| Revision as of 06:48, 9 March 2007 editJohn Reaves (talk | contribs)Extended confirmed users22,487 editsm Reverted 1 edit by 76.170.238.249 to last revision by King Bee.← Previous edit | Revision as of 06:53, 9 March 2007 edit undo76.170.238.249 (talk) rome is full of wild animals planning to enslve the earthNext edit → | ||
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| rome is fule of chuwawa scared little migets. they also are tree huggers. wut else yo mama so fat she went to kentucky fried chicken and the asked what tye of bucket she wanted she said the buckent on the roof. | |||
| [[Image:Roman Republic Empire map.gif|thumb|Area under Roman control | |||
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| ]] | |||
| '''Ancient ]''' was a ] that grew from a ] founded on the ] circa the ] to a massive ] straddling the ]. In its twelve-century existence, Roman civilization shifted from a ], to a ] based on a combination of ] and ], to an ] ]. It came to dominate ] and the entire area surrounding the ] through ] and ]. Nonetheless, a number of factors led to the eventual ]. The ], including ], ], and Italy, eventually broke into independent kingdoms in the ]; the eastern empire, governed from ], is usually referred to as the ] after ], the traditional date for the "fall of Rome" and for the subsequent onset of the ], also known as the ]. | |||
| Roman civilization is often grouped into "]" with ], a civilization that inspired much of the ]. Ancient Rome contributed greatly to the development of ], ], ], ], ], ] and ] in the ], and its ] continues to have a major influence on the world today. | |||
| ==History== | |||
| {{further|] and ]}} | |||
| ===Monarchy=== | |||
| {{main|Roman Kingdom}} | |||
| ] in ] by ], who were raised by a she-wolf.]] | |||
| According to the ], Rome was ] on ], ] by twin descendants of the ] prince ], ]. The Latin King ] was ejected from his throne by his cruel brother ] and Numitor's daughter, ], gave birth to Romulus and Remus.<ref name="FoundofRome">. Accessed ]-].</ref> The new king feared that Romulus and Remus would take back the throne, so they were to be drowned. A she-wolf (or a shepard's wife in some accounts) saved and raised them, and when they were old enough, they took back the throne.<ref name="CaesarandChrist">''The Story of Civilization. Volume III: Caesar and Christ'' by Will Durant. Simon and Schuster, New York: 1944. Pages 12-14.</ref> Romulus then killed Remus in a quarrel over which one of them was to reign and become the first of seven ], as well as the source of the city's name.<ref name=Livy1>Livy I</ref> As the city was bereft of women, legend says that the Latins invited the ] to a festival and stole their unmarried maidens, leading to the integration of the Latins and the Sabines.<ref>. Accessed ]-].</ref> | |||
| The city of ] grew from settlements around a ford on the river ], a crossroads of traffic and trade.<ref name="CaesarandChrist">a</ref> According to ] evidence, the village of Rome was probably founded sometime in the ] by members of two central Italian tribes, the ] and the ]s, on the ], ], and ] Hills. The ], who had previously settled to the north in ], seem to have established political control in the region by the late ], forming the aristocratic and monarchial elite. The Etruscans apparently lost power in the area by the late ], and at this point, the original Latin and Sabine tribes reinvented their government by creating a ], with much greater restraints on the ability of rulers to exercise power.<ref>''Ancient Rome and the Roman Empire'' by Michael Kerrigan. Dorling Kindersley, London: 2001. ISBN 0-7894-8153-7. page 12.</ref> | |||
| ===Republic=== | |||
| {{main|Roman Republic}} | |||
| ], a Roman general and politician who dramatically reformed the ].]] | |||
| The ] was established around ], according to later writers such as ], when the last of the seven kings of Rome, ], was deposed, and a system based on annually-elected ] and various representative assemblies was established. The most important magistrates were the two ]s, who together exercised executive authority in the form of '']'', or military command. The consuls had to contend with the ], which was initially an advisory council of the ranking nobility, or ]s, but grew in size and power over time. Other magistracies in the Republic include ]s, ]s, and ]s. The magistracies were originally restricted to patricians, but were later opened to common people, or ].<ref name=Livy2>Livy II</ref> Republican voting assemblies included the ''comitia centuriata'' and the ''comitia tributa''. | |||
| The Romans gradually subdued the other peoples on the Italian peninsula, including the ]. The last threat to Roman ] in Italy came when ], a major ] colony, enlisted the aid of ] in ], but this effort failed as well. The Romans secured their conquests by founding Roman colonies in strategic areas, establishing stable control over the region.<ref name=Tuomisto>Tuomisto 2002</ref> In the second half of the ], Rome clashed with ] in the first of three ]. These wars resulted in Rome's first overseas conquests, of ] and ], and the rise of Rome as a significant imperial power. After defeating the ]ian and ]s in the ], the Romans became the dominant people of the ].<ref name=Bagnall>Bagnall 1990</ref> | |||
