Midterm

Question 1

Lucretia

Answer 1

Livy wrote about her, who lived at the end of the Royal period and caused the beginnings of the Republic. She was a noblewoman whom Tarquin, King of Rome, raped. She was unlike many women in Rome at the time, as she was extremely loyal to her husband. After her rape, she gathered her father and husband and told them of what happened, and then committed suicide to save herself further dishonor.

6th century

Question 2

Philip V of Macedon

Answer 2

In the late 3rd century BCE Philip V seized the territory of the King of Macedon, Greece, and led them in the First and Second Macedonian Wars in the 3rd century BCE. He made a mutual defense pact with Hannibal. His son succeeded him and Rome annexed Macedonia after the Third Macedonian War.

This added the eastern mediterranean to the Roman Empire after V defeat

Question 3

Rhetoric

Answer 3

This is the ability to make persuasive arguments, and it was a secondary education in Rome. The Romans focused on five major areas: Invention, Arrangement, Expression, Memory, and Delivery. Form was favored over content. There were many rules on gestures.

Question 4

Optimates

Answer 4

“best ones”. This is a label applied to politicians who were supporters of the authority of the senate or just opponents of the populares. This was part of the Gracchan legacy; the labeling of politicians as either for the people or for the senate.

(2nd Century)

Question 5

Sack of Rome (BCE)

Answer 5

The Gauls sacked Rome in 387 BCE (4th century). This left the Roman moral to waver for a period. It was the first time Rome was attacked by an outside force.

Question 6

Hannibal

Answer 6

A military leader during the Second Punic War. He lived during the 3rd century. He traveled through the Alps to fight Rome and defeated a Roman force in 216 at Cannae. He failed to get reinforcements to Carthage

Question 7

Battle of Zama

Answer 7

Scipio Africanus, a Roman general, was appointed during this time. He was tasked with taking Spain. Once that was done, he invaded North Africa and met Hannibal here at the Battle of Zama. He defeated him, and ended the Second Punic War.

(3rd Century)

Question 8

Cato the Elder

Answer 8

A pleb who rose in ranks to censorship. He was extremely hateful of Greek culture and also luxury. He had no issues calling out any one who he didn’t think fit the Roman ideals. He traveled to Carthage after the Second Punic War and saw that Carthage was in fact not poor, but a threat. He came back to Rome and made a speech in the Senate declaring so. This pushed for the third Punic war.

(2nd Century)

Question 9

Jugurthine War

Answer 9

After Carthage’s destruction, Numidia was Africa’s biggest kingdom. Masinissa, the king, was allied with Rome. Jugurtha attacked his brother when the king died to take the kingdom for himself, and his brother asked Rome for aid. Rome was slow to act, but eventually sent Gaius Marius who defeated Jugurtha in 105 BCE

2rd century

Question 10

The Aeneid

Answer 10

A piece of literature that tells the legend of Rome’s founder Aeneas. It was written by Virgil. This book works as propaganda, a national epic and an origin story. It was started in 30 BCE. Virgil died before he could complete it in 19 BCE.

Augustus Caesar comissioned Virgil
(1st century)

Question 11

Twelve Tables

Answer 11

The first written Roman Laws. In the 5th century (450 BCE), the roman government was suspended in order to write these laws. The main purpose was to write down laws so people couldn’t manipulate the law.

Question 12

Struggle of the Orders

Answer 12

This was an event between the 5-4th century BCE. Beginning in the early days of the republic but continuing throughout most of the republic was the political struggle between the plebs and the patricians. The plebs seceded from the republic for a time and as a result the office of the pleb tribune was created, which was the first power the plebs had ever gained.

Question 13

Marius

Answer 13

Roman general and statesman. He defeated Jugurtha in North Africa, and the Cimbric and Teutons north of Italy. He was elected consul many times (107, 104-100 BCE) and reformed the army to allow any citizen to join, not just land-owning citizens. He also promised pay and retirement incentives. Sulla was his quaestor.

2nd century

Question 14

Mithridates

Answer 14

He was the ruler of the Kingdom of Pontus from 120 to 63 BCE. Sulla had tried defeating him but failed, and in 66 BCE, Rome gave Pompey a special command to defeat him, which he did. After his defeat, Pompey annexed Syria and Jerusalem.

(1st Century)

Question 15

Gaius Gracchus

Answer 15

Him and his elder brother (Tiberius) were sons of a wealthy pleb father and patrician mother. His brother worked on a land reform to allow everyone to have access to public land and when he tried to run for a second term as tribune he was beaten to death. Gaius was elected in 123 and 122 BCE. He regulated the price of grain and reformed the jury system. The Gracchus legacy was cemented as supporters of the plebs or “populares”.

(2nd Century)

Question 16

Battle of Pharsalus

Answer 16

The decisive battle of Caesar’s Civil War fought in 48 BCE in Greece against Pompey. Pompey had the backing of the senate and had the larger army. Pompey was defeated and fled to Egypt, but was assassinated by Ptolemy XIII.

(1st Century)

Question 17

Mamertines

Answer 17

Mercenaries, previously hired by Syracuse, who occupied the city of Messana. The city appealed to both Rome and Carthage for assistance. Mamertines then allied with Rome and Carthage allied with Syracuse, who quickly changed sides for Rome. This began the First Punic War (264 – 241 BCE). Rome quickly gained a superior navy when they did not have one before; Carthage was already known for their navy. Rome gained Sicily. Named themselves after the god of war, Manatinus.

(3rd Century)

Question 18

Ager publicus

Answer 18

Public land that was available to the public to use for farming. Patricians gained more and more of it over time until they became latifundia, almost plantation-like estates worked by slaves instead of Roman citizens. It was Tiberius Gracchus who created land reform and outlawed any single citizen owning more than 300 acres of public land

Question 19

Vercingetorix

Answer 19

A leader of the tribe of Gual. His main opponent was Juilus Caesar who was trying to take Gaul territory. This occurred in the 1st century 52 BCE. Ultimately, he was defeated by Caesar, taken to Rome and was executed.

Question 20

Cicero

Answer 20

One of Rome’s greatest orators. He was consul in 63 BCE, during which the Catiline conspiracy attempted to overthrow the government and one of Cicero’s greatest speeches was recorded against Catiline. He sympathized with the optimates, but championed the Republic above all else.

Question 21

Etruscans

Answer 21

8th century the dominant culture of Italy for several centuries before the ascendancy of the Romans.
They shared a common culture but were not united; however, their culture was adapted into Roman culture after Rome conquered them. Their economy was based on any early civilization, agriculture, manufacturing, etc and they traded with people around them like North Africa, Greece and Egypt. Their religion focused heavily on divination, which they brought to the Romans.