Roman History Early Roman Heroes Aeneas Trojan leader, ancestor of the Romans, son of Anchises and Venus, hero of Vergil s Aeneid. Escaped from Troy and wandered many years before coming to Latium. He founded Lavinium and his son Ascanius founded Alba Longa. Romulus and Remus twin brothers, sons of Rhea Silvia (descendant of Aeneas) and the god Mars. They were suckled as babies by a she- wolf. The farmer Faustulus and his wife Acca Laurentia adopted them as their own children. The twins argued to see who had more power to define the new city. Romulus ended up killing his brother and founding the city of Rome. The next three heroes performed their heroic deeds right after the last Roman king, Tarquinius Superbus, was expelled from the city and the Romans were fighting against Lars Porsenna, the king of the Etruscan city of Clusium. 1. Mucius Scaevola- tried to assassinate Lars Porsena but was caught and condemned to death. To show physical endurance, he put his right hand into the fire prepared for his execution. Because of this, he lost his right hand and so they called him Scaevola ( Lefty ). 2. Horatius Cocles- defended the wooden Sulpician Bridge over the Tiber when the Etruscans were trying to cross it in order to attack Rome. He had a colleague saw off the bridge at the Roman end as he stood at the Etruscan end fighting off the Etruscan soldiers. When the bridge fell, he jumped into the Tiber and swam to shore. He lost an eye in battle and thus was called Cocles ( one- eyed ). 3. Cloelia- was given as a hostage to Lars Porsena. She escaped with the other Roman girls by swimming across the Tiber. She was sent back to Porsena as a pledge of peace. Porsena then liberated her. Lucius Quinctius Cincinnatus- consul in 460 BC; in 458 he was farming when he was called to be a dictator and lead the Roman army. After defeating the Aequi, he renounced the dictatorship and returned to his plow. Decius Mus- as consul in 295 BC, he rushed into the midst of the enemy, at Sentinum, as an example to the soldiers. He was killed immediately by the Samnite enemy who had allied themselves to the Gauls. This heroic example of Decius Mus inspired the Romans to fight hard and they defeated the combined Samnites and Gauls. This battle helped bring to an end the Samnite problem. Appius Claudius- censor in 312 BC; built the first aqueduct to supply Rome with water. He also built the Via Appia from Rome to Capua. During the war with Pyrrhus, he persuaded the Senate not to go along with Pyrrhus demands for peace. So, the Romans continued to fight and eventually won. At this point he was called Appius Claudius Caecus ( the blind ) because he was blind. Regulus- Roman general and consul captured in the First Punic War. The Carthaginians sent him, as a prisoner of war, back to Rome to try to persuade the Romans to hand over the Carthaginian hostages in exchange for Regulus. Regulus told the Senate not to make the exchange, travelled back to Carthage, and was put to death.
Periods of Roman History Monarchy (753 BC 509 BC) 7 kings 1. Romulus tried to increase the population by holding a festival to Consus (god of granary or storehouse) and inviting the neighboring Sabines. The Roman men kidnapped the Sabine women (this was later called the Rape of the Sabines). Titus Tatius, king of the Sabine town of Cures, led the Sabine men against Rome. He used the Roman woman Tarpeia to deceive the Romans (She had said that she wanted what was on the Sabine arms, which happened to be gold armlets. Instead they crushed her to death with what was on their other arms- their shields). After the battle, the Romans had 2 kings, Romulus and Titus Tatius. 2. Numa Pompilius- Sabine priest- king, who established the cults and priests (flamines, pontifices, Salii, Vestal Virgins); he reformed the calendar, changing the 10 month year to 12. His spiritual counselor was the nymph Egeria, though some say she was his wife. 3. Tullus Hostilius (673-642 BC)- warrior king; fought against Alba Longa. This fight was resolved by the battle of the two sets of triplet brothers. The Horatii of Rome fought against the Curiatii of Alba Longa. Only one man, a Horatius, survived this encounter. 4. Ancus Marcius- wise in peace and strong in war; he extended Roman influence to Ostia. Some say he founded Ostia. He built the first bridge, the Pons Sublicius, which was entirely of wood. He gained control of the salt routes from Ostia to Rome. 5. Tarquinius Priscus (616-579 BC) an Etruscan; increased the Senate, built the Cloaca Maxima to drain the Forum, established the Roman Games. His wife was Tanaquil. 6. Servius Tullius (578-535 BC) was helped to the throne by Tanaquil. He instituted new military units and property classes, built earthworks on the eastern hills, and established a Latin League cult site to Diana on the Aventine Hill. His daughter Tullia was married to Tarquinius Superbus. 7. Tarquinius Superbus (534-510 BC) murdered Servius Tullius, incited by Tullia; was a tyrant, built the Temple of Jupiter Capitolinus, and made a treaty with the Gabii. The end of the monarchy was due to his tyrannical nature. The ultimate treachery, however, was the rape, by his son Sextus, of Lucretia, wife of Tarquinius Collatinus. She committed suicide rather than face her family in disgrace. Lucius Iunius Brutus, a friend of her husband, incited the Romans to revolt. The monarchy was abolished and 2 consuls were elected instead of a king. Brutus killed his own sons who were part of a conspiracy to bring back the house of Tarquin. The Etruscan king Lars Porsenna of Clusium tried to help the Tarquins recapture Rome, but he was stopped at the bridge by Horatius. The bravery of Mucius Scaevola and Cloelia made him finally give up. The Latins battled the Romans, in an attempt to restore Tarquin, at Lake Regillus in 496 BC. Legend says that the great twins, Castor and Pollux, appeared in Rome and said that the Romans had won.
