By Amie Knode.

Ancient Rome was the largest city in the then known world. It is thought that Rome’s population was over 1 million people when the city was at the height of its power. From Rome, the heart of government beat; military decisions were taken and the vast wealth Rome earned was invested in a series of magnificent buildings. To start with, many buildings in Rome were built around the forum. Traditionally, this had been a market place and an area where people met. Therefore, it would have been a natural place to put government buildings, temples and palaces. As Rome grew, however, the forum became more and more crowded. Therefore, a second city centre was planned and built some distance from the forum but still in Rome itself. Rome itself had some magnificent buildings erected within the city. Some exist to this day, all be it in a less wonderful state. The most famous is probably the Colosseum where thousands of Roman citizens would gather for their entertainment – be it animals fighting or gladiators etc. Such grand buildings were constructed so that emperors would be remembered by future generations. The Colosseum was built on the orders of the Emperor Vespasian and completed when the Emperor Titus was in power. The building was finally completed in AD 80. Rome also had numerous triumphal arches constructed throughout the city to celebrate military victories. These served a dual purpose. First, they were a celebration of the military victories the Romans had and, second, they were a reminder to the people of Rome of how powerful the army was. As with any city, Rome had its rich and poor areas. The poor could only afford to live in wooden houses which were a serious fire risk in a hot country like Italy. On a number of occasions, Rome suffered severe damage as a result of fires starting in the city’s slums. The slums were also dangerous places to go to if you had any money as crime was very common. The Emperor Augustus created a police force to patrol the city but the poor areas remained all but untamed. However, for the influential people of Rome, this was of little importance as they never visited such areas.

Ancient Rome is here!

The Roman Army was considered the most advanced of its time. The Roman Army created the Roman Empire - a huge part of Western Europe – and Rome itself greatly benefited from the riches that the army brought back from its conquered territories. The Roman Army developed fighting techniques that were linked to a ferocious training regime. All new recruits to the army became very fit and disciplined. Training was harsh, as were punishments for failure. In a battle, new recruits were always placed at the front of the more experienced soldiers in the army. There were three reasons for this. The first was to give them confidence as behind them were experienced soldiers who had fought in battles before. Secondly, it stopped the new soldiers running away if their courage deserted them. Finally, those who were more likely to be killed in the initial phase of a battle were at the front. The hardened and experienced legionnaires were at the rear. The Roman Army could ill afford to lose experienced legionnaires whereas if a new legionnaire came through a battle alive, he would be blooded and experienced and a valuable addition to the army. If he was killed, then the loss of his inexperience would not be too great. The most important fighting unit of the Roman Army was the legion commanded by a legatus. This consisted of between 5000 to 6000 legionnaires. 500 to 600 legionnaires made up a cohort while between 80 to 100 soldiers were a century commanded by a centurion. The Romans used a tried and tested attacking technique. Legionnaires would run forward at the enemy and throw their pila at them. While this caused disarray among the enemy, the legionnaires would move in for close quarter fighting using their swords (gladius). Each attack was the result of meticulous planning and practice – hence why they were usually so successful.

* Roman coins have special themes on them representing a god, leader, the currency amount and especially where the coin was made, to ensure that they were not fake. For instance, coins from the 4th century onward showed clear mint marks to indicate the city and workshop where the coin was made.

The legacy of the Romans is extremely important. Many things that form part of everyday life were introduced or improved by the Romans. Over the centuries since the collapse of the Roman Empire, Romans ideas, literature, art and architecture have influenced many people around the world. The question 'what have the Romans ever done for us' was made famous by the film the Life of Brian. Even though the film was a comedy, the sketch from the film is extremely useful to us. It makes us appreciate how much the Romans did actually do!

The Romans brought food over from other countries in their empire (imported food). Many of these food were new to Britain and had therefore never been tasted before by people living in Britain. These 'new' foods included many vegetables such as carrots, cucumbers, cabbages, radishes, broad beans and celery.

Thank you for watching By Amie Knode.