31. Great Bath, Roman Bath complex, Bath, England, 54 c.e. Part of the finest group of Roman remains in England, this sumptuous pool is still fed by natural hot springs
55. Townhouses for the wealthy- Atrium of the House of the Vettii ( best preserved house)
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70. Roman Painting and Mosaic Mosaic portrait of a woman, from Pompeii, first century C.E. This portrait was used as the centerpiece for a patterned marble floor.
In 46 b.c.e., an extraordinary army commander named Caius Julius Caesar triumphantly entered the city of Rome and established a dictatorship. Caesar, who had spent nine years conquering Gaul (present day France and Belgium), was as shrewd in politics as he was brilliant in war. Hid brief but successful campaigns in Syria, Asia Minor, and Egypt –where his union with the Egyptian Queen Cleopatra (69-30 b.c.e.) produced a son- inspired his famous boast Veni, vidi, vici(“I came, I saw, I conquered”) . A superb organizer, Caesar tool strong measures to restabilize Rome: He codified the laws, regulated taxation, reduced debts, sent large numbers of the unemployed proletariat to overseas colonies, and inaugurated public works projects, He also granted citizenship to non-Italians and reformed the Western calendar to comprise 365 days and 12 months (one of which he named after himself-July) Threatened by Caesar’s populist reforms and his contempt for republican instituions, a group of his senatorial opponents, led by Marcus Junius Brutus, assassinated him in 44 b.c.e.
First citizen - The Roman Empire: Pax Romana (30 B.C.E.-180 C.E.) Following the assassination of Julius Caesar, a struggle for power ensued between Caeasar’s first lieutenant, Mark Anthony (ca. 80-30 b.c.e.) and his his grandnephew (and adopted son) Octavian (63 b.c.e -14 c.e.). The contest between the two was resolved at Actium in 31 b.c.e. when Octavian’s navy routed the combined forces of Mark Antony and Queen Cleopatra. That destiny, howerver , would fall to Octavian. In 43 b.c.e. Octavian usurped the consulship and gained the approval of the Senate to rule for life, Although he called himself « first citizen » , his title of Emperor betrayed the reality that he was first and foremost Rome’s army general. The Senate, however, bestowed on him the title Augustue- shared legislative power with the Senat, but retained the right to veto legislation. Thus, to all intents and purposes, the Republic was defunct, The destiny of Rome lay once again in the hands of a military dictaor. Anenthusiastic patron of the arts, Augustus commissioned literature, sculpture, and architecture, He boasted that he had come to power when Rome was a city of brick and would leave it a city of marble. Roman Law - The sheer size of the Roman Empire inspired engineering programs, such as bridge and road buliding, that united all regions under Roman rule, Law- a less tangible means of unification – was equally important in that regard, The deveopmpent of a system of law was one of Rome’s most original landmark achievements. The twelve Tables of law provided Rome’s basic legal code for almost a thousand years. March 15 44BCE Murder of Julius Caesar, 13 Years of fighting, Fighting ended when Augustus came into power, crushed naval forces of Cleopatra and Marc Anthony, Rome took over Egypt, Old Roman Republic becomes the Early Empire, Augustus declares himself the first citizen of Rome
Augustus' reign ushered in an era of peace and stability, a Pax Romana. From 30 B.C.E. to 180 C.E. the Roman. peace prevailed throughout the Empire, and Rome enjoyed active commercial contact with all parts of the civilized world, including India and China. The Pax Romana was also a time of artistic and literary productivity. An enthusiastic patron of the arts, Augustus commissioned literature, sculpture, and architecture. He boasted that he had come to power when Rome was a city of brick and would leave it a city of marble. Roman law (the Latin jus means both "law" and "justice") evolved out of the practical need to rule a world state, rather than—as in ancient Greece—as the product of a dialectic between the citizen and the polis. Inspired by the laws of Solon, the Romans published their first civil code, the Twelve Tables of Law, in around 450 B.C.E. They placed these laws on view in the Forum, the public meeting area for the civic, religious, and commercial activities of Rome. The Twelve Tables of Law provided Rome's basic legal code for almost a thousand years. To this body of law were added the acts of the Assembly and the Senate, and public decrees of the emperors. For some five hundred years, praetors (magistrates who administered justice) and jurisconsults (experts in the law) interpreted the laws, bringing commonsense resolutions to private disputes. Their interpretations constituted a body of "case law." In giving consideration to individual needs, these magistrates cultivated the concept of equity, which puts the spirit of the law above the letter of the law. The decisions of Roman jurists became precedents that established comprehensive guidelines for future judgments. Thus, Roman law was not fixed, but was an evolving body of opinions on the nature and dispensation of justice.
Rome’s influence on Western culture was felt long after Roman glory and might faded. T he romance between Antony and Cleopatra might have changed the world. If Antony had succeeded in wining sole control of Rome with Cleopatra as his queen, he could have changed the course of the Roman Empire, making the world we live in today a different place. However, their relationship ended in mutual suicide in 30 BC, eleven years after it started, when Roman troops engulfed the Egyptian city of Alexandria and threatened their capture. The seed that spawned their relationship was sown with the murder of Julius Caesar in March 44 BC (see The Assassination of Julius Caesar) . Rome descended into anarchy and civil war. By 41 BC Antony and Octavian (who would later change his name to Augustus) shared the leadership of Rome and had divided the state into two regions - the western portion including Spain and Gaul ruled by Octavian, the eastern region including Greece and the Middle East ruled by Antony. Marc Antony-The Parthian Empire located in modern-day Iraq posed a threat to Antony's eastern territory and he planned a military campaign to subdue them. But Antony needed money to put his plan into action and he looked to Cleopatra - ruler of Egypt and the richest woman in the world - to supply it. In 41 BC he summoned Cleopatra to meet him in the city of Tarsus in modern-day Turkey.