Republic (509 BC 27 BC) 1 st Secession of Plebs 494 BC- the plebs (the common people, as opposed to the aristocrats) left Rome and went to the Mons Sacer. It was Menenius Agrippa who persuaded them to return with his parable of the Belly and the Limbs (i.e., they were as vital to the state as were the patricians). From this secession the plebs gained 2 plebeian tribunes. Gnaeus Marcius was a patrician who won in 493 BC a glorious victory over the Volsci and captured Corioli; he was then named Coriolanus. But, in a dispute with the patricians, he defected to the Volsci. Later, he marched at the head of the Volsci against Rome. The Romans were not able to stop him from the attack by appealing to his patriotism. Only his mother Veturia and his wife Volumnia were able to do so by appealing to his pietas (his sense of duty to family, country, and gods). He then turned back, when only 4 miles from Rome. Commission of 10 (Decemviri)- 451 BC- During the suspension of the regular constitution and magistrates, the state was governed by these 10 patricians, who issued the new code of the 10 Tables. In 450 BC, another commission finished the work. Other than the leading patrician Appius Claudius, all members were new, and some were plebeians. They added 2 more Tables, and ruled unjustly, refusing to resign. The plebs seceded again and this caused the restoration of constitutional government. Appius Claudius then killed himself. Gallic Sack of Rome- 390 BC- led by the Gallic chieftain Brennus. After the Gauls defeated the Romans at the Allia River, most of the Romans fled Rome, but the old Senators, who were not able to flee, stayed, seated in their official ivory seats, awaiting their fate with dignity. The exiled M. Furius Camillus, a disgraced former dictator, was once again appointed dictator at his home in Veii. When a Roman came from Veii and stole onto the besieged Capitoline Hill to tell the survivors there that Camillus was now the new dictator, the Gauls followed him and would have taken the Capitol by surprise, but the sacred geese aroused M. Manlius Capitolinus in time. 7 months later the Romans were forced to pay the Gauls a thousand pounds of gold to withdraw. As the gold was being weighed out, Camillus appeared and drove the Gauls out. For this he was called the 2 nd founder of Rome. Punic Wars 1 st (264-241 BC) fought over Sicily. Result= Sicily, Sardinia, Corsica become Roman provinces. 2 nd (218-201 BC) Romans defeated by Hannibal at the battles of the Ticinus River (218), the Trebia River (218), and Lake Trasimene (217) at which the consul Flaminius and entire Roman army were killed. The dictator Q. Fabius Maximus tried harassing Hannibal instead of fighting him and thus was named Cunctator ( The Delayer ). The new consul Varro led the army to a huge defeat at Cannae (217). Finally a Roman (Publius Cornelius Scipio Africanus) defeated Hannibal back in Africa at Zama (202). Spain became a province a few years later. 3 rd (149-146 BC) Marcus Porcius Cato Senex, censor, consul (195 BC) continually said Carthago delenda est. (Carthage must be destroyed.) Rome destroyed Carthage finally and by treachery. Tiberius Gracchus- tribune 133 BC, tried agrarian reform, was killed by Roman senators in the streets of Rome Gaius Gracchus- his brother, elected tribune in 123 BC; tried agrarian reform, was reelected in 233 BC but not reelected in 121 BC, followed by much rioting in the streets. Thousands of his followers were killed and he committed suicide.