| But foreign dominance led to internal strife. Senators became rich at the ]' expense, but soldiers, who were mostly small-scale farmers, were away from home longer and could not maintain their land, and the increased reliance on foreign ] reduced the availability of paid work. Income from war booty, ] in the new provinces, and ] created new economic opportunity and wealth among the lower classes, forming a new class of ]s, the ]. Though the equestrians had vast financial resources at their disposal, they still found themselves counted among the lower-class ], and therefore severely restricted in terms of political power. The Senate squabbled perpetually, repeatedly blocking important ]s and refusing to give the equestrian class a larger say in the government. Violent gangs of the urban unemployed, controlled by rival Senators, intimidated the electorate through violence. The situation came to a head in the late ] under the ] brothers, a pair of ]s who attempted to pass land reform legislation that would redistribute the major patrician landholdings among the plebeians. Both brothers were killed, but the Senate passed some of their reforms in an attempt to placate the growing unrest of the plebeian and equestrian classes. The denial of ]ship to allied Italian cities led to the ] of ]–]. The military reforms of ] resulted in soldiers often having more loyalty to their commander than to the city, and a powerful general could hold the city and Senate ransom. This led to civil war between Marius and his protegé ], and culminated in Sulla's ] of ]-].<ref name=Scullard1>Scullard 1982, chapters I-IV</ref> | |||
| In the mid-], three men, ], ], and ], formed a secret pact—the ]—to control the Republic. After Caesar's ], a stand-off between Caesar and the Senate led to ], with Pompey leading the Senate's forces. Caesar emerged victorious, and was made ] for life.<ref name=meier>Meier 1982;</ref><ref name=Scullard2>Scullard 1982, chapters VI-VII</ref> In ], Caesar was ] by senators who opposed Caesar's assumption of absolute power and wanted to restore constitutional government, but in the aftermath a ], consisting of Caesar's designated heir, ], and his former supporters, ] and ], took power. However, this alliance soon descended into a struggle for dominance. Lepidus was ]d, and when Augustus defeated Antony and ] of ] at the ] in ], he became the undisputed ruler of Rome.<ref name=Scullard3>Scullard 1982, chapter VIII</ref> | |||
| ===Empire=== | |||
| {{main|Roman Empire}} | |||
| ] reached its greatest extent in the year 116.]] | |||
| With his enemies defeated, ] assumed almost absolute power, retaining only a pretense of the Republican form of government. His designated successor, ], took power without bloodshed, establishing the ], which lasted until the death of ] in ]. The territorial expansion of what was now the ] continued, and the state remained secure, despite a series of emperors widely viewed as depraved and corrupt (for example, Caligula was completely insane and Nero's sanity was also in question, especially after he supposedly started a fire that burned down most of Rome itself). Their rule was followed by the ].<ref name=suetonius>Suetonius</ref> During the reign of the "]" (]–]), the Empire reached its territorial, economic, and cultural ]. The state was secure from both internal and external threats, and the Empire prospered during the ] ("Roman Peace"). With the conquest of ] during the reign of ], the Empire reached the peak of its territorial expansion; Rome's dominion now spanned 2.5 million square miles (6.5 million ]).<ref name=Atlas>Scarre 1995</ref> | |||
| The period between ] and ] was dominated by the ], and saw several incompetent rulers, such as ]. This and the increasing influence of the army on imperial succession led to a long period of imperial collapse known as the ]. The crisis was ended by the more competent rule of ], who in ] divided the Empire into an eastern and western half ruled by a ] of two co-emperors and their two junior colleagues. The various co-rulers of the Empire competed and fought for supremacy for more than half a century. In ], Emperor ] firmly established the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire in ], and the Empire was permanently divided into the Eastern Roman Empire (later known as the ]) and the ] in ]. | |||
| The Western Empire was constantly harassed by ] invasions, and the gradual ] continued over the centuries. Rome was eventually 'taken hostage' by barbarians, after they had been promised land. Their initial plan was to stop anything and anyone entering or leaving the city until they were given land in which to settle. However, after several betrayals, they grew angry and took the city for their own. In ], the city of Rome itself was sacked by ] and the ], and on ], ], the Germanic chief ] forced the last Roman emperor in the west, ], to abdicate. Having lasted for approximately 1200 years, the rule of Rome in the ] came to an end. | |||
| The Eastern Empire, by contrast, would suffer a similar fate, though not as drastic. The Arab tribes, pushed by ], conquered the richest provinces of the Empire, including those reconquered by ]. Rome itself was reconquered, but an emperor of the west was never created. Instead, a viceroy in ] would represent Constantinople to Italy, and would share de facto power with the ]. 1000 A.D. the eastern Empire was on its height: ] reconquered Bulgaria and Armenia, culture and trade flourished. But soon the expansion was abruptly stopped at the ], 1071. This finally lead the empire into a dramatic decline. Several centuries of internal strife and ] invasions ultimately paved the way for the horror of the ], resulting in the ] by renegade Crusaders. The conquest of Constantinople in 1204 would see the fragmentation of what little remained of the empire into successor states, the ultimate victor being that of ]. After the recapture of Constantinople by imperial forces, the empire was little more than a Greek state confined to the ] coast. ], Turkish ], desired to end once and for all the once mighty empire, and did in ], ] | |||
| ==Society== | |||
| ] was the central area around which ancient Rome developed, and served as a hub for daily Roman life.]] | |||
| Life in ancient Rome revolved around the city of ], located on ]. The city had a vast number of ]al ]s like the ], the ] and the ]. It had ] with fresh drinking-water supplied by hundreds of miles of ], ], ]s, ] complete with ] and shops, marketplaces, and functional sewers. Throughout the territory under the control of ancient Rome, ] ] ranged from very modest ]s to ]. In the ] of Rome, there were ] ]s on the elegant ], from which the word "palace" is derived. The low and middle classes lived in the city center, packed into ]s, which were almost like modern ]s. | |||
