depth study option Ancient Rome Th ecivilisation of ancient Rome lasted some 1300 years. At its heart was the city of Rome, one of the cities built by the ancient Etruscans. Th ese advanced people are thought to have moved into what we call Italy about 2800 years ago. A people known as Latins then lived in a fertile As it grew, ancient Rome was infl uenced by region on the west coast of what is now Italy. the societies it conquered. One of these was It became known as Latium (see Source 5.75). ancient Greece. Later, in turn, many of Rome’s The Latins built simple farming settlements traditions, and cultural and technical legacies, and, later, towns. One of these towns was Roma were to infl uence our ownWestern civilisation. (Rome). The Etruscans turned Rome into a city. These included Christianity, Rome’s road- In 509 BCE, the inhabitants of Rome revolted building methods, its architecture, its body of and expelled the Etruscan kings. They then law and its urban planning. set up a republic. Through trade, alliances and By the 5th century CE, discipline and order the victories of its army, the republic of Rome were in decline. Rome’s huge empire was split continued to grow. By 201 BCE, it included in two to make things more manageable, but today’s mainland Italy and the islands of Sicily, it was not enough. The western Roman empire Sardinia and Corsica. was eventually overrun by barbarians— Within another 300 years, the Roman army people from outside the Roman empire and (including the Praetorian Guard, shown on its civilisation. The last emperor, a boy called this page) had conquered lands as far north as Romulus Augustus, was removed from power today’s England and as far east as Azerbaijan. By in 476 CE. The eastern empire continued until this stage, ancient Rome was an empire. 1453 CE, when it was absorbed into the Ottoman (Turkish) empire. Key inquiry questions 5.1 How do geographical features infl uence human settlements? 5.2 What shaped the roles of key groups in ancient societies? SAMPLE 5.3 How do beliefs, values and practices infl uence lifestyle? 5.4 How do contacts and confl icts change societies? Stone relief of offi cers and soldiers of the Praetorian Guard, Rome, 2nd century CE 5 An ancient mosaic of fighting gladiators; many staged fights were held in the Colosseum bigpicture 395 Empire permanently divided Ancient Rome into east and west The farming settlements that became the city of Rome were located about 25 kilometres upstream from the mouth of the Tiber River. At this spot were seven hills, 451 80 Last strong military marshy land and a natural ford (river crossing). 330 The Colosseum opens in Rome; it could hold campaign of Work starts more than 50 000 spectators and hosted Roman army on St Peter’s Recent archaeological evidence confirms that a gladiator fights, hunts, and mock naval battles Basilica in settlement began on one of these hills (Palatine Hill) Rome close to the legendary date for the start of the city of 122 CE Hadrian’s Wall built in Rome: 753 BCE. Rome was said to have been founded 44 Britain by Emperor Hadrian The consul Julius Caesar assassinated then by a man named Romulus. During its history, ancient Rome was ruled as 146 360 Huns start 476 a monarchy (under Etruscan kings), a republic End of Third Punic War; 192 Rome destroys Carthage CE invading Odovacer, King of Emperor Commodus and conquers Corinth Europe the Ostrogoths, and finally anempire . It proved to be a powerful murdered forces last 264 Western emperor civilisation with a highly advanced culture and very Start of First to give up power Punic War 79 strong army. between Rome 64 Eruption of and Carthage Great Fire Mount Vesuvius, of Rome which destroys 27 the cities of 410 Start of the rule of Pompeii and Visigoths attack Rome 509 Augustus; Rome Herculaneum Rome becomes a republic moves towards BCE becoming an empire 109 753 The aqueduct Aqua Traiana built by Emperor Trajan Legendary founding of Rome 202 Hannibal’s defeat c. 450 by Rome at Zama (Second Punic War) First law code, Law of the Twelve SAMPLE Tables, published One of many aqueducts that supplied water to Roman settlements Artist’s impression of the sacking of a Roman city by invading barbarians Legend has it that Romulus and his brother, Remus, were raised by a wolf; Source 5.1 Timeline of some key events and developments Romulus is said to have killed Remus before founding Rome. in the history of ancient Rome chapter five ancient rome 211 The Mediterranean Sea Some scholars think that the Mediterranean Sea was once a low-lying desert, with a number of deep depressions. It fl ooded when high