Gaius Marius- consul 107, 104, 103, 102, 101, 100 BC; enrolled men with no property in his army and promised them good retirement and land if they stayed. He and his quaestor, Lucius Cornelius Sulla, defeated Jugurtha, head of the Numidians, in Africa. He then defeated the Cimbri and Teutones, 2 Gallic tribes who had invaded southern France. Major upheavals occurred between Marius and Sulla. Sulla was dictator from 82-79 BC. Marcus Licinius Crassus- a very rich Roman statesman; overcame Spartacus, the gladiator who led a slave revolt, and Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus finished him off (71-73 BC). The slaves were crucified. Pompey and Crassus became consuls in 70 BC. Pompey was given the power to defeat the pirates in the Mediterranean, which he did in 3 months in 67 BC. He was also given power to defeat Mithradates in 64-63 BC. He brought Rome s borders to the Euphrates River. Marcus Tullius Cicero- consul in 63 BC and defeated Lucius Sergius Catilina, who tried to overthrow the Roman government. In 60 BC, Pompey, Crassus, and Gaius Julius Caesar formed the First Triumvirate. In 59 BC, Caesar and Bibulus were consuls. From 58-49 BC, Caesar defeated the Gauls. In 49 BC, he wanted to run for consul again and so crossed the Rubicon River, coming south out of Gaul and said alea iacta est (the die is cast). He was assassinated on the Ides of March (March 15) in 44 BC. The Second Triumvirate was formed in 43 BC by Mark Antony, Lepidus, and Octavian, Caesar s adopted heir. After 12 years of fighting, Octavian defeated Antony at the battle of Actium in 31 BC. In 27 BC, Octavian changed his name to Augustus and became the 1 st emperor. This is the end of the Republic.
The Roman Empire (27 BC 476 AD) Roman Emperors Augustus (Octavian) 27 BC- 14 AD first emperor; great nephew and heir of Julius Caesar; defeated Mark Antony at Actium in 31 BC, establishing peace and stability after over 50 years of civil war. The first Julio- Claudian emperor. Tiberius 14-37 AD Augustus stepson and adopted son, son of his wife Livia; good general; taciturn; not liked by Augustus; spent his later years on Capri. He was neither deified nor condemned to damnatio memoriae (an erasure of any mention of one s name in either books or on statuary or architecture) by the senate. A Julio- Claudian Caligula (Gaius) 37-41 AD son of Germanicus, Tiberius nephew by his brother Drusus; became increasingly irrational as an emperor and was killed by the Praetorian Guard. A Julio- Claudian Claudius 41-54 AD Caligula s uncle and Germanicus brother; was handicapped and thought to be stupid, but was really intelligent and a good ruler. He was, however, too easily controlled by powerful freedmen and women. His son Britannicus was killed by the younger Agrippina, Nero s mother, when she became Claudius third wife. A Julio- Claudian Nero 54-68 AD - Nero started out as a reasonable ruler but became increasingly narcissistic. He was enamored of being a performer, be it artistic or athletic. He spent enormous amounts of money on his Domus Aurea in the center of Rome after a great fire. He was finally forced to commit suicide. The last Julio- Claudian Galba 68-69 AD chosen by the Senate but quickly lost the favor of the armies and was lynched. Otho 69 AD Galba s successor, who bribed the Praetorian Guard, but then lost favor to his successor Vitellius. Vitellius 69 AD was proclaimed emperor by the armies on the Rhine, marched to Rome, caused Otho s suicide, and turned out to be a do- nothing loser. Vespasian 69-79 AD a man of equestrian rank; he was sworn in by the eastern armies. He defeated the Vitellians, managed to bring back economic order to the empire, and restored peace. The first Flavian emperor Titus 79-81 AD elder son of Vespasian; emperor during the eruption on Vesuvius; extremely well- liked; captured Jerusalem during the Jewish revolt during his father s reign. The second Flavian Domitian 81-96 AD very capable, but also very much disliked, especially by the Senate. He behaved in an autocratic manner and acted alone. He was killed by a palace domestic and suffered damnatio memoriae. The last Flavian The 5 Good Emperors: Nerva, Trajan, Hadrian, Antoninus Pius, Marcus Aurelius
Roman Culture nomina (names) A Roman man had 3 names: 1. praenomen - a 1 st name such as Gaius or Marcus 2. nomen a family name, telling to which gens one belonged, such as Julius or Tullius 3. cognomen a particular branch of the gens, such as Caesar or Cicero Sometimes a man had a 4 th name, an agnomen, which was given to him for some exploit. Publius Cornelius Scipio Africanus received his agnomen Africanus because he defeated Hannibal, the African general, in Africa. familia the household which included family, relatives, slaves, and clients. Paterfamilias father, who had absolute power of life and death over all in his familia Materfamilias mother, who managed the household, supervised the slaves, and educated the girls and younger boys time Months = Ianuarius, Februarius, Martius, Aprilis, Maius, Iunius, Quintilis (Iulius), Sextilis (Augustus), September, October, November, December. Kalendae 1 st day of the