Background Information from Study Island
Rome
The city of Rome was established on the Tiber River in modern-day Italy in 753 B.C.
It was built on many hills and had little soil for farming.
People were farmers, traders, and road builders.
Romans traded throughout the Mediterranean Sea.
Roman Government
· The Roman Republic existed from 509 B.C. to 27 B.C.
· Before Rome became a republic, it had been controlled by a king who was a tyrant.
· The Roman Senate developed during the Republic; senators were the aristocracy and politically influential in the state.
· The Roman Constitution was based on 12 written laws and ancient traditions.
· The creation of a written law code in the Roman Republic was important. It meant that the laws would be applied fairly.
· In times of military emergencies, a single dictator was chosen for a term of 6 months to have control of the Roman state.
· Governmental power in the Roman Republic was divided among three branches: the senate, the legislative assemblies, and the executive magistrates.
· Civic duty was an important part of life for Roman citizens. Serving as a judge when asked to hear a legal case was an example of the moral obligations of all Roman citizens during the Republic.
· The Roman Republic fell apart after the death of Julius Caesar. Soon after that, the Roman Empire came into being.
· Octavius, Caesar's nephew, inherited Caesar’s wealth and was able to stay in power as emperor. When he became emperor, he took the name Caesar Augustus.
· Many of the elements of the government of the Roman Republic are used by democratic governments today. Some of those elements include checks and balances, the separation of powers, vetoes, filibusters, term limits, impeachments, and regularly scheduled elections.
· Civil Law, which is based on written rules, developed in Ancient Rome. The legal systems used in many European and Latin American countries today are based on this system.
Art and Architecture
Strongly influenced by Greek art in painting, sculpture, and potter
Depicted warriors and heroic adventures in Roman art
Used mostly marble and terra cotta for sculptures
Displayed mosaics, paintings, and sculptures on buildings
Modified Greek architecture to fit their needs
Developed concrete to build large buildings and bridges
Built aqueducts (to transport water) and amphitheaters
Built the Colosseum, inspiring design elements used in many modern stadiums
Perfected the design of dome structures to use with large buildings like the Pantheon
Technology and Science
Used labor-saving machines like cranes, water mills, grain mills, donkey mills (using donkey's strength), water pumps, and cargo ships
Built sewer systems in order to transport waste away from their cities
Used indoor plumbing in public baths which provided a place for people to bathe and to socialize
Improved transportation by building many roads such as the Appian Way, one of the many roads that the ancient Romans used to connect the different areas of their empire
Introduced Roman numerals, the basis for Roman mathematics
Law
Had a body of common laws that applied to Roman citizens
Had a set of individuals who had jurisdiction over cases involving citizens—like present-day judges
In the 6th century A.D., Emperor Justinian developed a body of law called the Justinian Code; This code became the basis of legal principles and practices in the Byzantine Empire and Western Europe through the 18th century
Literature
Many great writers such as Cicero, Ovid, and Virgil emerged from Rome
Cicero was a Roman politician who was well known for his speaking ability
Cicero also wrote books on rhetoric and philosophy
Ovid was a Roman poet who wrote the Metamorphoses, an epic poem based on Greek mythology
The Aeneid, which was influenced by Greek poet Homer's Iliad and Odyssey, was a famous work by the Roman poet Virgil
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Figures in Roman History
Romulus and Remus are the traditional founders of Rome. They appear in Roman mythology as twin sons fathered by Mars, the god of war. According to legend, Romulus killed Remus in a dispute over which brother had support of the local gods to rule the city and give it his name. Romulus served as the first King of Rome, created the Roman Legions and Roman Senate, and added citizens to his city by abducting women of the neighboring Sabine tribes.
Julius Caesar was a Roman military and political leader who played an important part in the transformation of the Roman Republic to the Roman Empire. He extended the Roman world to the Atlantic Ocean through conquests and was proclaimed dictator for life. He was murdered by members of the Senate who wanted to restore the republic.
Cicero was an orator and statesman of Rome and is considered the greatest Latin orator and prose stylist. Many of his books and speeches have survived and are famous today. He was exiled from Rome for putting Roman citizens to death without a trial and returned over a year later. He worked to earn favor with Julius Caesar during Caesar's rise to power.