The Roman Republic (509-133 B.C.E.) The monarchy slowly gave way to a government “of the people” (res publica). The agricultural population of ancient Rome consisted of a powerful class of large landowners, the patricians, and a more populous class of farmers and small and owners called plebeians. The plebeians constituted the membership of a Popular assembly. The wealthy patricians –life members of the Roman Senate- controlled the lawmaking process. Through their leaders, the tribunes - made themselves heard. Eventually, they won the freedom to intermarry with patricians, the right to hold executive office, and finally in 287 b.c.e. the privilege of making laws, The stern and independent population of Roman farmers had arrived at a republic by peaceful means But no sooner had Rome become a Republic than it adopted an expansionist course that would erode these democratic achievements. Rome seized every opportunity for conquest, and by the end of the first century b.c.e., the Empire included most of North Africa, the Iberian peninsula, Greece, Egypt, much of southwest Asia, and the territories constituting present-day Europe as far as the Rhine River. Despite the difficulties presented by the task of governing such far-flung territories, the Romans proved to be efficient administrators, They demanded from their foreign provinces taxes, soldiers to serve in the Roman army, tribute, and slaves. The Collapse of the Roman Republic (133-30 B.C.E.) The senate became increasingly powerful, as did a new class of men. Wealthy Roman entrepreneurs who filled the jobs of provincial administration. The army, by its domination of Rome’s overseas provinces, also became more powerful. The increased agricultural productivity of the plantations gave economic advantage to large landowners who easily undersold the lesser landowners and drove them out of business, Increasingly, the small farmers were forced to sell their farms to neighboring patricians in return for the right to remain on the land, Or, they simply moved to the city to join, by the end of the first century b.c.e. a growing unemployed population. The disappearance of the small farmer signaled the declined of the Republic. As Rome‘s rich citizens grew richer and its poor citizens poorer, the patricians fiercely resisted efforts to redistribute wealth more equally. But reform measures failed and political rivalries increased, Ultimately, Rome fell victim to the ambitions of army generals, who, having conquered in the name of Rome, now turned to conquering Rome itself. The first century b.c.e. was an age of military dictators, whose competing claims to power fueled a spate of civil wars. As bloody confrontations replaced reasoned compromises, the Republic crumbled.
Livia, as history most often knows her, [[1]] was the wife of Augustus for over fifty years, from 38 BC until his death in AD 14 , an astonishingly long time in view of life expectancy in ancient Rome. Although certainty about their inner lives and proof for what we would consider a loving relationship is necessarily lost to us, we can infer genuine loyalty and mutual respect between the two. They remained married despite the fact that she bore him no child. Livia's position as first lady of the imperial household, her own family connections, her confident personality and her private wealth allowed her to exercise power both through Augustus and on her own, during his lifetime and afterward. All the Julio-Claudian emperors were her direct descendants: Tiberius was her son; Gaius (Caligula) , her great-grandson; Claudius , her grandson; Nero , her great-great-grandson. The women of imperial Rome did not have many more civil rights than did their Golden Age Athenian sisters. They could neither vote nor hold public office. However, they could own property, and they were free to manage their own legal affairs. Roman girls were educated along with boys, and most middle-class women could read and write. Some female aristocrats were active in public life, and the consorts of Rome's rulers often shaped matters of succession and politics by way of their influence on their husbands and sons. Roman records confirm that in addition to the traditional occupations of women in food and textile production and in prostitution, Roman women held positions as musicians, painters, priestesses, midwives, and gladiators.
Most important achievement of peace. T his 'altar of peace' was erected in the Campus Martius. The Campus Martius, or the Field of Mars, was, in ancient Roman times a floodplain of the Tiber river and the site of the altar of Mars. It was originally used as an area for military excercise, but by the first century CE was covered with public buildings. It was founded by the Senate in 13 BCE in honor of Augustus' safe return from his campaigns in Spain and Gaul and dedicated in 9 BCE. Both the foundation and the dedication of the Ara Pacis were celebrated annually in a procession to the altar and a sacrifice. The Ara Pacis consisted of a raised sacrificial altar surrounded by walls with two doorways along an east-to-west axis. The main entrance was on the west side from the Campus Martius. The religious processions probably approached the east entrance from the city along the Via Flaminia and circled around to enter the main entrance. Both the interior and exterior walls are decorated with reliefs. The long friezes on the exterior north and south walls depict the sacrificial procession, complete with individual portraits of Augustus and his dignitaries in a documentary-like fashion. Thus the reliefs show a historical event-- the actual founding of the altar after Augustus' return to Rome-- that nevertheless recurs every year. The relief program gives mythic qualities to the historical event through the placement of the 4 reliefs on the east and west exterior walls. These four reliefs, like the one shown above which scholars believe to portray Tellus, the earth, are analogies which provide a context for the commemorated event. The Tellus panel describes the peace that the Julian line was able to establish for the people of Rome through the images of fertility and balance seen through the mother figure as well as the two children in her lap and the two maidens that flank her. These two women could be seen as personifications of the sea wind and the land wind. The sea wind, on the right, shows Rome's, and thus Augustus', power over the Mediterranean, while the land wind, on the left, shows the fertility and prosperity of Rome itself
Tellus (greek: Τέλλος) was an Athenian statesman featured in Herodotus' Histories, in which the wise man Solon describes him as the happiest man ever
Built of 6-ton stones and assembled without mortar, the bottom row supporting a bridge and the top water ran by gravity. Roman Engineers built 50 thousand miles of paved roads. Superb Engineers, they employed the structural advantages of the arch. Large numbers of citizens inspired the construction of tenements, meeting halls, baths, amphitheaters and queducts. They placed arches back to back to form a barrel vault. Or right angles to each other to form a cross or groined vault. Pont du Gard, near Nimes, France, ca. 20-10 B.C.E. Stone, height 180 ft, length ca. 900 ft. One of Rome’s most spectacular large-scale engineering projects is the 900 footlong Pont du Gard, part of a 25-mile-long aqueduct that brought fresh water to the city Nimes in southern France. Built of 6-ton stones and assembled without mortar, the structure reflects the practical function of arches at three levels, the bottom row supporting a bridge and the second row undergirding the top channel through which water ran by gravity to its destination.
