Download presentation
Presentation is loading. Please wait.
Published byLaurence Randolf Floyd Modified over 9 years ago
1
Unit # 2 – Foundations of Civilization Lesson # 6
2
Objective and Bell Ringer-Rome Bell Ringer: (Review) How did Greece’s polis change between 800 and 400 BCE? Essential Question: How did Greece and Rome contribute to modern forms of government? Objective: Describe the Constitution of Rome ◦Homework: Unit 2 Study Guide AGENDA Finish Rome Notes and Graphic Organizer Activity # 1: Rome Becomes a Republic ◦Write answers in notebook Rome Becomes a Republic – leave space underneath to complete task Activity # 2: Key Features ◦Copy Key Features and Diagram: Legislative, Executive and Judicial Activity # 3: Flow Chart Activity # 4: Writing Prompt-(Honors-thesis statement)
4
Roman Republic The Romans distrusted monarchy and decided it to replace it with a new form of gov’t – Republic = a form of gov’t in which the leader is not a monarch, elected officials governed the state, and certain citizens have the right to vote Early Rome was divided into two groups: – Patricians = rich landowners who controlled the gov’t and society – Plebeians = commoners, mostly farmers and merchants Men in both groups were citizens who could vote
5
In the beginning, however, only patricians could be elected to governmental offices Plebeians eventually got more rights, and formed their own assembly called the Plebeian Council – Even had the right to elect officials called tribunes The plebeians also forced the patricians to have all laws written down – The Law of the Twelve Tables = Rome’s first written law code, was displayed in the Roman Forum (central square)
6
The patricians and plebeians created an unwritten and flexible constitution – Constitution = framework for gov’t or political structure The government consisted of three parts: – The Senate = a select group of 300 hundred patricians who served for life Advised elected officials, handled all foreign relations, and controlled public finances By the third century it had the force of law – Various popular assemblies All citizens voted on laws and elected officials
7
– Officials called magistrates = put laws into practice and governed in the name of the Senate and the people Chief executive officers of the Republic – Consuls – two elected each year, one to run the gov’t and one to lead the army – Praetors – magistrates that could act as consuls when the consuls were away at war Also in charge of enforcing civil law – Censors – recorded the city’s population and how much property people owned System of checks and balances that stopped one group from becoming too powerful
9
Roman Law – One of the greatest achievements was its system of law First code of laws adopted was the Twelve Tables Later a more sophisticated system of civil law was developed As Rome expanded, legal questions arose that involved both Romans and non-Romans, needed special rules Gave rise to a body of law known as the Law of Nations
10
– Law of Nations Used natural law (universal law) based on reason Established standards of justice that applied to all people: – Innocent until proven guilty – Accused allowed to defend themselves before a judge – This law system greatly influenced the law system of the United States
11
The Punic Wars Due to the conquest of Italy, the Romans now faced the powerful city and empire of Carthage located in North Africa – Both wanted to control the Mediterranean Rome and Carthage fought against each other in three Punic Punic Wars – Rome won all three wars and eventually destroyed Carthage The entire population was sold into slavery Carthage became a Roman province called Africa
12
Collapse of the Republic Social unrest – Growing tension among the various classes – Soldier-farmers were returning home from years of service and finding that their land had either been sold or was in bad shape
13
The military in politics – Gaius Marius, a talented young military leader was elected consul and he decided to improve recruitment for the army Eliminated property requirements Poor people began to join and swore an oath of loyalty to the general, not to the Roman state, in hopes of sharing the plunder from war
14
– Result was that armies largely became private forces devoted to a general and placed much power in the hands of individual generals Generals could use loyalty of troops as a political tool – New type of army that was not under gov’t control Legacy of Sulla = using an army to seize power
