1. Enclosing the West: The Early Roman Empire and Its Neighbors, 31 B. C
Enclosing the West: The Early Roman Empire and Its Neighbors, 31 B.C.E.-235 C.E.
The West
CHAPTER 5

2. Imperial Authority: Augustus and After
Behind the façade of a restored Republican tradition, Octavian (Augustus) created a Roman version of the Hellenic monarchy
Princeps (First Citizen) - all-powerful, but unobtrusive political position
Augustus’ heirs adopted the title Imperator, instead of Princeps
Principle of hereditary monarchy staved off political instability

3. The Nature of Imperial Power
Defense and expansion of imperial territory
Administration of justice and provision of good government, through public infrastructure
Pontifex Maximus: supervision of religious worship
Symbol of unity and embodiment of the empire - the cult of the emperor focused the allegiance of the empire’s diverse population

4. The Agents of Control The Senate - legislative arm of imperial rule
Public service and honor obtained via the Senate harnessed the Roman aristocracy and provincial élite to the imperial system
The Army - enforced peace, defended borders and conquered new lands
Military support was crucial to the emperor’s position and power

5. The City of Rome
A monument to the authority of the emperor and to the power of the senatorial élite
The Forum was the physical, political and religious center of the city and the empire
Public works and buildings displayed imperial might
Majority of the city’s population lived in impoverished slums

6. Conquest and Administration
Conquest fueled the Roman economy
Empire managed by a provincial system - evolution of an administrative-military class
Imperial governors supervised the administration of the provinces by city councilors
Provincial government collected taxes, defended frontiers and administered justice

7. The Provincial Cities
The civitas (city and surrounding land) was the basic unit of imperial government
Cities served as economic, legal and cultural centers
Each city modeled itself physically and politically on Rome
Each province had a unique legal and administrative system - the Law of the Province

8. The Countryside
Land ownership in the countryside was the key to prosperity in the imperial system
Conditions for the peasantry varied across the empire
Legal system favored large, wealthy property owners over the rural poor
Agricultural productivity was very high

9. Revolts Against Rome
Revolt of Arminius (9 C.E.): the only successful rebellion, led to the linguistic divide between Germanic and Romance languages in Europe
Enduring tribal allegiance fueled revolts in Britain and Gaul, but only for a few generations
Religious identity fueled revolts in Judea and allowed Jews to resist assimilation

10. Forces of Romanization
Roman Army - bound together men from all provinces with a common culture, language and identity
Uniformity of Roman Law across provinces
212 C.E. - the Antonine Decree granted citizenship to all free inhabitants of the empire, eliminating the distinction between conquerors and conquered

11. Frontier Zones: Civilization and Barbarians
Physical and cultural demarcation along the empire’s frontiers
Heavily fortified borders represented limits of Roman authority and civilization
Romans defined their own identity, and justified their conquests, by viewing all who lived beyond the frontiers as barbarians

12. Rome and the Parthian Empire
Parthian Empire, stretching from the Euphrates to the Indus, was the greatest rival to Rome
Majority of emperors favored diplomacy over conflict with Parthia
Commercial ties between Rome and Parthia favored an exchange of ideas and technologies between the two empires

13. Roman Encounters with Germanic Peoples
The Germans posed the greatest threat to Rome
Never conquered or assimilated
Trade and cultural contacts spread Roman ideas and values into Germanic tribes
By the end of the second century C.E., Rome could no longer withstand the tide of Germanic invaders

14. Roman Encounters with Asians and Africans
Rome had commercial, but not diplomatic, ties with imperial China
Demand for spices and other luxury items extended Roman trade networks as far east as Thailand and Java
Roman explorers ventured into sub-Saharan Africa, and commercial links may have existed between Rome and African peoples
Sub-Saharan Africa remained a place of myth and fantasy in Roman thought

15. The Upper and Lower Classes
Social hierarchy of the Republic endured
Three aristocratic orders: senators, equestrians and city councilors
Plebeians - poor, but free, citizens
“Bread and circuses” - free grain and entertainment used to contain plebeian unrest

16. Slaves and Freedmen
As much as 35 to 40 percent of the population of Italy were slaves ca. 30 B.C.E.
Ownership of slaves conveyed social status
Violence underpinned the institution of slavery
Freedmen (slaves who had obtained liberty) constituted an ambitious minority of the population
Economic importance of slavery declined in second century C.E.

17. Women in the Roman Empire
Women of senatorial and equestrian rank possessed great freedom
The wives, mothers and other female relatives of the emperor could wield great, but unofficial, power
Female infanticide remained common

18. Literature and the Empire
The new imperial system influenced literary styles
Virgil encapsulated the potential and the threat of imperial government in the Aeneid
Rhetoricians and historians analyzed imperial government
Advances in geography and astronomy, especially in the works of Claudius Ptolemy

19. Religious Life Roman religion was polytheistic and public
Syncretism spread a shared religious experience across the empire
After the destruction of the Second Temple, Rabbinic Judaism evolved
Rise of Christianity: appeal to marginalized groups, assimilation with classical philosophy, intolerance of other religions

20. Rome Shapes the West
Boundaries of Roman Empire defined the geographical heart of the West
Rome transmitted Hellenistic and classical ideas into Europe
The cultural uniformity achieved within the Roman empire, between ca. 30 B.C.E. and 220 C.E., formed the foundation of Western civilization