The Roman Roads

“It is often said that ‘all roads lead to Rome,’ and in fact, they once did. The road system of the Ancient Romans was one of the greatest engineering accomplishments of its time, with over 50,000 miles of paved road radiating from their center at the miliarius aurem in the Forum in the city of Rome. Although the Roman road system was originally built to facilitate the movement of troops throughout the empire, it was inevitably used for other purposes by civilians then and now.” (source)

“The Romans were the first ancient civilization to build paved roads.” (source) These roads “connected the various kingdoms and countries within their empire to the empire’s capital, Rome.” (Hicks 238) One of the features of the roads were that they “were crowned—that is, they were higher in the middle than on the sides to allow water to run off—and they often had gutters for drainage along the shoulders. Probably the most incredible engineering feat concerning the Roman road system, though, is how well the roads were built. Many are still major thoroughfares for cars today!” (source)

“Good roads are crucial for any advancing army; the Romans understood this implicitly. These cobbled lifelines ferried reinforcements and supplies to the outposts of the Empire. Without them, it's unlikely the Romans would have ever expanded past the Mediterranean shores.” (source) The roads were a big part of getting the Roman army to and from places quickly. They would be slowed down considerably if they had to walk through gravel and mud. (Millard 86)

However, the military was not the only user of the roads. Ordinary citizens and the postmen, bringing people their mail, traveled these roads daily. Most people who used the roads walked, but “a wealthy merchant could afford a wagon pulled by horses. The roads were built so that two of these wagons could pass on both sides of the roads.” (source) People came to Rome to trade and be part of the markets and activities. For example, the exotic animals used in the gladiatorial games were imported, and they used them a lot! In order to get the animals there, people had to travel the roads. (source)

Even though the Roman roads were traveled daily 2,000 years ago, many are still in decent shape. This is amazing! “Military might is the Roman Empire's most distinguishing characteristic. However, the civilization's most enduring legacy is definitely its roads.” (source)



Works Cited

Hicks, Laurel Elizabeth. Old World History & Geography in Christian Perspective. U.S.A., A Beka Book. 1999.

Millard, Dr. Anne and Patricia Vanags. The Usborne Book of World History. London, England: Usborne Publishing Ltd. 1985.

Why it was preferable for Romans to live within the city of Rome: no links required

It was better to live in the city of Rome because you were protected from outside attacks. Barbarians and other peoples were constantly trying to attack and take over Rome. If you were within the city walls, you were mostly safe. (Hindley 95, Millard 86)

The city of Rome also held the curia, the building where the Senate met. People could go outside of it and protest laws they didn’t like, waving banners and shouting. They could see their senators coming in or going out of the building and voice their opinions. In general, the Romans liked having the government there in the city because they themselves were a part of it. (source)

If you were a citizen, you got special privileges. You could not be tortured or killed without a trial, and you could not be sentenced to death unless you had been found guilty of treason. Even so, no Roman citizen could die on a cross. For example, “despite being found guilty of the same crime, St. Paul and St. Peter faced different fates. St. Paul was beheaded, while St. Peter, not being a Roman citizen, was crucified.” (source)

Another thing about living in Rome was the farming. Farming was considered the desirable trade back then, and Rome’s Mediterranean climate was perfect for that. The Tiber River was close by, and it flooded a couple times a year. This watered the land naturally, keeping the crops alive. People outside of Rome (or those not near to Rome, at least,) could not share the benefit of the Tiber’s water. These people had to spend money to build aqueducts. “The total length of all the Roman aqueducts was about 1,300 miles.” (Hicks 238)

One other privilege of living in Rome was that the markets and shops were in that city. If you lived in the country, you had shops, but nothing like the many markets and stores there were in the heart of the city. You could go to these shops and buy mostly anything. If you lived in the city, you had everything right outside your door. Rome was the center of the Roman Empire, so that’s where the big things happened. Rome was like our modern day New York City. The city of Rome held the court house where people gathered to listen to trials, the theatres, the Colosseum where the gladiatorial games were held, the chariot races, and the public baths & bathrooms. The city of Rome was the center of trade and activity. (source)



A Roman chariot race


Roman public baths
Gladiators fighting in the Colosseum





Works Cited

Hicks, Laurel Elizabeth. Old World History & Geography in Christian Perspective. U.S.A., A Beka Book. 1999.

Hindley, Judy and Anne Civardi, James Graham-Campbell, Heather Amery, Patricia Vanags, and Tony Allen. Time Traveler. London, England: Usborne Publishing Ltd. 1976.

Millard, Dr. Anne and Patricia Vanags. The Usborne Book of World History. London, England: Usborne Publishing Ltd. 1985.