Covered 6 acres Accommodated 50 thousand Spectators Chariot races, mock sea battles, gladiatorial contests, and a variety of brutal blood sports.
Gladiatorial contests were introduced in Rome in 264 b.c.e. most gladiators were criminals , prisoners of war, or slaves, they were trained in special schools, while they often fought to the death, they might be pardoned (or even win their freedom) if they displayed of outstanding valor.
Intersection of right angles Thrust of groin vault is concentrated along the groin, permits light to open, this light Clerestory. (Pronounced Clearstory) The walls of which rise above the rooflines of the lower aisles and are pierced with windows. The purpose of the clerestory is to give light to the inner space of a large building. A clerestory is a high wall with a band of narrow windows along the very top. The clerestory wall usually rises above adjoining roofs. Originally, the word clerestory referred to the upper level of a church or cathedral.
The arch constituted a clear technical advance over the post-and-lintel construction used by the Greeks in buildings like the Parthenon
Dedicated to the seven planetary deities. Diana, Mercury, Mars, Venus, Apollo, Jupiter and Saturn are sometimes referred to as the seven planetary gods, Pantheon boasts a 19 foot-thick rotunda that is capped by a solid dome consisting of 5000 tons of concrete. The interior of the dome, is pierced by a 30 ft wide oculus , or “eye,” that admits light and air. A temple whose structural majesty depends on the combination of Roman technical ingenuity and inventive spatial design. One of the few buildings from classical antiquity to have remained almost intact. The surrounding pavement over time covered the steps leading up to the Pantheon. (the steps are underground)
He depicts the coffering of the dome with accuracy, and demonstrates the dramatic effect of the circle of sunlight falling on the rear wall from the circular opening, through which the clouds in a blue sky can be seen.
Tivoli (in Latin Tibur ) is located at the end of the Aniene valley where the river goes through a gorge and it forms a series of cascades. These cascades have been exploited since ancient times as motive power for mills and they contributed to the development of Tivoli as an industrial district. Occasionally, because the gorge was so narrow, it obstructed the flow of the river and Tivoli was flooded. In the 1830s Pope Gregory XVI promoted the digging of a tunnel which created a new large waterfall outside Tivoli. The new cascade and other engineering works of the XXth century dried up some of the cascades, but the remaining ones, now included in a park, explain why Tivoli was so popular among XVIIIth century travellers.
The sheer magnitude of such Roman amphitheaters as the Circus Maximus, which seated 200,000 spectators
The popularity of the baths is reflected in the fact that by the third century C.E. there were more than nine hundred of them in the city of Rome.
The original central hall (nave) rose to a height of 115 feet . Twenty-foot-thick load-bearing walls supported the weight of the ceiling. A colossal statue of Constantine once sat in the apse. Of 115 feet. Roman basilica became the model for the early christian church in the west. The basilica was the ideal structure for courts of law, meeting halls, and marketplaces, all of which might be found in the Roman Forum. Typically, a basilica consisted of a long central nave, side aisles, and a semicircular recess called an apse (Figure 3.13). The Roman basilica might be roofed by wooden beams or by gigantic stone vaults. In a basilica completed by the Emperor Constantine in the fourth century C.E., these enormous vaults rested on brickfaced concrete walls some 20 feet thick.
