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Pax Romana. In 31 B.C., the Pax Romana , or Roman Peace, started. The peace lasted 200 years. When Augustus became emperor, there were about 70 to 100 million people living in the Roman Empire. He needed to figure out ways to successfully govern all these people.
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Pax Romana • In 31 B.C., the PaxRomana, or Roman Peace, started. The peace lasted 200 years. • When Augustus became emperor, there were about 70 to 100 million people living in the Roman Empire. • He needed to figure out ways to successfully govern all these people. • He put governors in charge of each area. • He had roads built so he could keep in close touch with all the parts of the empire.
Remember, Roman, that it is for you to rule the nations. This shall be your task: to impose the ways of peace, to spare the conquered and to tame the proud by war. Virgil (70-19 BC), Roman poet The Roman Forum of the Empire
Pax Romana • There were many emperors after Augustus. Rome won more and more provinces, or regions throughout the nearby world. • New laws were made to deal with all the new noncitizens that lived in the empire. • The PaxRomana improved trade, and there were many achievements in the arts. • Artists made blown glass, weavings, pottery, and jewelry. • Poets, philosophers, athletes, sculptors, architects, and playwrights were all admired.
“Although we conquered Greece, she conquered us.”--Horace, a Roman poet, in 35 B.C.E • What do you think this quote means? • The quote by Horace means that even though Greece was conquered by Rome back during the Republic, Rome was incredibly influenced by Greece.
Greek Art and Architecture • Rome practically worshipped the art and architecture of Greece. • They tried to copy the Greek ways of building, using columns and domes. They also added some features of their own. Roman Pantheon in Rome Greek Parthenon in Athens
Roman Aqueducts • They built aqueducts, which carried water to the people. Water flows on top California Aqueduct AD 1960 Roman Aqueduct of Segovia 1st century AD
Roman Roads • They were the first to build roads out of concrete. Road in England • Roman roads later became a liability because invading barbarians could travel along them as quickly as the Roman armies.
Roman Colosseum • They built the huge stadium called the Colosseum, where all the people could come watch games and sporting events for free. Today Scale Model of Colosseum
Rise of Christianity • The Romans, just like the Greeks and Egyptians before them, worshipped many gods. • During the Roman Empire, a new religion called Christianitycame to be practiced by Jews who lived in the eastern Mediterranean part of the empire.
The Ten Commandments • Unlike the Romans, both Jewish and Christian faiths worshipped one God instead of many gods. • The foundation of both beliefs was in the Ten Commandments, the laws of behavior that Moses had presented to the Jews many years before.
Jesus Christ • Christians followed the teachings of a Jew named Jesus Christ. • He urged people to turn from their sins and practice kindness to others. • The followers of Jesus believed he was the Messiah, or savior to the Jews. Practice Kindness
Christian Persecution • Christianity spread throughout the Roman Empire. • Early on, the Christians were persecuted, and many were tortured and put to death. • In spite of the persecution, many Romans became Christians.
The Catacombs Near Rome • In these underground passages persecuted Christians found a hiding place, held their services, and buried their dead. • Roman law forbade Christian burial places within city limits Catacombs of St. Sebastian Rome
Official Religion of Rome • The Emperor Constantine, who ruled from A.D. 312 on, proclaimed himself to be a Christian. • Because of him, Christianity became the official religion of Rome.
DECLINE OF ROMAN EMPIRE • The problems began when some bad emperors ruled Rome. • They spent money on whatever they wanted and ruled as tyrants. • They were so evil that their own troops would plot to kill them.
Dictatorships • Over the course of about 90 years, Rome went through 28 emperors like this—installing them and then killing most of them off. • In all this disorder, Roman armies were so busy fighting each other that the invaders were allowed to gain strength and win attacks against the empire.
Economics • Rome also ran out of money. • The uncontrolled spending of the emperors bankrupted the treasury. • All the warfare made trade and production break down. • Many artisans and merchants went out of business. • Farmlands became battlegrounds, and crops were destroyed. • Food prices soared.
Inflation • The government tried to solve the problem by minting more coins. • The coins didn’t have much gold or silver in them, and were worth less and less. • This led to heavy inflation, as prices soared and money lost value.
Inflation Coins • The Roman Emperors where interested in stretching their money, so they devised many ingenious methods to debase and make their money cheaper. • Silver coins went through a series of devaluation stages, such as; reducing the size of the coins, shrinking the silver content while increasing the alloys etc. • It got so bad, that by the year 225 bronze coins were merely washed with a scant coating of silver.
Diocletian • A few emperors tried to stop the slide of the empire. • Diocletian (A.D. 284) spent a lot of time traveling throughout the empire building up defenses. • He made laws to try to stop inflation, but the laws didn’t work.
Constantine • Another important emperor was Constantine (A.D. 305). • He moved the capital of the empire to a Greek town that was well protected and good for trade. • He named the capital Constantinople after himself.
Theodosius • Theodosiuswas the next emperor after Constantine. • He tried to solve the problems by dividing the empire into two separate empires. • The eastern empire eventually came to be known as the Byzantine Empire. • The western half remained the Roman Empire.
Barbarian Invaders • During the A.D. 200s, the Roman Empire began to crack and weaken. • Germanic tribes, called barbarians, began to invade and overrun the western half of the empire. They destroyed homes and villages, and chaos and fear followed in their wake. • How was this allowed to happen? • Rome had kept invaders out for hundreds of years in the past. So what changed?
The Visigoths • During the late A.D. 300s into the A.D. 400s, several Germanic groups strengthened their grip on Roman territory. • One of the most important of these was the Visigoths. The Visigoths managed to defeat a large Roman army and kill the eastern Roman emperor. • Then they traveled into Italy and captured Rome.
The Huns • After the Visigoths, the Huns raided the eastern empire. • The Romans and Visigoths combined forces to fight the Huns in A.D. 451. • The Huns were turned aside to Italy and began to plunder and destroy the cities there. • Finally, plague and famine weakened the Huns and they retreated to eastern Europe.
END OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE • By the time the Huns were gone, Rome was completely weakened. • During the chaos and disorder, the Germanic tribes closed in. • The Roman Empire officially fell in A.D. 476.
Fall of the Roman Empire There were several reasons for the fall of the Roman Empire. Each one interweaved with the other. • Decline in Morals and Values • Public Health • Political Corruption • Unemployment • Inflation • Urban decay • Inferior Technology • Christianity • Military Spending • Barbarian Invasions
