Transcript - Bedford Academy

The Roman Empire
The Empire Shaped Modern Day
Europe.
Italian Peninsula
-Located West of the
Greek Peninsula.
- Rome was established
along the banks of the
Tiber River by a tribe
of people called the
Latins.
- Italy looks like a
ladies high heel boot.
In the Beginning
• The Latins built several small villages along the
Tiber river and the hills that surrounded it.
• These villages eventually combined into the city
known as Rome.
• Around 750 B.C. the Etruscan tribe conquered
the Latins.
• During this time the Romans (as the Latins came
to be known) learned many new skills from their
conquerers; metalworking, farming, and how to
build better buildings.
Freedom
• The Etruscan kings were cruel, and around 500
B.C. the Romans drove them out and took back
their lands.
• By now the Romans had all the skills they
needed to start the foundations of a great
civilization.
• In response to the cruel Etruscan kings the
Romans decided to form a government so that
no one man could ever have absolute control.
The Republic – Rome’s Government
Consuls
Senate
• 2 men were chosen each year
to lead the Roman
Government.
• These men were called
consuls.
• They would bring forth all the
laws for Rome.
• These laws would then be
voted on by the Senate.
• An assembly of all the fighting
men from the community
would come together regularly
to vote on the laws and issues
of Rome.
• This assembly of people was
called the Senate.
• Together with the consuls this
form of government is called a
Republic.
Expansion – Italy is Ours
• The Republic of Rome began to
expand and conquer the surrounding
tribes but not by itself.
•
- Though there were set backs ,
like when the Gauls of Europe
attacked and nearly destroyed Rome,
the Romans would persevere.
• The Latin League, group of Latin
cities, worked to conquer the Italian
peninsula.
•
- Eventually the other Latin tribes
either joined Rome or waged war
against them.
• Rome however, was the most powerful
and leading city of the League.
•
- By 290 B.C. Rome had managed
to defeat its Latin, Etruscan and Gaul
enemies and controlled most of
central and northern Italy.
•
- Those who surrendered quickly
were treated with great kindness while
those that resisted were treated with
brutality and cruelty. This tactic
would shape Rome’s method of
conquest.
Now For the World
• Rome would come into conflict
with several great
nations/cities over the next
few centuries.
• For about 120 years Rome
fought with the people of
Carthage in an attempt to rule
the Mediterranean. In 146
B.C. Carthage was destroyed.
• These famous wars were
referred to as the Punic Wars.
• The famous Carthaginian
general Hannibal would
eventually be defeated by the
Roman general Scipio.
• The British Isles, modern day
Germany, modern day France,
Greece, modern day Spain,
and a large stretch of northern
Africa would all fall under the
control of the Rome.
• This expansive stretch of land
was guarded by natural
boundaries (rivers and
mountains), forts and the
mighty Roman Legions.
• A nearly 200 year period of
relative peace known as the
Pax Romana followed these
expansions.
The Fall of Rome
• Around 300 A.D. Rome began
to suffer from infighting, greed
and external pressures.
• The Empire splits into several
pieces but eventually an
Eastern and Western Roman
Empire form.
• Shortly after Emperor
Constatine would reunite the
halves and relocate the capital
of the Empire to the Eastern
city of Constantinople
(modern day Istanbul).
The Eastern Empire
• The Eastern half of the Empire would outlast the
West and for awhile flourished.
• Under Constantine the Romans were converted to
Christianity.
• Great structures such as the Hagia Sophia (which
means Holy Wisdom in Latin) was a grand church
that later became a Muslim mosque and is currently
a museum.
• The Eastern Empire would survive until 1453 A.D.
when the Ottoman Turks finally conquered it and
Emperor Constantine XI fell in battle.
The Western Empires
• The Western Empire would only last until 476
A.D. when the last Western Emperor of Rome,
Romulus Augustus, is deposed by Odoacer (King
of Italy).
• The Western Empire had suffered under
ineffective leadership, infighting and constant
attacks from “barbarians.”
• Huns, Goths and Vandals all fought Rome.
• When the Western Empire fell Europe entered a
time known as the “Dark Ages.”
Without Rome
• Europe suffered greatly without the military and
societal structures of Rome.
• The Dark Ages saw a vast decline in literacy,
with many written works disappearing
altogether.
• Life itself became nasty, brutish and short for
most populations.
• Without the Roman legions, violence and war
became widespread.