At the edge of the Sabine Hills, 18 miles east of Rome, sits the medieval hill town of Tivoli, a popular retreat since ancient times. Today it's famous for two very different villas: Hadrian's Villa (the emperor's Versailles-like place of government, which enabled him to rule from outside but still near the capital city), and the recently restored Villa d'Este (the lush and watery 16th-century residence of a cardinal in exile) Hadrian's Villa Hadrian's Villa was built at the peak of the Roman empire. The emperor Hadrian, who ruled from A.D. 117 to 138, sought refuge here from the political complexity of court life in Rome. The Spanish-born Hadrian was an architect, lover of Greek culture (nicknamed "the Little Greek"), and great traveler. Hadrian visited every corner of the vast empire, from Britain (where he built Hadrian's Wall), to Egypt (where he sailed the Nile), to Jerusalem (where he suppressed a Jewish revolt), and to Athens (where he played backgammon). He beautified Rome with the enduring Pantheon, his tomb (Castel Sant' Angelo), and this villa, a park filled with copies of his favorite buildings from around the world (similar to today's Legoland, Disneyworld, and Las Vegas). Hadrian's was the largest and richest Roman villa anywhere. He spent his last 10 years on this estate, enjoying its 300-plus, evocative acres. As a visitor, you're more likely to feel like a Roman soldier than an emperor or nobleman: To explore the villa, be ready for a long march in the heat — lots of walking is unavoidable. Start your visit at the plastic model of the villa for an orientation. Be sure to tour Teatro Marittimo, the circular palace that was Hadrian's favorite retreat, and the Egyptian Canopus, a sanctuary of the god Serapis, with its statue-lined canal. Regrettably, this "Versailles of Ancient Rome" was plundered by barbarians. The marble was burned to make lime for cement. The art was scavenged and wound up in museums throughout Europe. Visitors have to piece together the majesty from the parts that remain
100 ft tall marble column erected by Emperor Trajan. To celebrate his victory over the Dacians. Includes 2500 figures Rome advertised its military achievements in monumental public works of art, commemorates the conquests of strong rulers, Here is a sense of action is achieved by the piling up of figures in illusionistic space, and by a plethora of realistic details that describe Roman military fortifications tactics and weaponry.
Here is a sense of action is achieved by the piling up of figures in illusionistic space, and by a plethora of realistic details that describe Roman military fortifications tactics and weaponry.
Roman sculpture served an essentially public function, advertising the regal authority of the emperor, often shown leading his troops to victory. During the second century, this tradition of portraiture assumed a heroic dimension in the image of the ruler on horseback. The equestrian portrait of Emperor Marcus Aurelius depicts the general addressing his troops, his right hand raised in the magisterial gesture of authority. Like its imperialistic predecessors, Rome advertised its military achievements in monumental public works of art. These consisted mainly of triumphal arches and victory columns, which, like the obelisks of Egyptian pharaohs, commemorated the conquests of strong rulers. The 100foot-tall marble column erected in 113 C.E. by Emperor Trajan to celebrate his victory over the Dacians includes 2500 figures—a huge picture scroll carved in brilliant low relief (Figures 3.14 and 3.15). Here, as in many other Roman narrative reliefs, a sense of action is achieved by the piling up of figures in illusionistic space, and by a plethora of realistic details that describe Roman military fortifications, tactics, and weaponry.
The triumphal arch was the landmark image of Roman imperial victory. More rightly classed with sculpture than with architecture (where arches serve to enclose interior space), this distinctive concrete structure, usually faced with marble, functioned as visual propaganda and as a monumental gateway. Commemorative arches were first used by Augustus to celebrate military triumphs. Some thirty-four—almost all embellished with sculpture and inscriptions—were raised in Rome. Many more still standing throughout what was the Empire immortalized the power and geographic reach of imperial Rome. The Arch of Titus, marking at the upper end of the Roman Forum, commemorates the final days of the Jewish Wars (66-70 C.E.) fought by the emperors Vespasian and Titus
March 15 44BCE Murder of Julius Caesar, 13 Years of fighting, Fighting ended when Augustus came into power, crushed naval forces of Cleopatra and Marc Anthony, Rome took over Egypt, Old Roman Republic becomes the Early Empire, Augustus declares himself the first citizen of Rome
Good example of Realism - In The balding patrician who carries twos portrait busts of his ancestors reminds us that the Roman family placed extraordinary emphasis on its linage and honors the father of the family .
A similar taste for realism appears in the frescoes with which the Romans decorated their meeting halls, baths, and country villas. Possibly inspired by Greek murals, of which only a few examples survive, Roman artists painted scenes drawn from literature, mythology, and everyday life. Among the finest examples of Roman frescoes are those found in and around Pompeii and Herculaneum, two southern Italian cities that attracted a population of wealthy Romans. Pompeii and Herculaneum remain the showcases of Roman suburban life: Both cities were engulfed and destroyed by a mountain of ash from the volcanic eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 C.E., but the lava from the disaster preserved many of the area's suburban homes, along with their contents. In an effort to create casts of the victims, modern archaeologists have poured concrete into their incinerated body cavities.
Citizens conducted daily commerce and held festivals, around the Forum were religious sculptures, including towns administrative offices
Two important rich dignitaries had the amphitheater built in 70ad after Pompeii was taken over Donors would have the top reserved seats Amphitheater means double theater, Greeks never built amphitheaters, Greeks built hillside theaters. Gladiators, wild animal hunts occurred Arena is Latin for “sand” which soaked up the blood of the wounded and killed.
Roman domestic arch. Peristyle garden with its marble tables The more the “clients” the rich would have the more of a badge of honor the rich would portray. Client would enter the domus( private house through a narrow foyer the throat of the house Roof over atrium was open to the sky Small bedrooms called cubicula The back was the tablinum or home office and the dining room or ( triclinium) a kitchen and a garden Greek trends would happen These houses were not the norm, most people lived in apartments
The residential villas of Pompeii were usually constructed around an atrium, a large central hall open to the sky (Figure 3.19). The surrounding walls are painted with frescoes designed to give viewers the impression that they are looking out upon gardens and distant buildings or at shelves laden with goods. Such illusionism is a kind of visual artifice known by the French phrase trompe l'oeil ("fool the eye"). Designed to deceive the eye, they reveal the artist's competence in mastering empirical perspective, the technique of achieving a sense of three-dimensional space on a two-dimensional surface.