| The imperial city of Rome was the largest urban center of its time, with a population well in excess of one million people (about the size of London in the early 19th century, when London was the largest city in the world), with some high-end estimates of 3.5 million and low-end estimates of 450,000. The public spaces in Rome resounded with such a din of hooves and clatter of iron ] wheels that ] had once proposed a ban on chariot traffic at night. Historical estimates indicate that around 20 percent of population under the jurisdiction of the ancient Rome (32% in Roman Italy) lived in innumerable urban centers, with population of 10,000 and more and several military settlements, a very high rate of urbanization by pre-industrial standards. Most of these centers had a ] and temples and same type of buildings, on a smaller scale, as found in Rome. | |||
| ===Government=== | |||
| ], whose rise to power and assassination set the stage for ] to establish himself as the first '']''.]] | |||
| Initially, Rome was ruled by elected ]. The exact nature of the king's power is uncertain. He may have held near-absolute power, or may also have merely been the ] of the ]. At least in military matters, the king's authority ('']'') was likely absolute. He was also the head of the ]. In addition to the authority of the King, there were three administrative assemblies: the ], which acted as an advisory body for the King; the ], which could endorse and ratify ]s suggested by the King; and the ], which was an assembly of the priestly college which could assemble the people in order to bear witness to certain acts, hear proclamations, and declare the ] and holiday schedule for the next month. | |||
| The ]s of the ] resulted in an unusual mixture of ] and ]. The word republic comes from the Latin ''res publica'' which literally translates to public business. Roman laws traditionally could only be passed by a vote of the Popular assembly (]). Likewise, candidates for public positions had to run for election by the people. However, the ] represented an oligarchic ], which acted as an advisory body.<ref name=Tuomisto/> In the Republic, the Senate held great authority (''auctoritas''), but no actual legislative power; it was technically only an advisory council. However, as the Senators were individually very influential, it was difficult to accomplish anything against the collective will of the Senate. New Senators were chosen from among the most accomplished ]s by ]s (''Censura''), who could also remove a Senator from his office if he was found "morally corrupt"; a charge that could include ] or, as under ], embracing one's wife in public. Later, under the reforms of the dictator ], ]s were made automatic members of the Senate, though most of his reforms did not survive. | |||
| The Republic had no fixed ], and collected ] through the practice of ]. Government positions such as ], ], or ] were funded from the office-holder's private finances. In order to prevent any citizen from gaining too much power, new ]s were elected annually and had to share power with a colleague. For example, under normal conditions, the highest authority was held by two ]s. In an emergency, a temporary ] could be appointed.<ref name=Tuomisto/> Throughout the Republic, the administrative system was revised several times to comply with new demands. In the end, it proved inefficient for controlling the ever-expanding dominion of Rome, contributing to the establishment of the ]. | |||
| In the early Empire, the pretense of a republican form of government was maintained. The ] was portrayed as only a ']', or "first citizen", and the Senate gained legislative power and all legal authority previously held by the popular assemblies. However, the rule of the emperors became increasingly ] over time, and the Senate was reduced to an advisory body appointed by the emperor. The Empire did not inherit a set bureaucracy from the Republic, since the Republic did not have any permanent governmental structures apart from the Senate. The Emperor appointed assistants and advisers, but the state lacked many institutions, such as a centrally-planned ]. Some historians have cited this as a significant reason for the ]. | |||
| The territory of the Empire was divided into ]. The number of provinces increased with time, both as new territories were conquered and as provinces were divided into smaller units to discourage ]s by powerful local rulers.<ref name=Atlas/> Upon the rise of ] and the ], the provinces were divided into imperial and senatorial provinces, depending on which institution had the right to select the governor. During the ], the provinces of the empire were divided into 12 ]s, each headed by a '']''. The civilian and military authority were separated, with civilian matters still administered by the governor, but with military command transferred to a '']''. | |||
| On a local level, towns were divided into ], colonies composed of former soldiers or members of the Roman underclass, and ''municipia'', towns composed of enfranchised provincials. These cities were given constitutions based on the Roman model, with the elected ''duovirs'' and ''aediles'' serving as magistrates, and with the local ''curia'', appointed from men of property for life, serving in an advisory capability, similar to the Senate. | |||
| ===Law=== | |||
| {{main|Roman law}} | |||
| The roots of the legal principles and practices of the ancient Romans may be traced to the law of the ] (from ]) to the ] of Emperor ] (around ]). Roman law as preserved in Justinian's codes continued into the ], and formed the basis of similar codifications in continental ]. Roman law continued, in a broader sense, to be applied throughout most of Europe until the end of the ]. | |||
