Roman civilization Flashcards
who built the city of Rome? Where
The Latins, on the 7 hills near river Tiber in Central Italy
Structure of the Roman society
patricians Plebeians Slaves
Elaborate on the structure of Roman society
Patrician: members of the old, rich and powerful families of Rome
Plebeians: common ppl like poor traders and farmers
Slaves: captured ppl from wars
Structure of the Roman republic
Consuls, Upper house (the senate), Lower house (the assembly)
what are the duties of the Senates
-Made decisions on spending
-Made decisions about taxation
-Made laws
The member ship of the Upper house (the Senate)
Patricians (around 300 senators) and 2 Plebeians from the Assembly
What are the duties of Lower House (the Assembly)?
-elected the 2 consuls
-elected tribunes
-voted on laws suggested by the
government officials
Elaborate on ‘consuls’
-2 members
-1 year term of office
-memberships are patricians, chosen from the senate
Is the structure of the Roman republic balanced?
Yes, because there are 2 consuls, Plebeians can elect the consuls and the consuls also only have 1 year term of office, therefore creates a balanced structure with more equal and fair political rights, which inspired the later democratic system
When did Julius Caesar die?
15th March, 44 BC
Elaborate on Julius Caesar
-Born in a Patrician family, became and army general
-elected a consul and grew in power and popularity
-defeated his enemies and and became a dictator
-killed by some senators (lead by Brutus)
Is Julius Caesar a good leader? (If yes)
-Gave land to the poor peasants and retired soldiers
-Gave jobs to unemployed
-Allowed people in the conquered land to govern themselves
Is Julius Caesar a good leader? (if no)
-Wore purple clothes like a king
-Introduced a new calendar, the Julian calendar
-Put up his own statue among the statues of the old kings of Rome
-Put his supporters and friends in powerful positions
Why was Julius Caesar killed?
Because his enemies thought he wanted to become King
Elaborate on the divided Roman provinces
Octavian ruled over Italy and the Western provinces ; Mark Anthony ruled over Egypt and the Eastern provinces
Why cant Octavian and Mark Anthony rule together
Because they quarreled and fought a lot for power and leadership of Rome
What was the result of Octavian and Mark Anthony’s fight for leadership
Octavian won and Mark Anthony killed himself, Octavian then called himself Augustus (meaning ‘majesty’)
Who became the first Roman Emperor?
Augustus Caesar (Octavian)
When did the Roman Republic end?
27 BC
The change in government under Augustus Caesar
-The Roman Republic ended in 27 BC
-Augustus Caesar became the first Emperor of Rome
Was Augustus Caesar a good Emperor? (yes)
He ruled Rome for more than 40 years, and made the Empire rich and strong
When was the Golden age of Roman civilization? What was it called?
The 1st and 2nd centuries. This period was called ‘Roman Peace’ / Pax Romana
What caused the fall of Roman Empire?
- Barbarian invasions
2.Corruption and weak leadership
3.Heavy military spending and unfair tax
system
4.Political division
Elaborate on the causes of the fall of the Roman Empire (barbarian invasions)
-Many Barbarians invaded the Roman
boarder, e.g. German tribes
-The Roman army could not defend Rome because the empire was too large to defend
Elaborate on the causes of the fall of the Roman Empire (Corruption and weak leadership)
-Weak and incapable emperors left Rome in financial ruines and civil wars
-The Romans lost hope in their government
Elaborate on the causes of the fall of the Roman Empire (Heavy military spending and unfair tax system)
-Tax was raised to finance war and the tax burden became heavy
-Distribution of tax was unfair because the Patricians tried to get out of taxation, they paid less than the Plebeians
-spending of war began to dry up and the economy weakened
-There was inadequate money to strengthen the army
Elaborate on the causes of the fall of the Roman Empire (Political division)
-The Roman Empire was divided into the western Empire and the Eastern Empire in the 3rd century. The division made the Western empire more difficult to survive as the Eastern Empire was stronger economically and militarily W
Who conquered the Western Empire
German tribes
When did the Western Empire end?
AD 476
When was the Eastern Empire conquered? By who?
In AD 1453, by the Turks
The legend about the founding of Rome: The legend about the twin brothers __ and __
Romulus and Remus
