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.