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The Rise and Fall of the
Roman Empire
Rome built great stuff
• Rome built great roads to travel on and
aqueducts to bring water into the city.
• Rome also built great stadiums and
amphitheaters for the entertainment of the
people.
• Romans also developed the use of the arch.
Roman Art
• Mosaics were popular in Rome. A mosaic is
a picture made out of small, colored tiles or
pieces of glass.
• The Romans also made great statues that
looked like the real thing, even though they
were made from stone.
Difference Between Republic and Empire
• Got rid of a republic form of
government, now had an emperor
• Expanded its borders beyond currentday Italy (as far north a current day
England)
• Christianity became the official religion
in 392AD
Rome’s first emperor
• Octavian is Rome’s
first emperor.
• He took the name
Augustus Caesar.
• Under his rule, Rome
expanded and enjoyed
a period of peace.
Pax Romana
• Rome lived in peace for 200 years.
• It was called the Pax Romana, the Peace of
Rome.
Rome grew weak
• Rome grew weak because it had grown too large.
 Tax problems
• couldn’t raise enough money to keep the
roads from crumbling.
 Slavery
• With so many slaves, the people did not need
to work.
 Internal problems
• corrupt generals
• civil wars
• economic problems.
Barbarians at the gates
• Romans called the people who destroyed Rome
Barbarians.
• Romans called anyone who didn’t speak Greek,
even though the word barbarian actually means
uncivilized, lacking in culture and violent.
• The Roman Empire fell in 476 AD.
• The eastern part of the empire would survive. It
became the Byzantine Empire.