The Unique Contributions that the Romans Made to Architectural and Artistic Development

Architecture

One of the things that the Romans built, were, of course, their houses! These were not much to look at. “The earliest Roman dwellings were the most simple habitations that could be imagined after the tent. Built of wood, with a pointed roof, covered with straw, or a sort of primitive shingle, they consisted of one square apartment with an aperture in the top, which admitted a little light and afforded an exit for the smoke, while directly beneath it, in the ground, was a hole for carrying off the rain.” (source) “Domestic architecture long remained very simple, although numerous practical improvements were adopted gradually, until, about 184 B. C., to the atrium were added a kitchen and bedrooms, a…chapel, a court, garden, and garden colonnade. In the court and the colonnades, columns were used, and although comforts and conveniences were thus largely increased, the materials remained simple and the construction plain and unornamented. Slight foundations of stone made the plain brick structures dry.” (source) However, the Romans did accessorize. “The Romans decorated the walls and floors of their houses with small cubes of colored stone. These are called mosaics.” (Millard 92)

The nicer things that the Romans built were usually copied from someone else and made with a twist. For example, the Roman columns derived from the Greeks. The Doric columns were used in forums, (several open squares in the middle of the city,) courtyards, arcades, and civil buildings. The Ionic columns were not really appreciated or properly used in Rome, but it was the opposite with the Corinthian order. “It is stated that as many as fifty varieties of Corinthian capitals were produced for Roman uses” during three centuries. (source, Hindley 70)

Roman theatres were built, too, but were very rare because actors could be persecuted. In fact, “everything connected with the theatre was held in perfect contempt by Romans of position. The presentation of plays--all such entertainments being free--was essentially confined to the national festivals, when they made a part of the public shows and were held in buildings that were little more than wooden sheds.” (source) Roman theaters were usually either built of wood or stone. Anyway, the Romans didn’t grow to love the theatre until years later. One famous Roman theatre is the Colosseum, where gladiators fought and Christians were persecuted. It was pretty big, seating about 50,000. (source)

Art

“Many characteristics of Roman art have their origins in the art of the Etruscans, the Romans' predecessors as the dominant culture of Italy… Roman art absorbed this Etruscan style and the Etruscan influence included temple architecture, sculpture, portraiture and wall painting. Rome was also deeply influenced by the art of the Hellenistic world, which had spread to southern Italy and Sicily through the Greek colonies there. Plutarch, writing in the 2nd century AD, wrote that before Rome's conquest of Greek Syracuse in Sicily, 'Rome neither had nor even knew of these refined things, nor was there in the city any love of what was charming and elegant; rather, it was full of barbaric weapons and bloody spoils.' As Greek treasures continued to arrive in Rome, for example after the sack of Corinth in 146 BC, Hellenistic art continued to exert a fascination on the more austere Romans. Yet Greek culture was not fully accepted until the reign of the Emperor Hadrian and his court (AD 117-38). In the later republic and early imperial period Greek artists were brought to Rome where they designed buildings, repaired sculptures and made new ones…Original Greek statues were copied by Roman artists, though usually in marble rather than bronze, and removed from their original contexts. The portrait bust became a popular form, tending to be more realist than Greek portraiture.” (source)

“However, Roman art also had its own original contributions. Compared with Greek architecture, Roman was more secular and utilitarian and showed an interest in grandeur and scale, for example in the Colosseum and public baths in Rome. The Romans also developed the use of the arch, the vault and the dome, and discovered concrete, which all allowed for a much grander architecture, its culmination being found in religious buildings such as the Pantheon in Rome and the Hagia Sophia in Constantinople.” (source)

The Romans contributed largely to architectural and artistic development. They built houses, theatres, temples, columns, public baths, and more. They painted, made mosaics, and shaped sculptures. The Romans are very interesting to learn about because they built their own things and they copied other cultures' ideas to make them Roman-style.



Works Cited

Hindley, Judy and Anne Civardi, James Graham-Campbell, Heather Amery, Patricia Vanags, and Tony Allen. Time Traveler. London, England: Usborne Publishing Ltd. 1976.

Millard, Dr. Anne and Patricia Vanags. The Usborne Book of World History. London, England: Usborne Publishing Ltd. 1985.

The Reign of Caesar Augustus

Julius Caesar had no children of his own, so he decided to adopt his grand-nephew, Octavian, to be his heir. On March 15 of 44 B.C., Caesar was assassinated and Octavian came to power at 18. He gathered support and an army from Caesar’s veterans and went to Rome where Cassius and Brutus were in control. He formed an alliance with Mark Antony and Marcus Lepidus, and they became the Second Triumvirate. Then Antony and Octavian went after Brutus and Cassius who had fled to the east. Both of these murderers committed suicide. (source)

