Social Studies 10 - Ancient Rome - Unit Test Review

Posted: November 24, 2014

Ancient History 10 – Rome  Test Review  The Italian Peninsula is known today as the country of Italy….the bootThe city of Rome developed on the banks of the Tiber River.The Appenines is a mountain range that runs the length of the Italian peninsula.  It has also acted as a natural defense similar to the AlpsPlebeians are member of the common or lower classPatricians are members of the noble or upper classThe last king to rule Rome before the Roman Republic was of Etruscan decent.The three main rivers in the Italian Peninsula were the Arno, Po and TiberHannibal was the son of Hamelcar and brother of Hasdrubal.Military units of approx. 5000 soldiers were knows as a legionThe Punic Wars were between Rome and CarthageThe Battle of Zama would be Hannibal’s only defeatThe word “arena” comes from the Latin word for “sand”Spartacus was a slave that led a rebellion against the Roman Republic. Hannibal crossed the Alps and surprised the Romans on their own land. Many of the ideas of Gods and Goddesses came from Greek culture Jupiter - He was the master of the gods and the main god of the Romans. Juno - She was the wife of Jupiter, the goddess of women and fertility. Mars - He was the god of war, the strongest and most fearsome god, except for Jupiter.Venus - She was the goddess of love and beauty.Neptune - He was the powerful god of the sea. Vulcan - He was the blacksmith of the gods and a god of the underworld. He was the god of blacksmiths and volcanoes.Diana - She was the goddess of hunting and a goddess of the moon.Mercury - He was the messenger of the gods. The wings on his helmet and sandals allowed him to travel very quickly to wherever a god might send him. He was the god of travelers and tradesmen.  Augustus -  (31 BCE – 14 CE) 1st Emperor of Rome, ruled for 45 years, established the Praetorian Guard, responsible for Pax Romana, was Caesar’s nephew, defeated Mark Anthony for control of Rome.Tiberus  -  (14 – 37 CE) was unpopular because he tried to be economical and spent little money on public games. He became Octavian's stepson at the age of four when his mother married Octavian. Near the end of his rein Tiberius became recluse, ruling by letter. Apparently depressed, he made no provisions for succession.Caligula - Caligula “Little Boots” or Gaius (37 – 41CE) – He is described as a noble and moderate ruler during the first two years of his rule but later on was spiteful and even insane. He blatantly offended the Senate by behavior such as having his favorite horse named as consul. He was eventually assassinated by a member of the Praetorian Guard.   Claudius - (41 to 54 AD) – He was the first emperor to be born outside Italy. Afflicted with a limp and slight deafness due to sickness at a young age. Claudius' infirmity probably saved him from the fate of many other nobles during the purges of Tiberius' and Caligula's reigns; potential enemies did not see him as a serious threat. His survival led to his being declared emperor by the Praetorian Guard after Caligula's assassination, at which point he was the last adult male of his family.Nero -  (54 – 68CE) - Nero was fair-haired, with weak blue eyes, a fat neck, a pot belly and a body which smelt and was covered with spots. He also considered liberal ideas, such as ending the killing of gladiators and condemned criminals in public spectacles. In fact, Nero came across as a very humane ruler at first. In the end he murdered his wife and mother. And tried to burn Rome to the ground while he played a violin.  Triumverate –  The rule of three, included Julius Caesar Ides of March – March 15, the day Caesar was assassinated  The Rubicon River – Returning armies had to stop here, lay down their weapons and ask permission to enter the city of Rome The Mob – The poor people of Rome who would protest  Brutus and Cassius – The two generals who led the assassination of Caesar.   Aquaducts - The great and highly advanced Roman waterway system, running water, indoor plumbing and sewer system carrying away disease from the population of the city. Some of these ancient structures are still in use today. The aqueducts were built of stone, brick and the special volcanic cement. Most of the Roman waterway system ran below ground. Channels through rock, or dug below the surface carried water where it was convenient and possible. Of the approximately 260 miles in the aqueduct system, only 30 miles consisted of the mammoth arched structures. 11 separate aqueducts supplied the city of Rome and were built over a span of 500 years. Roman Roads - Roman roads were constructed to be immune to floods and other environmental hazards. Many roads built by the Romans are still in use today.  Most of the higher quality roads were composed of five layers. The bottom layer was one inch thick and made of mortar. Above this were four strata of masonry (brick).  It was one foot thick, and was made of stones bound together by cement or clay. Above that, there were the rudens, which were made of ten inches of rammed concrete. The next layer was made of twelve to eighteen inches of successively laid and rolled layers of concrete.  