The Rise & Fall of Ancient Rome

"All roads lead to Rome."

This proverb speaks to the fact that the Romans built roads,

aqueducts, & sewers wherever they went. The saying meant that you could follow any road

& wind up in Rome, and today it has come to mean that

there are many ways of doing the same thing.

The Rise & Fall

of Ancient Rome

Unfortunately, the Roman Empire grew too big to control, and many people at home were too poor to be motivated to fight. When the barbarians invaded, they made it all the way to Rome and sacked the city. The Western Roman Empire fell to pieces, although the Eastern capital in Constantinople kept going for another thousand years.

The Legend of Remus & Romulus

After Constantine's

conversion in 310 A.D.,

Christianity spread across Europe...

Some important principles

of Roman law were:

+ All citizens had the right

to equal treatment

under the law*

+ A person was considered

innocent until proven guilty.

After kicking out the king, power among Romans was still held in the hands of a few people, members of the rich ruling class known as patricians. Only certain families were part of the patrician class and you had to be born one.

All the other citizens of Rome were plebeians, the common or poor people. Plebeians were the farmers, craftsmen, laborers, and soldiers of Rome.

To make Rome a true Republic, a place where people share power, the plebeians had to fight

for their rights. Together, they forced the patricians, who controlled the Senate, to let them elect tribunes: representatives of the common people.

+ The burden of proof rested with the accuser

rather than the accused. If you say I did

something wrong, you have to prove it in court.

*Remember that women, slaves, and conquered people

were not considered citizens.

They also fought for a more just society, posting clear laws that all could see, known as the Twelve Tables.

For 500 years,

Rome was a Republic:

a state in which supreme

power is held by the people

and their elected representatives.

Final Reflection Question:

Do you agree or disagree with this quote? Why or why not?

58% of English words originally come from Latin and Romance languages (mainly French & Italian).

The Roman Empire circled the Mediterranean Sea like a donut.

Latin, the language of the Roman Empire, also spread

around the world through the Romance languages:

French, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, and Romanian.

...and eventually around the world.

Julius Caesar was a great general and became the first dictator of Rome, ending the Roman Republic. He was killed by members of the Senate. After a civil war, Augustus took absolute power and became Emperor.

From that day forward, Rome was an Empire, ruled by one powerful man rather than a group of people.