First Style ("Incrustation") originated in the early 2d century BC. It is an imitation of marble veneering, in which the painted decoration resembles slabs of colored marble. This style represents the cultural aspirations of an upwardly mobile middle class, and was inspired by the real marble decoration of Hellenistic Greek palace interior walls. Example: Samnite House, Herculaneum .
Second Style began in the early 1st century BC. This style opened up the wall by providing an illusion of windows and porticos which looked outward onto imaginary scenes, usually framed by painted columns and architraves . Painted architecture in this style tended towards the heavy and substantial, with multi-point perspective sometimes giving an Escher-like effect. Examples in Style II include the Odyssey paintings from a Roman house on the Esquiline (now in the Vatican), Livia's Villa at Prima Porta (paintings in the Museo Nazionale Romano), the previously-mentioned Villa of Publius Fannius Synistor at Boscoreale, and the Villa of the Mysteries at Pompeii
Third Style ("ornamental") dates from the Augustan period at the end of the first century BC. Abandoning Style II realistic architecture and open vistas, Style III closed up the walls to create a "picture gallery" effect. Typically a large central picture would be flanked by a smaller picture on each side. Architecture becomes attenuated, insubstantial, and fragmentary; elongated candelabrae often replace the earlier painted columns.
Fourth Style appears in Pompeii following the earthquake of 62 AD, and continues in the Roman world well into the second century AD. Style IV is heterogeneous, and incorporates elements from all of the earlier styles. Architecture becomes more realistic, and the wall tends to open up again, but not so far as in Style II. Developing from Style III, paintings are given an illusion of portability by being set into trompe-l'oeil aediculae , screens, and tapestries. Further developments include the imitation of stage backgrounds, and an "intricate" style consisting of arabesques on white ground, as in Nero's Domus Aurea in Rome.
Pompeii and Herculaneum remain the showcases of Roman suburban life. Both cities were destroyed by volcanic eruption from Mt. Vesuvius. The lava preserved many homes and many mosaics survived to give us a glimpse into their lives. Mosaics are small pieces of stone or glass embedded into the cement. But the inhabitants of these devastated cities remain alive by way of the ancient images on their walls and floors, created by means of paint and in mosaic, a technique by which small pieces of stone or glass are embedded into wet cement surfaces. The striking portrait of a Roman matron, radiant in her finest earrings and necklace, remains as fresh and immediate as yesterday's artworks. Mosaic portrait of a woman, from Pompeii, first century C.E. This portrait was used as the centerpiece for a patterned marble floor. By introducing shading on one side of the face and under the eyes, the artist achieved a level of illusionism that is uncommon in the mosaic medium which, by its nature, tends to flatten forms.
Other devices, such as light and shade, are also employed to seduce the eye into believing it perceives real objects in deep space: In the extraordinary Still Life With Eggs and Thrushes, for instance, one of a series of frescoes celebrating food and found in a villa at Pompeii, light seems to bounce off the metal pitcher, whose shiny surface contrasts with the densely textured towel and the ceramic plate holding ten lifelike eggs (Figure 3.20). Roman artists integrated illusionistic devices in ways that would not be seen again in Western art for a thousand years. The invention of still life as an independent genre (or type) of art confirmed the Roman fondness for the tangible things of the material world. Similarly, their affection for nature led them to pioneer the genre of landscape painting. Evident in Roman landscapes is a deep affection for the countryside and for the pleasures of nature. Arcadia, the mountainous region in the central Peloponnesus inhabited by the peace-loving shepherds and nymphs of ancient Greek legend, provided the model for the classical landscape, which celebrated (as did Greek and Latin pastoral poetry) a life of innocence and simplicity. The glorification of bucolic freedom—the "Arcadian Myth"—reflected the Roman disenchantment with city life. The theme was to reappear frequently in the arts of the West, especially during periods of rising urbanization.
The Fall of Rome Why and how the mighty empire of Rome came to collapse in the fifth century C.E. has intrigued scholars for centuries. A great number of theories have been advanced, ranging from soil exhaustion and lead-poisoning to the malaria epidemic of the third century. In reality, it is likely that no one problem was responsible. Rather, slow decline was likely caused by a combination of internal circumstances: the difficulties of governing so huge an empire, the decline of the slave trade, and an increasing gap between the rich and the poor—during the Pax Romana, one-third to one-half of the population of Rome received some form of public welfare. These internal problems were made all the worse by repeated barbarian attacks on Rome's borders (see page 122) and by unchecked corruption in Roman government Between 335 and 385, some twenty-six different emperors ruled Rome. Only one of them died a natural death. The emperors Diocletian (245-316) and Constantine (ca. 274-337) attempted to stem the decline (see page 99), but they failed. In 476, a Germanic army commander deposed the reigning Roman emperor in the West, Romulus Augustulus. The great Empire had fallen.
