THIRD YEAR SOCIAL STUDIES (Lecture and Assignment)

THE BIRTH OF THE REPUBLIC AND THE ROMAN EMPIRE

                   

ITALY- is a peninsula extends from southern Europe to the Mediterranean Sea. It is shaped like a boot with a high heel.

ROME- was the center of civilization in Italy.

AENEID- national epic by Roman poet Virgil, composed between 30 and 19 bc. This article summarizes the plot of the epic poem; for an assessment of its literary importance, see Virgil: The Aeneid. The poem describes the odyssey of its hero Aeneas and the Trojans, their arrival in Italy, and their victory over the Latins and Rutulians.

LATINS- the first people to settle in Rome, from the north of the peninsula, they were farmers and herders of domesticated animals.

ETRUSCANS- ancient people who lived to the north and west of Rome

REX- a Latin term for “king”

REPUBLIC- a form of state based on the concept that sovereignty resides in the people, who delegate the power to rule in their behalf to elected representatives and officials.

The Roman society was divided into:

ü  PLEBEIANS- are the common people composed of the ordinary freemen and small landowners.

ü  PATRICIAN- the aristocrats; consisted of wealthy landowners, from this group comes the CONSULS who ran the government and headed the military.

The term lasted only for one year. The consul has the power to reject any law presented to him through the act they called VETO, a Latin word meaning, “I forbid.”

TWELVE TABLES- one of the written laws which protected the plebeians against the unjust decisions of the patrician judges

LEGION- the reference unit of Roman Army, composed of 3000-6000 infantry soldiers and 100 troops on horseback

PUNIC WARS- a series of war between the Romans and Carthage

GAIUS MARIUS &LUCIUS CORNELIUS SULLA- the last consuls who placed Rome under a dictatorship

TRIUMVIRATE- a rule of three, example, First Triumvirate was composed of GNAEUS POMPEY, MARCUS LICINUS CRASSUS, and GAUIS JULIUS CAESAR.

JULIUS CAESAR (100-44 BCE)- Roman general and statesman whose dictatorship was pivotal in Rome’s transition from republic to empire. Caesar laid the foundations of the Roman imperial system. greatest hero of the Roman Republic and said the famous, “Alla Yacta Est!” meaning, “The die is cast.”

Second Triumvirate- MARK ANTONY, MAECUS AEMILIUS LEPIDUS, and OCTAVIAN

OCTAVIAN- Julius Caesar’s adopted son

            -he was given the title, Augustus Caesar, which was reserved only for gods. Augustus means “respected and phenomenal” while Caesar was borrowed from Julius Caesar, as assign of respect. From then on Octavian was known as AUGUSTUS.

            -Augustus (63 BCE- 14 CE), first emperor of Rome (27 BCE-14 CE), who restored unity and orderly government to the realm after nearly a century of civil wars. He presided over an era of peace, prosperity, and cultural achievement known as the Augustan Age.

Augustus was succeeded by Tiberius in 14 CE, who was in turn succeeded by GAIUS/ CALIGULA. Caligula was replaced by his uncle CLAUDIUS in 41 CE. In 54 CE, her wife poisoned him to allow his son NERO become the Emperor.

Nero, after committing suicide, was replaced by GALBA, a Roman army, then followed by OTHO and VITELLIUS, respectively.

COLOSSEUM- largest and most famous ancient Roman amphitheater. The emperor Vespasian, who ruled Rome from  69 to 79 CE, began construction of the city’s Colosseum and his son, the Roman emperor Titus, dedicated it in 80 CE. The Colosseum was completed by Vespasian’s younger son, Domitian, who succeeded Titus as emperor in 81 CE. The structure was originally called the Flavian Amphitheater.

In ad 96 CE the Senate proclaimed Nerva (96–98 CE), who had no children, as emperor. He adopted Trajan, the respected governor of Germany, as his successor and began a new imperial line known historically as the Antonines. During this time, Roman rulers did not rely on heredity to determine which family members would succeed them, but instead adopted successors. Generally these adopted emperors governed the empire far more effectively than their predecessors.

Trajan (98-117 CE) was a distinguished soldier who became one of Rome’s most beloved monarchs. He was the first emperor born in the provinces and was of Spanish origin. He devoted much of his energy to aggressive wars that extended Roman rule across the Danube River to Dacia (present-day Romania) and into Mesopotamia.

Trajan’s cousin and successor Hadrian (117-138 CE) was a restless traveler whose passion for Greek culture and prickly aloofness greatly displeased the Senate. Despite these traits, he administered the empire well. Hadrian reformed the civil service, suppressed a Jewish revolt, and continued the construction of military highways that enabled troops to march quickly towards the walls or palisades marking the empire’s frontiers.

Hadrian’s successor, Antoninus Pius (138–161 CE), had a peaceful reign, but the inactivity of the legions during this prolonged peace caused trouble for his successor as they were ill prepared for fighting.

 Emperor Marcus Aurelius (161-180 CE), who followed his uncle Antoninus Pius to the imperial throne, was a humane and energetic leader, but war dominated his reign. He fought hard against the German tribes who crossed into the empire when a devastating plague weakened Rome’s western provinces. Marcus Aurelius was also a philosopher who followed the ethical principles of Stoicism, which taught that good is determined by the state of the soul.

 Lucius Aelius Aurelius Commodus (180-192), son of Aurelius, was a startling change for the Romans after the series of good emperors and he caused the decline of the Roman Empire. Not so good emperors followed.

Causes of the decline of the Roman Empire:

ü  Loss of traditional values of heroism and concern for general welfare;

ü  Very few good Roman soldiers left as many Romans became accustomed of a life of luxury;

ü  There were no Roman leaders with the same qualities as Caesar, Augustus, and the first five Antonine Emperors ( NERVA, TRAJAN, HADRIAN, ANTONIUS PIUS, and MARCUS AURELIUS) who were in touch with the sentiment of the common people;

ü  Civil wars exhausted Rome’s finances; and

ü  The empire was divided and it was being attacked by the barbarians. 

GRECO-ROMAN LITERATURE- a fusion of Greek and Roman literature

Romans were also brilliant engineers. They designed their amphitheatre, public bath, and temples with admirable columns, arches, and domes. They were also skilled in building roads, bridges, and aqueducts.

PTOLEMY and GALEN-  two of the notable scientist during the Greco-Roman period

Legal and Judicial system was probably the greatest contribution of Romans in terms of Law. The Roman believed that the law should be based on reason and justice and that its ultimate aim was to defend the rights and property of the citizens.

The polytheism of Romans was wiped out and replaced with Christianity, the religion which helped Emperor Constantine in his war against his enemies.

The Roman Empire was one of the most powerful and important empires of the ancient world. Even today, 1500 years after its fall, there is evidence of the great accomplishments of the Roman Empire in the art, architecture, and literature the Romans left behind. Their language—Latin—forms the basis of languages spoken today in several European countries.

NOTE: 

Answer the STUDY THIS letter A. LOOK IT UP and B. CHALLENGE YOURSELF on page 97 of your textbook. And why do think the world honored and admired the Roman culture.Write your answers on your notebook.

  I will collect your notebooks on the day that the class will resume. God bless.