Caesar Augustus (also known as Octavius) became emperor after the death of Julius Caesar and kept control over all politics and the military. During his long and peaceful reign, he had many accomplishments, including expanding the empire and extending trade routes to India and China.
Hadrian was a Roman emperor who focused on defending land that Rome had already conquered instead of conquering new lands. He ordered walls built on the empire's borders to protect against barbarians. The most famous of these is Hadrian's Wall in Britain. He worked to fight rebellions within the empire, including a Jewish revolt that ended with the destruction of the Second Temple. Hadrian traveled frequently and admired the arts. He supported architecture and other artwork in the empire.
Hannibal was one of Rome's most famous enemies. He led an invasion of Italy during the Second Punic War fought between Rome and Carthage. Hannibal's army included war elephants from Africa. They traveled through Spain and crossed the Alps during their invasion of Italy. He won several victories against the Romans, but he was unable to capture the major Roman cities. Hannibal was defeated when the Romans began their own invasion of Carthage, forcing him to retreat.
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Government in Ancient Rome
The Roman Republic existed from 509 B.C. to 27 B.C. The senate decided a republic would be a good form of government because the king that had ruled them was a tyrant. The Roman Constitution was based on 12 written laws and ancient traditions. Governmental power in the Roman Republic was divided among three branches as a system of checks and balances: the senate, the legislative assemblies, and the executive magistrates. This was done so that there would be a separation of powers, and one person or group would not have all the power. The assemblies and the senate provided a structure for governing in the early Roman Republic.
Civic duty was an important part of life for Roman citizens. Serving as a judge when asked to hear a legal case was an example of the moral obligations of all Roman citizens during the Republic.
Many of the elements of the government of the Roman Republic are still used by democratic governments. Some of those elements include checks and balances, the separation of powers, vetoes, filibusters, term limits, impeachments, and regularly scheduled elections. Civil Law, which is based upon ancient Roman law, is used in many European and Latin American countries. Civil Law is based on written rules.
Roman government began to change during the lifetime of Julius Caesar. Caesar was a Roman general who used his army to take control of the republic. He forced the senate to declare him dictator for life. Though Caesar was popular, a group of senators thought he was dangerous to the republic. They assassinated him on March 15, 44 B.C., hoping to stop Rome from becoming a dictatorship.
This series of events actually led to the end of the Roman Republic and the beginning of the Roman Empire. Octavius, the great-nephew of Caesar, took the name Augustus and became Rome's first emperor in 27 B.C. When Augustus died, his stepson became the next emperor. Though the senate still existed, the Roman Empire was in many ways a monarchy.
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Direct Democracy |
Representative Democracy |
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Government of Ancient Athens |
Government of the Roman Republic |
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All citizens participate |
All citizens participate |
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Citizens vote on laws themselves |
Citizens vote on representatives to make laws |
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No different government branches |
Separations of powers |
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Power in the majority vote |
Checks and balances on power |
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Used in a city-state |
Used in larger areas |
The United States is mostly a representative democracy:
· U.S. citizens elect the president and Congress members. If these people do not make decisions that the citizens agree with, the citizens vote other people into office.
· Power is separated between different government branches. Checks and balances give each branch certain controls over the other branches. An example is the veto power the president has over Congress.
· More people can participate in U.S. democracy than Athenians and Romans could in their governments. This is because in Athens and Rome, slaves and women did not have the participation rights that citizens had.
Many people do not think that a direct democracy could work in the United States like it did for Ancient Athens. The main reason for this is that Athens was a single city-state, while the United States is a large country. It would not be very practical for every single U.S. citizen to vote on every issue in the country.
Another concern that people have is one of the same worries America’s founding fathers had: direct democracy means that the majority opinion of people will always be able to overpower the minority. With no separation of powers or checks and balances, minority views will never be represented.
Still, the United States has some traits of a direct democracy. On the local level, citizens will sometimes be allowed to vote in a referendum on proposed laws. This allows the citizens to vote on a law directly.