Slow decline was likely caused by a combination of internal circumstances: The difficulties of governing so huge an empire the decline of the slave trade and an increasing gap between the rich and the poor. 1/3 to 1/2 of the population of Rome received some form of public welfare. And repeated barbarian attacks on Rome’s borders.
greatest roman historians. Although only a small portion of Livy's original 142 books survives, this monumental work—commissioned by Octavian himself—constitutes our most reliable account of political and social life in the days of the Roman Republic. Favor and honor sometimes fall more fitly on those who do not desire them. It is easier to criticize than to correct our past errors. Many difficulties which nature throws in our way, may be smoothed away by the exercise of intelligence. Men are only clever at shifting blame from their own shoulders to those of others. Men are slower to recognize blessings than misfortunes. No law can possibly meet the convenience of every one: we must be satisfied if it be beneficial on the whole and to the majority. Rome has grown since its humble beginnings that it is now overwhelmed by its own greatness.
following Caesar's assassination, Cicero too was murdered, his head and hands put on public display in the Forum. Clarity and eloquence are the hallmarks of Cicero's prose style Excelled in public speaking and letter writing. On Duty (44 B.C.E.), for instance, he evaluates the benefits of diplomacy versus war: On Duty (44 B.C.E.) …diplomacy in the friendly settlement of controversies is more desirable than courage in settling them on the battlefield; but we must be careful not to take that course merely for the sake of avoiding war rather than for the sake of public expediency. War, however, should be undertaken in such a way as to make it evident that it has no other object than to secure peace. The Romans were masters, as well, in oratory, that is, the art of public speaking, and in the writing of epistles (letters). which Renaissance humanists hailed as the model for literary excellence. While Cicero was familiar with the theoretical works of Aristotle and the Stoics,
In the vast, impersonal world of the Empire, many Romans cultivated the attitude of rational detachment popular among the Stoics (see page 41). Like their third-century-B.C.E. forebears, Roman Stoics believed that an impersonal force (Providence or Divine Reason) governed the world, and that happiness lay in one's ability to accept one's fate. Stoics rejected any emotional attachments that might enslave them. The ideal spiritual condition and the one most conducive to contentment, according to the Stoic point of view, depended on the subjugation of the emotions to. In 65, Seneca was caught up in the aftermath of the Pisonian conspiracy, a plot to kill Nero. Although it is unlikely that he conspired, he was ordered by Nero to kill himself. He followed tradition by severing several veins in order to bleed to death, and his wife Pompeia Pauling attempted to share his fate. Tacitus (writing in Book XV, Chapters 60 through 64 of his Annals of Imperial Rome, a generation later, after the Julio-Claudian emperors) gives an account of the suicide, perhaps, in light of Tacitus's Republican sympathies, somewhat romanticized. According to it, Nero ordered Seneca's wife to be saved. Her wounds were bound up and she made no further attempt to kill herself. As for Seneca himself, his age and diet were blamed for slow loss of blood, and extended pain rather than a quick death; taking poison was also not fatal. After dictating his last words to a scribe, and with a circle of friends attending him in his home, he immersed himself in a warm bath, which was expected to speed blood flow and ease his pain. Tacitus writes: “He was then carried into a bath, with the steam of which he was suffocated, and he was burnt without any of the usual funeral rites. So he had directed in a codicil of his will, even when in the height of his wealth and power he was thinking of life’s close.” [7] STOIC DETACHMENT AND ACCEPTANCE "All life is bondage. Man must therefore habituate himself to his condition, complain of it as little as possible, and grasp whatever good lies within his reach. No situation is so harsh that a dispassionate mind cannot find some consolation in it. If a man lays even a very small area out skillfully it will provide ample space for many uses, and even a foothold can be made livable by deft arrangement. Apply good sense to your problems; the hard can be softened, the narrow widened, and the heavy made lighter by the skillful bearer...." (from Seneca, On Tranquility of Mind) Seneca's On Tranquility of Mind argues that one may achieve peace of mind by avoiding burdensome responsibilities, gloomy companions, and excessive wealth. Stoicism offered a reasoned retreat from psychic pain and moral despair, as well as a practi- cal set of solutions to the daily strife between the self and society.
Inspired were inspired by his passionate affair with Clodia , Who he named Lesbia (in reference to Sappho)the adulterous life of a Roman consul, first fevered amorous passions to his despair and bitterness at the collapse of the affair, p 71 Come, Lesbia, let us live and love, nor give a damn what sour old men say. The sun that sets may rise again but when our light has sunk into the earth, it is gone forever. Give me a thousand kisses, then a hundred, another thousand, another hundred and in one breath still kiss another thousand, another hundred. 0 then with lips and bodies joined many deep thousands; confuse their number, so that poor fools and cuckolds (envious even now) shall never learn our wealth and curse us with their evil eyes.
earned centuries of fame for his narrative poem, the Metamorphoses This vast collection of stories about Greek and Roman gods develops the theme of supernatural trans- formation. Ovid himself pursued a career of poetry and love. Married three times, he seems to have been a master in the art of seduction. His witty guide on the subject, The Art of Love, brought him into disfavor with Augustus, who (finding the work morally threatening) sent Ovid into exile. Though written with tongue in cheek, The Art of Love swelled an already large canon of misogynic, or antifemale, classical literature. In this humorous "handbook," Ovid offers vivid glimpses into everyday life in Rome, but he clearly holds that the greatest human crimes issue from women's lust, which, according to the poet, is "keener, fiercer, and more wanton" than men's.