Roman Baths - The public baths were very popular in ancient Rome and were a busy, noisy and lively meeting place for the Romans. Ancient Rome had hundreds of these baths where Roman citizens could bathe, have their hair cut, exercise in the gymnasium, read at the bath's library, and even grab a snack. The ancient Romans would have had to pay an admission charge to enter the baths, but the entry fee to the baths was low so even the poor could visit. Roman men and Roman women would try to visit the baths at least once every day. Only the very biggest of the Public Baths had facilities for men and women. Most of the baths operated separate hours. Children were not allowed to use the baths. By the way, the Ancient Romans did not use soap! Instead they rubbed oil into their skin and then scraped it off with a metal scraper, this removed the dirt, dead skin and sweat from their bodies and left them clean. Hypocausts - The hypocaust is one of the most ancient forms of a central heating system.  A hypocaust is both a primary system and a secondary system, as it creates heat and distributes it as well. The main use for hypocausts was found in the large public bathhouses.  A hypocaust was composed of a raised floor (typically about two feet), supported by columns or pedestals of stone every few feet, with the space below left open.  A furnace, composed of a continuously burning fire, created heat, which was then allowed to flow through the space below the raised floor, thus heating the floor and rest of the room.  Once cooled, the air escaped through flues in the wall and out of vents in the roof.  The furnace takes up a fair amount of space, so it was usually located in a separate room.  The flues were built directly into the walls so they did not take up useful space. The main disadvantage of the hypocaust system was the fumes created by the fire in the furnace easily crept out of the holding space below the false floor and into the main space.  Another disadvantage with this system is the possibility of the fire becoming unmanageable and getting out of control.  A stone or concrete building may survive, but the occupants may not.Praetorian Guard - Augustus established a unit called the Praetorian Guard.  Composed of nine cohorts of 500 men each, it acted basically as a body guard for the emperor and his family.  Members of the guard were given special treatment by the emperor, serving only 16 years and receiving three times the pay of regular legionary soldiers.  EssaysCarthage pre – 1st Punic War The 1st Punic War ends in 241 BC (after 23 years) with Rome’s victory and control of Sicily. The war was primarily a sea battle.The 2nd Punic War began in 218 BC and ended in 202 BC, again with a Roman victory.  This war would produce one of the most famous battles of all time, seeing an invading Carthage army, led by Hannibal, son of Hamilcar, come over the Alps by land with an army that included 60 elephants.The 3rd Punic War would be little more than a three year invasion of Carthage from 149 – 146 BC, where Carthage was crushed and burned to the ground never to return.Hannibal - (248–182 BCE), was a Carthaginian military commander and tactician who is credited as being one of the most talented commanders in history. His father, Hamilcar Barca, was the leading Carthaginian commander during the First Punic War, his younger brothers were Mago and Hasdrubal.2nd Punic War - The overland - journey to ItalyCarthage began amassing troops in modern day Spain, an act that Rome were aware of, but continued to observe from afar.  Soon the Romans became aware of an alliance between Carthage and the Celts of the Po River valley in Northern Italy. The latter were amassing forces to invade Italy, presumably with Carthaginian backing. Thus, the Romans preemptively invaded the Po region in 225 BC. A Carthaginian general was assassinated around the same time (221 BC), bringing Hannibal to the fore. It seems that, having apparently dealt with the threat of a Gaulo-Carthaginian invasion of Italy (and perhaps with the original Carthaginian commander killed), the Romans lulled themselves into a false sense of security. Thus, Hannibal took the Romans by surprise a mere two years later in 218 BC.Hannibal departed New Carthage in late spring of 218 BC He fought his way through the northern tribes to the Pyrenees, subduing the tribes through clever mountain tactics and stubborn fighting. Hannibal reportedly entered Gaul with 40,000 foot soldiers and 12,000 horsemen.Hannibal's army numbered 40,000 infantry, 8,000 cavalry, and 60 war elephants, and so began his trek crossing the Alps.   After 15 days he was through and now in the Po valley.  During the crossing of the Alps, Hannibal had lost half of his infantry, 2000 cavalry and 40 elephants.Despite the losses he still defeated the Roman troops at the Trebia River, which opened a route to central Italy. In the spring of 216 BC, Hannibal took the initiative and seized the large supply depot at Cannae. By capturing Cannae, Hannibal had placed himself between the Romans and their crucial source of supply.  