The Roman Republic and Empire Social Studies 7

Geography Italy occupies a peninsula in the Mediterranean Sea. Italy is shaped like a high-heeled boot. Most of Italy is hilly and mountainous. It has the Alps to the north and Apennine running the length of the peninsula. Fertile plains for farming

Early Rome First people to settle Italy were farmers and herders. Early Romans adopted the Greek military structure, literature, art and architecture. The Etruscans lived in the north and west. They had prosperous trading cities, military power and ambitious kings. Etruscans and Romans borrowed their alphabet from Greeks.

Early Rome Romans also learned practical skills of road building, architecture, pottery-making and sanitation.

The Roman Republic In 509 B.C. Romans created a republic. A republic lets power rest with the citizens and they have the right to elect their leaders. Rich aristocrats called patricians were in charge in Rome. Consuls controlled the government and military. They were only elected for one year.

The Roman Republic The Senate had 300 members. It controlled finances of Rome and foreign affairs. The plebeians were the common people with little to say in government. It took 200 years to gain respect in Rome. Plebeians threatened to stop serving the military and pay taxes, if they didn’t get a voice in government.

The Roman Republic Plebeians then had the right to assemble. They also passed laws on the common people Twelve Table were laws created to protect the Plebeians from Patricians. By 287 B.C. Plebeians had as many rights as Patricians.

Roman Expansion Rome expanded through warfare and diplomacy. The army was important through Rome’s history. Farmers were important to the army. They could march 30 miles a day and carry up to 60 pounds of armor, weapons and supplies.

Roman Expansion Roman army was disciplined and well organized. They fought in close formations. The Roman army had units called legions. Legions were made up with 3,000-6,000 men.

The Punic Wars The Punic Wars were a series of three wars with Carthage. Carthage was a city-state located in North Africa. The First Punic War led to Rome building a navy and taking over Carthage on land and water. The Second Punic War had Hannibal attacking Rome through the Alps.

The Punic Wars Hannibal killed some 50,000 soldiers at Cannae by using a tricky maneuver. Scipio counter attacked and kept Hannibal from Rome. The Romans then attack North Africa causing Hannibal to go defend his homeland. Hannibal was defeated by Scipio and

The Punic Wars By the third Punic War, the Romans had so much hatred for Carthage that they burned the place to ground. They sold the survivors into slavery. They poisoned the ground to keep anything from ever growing there again.

The Decline of the Republic Farm debt caused a lot of problems in Rome. Farms were left unattended or destroyed from war. Shipments from conquered lands also caused prices and values in Rome to fall. Farmers sold their lands to richer Romans, who had taken the slaves from the Punic Wars to work their new lands.

The Decline of the Republic Unemployment rose because farmers lost their land and were not able to find jobs in the cities. Tiberius Gracchus tried to reform Rome by taking lands from the rich to give to the poor. He was killed for that idea. Gaius Gracchus gave grain to the poor, opened up land for the farmers, won rights for the middle class. Then he was killed also.

The Decline of the Republic By the second century B.C., Rome had little leadership, was divided by conflicts of rich and poor. Patricians wanted to keep power instead of looking out for welfare of Rome. The poor were looking for leaders who would promise them food and entertainment.

The Decline of the Republic Slaves revolted with Spartacus in 73 B.C. 90,000 slaves followed Spartacus and regularly defeated the Roman Army for two years. The slave revolted ended when Spartacus and 6,000 followers were killed.

The Rise of Military Dictators Gaius Marcus recruited the poor of Rome for the military. He promised them money, loot from conquered people, and land when the fighting was over. Lucius Sulla also did the same. He and Marcus were great rivals until Sulla captured Rome. Sulla was made dictator for six months. His rule lasted for two years.

The Rise of Military Dictators In 60 B.C. Pompey, Crassus and Caesar joined together to make the First Triumvirate. Caesar needed military support in order to get political support. It took him 10 years to take over Gaul and bring them under Roman control. Pompey gained favor in the Senate.

The Rise of Military Dictators Pompey requested Caesar to return home without his army. Caesar returned with his army and brought war on Rome. Caesar defeated Pompey in Italy, Greece, Asia Minor, Egypt, Africa and Spain. In 46 B.C. Caesar became dictator of Rome.

The Rise of Military Dictators Caesar reorganized government, lowered taxes, moved 100,000 army veterans to new colonies and gave them land to farm. Granted citizenship to conquered peoples. Developed a more accurate calendar.

The Rise of Military Dictators In 44 B.C. Caesar became dictator for life. Brutus and Cassius plotted to kill Caesar because they and the Senate feared Caesar would end the Republic. He was stabbed to death on the Senate steps in 44 B.C.

The End of the Republic After Caesar’s death another struggle for power came to life in Rome. Mark Antony, Octavian, and Lepidus competed for power. Cleopatra of Egypt along with Antony wanted to make Egypt powerful again. In 31 B.C. Octavian’s navy crushed the navy of Antony and Cleopatra.