Bk VIII:183-235 Daedalus and Icarus Meanwhile Daedalus, hating Crete, and his long exile, and filled with a desire to stand on his native soil, was imprisoned by the waves. ‘He may thwart our escape by land or sea’ he said ‘but the sky is surely open to us: we will go that way: Minos rules everything but he does not rule the heavens’. So saying he applied his thought to new invention and altered the natural order of things. He laid down lines of feathers, beginning with the smallest, following the shorter with longer ones, so that you might think they had grown like that, on a slant. In that way, long ago, the rustic pan-pipes were graduated, with lengthening reeds. Then he fastened them together with thread at the middle, and bees’-wax at the base, and, when he had arranged them, he flexed each one into a gentle curve, so that they imitated real bird’s wings. His son, Icarus, stood next to him, and, not realising that he was handling things that would endanger him, caught laughingly at the down that blew in the passing breeze, and softened the yellow bees’-wax with his thumb, and, in his play, hindered his father’s marvellous work. When he had put the last touches to what he had begun, the artificer balanced his own body between the two wings and hovered in the moving air. He instructed the boy as well, saying ‘Let me warn you, Icarus, to take the middle way, in case the moisture weighs down your wings, if you fly too low, or if you go too high, the sun scorches them. Travel between the extremes. And I order you not to aim towards Bootes, the Herdsman, or Helice, the Great Bear, or towards the drawn sword of Orion: take the course I show you!’ At the same time as he laid down the rules of flight, he fitted the newly created wings on the boy’s shoulders. While he worked and issued his warnings the ageing man’s cheeks were wet with tears: the father’s hands trembled. He gave a never to be repeated kiss to his son, and lifting upwards on his wings, flew ahead, anxious for his companion, like a bird, leading her fledglings out of a nest above, into the empty air. He urged the boy to follow, and showed him the dangerous art of flying, moving his own wings, and then looking back at his son. Some angler catching fish with a quivering rod, or a shepherd leaning on his crook, or a ploughman resting on the handles of his plough, saw them, perhaps, and stood there amazed, believing them to be gods able to travel the sky. And now Samos, sacred to Juno, lay ahead to the left (Delos and Paros were behind them), Lebinthos, and Calymne, rich in honey, to the right, when the boy began to delight in his daring flight, and abandoning his guide, drawn by desire for the heavens, soared higher. His nearness to the devouring sun softened the fragrant wax that held the wings: and the wax melted: he flailed with bare arms, but losing his oar-like wings, could not ride the air. Even as his mouth was crying his father’s name, it vanished into the dark blue sea, the Icarian Sea, called after him. The unhappy father, now no longer a father, shouted ‘Icarus, Icarus where are you? Which way should I be looking, to see you?’ ‘Icarus’ he called again. Then he caught sight of the feathers on the waves, and cursed his inventions. He laid the body to rest, in a tomb, and the island was named Icaria after his buried child. Ovid's influence on Western art and literature cannot be exaggerated. The Metamorphoses is our best classical source of 250 myths. "The poem is the most comprehensive, creative mythological work that has come down to us from antiquity" (Galinsky). Based on its influence, "European literature and art would be poorer for the loss of the Metamorphoses than for the loss of Homer" (Hadas). Ovid was a major inspiration for Dante, Chaucer, Shakespeare, Milton . If Virgil is Rome's greatest poet, Ovid is the most popular (even in his own time; Ovidian graffiti has been found on the walls of Pompeii). As one example of Ovid's influence on Western art and literature, read the famous story of Daedalus and Icarus in Book 8. Ovid's account is the earliest in extant literature, although the story is much older, found on 6th century vases. Christopher Marlowe alludes to this story in his tragedy of Dr. Faustus , comparing his protagonist's ambition to that of Icarus: Till swoll'n with cunning of a self conceit, His waxen wings did mount above his reach And melting, heavens conspired his overthrow. (prologue) Now look at the painting below by Peter Brueghel, "Landscape with the Fall of Icarus" (1558). Notice how he takes details of ordinary life from Ovid's language: the farmer at his plow, the shepherd leaning on his staff, the fisherman down by the water. However, in Brueghel's version of the story, these men are oblivious to Icarus' plight. (If you haven't found him yet, look in the water in the lower right corner.) Why do you think Icarus's tragedy is reduced to a minor detail in the painting? In "Musee des Beaux Arts," a poem inspired by this painting (which was inspired by Ovid), W. H. Auden explains: About suffering they were never wrong, The Old Masters: how well they understood. Its human position; how it takes place While someone else is eating or opening a window or just walking dully along ... In Brueghel's Icarus , for instance: how everything turns away Quite leisurely from the disaster; the ploughman may Have heard the splash, the forsaken cry, But for him it was not an important failure. The sun shone As it had to on the white legs disappearing into the green Water; and the expensive delicate ship that must have seen Something amazing, a boy falling out of the sky, Had somewhere to get to and sailed calmly on.
The story of Perseus and Andromeda is the classic knight-rescues-damsel-in-distress-from-dragon. Ovid makes the transition to Perseus by way of his grandfather, Acrisius, who committed a double fault of not worshipping Bacchus (as in the previous stories) and not believing the account that his daughter Danae had sired a son of Jove. In the past Acrisius had heard an oracle that his grandson would one day cause his death, so he locked his daughter up in a tower to prevent anyone from mating with her. However, Jupiter transformed himself into a shower of gold and coming through a window poured himself into her lap. Acrisius later dies when Perseus accidentally kills him with a discus ( Apollodorus 2.4 ).