The Battle of Cannae and victory by Hannibal would later be the reason for Rome’s total destruction of Carthage during the 3rd Punic War. As a result of this victory, many parts of Italy joined Hannibal's cause, but not the number Hannibal was hoping for. Instead of heading to Rome and finishing it off, Hannibal, for some unknown reason set off and continued to make his way through other parts of Italy.   Hannibal was hoping for reinforcement from his brother Hasdrubal, who had his own army of 33,000 troops, but the Romans found out and cut them off in defeat, also killing Hannibal’s brother.To add to Hannibal’s stress, they took Hasdrubal’s severed head and threw it into Hannibal’s camp.  Hannibal occupied much of Italy for 15 years, but a Roman counter-invasion of North Africa forced Hannibal to return to Carthage, where he was decisively defeated by Scipio Africanus at the Battle of Zama. Scipio studied Hannibal's tactics and brilliantly devised some of his own, and finally defeated Rome's nemesis at Zama having previously driven Hasdrubal, Hannibal's brother, out of Spain.Carthage once again had to surrender to the Romans.  After the war Hannibal enacted political and financial reforms to enable the payment of the war indemnity imposed by Rome. However, Hannibal's reforms were unpopular with members of the Carthaginian aristocracy and Rome, and he fled into voluntary exile. During his exile, he acted as military adviser to another army fighting against Rome. After they met defeat and were forced to accept Rome's terms, Hannibal fled again, making a stop in Armenia. He was afterwards betrayed to the Romans. Before his capture he poisoned himself.Now with the end of the Punic Wars, and the 100 years that followed Rome had secured a large amount of territory in the Mediterranean region.  One of the biggest conquests would be of Macedonia and the Middle East. Many of their conflicts would come not only from outside foes but also from within. The story of Julius CaesarThe existence of powerful and popular generals brought about the Triumvirate. The rule of three men consisted of three powerful generals working to rule Rome and keep an eye on each of the other two.  They consisted of Pompey, Crassus and Julius Caesar.This worked short term until Crassus was killed in battle and Pompey became increasingly concerned with Caesar’s motives. Following the murder of Caesar, the assassins fell into disarray.  Caesar’s leading supporters, Mark Anthony and Octavian, Caesar’s nephew, gathered forces to avenge the murders.  With their combined troops, they executed more than 2000 enemies in Rome and defeated the army of Brutus and Cassius at Philippi in Greece in 42 BCE.  They both committed suicide following the defeat.Octavian and Mark Anthony then decided to divide the Roman world, with each of them ruling a region, Octavian recognized that this plan was only temporary – eventually there would be more conflict.  He therefore began to prepare for battle, while Mark Anthony was preoccupied with Cleopatra in Egypt.When the two leaders finally confronted each other at Actium in 31 BCE, the naval forces of Octavian defeated Anthony and his army.  From this Octavian became the first emperor of Rome, assuming complete power.He was given the title of Augustus, which meant the “highest one”.  Although the Romans didn’t know it at the time, his rule marked the end of the 500-year old republic – and the beginning of the Roman Empire.   The ColiseumThe Coliseum, originally known as the Flavian Amphitheatre, was commissioned in AD 72 by Emperor Vespasian. It was completed by his son, Titus, in 80, with later improvements by Domitian.The Coliseum is located just east of the Roman Forum and was built to a practical design, with its 80 arched entrances allowing easy access to 55,000 spectators, who were seated according to rank. The Coliseum is huge, an ellipse 188m long and 156 wide. Originally 240 masts were attached to stone corbels on the 4th level.  Vespesian ordered the Coliseum to be built on the site of Nero's palace, to dissociate himself from the hated tyrant. His aim was to gain popularity by staging deadly combats of gladiators and wild animal fights for public viewing. Massacre was on a huge scale: at inaugural games in AD 80, over 9,000 wild animals were killed. Emperors used the Coliseum to entertain the public with free games. Those games were a symbol of prestige and power and they were a way for an emperor to increase his popularity. Games were held for a whole day or even several days in a row. Commodus was the only emperor to fight in the Coliseum of Rome, which he did many times. He killed but was never killed. His matches were rigged by selecting opponents who were under-armed, poorly skilled or physically impaired from previous fights.  Construction of the Coliseum took between 8 and 10 years to fully compete.

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