Roman civilization

• Roman Empire


  Traced back to the eighth century BCE, began from a collection of villages around the seven hills beside the banks of the River Tiber in Italy that grew into a city called Rome
• Roman Empire


  • Surrounding countryside was fertile agricultural land making the citizens of Rome extremely prosperous
  • Enough capital to invest in an army to expand their influence beyond the boundaries of Rome
  • Soon included a large part of Europe, North Africa, and Asia Minor
  • Divided into provinces, each with a governor who was supported by Rome's army and civil servants
  • Had the best army in the world of that time to rule by force
• Julius Caesar's conquest of Gaul is termed a "genocide" today
• Roman Republic


  • Senators decided about military and foreign affairs and elected two Consuls to carry out the affairs of state
  • Eventually, the Senate was forced to allow the plebians to have their own officials called tribunes who looked after the rights of the poor people
• Romans took great pride in being a republic
• Roman Empire


  • Divided into provinces with a Roman governor who had power to rule and take decisions on his own
  • System of checks and balances prevented any one part of the government to become powerful
  • Power struggle began to take place between the generals and the Senate for power
• Julius Caesar


  Defeated his rival, Pompey, to become absolute ruler of Rome
• Roman legionnaires


  • Tough, well-armed and disciplined
  • Had to put in twenty years of service after which they were given some land to farm on retirement
• Julius Caesar


  • Conquered the vast region of Gaul (present day France and Belgium)
  • Increased the size of the Senate to represent more people
  • Supported retired military soldiers
  • Reformed taxation and granted Rome's citizenship to people in its far-flung provinces
  • Created the Julian calendar
• Augustus


  • First Emperor of the Roman Empire, took the title of Augustus Caesar
  • Added Egypt, part of Spain and much of the Danube region to the empire
  • Led Rome's transformation from republic to empire and laid down the system of administering the Roman Empire that lasted for centuries to come
  • Brought eventual peace within the Roman Empire that made the people prosper with trade, and economic growth was sustained on a large scale over a long period of time
• Roman administration


  • Did not interfere with the lives of the conquered people as long as they accepted Rome's rule, obeyed the law, and paid the taxes
  • Citizens of Rome were generally content and knew that they would get justice under the law
  • Slavery was also a part of Roman life and under some cruel rulers, life became tough for common people
• Roman civilization


  • Followed the Greek model of education and both men and women were quite learned and cultured
  • Developed good public speakers
  • Well-planned cities and well-constructed houses
  • Left behind buildings, public baths, libraries, sculptures, coins, and recorded histories
  • Good engineers, with water systems including 'aqueducts'
  • Invented concrete which made solid buildings and roads
• Roman religion


  • Influenced by the Greeks, worshipped many gods, the highest among them being Jupiter
  • All gods were worshipped in temples and public sacrifices were made to them
  • Months in the Roman calendar were named after their gods and emperors
• For better administration, the Roman Empire was divided into two in 285CE with the western half in Rome, Italy, and the eastern half in Byzantium on the Bosphorus
• The western half of the empire under Rome collapsed in the fifth century because of invasions of several savage tribes like the Huns under their leader, Attila, and in 476 by Odoacer, which ended the rule of the last Roman emperor, Romulus Augustus
• Christianity


  • Originated in Palestine which was then part of the Roman Empire
  • For three hundred years, Christians faced cruelty and persecution in the Roman Empire
  • Under the rule of Emperor Constantine (306-337CE), Christianity was favoured and many churches built
• The Roman Empire was attacked for many years by barbaric tribes from the north such as the Goths, Vandals, and Germanic tribes
• Internal conflicts during the rule of Emperors of Rome weakened the empire from within
• Corruption among Roman officials and the weakening of Roman traditions and customs with the adoption of Christianity as the official religion of the Roman Empire led to the disintegration of the empire
• Roman emperors continued their rule of the eastern half of the Roman Empire for another thousand years - till 1453CE, when they were conquered by the Ottoman Turks