1. THE ROMAN REPUBLIC and
THE ROMAN
EMPIRE

2. Essential Question:
How do religion, beliefs, customs, traditions, and government affect the culture of a society?

3. Roman society was divided into three major groups
Ancient Roman Society
Roman society was divided into three major groups
At the top were the nobles (called patricians); they controlled most of the land and held key military and government positions

4. Ancient Roman Society Patricians made up 5% of all Roman citizens
Roman society was divided into three major groups
Patricians made up 5% of all Roman citizens

5. The Life of the Patricians

6. Ancient Roman Society
Most Roman people were commoners (called plebeians); they were farmers, shopkeepers, or peasants

7. Ancient Roman Society
Plebeians paid the majority of taxes collected in the Roman Republic; they made up 95% of Roman citizens

8. The Life of the Plebeians

9. Ancient Roman Society
At the bottom of society were slaves and residents of the Roman Republic who were not Roman

10. Quick Class Discussion: Based upon this image, what was Roman government like?

11. The Government of Ancient Rome
A republic is a form of government in which citizens have the power to elect their leaders

12. The most important feature of the republic was the Senate, whose 300 members were elected by citizens to make laws and taxes

13. The Government of Ancient Rome
In 451 BCE, government officials wrote down Rome’s laws onto the Twelve Tables, which were hung in the forum for all citizens to see
The Twelve Tables were based on the idea that all citizens of Rome had a right to the protection of the law

15. The United States also has a republican government, very similar to the one of Ancient Rome

16. The Roman Military
Rome was protected by an advanced army of professional soldiers (not part-time soldiers who were farmers or merchants by trade)
The Roman Army In addition to their government, the Romans placed great
value on their military. All citizens who owned land were required to serve in the
army. Seekers of certain public offices had to perform ten years of military service.
Roman soldiers were organized into large military units called legions. The
Roman legion was made up of some 5,000 heavily armed foot soldiers (infantry).
A group of soldiers on horseback (cavalry) supported each legion. Legions were
divided into smaller groups of 80 men, each of which was called a century. The
military organization and fighting skill of the Roman army were key factors in
Rome’s rise to greatness.

17. The Roman soldiers were divided into groups of 5000 men called legions
The Roman Military
Rome had the largest army in the Mediterranean at the time; it was also highly organized
The Roman soldiers were divided into groups of 5000 men called legions
The Roman Army In addition to their government, the Romans placed great
value on their military. All citizens who owned land were required to serve in the
army. Seekers of certain public offices had to perform ten years of military service.
Roman soldiers were organized into large military units called legions. The
Roman legion was made up of some 5,000 heavily armed foot soldiers (infantry).
A group of soldiers on horseback (cavalry) supported each legion. Legions were
divided into smaller groups of 80 men, each of which was called a century. The
military organization and fighting skill of the Roman army were key factors in
Rome’s rise to greatness.

18. Each legion was divided into smaller groups of 80 men (called centuries) commanded by elite soldiers called centurions

19. The highly organized command structure ensured that legions could be rapidly deployed against the enemy

20. Advances in military technology (such as catapults) enabled the professional Roman soldiers to not only defend the Romans’ territory, but to expand it

22. THE PUNIC WARS
The Romans went to war with a neighboring kingdom, Carthage (based in northern Africa)

24. THE PUNIC WARS
The Carthaginians engaged the Romans in three long wars over the course of about a hundred years

25. THE PUNIC WARS
Led by the great general Hannibal, the Carthaginians nearly defeated the Romans in the second war; they invaded the Italian peninsula and almost captured Rome

26. THE PUNIC WARS
The Romans held the Carthaginians off, then completely destroyed Carthage in their third war

27. THE PUNIC WARS
With Carthage’s defeat, the Romans were then the most dominant power in the Mediterranean, carving out an enormous empire

28. Controlling this massive territory, though, would present new problems for the Romans
ROMAN TERRITORY

29. PROBLEMS IN THE ROMAN REPUBLIC
Rome’s expanding territory brought wealth, but also brought issues:
The new lands brought more slaves, which created a job shortage for Roman citizens
Generals who controlled the army became more powerful than Senators