| The major divisions of the law of ancient Rome, as contained within the Justinian and Theodosian law codes, consisted of ''Ius Civile'', ''Ius Gentium'', and ''Ius Naturale''. The ''Ius Civile'' ("Citizen law") was the body of common laws that applied to Roman citizens. The ] (''sg. Praetor Urbanus'') were the individuals who had jurisdiction over cases involving citizens. The ''Ius Gentium'' ("Law of nations") was the body of common laws that applied to foreigners, and their dealings with Roman citizens. The ] (''sg. Praetor Peregrinus'') were the individuals who had jurisdiction over cases involving citizens and foreigners. ''Ius Naturale'' encompassed natural law, the body of laws that were considered common to all being. | |||
| ===Economy=== | |||
| {{see|Roman commerce|Roman finance|Roman currency|Roman agriculture}} | |||
| ] ], a standardized ] coin.]] | |||
| Ancient Rome commanded a vast area of land, with tremendous natural and ] resources. As such, Rome's economy remained focused on ] and ]. Agricultural ] changed the Italian landscape, and by the ], vast ] and ] estates had supplanted the ] farmers, who were unable to match the imported grain price. The ] of ], ] and ] in ] provided a continuous supply of grains. In turn, ] and ] were Italy's main ]s. Two-tier ] was practiced, but farm productivity was overall low, around 1 ton per ]. | |||
| ] and ] activities were smaller. The largest such activity were the ] and ] of stones, which provided basic construction materials for the buildings of that period. In manufacturing, production was on a relatively small scale, and generally consisted of workshops and small factories that employed at most dozens of workers. However, some ] factories employed hundreds of workers. | |||
| Some economic historians (like ]) argue that the economy of the Early Roman Empire was a market economy and one of the most advanced agricultural economies to have existed (in terms of productivity, urbanization and development of capital markets), comparable to the most advanced economies of the world before the ], the economies of ] ] and ] ]. There were markets for every type of good, for land, for cargo ships; there was even an insurance market. | |||
| The economy of the early Republic was largely based on smallholding and paid labor. However, foreign wars and conquests made ] increasingly cheap and plentiful, and by the late Republic, the economy was largely dependent on slave labor for both skilled and unskilled work. Slaves are estimated to have constituted around 20% of the Roman Empire's population at this time and 40% in the city of Rome. Only in the Roman Empire, when the conquests stopped and the prices of slaves increased, did hired labor become more economical than slave ownership. | |||
| Although ] was used in ancient Rome, and often used in tax collection, Rome had a very developed ] system, with ], ], and ] coins in circulation throughout the Empire and beyond—some have even been discovered in ]. Before the ], ] was traded by weight, measured in unmarked lumps, across central Italy. The original copper coins ('']'') had a face value of one ] of copper, but weighed less. Thus, Roman money's utility as a unit of exchange consistently exceeded its ] as metal. After ] began debasing the silver ], its ] value was an estimated one-third greater than its intrinsic. | |||
| ]s were too expensive, and other ]s too slow, for mass trade on the ]s, which connected military posts rather than markets, and were rarely designed for wheels. As a result, there was little transport of ] between Roman regions until the rise of ] in the 2nd century BC. During that period, a trading vessel took less than a month to complete a trip from ] to ] via ], spanning the entire length of the ].<ref name=Atlas/> Transport by sea was around 60 times cheaper than by land, so the volume for such trips was much larger. | |||
| ===Class structure=== | |||
| {{main|Social class in ancient Rome}} | |||
| ], the distinctive garb of ancient Rome.]] | |||
| Roman society was strictly ], with ] (''servī'') at the bottom, ] (''libertī'') above them, and free-born citizens (''civēs'') at the top. Free citizens were themselves also divided by class. The broadest, and earliest, division was between the ]s, who could trace their ancestry to one of the 100 ] at the founding of the city, and the ], who could not. This became less important in the later Republic, as some plebeian families became wealthy and entered politics, and some patrician families fell on hard times. Anyone, patrician or plebeian, who could count a consul as his ancestor was a ] (''nobilis''); a man who was the first of his family to hold the consulship, such as ] or ], was known as a '']'' ("new man") and ennobled his descendants. Patrician ancestry, however, still conferred considerable prestige, and many religious offices remained restricted to patricians. | |||
| A class division originally based on military service became more important. Membership of these classes was determined periodically by the ], according to property. The wealthiest were the Senatorial class, who dominated politics and command of the army. Next came the ] (''equites'', sometimes translated "knights"), originally those who could afford a warhorse, who formed a powerful mercantile class. Several further classes, originally based on what military equipment their members could afford, followed, with the ''proletarii'', citizens who had no property at all, at the bottom. Before the reforms of Marius they were ineligible for military service and are often described as being just barely above freed slaves in terms of wealth and prestige. | |||
| Voting power in the Republic was dependent on class. Citizens were enrolled in voting "tribes", but the tribes of the richer classes had fewer members than the poorer ones, all the ''proletarii'' being enrolled in a single tribe. Voting was done in class order and stopped as soon as a majority of the tribes had been reached, so the poorer classes were often unable even to cast their votes. | |||
