman Republic
experienced civil wars
• In 60 BC, Crassus - the richest man in Rome,
Pompey – military hero, Julius Caesar – military
hero formed the first triumvirate.
• Crassus was killed in battle in 53 BC. Leading
Senators decided Pompey should rule alone.
They ordered Caesar to lay down his command.
• Caesar refused, he kept his army and then
crossed into Italy by crossing the Rubicon River.
Julius Caesar
• Caesar’s march on Rome sparked a civil
war between his forces and the forces of
Pompey
• Pompey’s defeat left Caesar in control
• Caesar was made dictator in 45 BC
• Caesar gave land to the poor and
increased the Senate to 900 members
• In 44 BC Caesar was stabbed to death in
the Senate by senators
The Second Triumvirate
• A power struggle followed the death of Caesar
• Octavian – Caesar’s heir & grandnephew,
Antony – Caesar’s ally and assistant and
Lepidus, who had been commander of
Caesar’s cavalry form the Second Triumvirate
• Octavian hunted down the politicians who had
murdered his uncle
• In 36 BC Octavian accused Lepidus of
attempting to usurp power in Sicily and he
was forced into exile ending the Triumvirate
Beginning of the Roman Empire
• In 27 BC the Senate awarded Octavian the
title of Augustus – the revered one.
• Augustus Caesar was popular with the people,
but his control of the army was the main
source of his power.
• Augustus maintained a standing army of 28
legions or about 151,000 men, auxiliary
forces of 130,000, and a praetorian guard of
about 9,000 who guarded the emperor.
• In AD 14 Augustus died.
Early Roman Empire – emperors gained power &
the Senate lost power. Some of the emperors
were very corrupt.
• Tiberius
• Caligula
• Claudius
• Nero – had people killed including his own
mother. His legions turned against him and
he committed suicide in AD 69. Then civil war
broke out.
Roman Empire in the 2nd Century
• Five “good” emperors: Nerva, Trajan, Hadrian,
Antoninus Pius, and Marcus Aurelius.
• Pax Romana – the Roman Peace – lasted for
almost 200 years (27 BC – AD 180).
*Pax Romana
• Absolute rulers known for their tolerance
• Treated the ruling classes with respect.
• Ended arbitrary executions
• Maintained peace in the empire
• Building projects: aqueducts, bridges, roads
and harbor facilities in Rome and the
provinces (infrastructure – transportation &
communication systems)
Expansion of the Empire
• The empire covered three and a half million
square miles (3.5 million sq. miles)
• Included modern day England, France, Spain,
Portugal, Italy, Greece, Turkey, Syria, Israel,
Jordan, Egypt, parts of Libya, Tunisia, Algeria
and Morocco
• The population has been estimated at more
than 50 million people.
• Roman cities contained temples, markets,
baths, public buildings and law courts.
Roman Cultural Diffusion
• Roman trade routes went beyond the borders of the
empire and spread Roman culture beyond the
empire.
• Latin was the language of the western part of the
empire, while Greek was used in the east as a result
of Alexander the Great’s earlier conquests.
• Roman culture mixed with Greek culture to form the
Greco-Roman civilization.