ridges to the west, separating it from the Atlantic Ocean, broke down some 5–6 million years ago. Geographical features The sea is around 2.5 million square kilometres in area Trade made sea ports busy centres, where peoples of (including the Sea of Marmara). It has little tidal movement different cultures exchanged goods, ideas, technologies and mostly stable wind patterns, so it has very few bad and processes. The ancient Romans called the storms. Its waters wash about 46 000 kilometres of coastline, Mediterranean Sea Mare Nostrum—our sea. much of which twists around sheltered bays and natural The sea also provided an easy passage for the navies of harbours. The climate of the region sees mild, wet winters conquerors. It was a factor, for example, in Rome’s conquest and hot, dry summers. These factors all helped to make of the empire of Carthage (see pp. 258–9). the Mediterranean an important physical feature in the development of many early societies. Earthquakes and volcanoes The moving tectonic plates underlying the Mediterranean Sea transport route region make it prone to earthquakes. One fault line runs The sea connected a diversity of coastal settlements. It more or less down the length of the Apennines. Another also allowed access to inland centres that lay on rivers runs across the Italian peninsula north of Naples. The discharging into the sea. Its waters were criss-crossed by the eruptions over time of Mount Etna and other nearby ships of many ancient peoples before coming under Roman volcanoes (such as Vesuvius) have had major impacts on the Source 5.2 The River Tiber, with St Peter’s Basilica in the background Lake Saaremaa River Skagerrak control. These included the Phoenicians,PENNINES Carthaginians, Vattern Gotlandsettlements of people living nearby. Ireland NORTH West Klayazma Egyptians, Minoans, Mycenaeans and Greeks. Oka River Oland Dvina SEA River River Cape Clear British Desna Isles B A LT I C S E A Ural ATLANTIC Dnipro Don Elbe River River Land's End Vistula River Rhine River How do geographical features English Channel Oder River River CASPIAN OCEANChannel Islands Volga DEPRESSION Point Seine River SU ETIC MOUN Donets River St Mathieu River D T A River I N River infl uence human settlements? River S Loire Dnister Bay Danube RPATHIAN River CA MO River of River River U 5.1 N T CASPIAN Ancient Rome’s position within the Mediterranean Sea gave it sea access Cape Finisterre Biscay Tisza A River Grossglockner I Sea of SEA Garonne Mt Blanc N MASSIF THE ALPS 3801 m S Azov to a range of markets. It also allowed it to develop a strong navy for River CENTRAL 4807 m CAUCASUS APENNINES Krym MOUNTAINS Douro Ebro PYRENEES Po River Mt Elbrus 5642 m River TRANSYLVANIAN Rhone ADRIATIC SEA a time. At its peak, it grew to absorb all the cultures then around the River DINARIC ALPS Iberian Gulf of Morava River BLACK SEA Tagus Peninsula Lions sea. Th ese included those of ancient Greece and ancient Egypt. Rome’s River BALKAN Corsica Elba Tiber ALPS River MOUNTAINS expanded territory comprised a range of landscapes. Balearic Islands dalquivir R Balkan ua iver Minorca G Mt Vesuvius Peninsula Majorca The Italian peninsula was the centre of the ancient Roman empire. It is Ibiza Sardinia 1281 m Strait of Mulhacen 3477 m TYRRHENIAN Mt Olympus Gibraltar E 2917 m M D Cape Teulada AEGEAN ASIA shaped like a leg wearing a high-heeled boot. It is about 960 kilometres long and I SEA T IONIAN SEA 150 kilometres wide. Its coastline is about 7600 kilometres in length. Sicily Mt Etna E 3323 m SEA Naxos Only about one-third of its area is suitable for farming. A rugged mountain R Cape Rhodes Malta Tainaron range, the Apennines, runs down its centre. To the north,SAMPLE the Alps largely R Crete Karpathos separate it from the rest of Europe. The landscape is mostly mountainous to A N N the central east, while there are fertile plains to the central west. It was in this E A N S E A western plains region (Latium) that the civilisation of ancient Rome began. Mountains AFRICA 0 600 km Source 5.3 Physical map of the Mediterranean Sea and surrounds 0580_SAL_BAH1 Physical map 14-3-11 of ancient Rome area 212 oxford big ideas history 7: australian curriculum chapter fi ve ancient rome 213 examiningevidence Pompeii Pompeii was an ancient port. It Possible route of Pliny the Elder lay about 350 kilometres south of Land relief Rome. (Its remains lie inland today, due to lava build-up.) It was (and Neapolis (Naples) Mount still is) close to Italy’s horizontal fault Vesuvius line. By the 3rd century BCE, it was Misenum Herculaneum loosely controlled by Rome as an Pompeii ally (friend).