| Allied foreign cities were often given the ], an intermediary level between full citizens and foreigners (''peregrini''), which gave their citizens rights under Roman law and allowed their leading magistrates to become full Roman citizens. While there were varying degrees of Latin rights, the main division was between those ''con suffrage'' ("with vote"; enrolled in a Roman tribe and able to take part in the ''comitia tributa'') and ''sans suffrage'' (without vote; unable to take part in Roman politics). Some of Rome's Italian allies were given full citizenship after the ] of ]–], and full ] was extended to all free-born men in the Empire by ] in ]. Women shared some basic rights with their male counterparts, but were not fully regarded as citizens and were thus not allowed to vote or participate in politics. | |||
| ===Family=== | |||
| The basic units of Roman society were ]s and ]. Households included the head of the household, '']'' (father of the family), his wife, children, and other relatives. In the upper classes, slaves and servants were also part of the household. The head of the household had great power (''patria potestas'', "father's power") over those living with him: He could force marriage and divorce, sell his children into slavery, claim his dependents' property as his own, and possibly even had the right to kill family members. | |||
| ''Patria potestas'' even extended over adult sons with their own households: A man was not considered a ''paterfamilias'' while his own father lived. A daughter, when she married, usually fell under the authority of the ''paterfamilias'' of her husband's household, although this was not always the case, as she could choose to continue recognizing her father's family as her true family. However, as Romans reckoned ] through the male line, any children she had would belong to her husband's family. | |||
| Groups of related households formed a family (]). Families were based on blood ties (or ]), but were also political and economic alliances. Especially during the ], some powerful families, or '']'', came to dominate political life. | |||
| ] was often regarded more as a financial and political alliance than as a romantic association, especially in the upper classes. Fathers usually began seeking husbands for their daughters when they reached an age between twelve and fourteen. The husband was almost always older than the bride. While upper class girls married very young, there is evidence that lower class women often married in their late teens or early twenties. | |||
| ===Education=== | |||
| {{main|Roman school}} | |||
| In the early Republic, boys were taught to read and write by their father, or by educated slaves, usually of ] origin; the ultimate aim of Roman education was to produce men who could speak effectively. Village schools were also established. Later, around , boys and some girls at the age of 7 were sent to a school outside the home called a ''ludus''. Basic Roman education included reading, writing, and counting, and their materials consisted of ] and books. At the age of 13, students learned about ] and ]. At the age of 16, some students went on to ] school. Poorer people were usually taught by their parents as school was not free. ]s went to school every day, except religious festivals and market days. There was also summer holidays. | |||
| ==Culture== | |||
| {{main|Culture of ancient Rome}} | |||
| ===Language=== | |||
| {{main|Latin}} | |||
| ], a ] text from circa the ], is the earliest known example of Roman writing.]] | |||
| The native language of the Romans was ], an ] the ] relies little on word order, conveying meaning through a system of ]es attached to ]s. Its ], the ], is ultimately based on the ]. Although surviving ] consists almost entirely of ], an artificial and highly stylized and polished ] from the ], the actual spoken language of the Roman Empire was ], which significantly differed from Classical Latin in ] and ], and eventually in pronunciation. | |||
| While Latin remained the main written language of the Roman Empire, ] came to be the language spoken by the well-educated elite, as most of the literature studied by Romans was written in Greek. In the eastern half of the Roman Empire, which later became the ], Greek eventually supplanted Latin as both the written and spoken language. The expansion of the Roman Empire spread Latin throughout Europe, and over time Vulgar Latin evolved and ]ized in different locations, gradually shifting into a number of distinct ]s. | |||
| Although Latin is an ] with very few remaining fluent speakers, it remains in use in many ways, such as through ], the traditional language of the ] and the official language of the ]. Additionally, even after fading from common usage Latin maintained a role as western Europe's '']'', an international language of ] and ]. Although eventually supplanted in this respect by ] in the ] and ] in the ], Latin continues to see heavy use in religious, legal, and scientific terminology—it has been estimated that 80% of all scholarly English words derive directly or indirectly from Latin. | |||
| ===Religion=== | |||
| {{main|Religion in ancient Rome|Roman mythology}} | |||
| Archaic ], at least concerning the gods, was made up not of ]s, but rather of complex interrelations between gods and humans. Unlike in ], the gods were not personified, but were vaguely-defined sacred spirits called '']''. Romans also believed that every person, place or thing had its own '']'', or divine soul. During the ], ] was organized under a strict system of priestly offices, which were held by men of senatorial rank. The College of Pontifices was uppermost body in this hierarchy, and its chief priest, the '']'', was the head of the state religion. ]s took care of the cults of various gods, while ]s were trusted with taking the ]s. The ] took on the religious responsibilities of the deposed kings. In the Roman empire, emperors were held to be gods, and the formalized ] became increasingly prominent. | |||