“The Triumvirate was eventually torn apart under the competing ambitions of its rulers: Lepidus was driven into exile, and Antony committed suicide following his defeat at the Battle of Actium by the armies of Octavian in 31 BC.” (source) “It took several years to work out the exact framework by which a formally republican state could be led by a sole ruler; the result of which became known as the Roman Empire. The emperorship was never an office like the Roman dictatorship which Caesar and Sulla had held before him; indeed, he declined it when the Roman populace ‘entreated him to take on the dictatorship’. By law, Augustus held a collection of powers granted to him for life by the Senate, including those of tribune, censor, and consul, without being formally elected to either of those (incompatible) offices. His substantive power stemmed from financial success and resources gained in conquest, the building of patronage relationships throughout the Empire, the loyalty of many military soldiers and veterans, the authority of the many honors granted by the Senate, and the respect of the people. Augustus' control over the majority of Rome's legions established an armed threat that could be used against the Senate, allowing him to coerce the Senate's decisions. With his ability to eliminate senatorial opposition by means of arms, the Senate became docile towards his paramount position of leadership.” (source)

“In 27 B.C. the Roman Senate added to his adopted name of Caesar the title Augustus (meaning ‘divine’ or ‘majestic’). As emperor he expanded the borders of Rome and took a particular interest in civic and cultural affairs, building temples and theaters, improving aqueducts and supporting poets and historians like Virgil and Ovid.” (source) The time that Caesar reigned is called the Augustan Age. “The Augustan Age is also known as the Pax Romana -- the peace of Rome. [Also,] the eighth month of the Gregorian calendar, August, bears his name.” (source)

Another reason why the reign of Caesar Augustus was important was because Jesus Christ was born during Caesar’s reign. “In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. (This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.) And everyone went to his own town to register. So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.” (Richards 1256)

Well, Caesar started to get old, and “the defeat of Varus, and the tacit abandonment of the plans of expansion begun twenty-five years before, are almost the last events of importance in the long principate of Augustus.” (source) “Augustus ruled Rome for 41 years, though he did not call himself an emperor. He was careful to not meet the same fate as his great granduncle.” (source)

Works Cited: Don't need book sources, though

Richards, Lawrence O. The New Adventure Bible: New International Version. Grand Rapids, Michigan: ZondervanPublishingHouse. 1989.

The Government of Rome

“At first Rome was ruled by kings, the last of whom was an Etruscan. Later, the people rebelled and set up a republic.” (Millard 86) “For the Romans, a republic was not a democracy.” (source)

The government was set up like this: “Two consuls who acted as heads of state and controlled the armed forces were elected each year. [A governing body called the Senate advised these elected consuls.] Other government officials included quaestors who dealt with the finances, censors who kept a register of citizens’ names, tribunes who protected the interests of working people and aedilies who supervised public works.” (Keller 8) In emergencies, Rome could bring in a dictator for a short time. “A dictator could give orders that even the two consuls had to obey.” (source)

“In the Roman Republic, only male citizens with money and property could vote. In addition, the more wealth a citizen had, the greater was his power.” (source) “The rich and powerful people of ancient Rome were the patricians.” (source) Only they could hold government offices. They were not allowed to marry plebians- the lower and more numerous class. Likewise, plebians could not marry patricians. (source)

However, Rome changed when “many men plotted to gain control and there were civil wars. Julius Caesar, a great general, marched his army to Rome in 49 B.C. Caesar soon gained power and brought peace. But one group, fearing he planned to make himself king, stabbed him to death on the Ides (the 15th) of March 44 B.C. There were more civil wars until Octavian, Caesar’s heir, defeated his rival, Mark Antony. Antony and his wife, Cleopatra, Queen of Egypt, killed themselves. Octavian was given the title Augustus and later became the first emperor of Rome. He restored order in the army and revived old Roman customs.” (Millard 87) “The rule of Emperor Augustus brought an end to the Roman republic with elected leaders. In its place, a peaceful empire was set up.” (Millard 88)

“After Augustus, the Roman empire was ruled by strong emperors. From the time of Marcus Aurelius, however, the empire was troubled by barbarian invasions. Eventually Emperor Diocletian divided the empire into four parts, each with its own capital city.” (Millard 90) “People in the Roman empire asked barbarians to protect them against other barbarians. But the attacks went on…. Roman emperors, in need of good soldiers, paid barbarians to lead their armies.” (Millard 91) “In 410, the Goths, under Alaric, sacked Rome, practically ending Roman administration in the western Mediterranean.” (source) The Roman empire then split into two. The last emperor of the western empire was Romulus Augustulus. He was deposed by Odoacer, “a Germanic leader in the Roman army” (source) in 476, and Rome fell.


Works Cited

Foster, Genevieve. Augustus Caesar’s World: 44 B.C. to A.D. 14. Sandwich, Massachusetts: Beautiful Feet Books. 1947.

Millard, Dr. Anne and Patricia Vanags. The Usborne Book of World History. London: Usborne Publishing Ltd. 1995.