Lecture Roman Power and Herodian Rule I. Roman Power A

Session 11 - Lecture Roman Power and Herodian Rule I. Roman Power A. Introduction The accounts of the rise of Rome have come down overlaid with such a mass of myth and legend that few can be verified. Roman historians of later times, lacking authentic records, relied on fabrications of a patriotic nature. Following this period, when a republic was established, Rome became a world power and emerged as an empire with extensive boundaries. B. The Rise of Rome (753-509 BC) 1. Rome was said to have been founded by Latin colonists from Alba Longa, a nearby city in ancient Latium. The legendary date of the founding was 753 BC and it was ascribed to Romulus and Remus, the twin sons of Rhea Silvia, a vestal virgin and the daughter of Numitor, king of Alba Longa. Romulus and Remus 2. Later legend carried the ancestry of the Romans back to the Trojans and their leader Aeneas, whose son Ascanius, or Iulus, was the founder and the first king of Alba Longa. Three tribes, the Ramnes, Tities, and Luceres, that appear in the legend of Romulus as the parts of the new commonwealth suggest that Rome arose from the amalgamation of three stocks, thought to be Latin, Sabine, and Etruscan. Click map to see a larger image Rome originally developed as a strongly patriarchal society based upon families and clans, with the head of each of the families forming an advisory council to the kings known as the Senate. 3. The seven kings of the regal period and the dates traditionally assigned to their reigns are as follows: a. Romulus, from 753 to 715 BC, traditional founder of Rome b. Numa Pompilius, from 715 to 676 or 672 BC c. Tullus Hostilius, from 673 to 641 BC, a warlike king, who destroyed Alba Longa and fought against the Sabines d. Ancus Marcius, from 641 to 616 BC, said to have built the port of Ostia and to have captured many Latin towns, transferring their inhabitants to Rome e. Lucius Tarquinius Priscus, from 616 to 578 BC, celebrated both for his military exploits against neighboring peoples and for his construction of public buildings at Rome f. Servius Tullius, from 578 to 534 BC, famed for his new constitution and for the enlargement of the boundaries of the city g. Lucius Tarquinius Superbus, from 534 to 510 BC, the seventh and last king, whose tyrannical rule was overthrown when his son ravished Lucretia, the wife of a kinsman. Tarquinius was banished, and attempts by Etruscan or Latin cities to reinstate him on the throne at Rome were unavailing. C. The Republic 1. After the overthrow of Tarquinius Superbus, a republic was established in 509 B.C. The word "Republic" comes from the Latin (the language of the Romans) words res publica which mean "public matters" or "matters of state." Rome was ruled by two officials called consuls who were elected from the Senate. The consuls served for a period of one year. This was a wise idea, as it tended to force the consul to rule carefully and not as a tyrant. Once the consul's year was finished, he could be punished by the next consul. 2. Rome had four classes of people. The lowest class were the slaves. They were owned by other people. They had no rights at all. The next class were the plebeians. They were free people, but they had little say in government. The second highest class were the equestrians (sometimes they are called the "knights"). Their name means the "riders," as they were given a horse to ride if they were called to fight for Rome. To be an equestrian you had to be from a wealthy family. The equestrians were technically plebeians, but again, were wealthy. The highest class were the nobles of Rome. They were called patricians and held the real power in Rome. 3. The plebeians and the patricians had a long protracted struggle as the plebeians attempted to rid themselves of social and political disabilities and gain new privileges. Beginning around 494 B.C., plebeian uprisings nd protests began to affect the creation of laws to help plebeians. 4. These political changes gave rise to a new aristocracy, composed of patrician and wealthy plebeian families, and admission to the Senate became almost the hereditary privilege of these families. The Senate, which had originally possessed little administrative power, became a powerful governing body, dealing with matters of war and peace, foreign alliances, the founding of colonies, and the handling of the state finances. The rise of this new nobility brought to an end the struggles between the two orders, but the position of the poorer plebeian families was not improved, and the marked contrast between the conditions of the rich and the poor led to struggles in the later Republic between two groups called the aristocratic party (wealthy ruling families) and the popular party (everyone else). 