| As contact with the ] increased, the old Roman gods became increasingly associated with Greek gods. Thus, ] was perceived to be the same deity as ], ] became associated with ], and Neptune with ]. The Roman gods also assumed the attributes and mythologies of these Greek gods. The transferral of ] qualities to Roman Gods, and the prevalence of ] among well-educated Romans, brought about an increasing neglect of the old rites, and in the ], the religious importance of the old priestly offices declined rapidly, though their civic importance and political influence remained. Roman religion in the empire tended more and more to center on the imperial house, and several emperors were ] after their deaths. | |||
| Under the empire, numerous foreign ]s grew popular, such as the worship of the Egyptian ] and the ] ]. Beginning in the 2nd century, ] began to spread in the Empire, despite initial ]. Beginning with Emperor ], Roman official policy towards Christianity was negative, and at some points, simply being a Christian could be punishable by death. Under Emperor ], the ] reached its peak. However, it became an officially supported religion in the Roman state under ] and became exponentially popular. After a brief and unsuccessful pagan revival by the emperor ], Christianity became the permanent religion of the empire. All religions except Christianity were prohibited in ] by an edict of Emperor ]. | |||
| ===Art, music and literature=== | |||
| ] was at its most original in the production of strongly characterized ]s such as this ] of ].]] | |||
| {{main|Roman art|Latin literature|Roman sculpture|Roman music}} | |||
| <!--Please stick to discussing Roman literature, art, and music in general in this section: few, if any, specific authors, sculptors, etc. should be mentioned. Instead, very brief details about the most major Roman artists and authors should be included in the "Culture of ancient Rome" article, which has multiple distinct sections for art, literature, music, etc.--> | |||
| Most early Roman painting styles show ] influences, particularly in the practice of political painting. In the 3rd century BC, Greek art taken as treasure from wars became popular, and many Roman homes were decorated with landscapes by Greek artists. Evidence from the remains at ] shows diverse influence from cultures spanning the Roman world. Portrait sculpture during the period utilized youthful and classical proportions, evolving later into a mixture of realism and idealism. During the ] and ] periods, more ornate hair and bearding became prevalent, created with deeper cutting and drilling. Advancements were also made in ], usually depicting Roman victories. | |||
| ] was from its very inception influenced heavily by Greek authors. Some of the earliest extant works are of historical ] telling the early military history of Rome. As the Republic expanded, authors began to produce ], ], ], and ]. | |||
| The Romans were a very sex-saturated culture.{{Fact|date=February 2007}} In documentaries and books describing what was unearthed at ], the ], ] and ] depict daily life or are just patterns. Others have been unearthed in public baths that could be considered the Roman equivalent of ].{{Fact|date=February 2007}} | |||
| ===Games and activities=== | |||
| {{unreferencedsect|date=September 2006}} | |||
| The ancient city of Rome had a place called ''Campus Martius'' (Translating roughly as "Field of Mars" named after Mars, the Roman god of war), a sort of ] for Roman soldiers, which was located near the ] river. Later, the ''Campus Martius'' became Rome's ] playground, which even ] and ] were said to have frequented. Imitating the Campus Martius in Rome, similar grounds were developed in several other urban centers and military settlements. | |||
| In the campus, the youth assembled to play and exercise, which included ], ], ], and ]. ], throwing, and ] were also preferred physical activities. In the countryside, pastimes also included ] and ]. ] did not participate in these activities. Ball-playing was a popular sport, and ancient Romans had several ball games, which included ] (''Expulsim Ludere''), ], ], and some form of ]<nowiki>, where the aim was to carry a ball (made out of rags wrapped in leather) close enough to kick it into a large barrel the breadth of a man's shoulders</nowiki>. | |||
| A popular form of entertainment were ]ial combats. Gladiators fought either to the death, or to "first blood" with a variety of weapons and in a variety of different scenarios. These fights achieved their height of popularity under the emperor ], who placed the final outcome of the combat firmly in the hands of the emperor with a hand gesture. Contrary to popular representations in film the gesture for death was not "thumbs down". The emperor would signify "death" by holding a raised fist to the winning combatant and then extending his thumb laterally. "Mercy" was indicated by a raised fist with no extended thumb. Animal shows were also popular with the Romans, where foreign animals were either displayed for the public or combined with gladiatorial combat. A prisoner or gladiator, armed or unarmed, was thrown into the arena and an animal was released. Gladiators fought in games held only ten days per year, and could earn the ancient Roman equivalent of 500,000 EUR for competing in a single fight to the death. | |||
| The '']'', another popular site in Rome, was primarily used for ] and ], although it was also used in many other events. It could hold up to 385,000 people;<ref></ref> people all over Rome would visit it. Two temples, one with seven large eggs and one with seven dolphins, laid in the middle of the track of Circus Maximus, and whenever the racers made a lap, one of each would be removed. This was done to keep the spectators and the racers informed on the race statistics. Other than sports, the Circus Maximus was also an area of ] and ]. Higher authorities, like the emperor, also attended games in the Circus Maximus, as it was rude not to. They, knights, and many other people who were involved with the race sat in reserved seats located above everyone else. It was also found rude for emperors to root for a team. The Circus Maximus was created in 600 BC and hosted the last horse racing game in 549, lasting for over a millennium. | |||