15
Rise of the Roman Empire The old Republic was mostly gone within a generation of Sulla – Was the result of the ambitions of just a few men The First Triumvirate – Triumvirate = rule by three people with equal power – The first Triumvirate was composed of Julius Caesar, Pompey, and Crassus Caesar added Gaul – modern France Pompey added Syria and parts of Asia Minor Crassus was one of the wealthiest men in Rome – Took over Rome in 60 BC
17
Crassus died and Caesar and Pompey faced off in a civil war – Caesar was victorious – Senate declared Caesar dictator for life in 44 BC Dictator = an absolute ruler Gave citizenship to people in the provinces and gave public land to veterans Was popular with the people, but many senators thought he meant to destroy the Republic – Ides of March (March 15) – a group of senators murder Julius Caesar Second Triumvirate – Established in 43 BC – composed of Octavian (Caesar’s adopted son and heir), Marc Antony, and Lepidus
18
Lepidus was pushed aside and Octavian and Antony each decide to govern half the empire – Civil war breaks out and Octavian defeats Antony and his ally Queen Cleopatra of Egypt Both commit suicide after the defeat – Octavian now alone controlled Rome Republic effectively dead Senate awards Octavian the title Augustus “the revered one” – continued to control the army and took the name imperator Imperator = commander in chief (emperor) Became the first emperor of Rome
19
The Augustan Age – Augustus ruled Rome for more than 40 years – Divided the power to rule Rome between himself and the Senate Later emperors took over more and more powers of the Senate Julio-Claudians – relatives of Caesar ruled for the next 54 years
21
– Tiberius – adopted son of Augustus – Caligula – brutal and mentally unstable – Nero – killed his own mother and committed suicide The Five Good Emperors – Nerva, Trajan, Hadrian, Antoninus Pius, and Marcus Aurelius – Governed Rome for nearly a century and under them the empire grew tremendously – Hadrian built defensive fortifications along the frontiers to guard against invasions Hadrian’s Wall – built in northern Britain
22
Pax Romana Pax Romana = Roman Peace – Age of peace and prosperity – Started off with the reign of Augustus in 27 BC and ended with the death of the last Good Emperor, Marcus Aurelius, in 180 AD Stable gov’t, strong legal system, widespread trade Not much war or invasion – The Roman gov’t was the strongest unifying force in the empire Maintained order and enforced the laws – Extensive road network – 50,000 miles
24
Entertainment – provided on a grand scale for Romans – Chariot races – Coliseum - Gladiator fights, animals killing prisoners – Dramatic performances held in theaters – To keep the poor from rebelling against the bad living conditions, free food and public entertainment became a major feature of city life “Bread and Circuses”
27
Slavery – Romans relied the most on slave labor and had the most slaves – Large numbers of captured peoples brought back as slaves – Slaves built buildings and roads, were used as tutors, on farms, and as shop assistants – Conditions for most slaves were bad – The murder of a master by a slave meant the execution for all the household slaves – Most of the gladiators were slaves – The most famous slave revolt was led by Spartacus and involved 70,000 slaves – they managed to defeat several armies before being caught and crucified
28
Women – Women could do little without the intervention of a male guardian – Could own and inherit property – Could attend races, the theater, and events in the Colosseum, but had to sit in separate female sections
29
Achievements – Aqueducts – man-made channels used to bring water to the cities – Ptolemy – stated that the earth was the center of the universe
31
Decline and Fall of Rome Political problems – Weak leaders and aseries of civil wars Between 235 to 284 there were 20 emperors, all but one died violently Economic problems – Economic crisis – decline in trade and farming People didn’t believe the money was worth the same – The result was growing inflation = dramatic rise in prices
32
Military Problems – Difficult to pay and enlist more soldiers, had to rely on hiring Germans to fight Had little loyalty to the Empire Plague – Disease weakened the Roman Empire – Not enough soldiers or farmers to harvest crops
33