5. The external history of Rome during this period was chiefly military. The city of Rome had acquired the leadership of the area surrounding it before the close of the regal period. The Romans proceeded to fight against other people groups in the area (the Etruscans, the Volscians, and the Aequians) in an attempt to expand their influence and territory. In rapid succession, the different people groups on the Italian peninsula succumbed to Rome either by conquest or by treaty. By 266 B.C., the Romans had completed their conquest and gained control of the entire peninsula as far north as the Arno and Rubicon rivers. D. A World Power (264-133 BC) Click map to see a larger image 1. In 264 B.C., Rome engaged with Carthage in a struggle for the control of the Mediterranean Sea. Carthage, at this time, was the foremost maritime power in the world, ruling absolutely in the central and western Mediterranean, as did Rome on the Italian Peninsula. This conflict spanned a century and was resolved in three bitterly contested conflicts known as the Punic Wars. Carthage 2. Punic Wars a. The First Punic War was waged mainly for the possession of Sicily and was marked by the emergence of Rome as a great naval power. The first battle occurred at Mylae on the northern coast of Sicily in 260 B.C. and marked Rome's first naval armament. Here, Rome defeated a great Carthaginian fleet. Encouraged by the victory, the Romans attempted to transfer the war to Africa, but the result was defeat and the capture of the Roman general Regulus. The war then shifted back to Sicily, where the Romans won a great naval victory in 242 B.C. near the Aegates Islands, west of Sicily. The war ended in the following year with the cession to the Romans of the Carthaginian part of Sicily, which was made into a Roman province. This was Rome's first foreign possession. Sardinia and Corsica were taken from Carthage and annexed as provinces soon after. b. The Second Punic War became inevitable when Carthage acquired a foothold in Spain. Under the leadership of the great general Hamilcar, who conceived the project of making Spain a military base, Carthage occupied the Iberian peninsula as far as the Tagus River (central part of Spain). Hamilcar's son-in-law Hasdrubal continued the work of subjugation until his death in 221 B.C. Finally, Hamilcar's son Hannibal extended the conquests of Carthage up to the Iberus River (northern part of Spain). The Second Punic War began in 218 B.C. when Hannibal crossed the Alps with an enormous force, descending on Italy from the north, and defeated the Romans in a series of battles. He then continued to ravage most of southern Italy for years. However Hannibal did not have the resources to completely destroy Rome, and the Romans sent an army to North Africa. Hannibal was recalled to Africa to face the Roman Scipio Africanus who had invaded Carthage. Scipio decisively defeated Hannibal in 202 B.C., and Carthage was compelled to give up its navy, cede Spain and its Mediterranean islands, and pay a huge indemnity. Rome was thus left in complete control of the western Mediterranean. Hannibal crosses the Alps c. The Romans now became harsher in their treatment of the Italian communities under their domination. In addition, the Greek cities of southern Italy, which had sided with Hannibal, were made colonies. Meanwhile Rome was extending its power northward. From 201-196 B.C., the Celts of the Po Valley (northern Italy) were subjugated and their territory was Latinized. The interiors of Corsica and Sardinia were subdued, and Spain, where the wars were troublesome, was held by military occupation, a practice that gave rise to the first Roman standing armies. d. A Third Punic War was fought from 149-146 B.C. The Romans won and Carthage was completely destroyed. Northern Africa became a province of Rome. 3. Macedonian Wars a. Fifty years after becoming the foremost power of the west by defeating the Carthaginians, Rome had also become the mightiest state in the east. This was accomplished through a series of wars called the Macedonian Wars (214-205 B.C., 200- 196 B.C., 171-167 B.C., and 150-148 B.C.). They caused increasing involvement by Rome in Greek affairs and helped lead to Roman domination of the entire eastern Mediterranean area. b. The roots of the First Macedonian War (214-205 B.C.) can be found in the Second Punic War. While Rome was preoccupied with Carthage, the Macedonian king Philip V attacked Rome's client states in Illyria (across the Adriatic Sea from Italy and west of Macedonia) and made an alliance with Hannibal of Carthage against Rome.

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