| ==Technology== | |||
| {{main|Ancient Roman technology}} | |||
| ], the first portable calculating device, helped speed up the use of ].]] | |||
| Ancient Rome boasted the most impressive technological feats of its day, utilizing many advancements that would be lost in the ] and not be rivaled again until the ] and ]. However, though adept at adopting and synthesizing other cultures' technologies, the Roman civilization was not especially innovative or progressive. Many practical Roman innovations were adopted from earlier Greek designs. The development of new ideas was rarely encouraged; Roman society considered the articulate soldier who could wisely govern a large household the ideal, and ] made no provisions for ] or the promotion of invention. The concept of "scientists" and "engineers" did not yet exist, and advancements were often divided based on craft, with groups of ] jealously guarding new technologies as ]s. Nevertheless, a number of vital technological breakthroughs were spread and thoroughly utilized by Rome, contributing to an enormous degree to Rome's dominance and lasting influence in Europe. | |||
| <!--Add paragraphs on Roman calendar, numerals and counting system, etc. here. Possibly some info on Roman boats, though Rome's navy can be addressed under "Military". --> | |||
| ===Engineering and architecture=== | |||
| {{main|Roman architecture|Roman engineering|Roman military engineering}} | |||
| ] in ] is a ] built in ca. ]. It is one of France's top tourist attractions and a ].]] | |||
| ] constituted a large portion of Rome's technological superiority and legacy, and contributed to the construction of hundreds of roads, bridges, aqueducts, baths, theaters and arenas. Many monuments, such as the ], ], and ], still remain as testaments to Roman engineering and culture. | |||
| The Romans were particularly renowned for their ], which is grouped with Greek traditions into "]". However, for the course of the Roman Republic, Roman architecture remained stylistically almost identical to ]. Although there were many differences between Roman and Greek building types, Rome borrowed heavily from Greece in adhering to strict, formulaic building designs and proportions. Aside from two new ] of columns, ] and ], and from the ], which was derived from the ] ], Rome had relatively few architectural innovations until the end of the Roman Republic. | |||
| It was at this time, in the ], that Romans started to widely use ] (which was invented in the late ]), a powerful ] derived from ] which soon supplanted ] as the chief Roman building material and allowed for numerous daring architectural schemata. Also in the 1st century BC, ] wrote '']'', possibly the first complete treatise on architecture in history. In the late ], Rome also began to make use of ] soon after its invention in ], which occurred about 50 BC, and ]s took the Empire by storm after samples were retrieved during ]'s campaigns in Greece. | |||
| ] (''Via Appia''), a road connecting the city of ] to the southern parts of ], remains usable even today.]] | |||
| Concrete made possible the paved, durable ]s, many of which were still in use a thousand years after the fall of Rome. The construction of a vast and efficient travel network throughout the Roman Empire dramatically increased Rome's power and influence. Originally constructed for military purposes, to allow ]s to be rapidly deployed, these highways had enormous economic significance, solidifying Rome's role as a trading crossroads—the origin of the phrase "all roads lead to Rome". The Roman government maintained way stations which provided refreshments to travelers at regular intervals along the roads, constructed bridges where necessary, and established a system of horse relays for ]s that allowed a dispatch to travel up to 800 km (500 miles) in 24 hours. | |||
| The Romans constructed numerous ] to supply water to cities and industrial sites and to assist in ]. The city of Rome itself was supplied by eleven aqueducts with a combined length of 350 km (260 miles).<ref name=frontinus>Frontinus</ref> Most aqueducts were constructed below the surface, with only small portions above ground supported by arches. Powered entirely by ], the aqueducts transported very large amounts of water with an efficiency that remained unsurpassed for two thousand years. Sometimes, where depressions deeper than 50 miles had to be crossed, ]s were used to force water uphill.{{ref|waterhistory}} | |||
| The Romans also made major advancements in ]. Romans were particularly famous for their public ], called '']'', which were used for both hygienic and social purposes. Many Roman houses came to have ]s and ], and a complex ] system, the '']'', was used to drain the local ]es and carry waste into the Tiber river. Some historians have speculated that the use of ] pipes in sewer and plumbing systems led to widespread ] which contributed to the decline in ] and general decay of Roman society leading up to the ]. However, lead content would have been minimized because the flow of water from aqueducts could not be shut off; it ran continuously through public and private outlets into the drains, and only a small number of taps were in use.<ref>''Roman Aqueducts and Water Supply'' by A.T. Hodge (1992)</ref> | |||
| ==Military== | |||
| {{main|Military history of ancient Rome|Roman military|Roman army|Roman navy}} | |||
| ] in the Victoria and Albert museum, London.]] | |||
| The early Roman army was, like those of other contemporary city-states, a citizen force in which the bulk of the troops fought as a legion. Each legion contained some 5,000 soldiers called legionaries and was divided into groups of 60 to 120 soldiers. The legion had several advantages over the phalanx. It was smaller and could move faster. Soldiers in a phalanx fought as a group and could only move in one direction. The groups within a legion could split off from the main body and attack from the sides and the rear, as well as the front. The soldiers were required to supply their own weapons, and returned to civilian life once their service was ended. | |||