month Nonae 5 th /7 th day of the month Idus 13 th /15 th day of the month o In March, July, October, and May, the dates of the Nones are the 7 th and the Idus are the 15 th Seasons = Ver (spring), Aestas (summer), Autumnus (autumn), Hiems (winter) Horae There were 12 hours of daylight, so the length of the hora would be closer to 75 minutes in the summer and 45 minutes in the winter. The nighttime was divided into 4 watches, or vigilae. They were called prima, secunda, tertia, and quarta. religio Roman religion, controlled by the state, was an outgrowth of family religion. The chief of the state religion was the Pontifex Maximus, who was the head of the college of pontifices or priests. There were also 3 special priests (flamines) assigned to the 3 major gods Jupiter, Mars, and Quirinus. The 6 Vestal Virgins kept the fire on the hearth of the goddess Vesta burning, and guarded the wills of wealthy Romans. The chief of the family religion was the Paterfamilias. domus Roman house insula an apartment building which took a whole city block and thus was an island surrounded by streets on all sides forum a marketplace in the city. There were many fora, but the most famous was the Forum Romanum. Others included the Forum Boarium (meat market) and the Forum Holitorium (vegetable market). In the Forum Romanum were found: basilicae - the law courts curia the senate house rostra the speaker s platform ; a rostrum is a bird s beak or the lond stick or prow in front of a ship. After a war in 346 BC with Antium, the platform was decorated with the prows of the captured Antiate ships.
meals ientaculum a light breakfast of bread, wine, cheese, and olives prandium lunch at noon- bread, wine, cheese, olives, fruit, cold meats, vegetables, nuts cena dinner, the main meal, in the evening o gustus (appetizers) 1 st course oysters, shellfish, onions, raw vegetables, lettuce, eggs, with mulsum (wine and honey) as a drink o cena 2 nd course fish, meat, fowl, vegetables o secunda mensa (dessert) 3 rd course pastry, sweets, nuts, fruits, with lots of wine The expression ab ovō usque ad mala (from eggs to apples) comes from the above menu (similar to our expression from soup to nuts ). vestis tunica long woolen shirt for indoor wear or for under togas or stolas, usually white o tunica angusticlavia 2 narrow purple stripes that the equites could wear o tunica laticlavia 2 wide purple stripes that senators could wear toga virilis/pura/libera official dress of Roman citizens, white woolen toga praetexta purple border to be worn by curule officers, censors, and dictators, as well as by sons of aristocrats toga candida shining white worn by candidates for office toga pulla black or dark grey toga, worn by mourners toga picta wholly purple toga worn by victorious generals in triumphal procession and later by emperors stola long dress, worn over the tunica ; worn by women palla woolen shawl for walking in the street ; worn by women soleae indoor sandals, taken off at meals calcei outdoor shoes, to be worn with the toga mulleus shoes worn by curule magistrates ; red with a silver crescent on the outside of the ankle caligae boot- like shoes for soldiers ludus - ludus litterarum elementary school (reading, writing, arithmetic) ; litterator teacher paedagogus slave- tutor, who also walked the boy to school and carried his books, etc. tabellae wax tablets ; stilus pen for writing on tabellae ; papyrus paper used for special occasions. Schola grammatici secondary school (language, writing, rhetoric, public speaking) Schola rhetorici college/preparation for career such as public speaking, law, etc. For advanced study, one went to Athens, Rhodes, or Asia Minor.
The Roman House Although almost every house found at Pompeii has a slightly different layout, most houses do have similar features. 1. tabernae shops which faced the street and were often rented out by the homeowner 2. vestibulum large doorway outside the main door(s) of the house 3. ianua main door (often double) of the house off the street 4. fauces entry passage or lobby between the outer or inner doorways a. foris inner door between the fauces and the atrium. Doors of inner rooms were also called fore 5. cella small room which could be used by the ianitor, a slave whose job it was to answer and secure the door 6. cubicula bedrooms 7. atrium main hall or public reception room. It had a hole (compluvium) in the high ceiling, under which there was a pool (impluvium) a. lararium- shrine, usually in the atrium, where the lares and penates were kept and prayed to 8. impluvium pool in the floor under a hole in the roof called a compluvium 9. alae literally the wings of the atrium. Alcoves perhaps used for storage of unneeded furniture 10. tablinum the master s study in which was kept a large money chest (arca) bolted to the floor 11. andron a hallway 12. posticum side or back door used by servants 13. culina kitchen 14. triclinium dining room with 3 couches (lecti) 15. peristylium formal garden often with geometric planting areas, fountains, a pool, and sculptured shrubs. When this area was used instead to grow vegetables and fruit, it was called a hortus.