30. PROBLEMS IN THE ROMAN REPUBLIC
Rome’s expanding territory brought wealth, but also brought issues:
People flocked to the big cities from farms, which created food supply shortages
Struggles for power led to a series of civil wars between Romans

31. JULIUS CAESAR
From the turmoil within the Roman Republic, a new political leader emerged: a general named Julius Caesar

32. Julius Caesar partnered with two other Roman politicians to take control of Rome (they formed a triumvirate)
Julius was extremely popular with the Roman people, due to his great military victories

33. Julius Caesar gathered more power to himself, while looking to solve the Roman Republic’s problems by initiating reforms
Caesar named himself dictator-for-life in 46 BCE, which weakened the Senators’ power a great deal

34. Fearing that he was becoming too powerful, members of the Roman Senate conspired to assassinate Caesar

35. Caesar was cornered and stabbed to death in the Roman Senate building, which began the end of the Roman Republic

36. The assassination led to another civil war led by Caesar’s adopted son Octavian and his best general, Marc Antony

37. FROM ROMAN REPUBLIC TO ROMAN EMPIRE
Julius Caesar’s death changed Rome; the people no longer trusted the Senate to rule the Roman Republic

38. FROM ROMAN REPUBLIC TO ROMAN EMPIRE
Octavian exacted revenge on the Senators who assassinated Julius
Octavian soon became undisputed ruler of Rome, renaming himself Augustus Caesar
“Augustus” means “exalted one”; Julius Caesar’s last name became the title for “emperor”

39. FROM ROMAN REPUBLIC TO ROMAN EMPIRE
Augustus did away with the Senators’ power, eventually ending the representative government of Rome and becoming Rome’s first emperor
The Senate still met, but the emperor had all of the real power

41. THE PAX ROMANA Pax Romana
Augustus’ 41 year reign marked the beginning of a 207-year era of peace, wealth, and expansion called “Pax Romana” (the “Roman Peace”) from 27 BCE to 180 CE
The Empire was over 3 million square miles in size and contained about 80 million people
Pax Romana

42. Roman aqueducts brought water to cities
Pax Romana became the “golden age” of Rome as emperors like Augustus built well-paved roads and a modern infrastructure; they had a merit-based bureaucracy to rule the empire
During the Pax Romana, emperors continued to expand
Roman aqueducts brought water to cities

43. Roman architects used new styles like concrete domes to beautify cities

44. Emperors built arenas and used chariot races, gladiator events, and theater to entertain the Roman people
The Roman Coliseum

47. ROMAN EMPERORS: THE GOOD, THE BAD, and THE UGLY
Rome would have a wide range of different emperors over the years

48. ROMAN EMPERORS: THE GOOD, THE BAD, and THE UGLY
Several emperors were excellent leaders (like Trajan and Marcus Aurelius)

49. ROMAN EMPERORS: THE GOOD, THE BAD, and THE UGLY
Some were not so good; Nero was ruthless and uncaring of the Roman people’s well-being; the legend is that Nero played his fiddle while part of Rome burned (then blamed Christians for the fire)

50. ROMAN EMPERORS: THE GOOD, THE BAD, and THE UGLY
Commodus was a weak and inept leader, leading a life of laziness and debauchery

51. ROMAN EMPERORS: THE GOOD, THE BAD, and THE UGLY
Domitian was paranoid and devised many tortures and executions for his enemies

52. ROMAN EMPERORS: THE GOOD, THE BAD, and THE UGLY
Caligula was a psychopath; he raped whomever he wanted, killed for greed and pleasure, and thought he should have been treated as a god

53. Despite having some bad emperors mixed in with the great ones, the Roman Empire grew in size, power, and glory

54. But all things come to an end, and the Roman Empire, for all its greatness, would eventually decline and fall

55. CONCLUSIONS Rome expanded from a city, to a republic, to an empire
The era of the Roman Republic introduced representative democracy
The era of the Roman Empire led to the Pax Romana and the “golden age” of Roman innovation and culture

56. Closure Activity
Would you rather live during the Roman Republic or the Empire? Provide at least 3 reasons why