| The first of the great army reformers, ], reorganized the army to adopt ] tactics and divided the infantry into three lines: '']'', '']'' and '']''. | |||
| The small landholders had traditionally been the backbone of the Roman army, but by the end of the ], the self-owning farmer had largely disappeared as a social class. Faced with acute manpower problems, ] transformed the army into a volunteer force and accepted recruits from the lower classes, providing arms and armor for these troops out of his own pocket. | |||
| The Roman army was a marvel of discipline, which arguably made it one of the best armies of its time. Over the course of history, Rome faced many enemies who had more skilled warriors than the Roman Legionary, and some of these enemies even had the advantage of superior numbers; yet the Roman legions won despite all that. The Roman army owed much of its success to its brilliant generals, but no general can command an army that doesn't obey him. | |||
| Roman legionaries had comparatively less skill at fighting than most of their opponents, but they also had less of the impetuous spirit that made their Celtic enemies so fearsome. With their little swords and unwieldy shields the Legions could defeat all but the most fearsome and determined of barbarian tribes. | |||
| Roman discipline was brutal; running from a battle was generally punished by death, and minor breaches of military rules could earn a flogging. A Legion was trained to virtually worship the silver eagle standard, and its loss in battle meant the Legion's disbanding. The Roman Legions specialized in working as a team and sticking together: the Legionaries would follow their general anywhere, even to civil war. | |||
| The ] was one of the strongest aspects of the Roman army. The ] was a civic ceremony and religious rite held to publicly honor a military commander. The legions were also physically powerful and had a lower tendency to illness than other armies. In part due to food shortages, but also because they were fed nutritious long-lasting food, the Roman army was fed garlic and onions while marching. The legions were supported by ], troops drawn from the provinces who could earn Roman citizenship through military service. | |||
| The last army reorganization came when Emperor ] divided the army into a static defense force and a mobile field army. During the Late Empire, Rome also became increasingly dependent on allied contingents, '']''. | |||
| ==Ancient Rome in popular culture== | |||
| *] (2005) a novel by ] | |||
| *] (2006) a novel by ] | |||
| *] (2000) a film directed by ], starring ] | |||
| *] (1960) a film directed by ], starring ] | |||
| *] (2006) a TV Series (]) created by ], ] and ] | |||
| ==Scholarly studies== | |||
| The interest in studying ancient Rome arose presumably during the ] in ]. ] wrote a work "]". The first major work was '']'' by ], which encompassed the period from the end of 2nd century to the fall of the Byzantine Empire in ]. Like Montesquieu Gibbon paid high tribute to the virtue of Roman citizens. ] was a founder of the criticism and wrote ''The Roman History'', carried until the ]. Niebuhr has made an attempt to determine the way the Roman tradition appeared. According to him, Romans, like other people, had a historical ] which was preserved mainly in the noble families. During the ] period the work titled ''The History of Romans'' by ] appeared. It highlighted the ]ean period popular at the time. '']'', '']'' and '']'', all by ], became very important milestones. Later the work '']'' by ] was published. The Russian work ''Очерки по истории римского землевладения, преимущественно в эпоху Империи'' (''The Outlines on Roman Landownership History, Mainly During the Empire'') by ] contained information on the economy of ], one of the greatest landowners during the end of Republic. | |||
| ==See also== | |||
| {{commonscat|Romans}} | |||
| *] | |||
| *] | |||
| *] | |||
| *] | |||
| {{Ancient Rome}} | |||
| ==Notes== | |||
| <references/> | |||
| ==References== | |||
| *], '']'' | |||
| *{{cite book | |||
| | first = Chris | |||
| | last = Scarre | |||
| | year = 1995 | |||
| | month = September | |||
| | title = The Penguin Historical Atlas of Ancient Rome | |||
| | publisher = Penguin Books | |||
| | id = ISBN 0-14-051329-9 | |||
| }} | |||
| *{{cite book | |||
| | first = H. H. | |||
| | last = Scullard | |||
| | authorlink = Howard Hayes Scullard | |||
| | year = 1982 | |||
| | title = From the Gracchi to Nero | |||
| | others = (5th edition) | |||
| | publisher = Routledge | |||
| | id = ISBN 0-415-02527-3 | |||
| }} | |||
| *{{cite web | |||
| | first = | |||
| | last = Cassius Dio | |||
| | title = Dio's Rome, Volume V., Books 61-76 (A.D. 54-211) | |||
| | url = http://www.gutenberg.org/files/10890/10890-h/10890-h.htm | |||
| | accessdate = 2006-12-17 }} | |||
| ==Further reading== | |||
| * Cowell, Frank Richard. ''Life in Ancient Rome''. New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1961 (paperback, ISBN 0-399-50328-5). | |||
| * Gabucci, Ada. ''Rome (Dictionaries of Civilizations; 2)''. Berkekely: University of California Press, 2007 (paperback, ISBN 0520252659). | |||
| * Wyke, Maria. ''Projecting the Past: Ancient Rome, Cinema, and History''. New York; London: Routledge, 1997 (hardcover, ISBN 0-415-90613-X, paperback, ISBN 0-415-91614-8). | |||
| ==External links== | |||
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| * offers online courses on Roman History, Philosophy, Archaeology, Religion, Language, Military Arts, Law. | |||
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Revision as of 06:53, 9 March 2007
rome is fule of chuwawa scared little migets. they also are tree huggers. wut else yo mama so fat she went to kentucky fried chicken and the asked what tye of bucket she wanted she said the buckent on the roof.