Invaders – Invading Germanic tribes, mostly enter Roman territory to flee from the Huns Huns = feared nomadic warriors from Asia Visigoths – crossed the Danube river into Italy Vandals – came into Italy from north Africa – Sacking of Rome 410 the Visigoths plunder Rome 455 the Vandals sack Rome – Famous for destroying everything in their path – Vandal = “one who causes senseless destruction” The Huns were talked out of attacking Rome by Pope Leo I
34
Fall of Rome – 476 – the last emperor of Rome was deposed by the Germanic commander Odoacer – Many consider this to be the end of the Western Roman Empire Division of the Roman Empire – To slow the empire’s decline, emperors Diocletian and Constantine divided the empire into two parts – Western Roman Empire – capital at Rome Destroyed in 476 – Eastern Roman Empire – capital at Byzantium, later renamed Constantinople Lasted another thousand years, becomes known as the Byzantine Empire
37
Rise of Christianity Some Jews began to revolt against Roman rule, resulting in all Jews being banned from Jerusalem Jesus of Nazareth – Born in the town of Bethlehem – All knowledge about Jesus comes from the Gospels, the first four books of the New Testament – Traveled around preaching people to repent their sins and seek God’s forgiveness
38
– As Jesus traveled, he gathered a small group of disciples, or followers – Roman authorities feared a political uprising and arrested Jesus and sentenced him to death Jesus was crucified = nailed to a cross As a result, people began to call him Jesus Christ, the Greek word for Messiah Spread of Christianity – Jesus’ disciples began to teach that all people could achieve salvation – Salvation = forgiveness of sins and the promise of everlasting life in heaven
39
– The Apostles – the 12 disciples that Jesus had specifically chosen to carry out his message Were the earliest Christian missionaries – Paul of Tarsus believed that God had sent him to convert non-Jews Without him, Christianity might have remained a branch of Judaism He helped to make Christianity a broader religion The Christian message of eternal life after death appealed to many – Especially to the poor
40
Persecution – Some local officials and rulers, such as Nero, saw Christians as a threat and arrested and killed them Fed to the lions, made them martyrs Martyrs = people who die for their faith and thus inspire others to believe
41
Imperial approval of Christianity – Emperor Constantine became the first Christian emperor after he converted after winning a battle He issued the Edict of Milan, which made Christianity legal within the empire and declared official tolerance of Christianity – Emperor Theodosius outlawed public non- Christian sacrifices and ceremonies As a result, Christianity was adopted as the Roman religion and polytheism began to disappear
43
The Early Christian Church – Development of ceremonies that inspired people’s faith and made them feel closer to Jesus Eucharist = held in memory of Jesus’ last supper with his disciples – Eat bread and drink wine in memory of Jesus’ death and resurrection Baptism = people admitted into the Christian faith – Popes were seen as the head of the entire Christian church
45
Objective and Bell Ringer Bell Ringer: We will go over answers to Unit 2 Study Guide ◦Objective: Describe how Ancient Rome contributed to modern forms of society and government ◦Homework: Study for Unit 2 Assessment (Study Guide, Notes, Organizer Due tomorrow Activity # 1: Rome Becomes a Republic ◦Write answers in notebook Rome Becomes a Republic – leave space underneath to complete task - see instruction sheet Activity # 2: Key Features ◦Copy Key Features and Diagram: Legislative, Executive and Judicial copy from doc displayed Activity # 3: Flow Chart - see instruction sheet Activity # 4: Writing Prompt - see instruction sheet Activity #5: Rome vs. America – Graphic organizer use pp. 163-176 in textbook
46
Layered Curriculum Read all instructions carefully Stay on task and submit at the end of class for a grade. The information in class today is on the test tomorrow.
47
Layered Curriculum You have been given a series of tasks to complete. You may work alone or with a partner.
48
A word about flow charts… Flow charts are fancy timelines. They show a sequence of events and how one event leads to the next. For Activity # 3, design a flow chart that looks like the following. You will need to utilize multiple readings to complete this activity.
Similar presentations
© 2025 SlidePlayer.com Inc.
All rights reserved.