Roman poets were moralizers. Octavian's poet laureate, Quintus Haeredes Flaccus, better known as Horace (65-8 B.C.E.), wrote some of the most popular verse of his time, much of which took a critical view of Roman life. The son of a freed slave who sought his son's advancement, Horace was educated in Rome and Athens. His poetry won him the friendship of Virgil and the patronage of Maecenas, Augustus' chief minister of state. Lacking the grandeur of Virgil and the virtuosity of Ovid, Horace wrote verses that exposed various types of human folly—selfindulgence, vanity, ambition, and greed -- by pointing up the contradictions between practical realities and abstract ideals. These lyric poems reflect the Roman affection for satire, a literary genre that uses humor to denounce human vice and folly. Satire—another of Rome's landmark contributions to world literature—is a kind of moralizing in which human imperfection is not simply criticized, but, rather, mocked by way of biting wit and comic exaggeration. While Horace brings a satiric eye to such subjects as war, patriotism, and everyday conduct, he celebrates the enjoyment of life and laments its brevity. In a poem from the Odes, he discloses his Stoic disbelief in human perfection, advising us to "seize the day" and to "learn to accept whatever is to be.“ HORACE: "CARPE DIEM" ("SEIZE THE DAY") Pry not in forbidden lore, Ask no more, Leuconoë, How many years—to you?—to me?— The gods will send us Before they end us; Nor, questing, fix your hopes On Babylonian horoscopes. Learn to accept whatever is to be: Whether Jove grant us many winters, Or make of this the last, which splinters Now on opposing cliffs the Tuscan sea. Be wise; decant your wine; condense Large aims to fit life's cramped circumference. We talk, time flies—you've said it! Make hay today, Tomorrow rates no credit.
the most devastating ever written. While Horace's satirical lyrics are, for the most part, genial, those of Rome's most famous satirist, Juvenal (Decimus Junius Juvenalis, ca. 60-130 C.E.), are among the most devastating ever written. Juvenal came to Rome from the provinces. His subsequent career as a magistrate and his experience of poverty and financial failure contributed to his negative perception of Roman society, which he describes in his sixteen bitter Satires as swollen with greed and corruption. Juvenal's attack on the city of Rome paints a picture of a noisy, dirty, and crowded urban community inhabited by selfish, violent, and self-indulgent people. Juvenal was especially hostile toward foreigners and women. His sixth Satire, "Against Women," is one of the most bitter antifemale diatribes in the history of Western literature and a landmark in the long history of misogyny. In this excerpt, the poet laments the disappearance of the chaste Latin woman whose virtues, he submits, have been corrupted by luxury: Although Juvenal's bias against womankind strikes a personal note, it is likely that he was reflecting the public outcry against the licentiousness that was widespread in his own day. Increasingly during the second century, men openly enjoyed concubines, mistresses, and prostitutes. Infidelity among married women was on the rise, and divorce was common, as were second and third marriages for both sexes. There's nothing a woman won't do, nothing she thinks is disgraceful With the green gems at her neck, or pearls distending her ear lobes. Nothing is worse to endure than your Mrs. Richbitch, whose visage Is padded and plastered with dough, in the most ridiculous manner. Furthermore, she reeks of unguents, so God help her husband With his wretched face stunk up with these, smeared by her lipstick. To her lovers she comes with her skin washed clean. But at home Why does she need to look pretty? Nard1 is assumed for the lover, For the lover she buys all the Arabian perfumes. It takes her some time to strip down to her face, removing the layers One by one, till at last she is recognizable, almost, Then she uses a lotion, she-asses' milk; she'd need herds Of these creatures to keep her supplied on her northernmost journeys. But when she's given herself the treatment in full, from the ground base Through the last layer of mud pack, from the first wash to a poultice, What lies under all this—a human face, or an ulcer? 1Spikenard, a fragrant ointment.
Virgil wrote the semilegendary epic that immortalized Rome's destiny as world ruler. The Aeneid was not the product of an oral tradition, as were the Homeric epics; rather, it was a literary epic, undertaken to rival the epics of Homer. The hero of Virgil's poem is Rome's mythical founder, the Trojan-born Aeneas. The instrument of destiny, Aeneas founds the settlement of Latium and sets the course on which Rome will establish itself as world ruler. As is typical of the epic hero, he undertakes a long journey, filled with adventures that test his prowess. The first six books of the Aeneid recount his voyage from Troy to Italy and his love affair with the beautiful Carthaginian princess, Dido. The second six books describe the Trojan conquest of Latium and the establishment of the Roman state. While Virgil wrote the Aeneid to glorify the imperial achievements of Octavian, he infused the poem with an epic theme that reflects the sober ideals of ancient Rome: the primacy of duty—that of the citizen, of the warrior, and of the state.
Fortunately, it was not, changing the entire history of western culture, Roman History Virgil is concerned with Roman history but handles it quite differently than previous writers who constructed epics out of history, Virgil uses a legend for the main line of the narrative, while history was insinuated into prophecy, visions, and into the description of objects (like the shield). Imitation, Drew heavily from Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey , Six books are “Little Iliad” Other six books are “Little Odyssey”
The Aeneid was composed in part to celebrate “truth, justice, and the Roman way” and to promote the revitalization of the Roman way of life under Augustus To accomplish this, Virgil drew on the whole of Greek and Latin literature to create his epic.
Right Conduct, the Roman way of life, and Roman destiny Moral center is the Roman way of life which Augustus was trying to revitalize System was based on duty to the gods, to country, and to family and friends In system, private experience and duty are often placed in tension against public duty, It is clear, that Virgil believes that the ideals of Roman life and public service remain worth the often difficult struggle with self
Rome's duty to rule is proclaimed by Aeneas' father, Anchises, whom the hero meets in the underworld (described in Book 6): No summary of the Aeneid can represent adequately the monumental impact of this landmark work, which became the foundation for education in the Latin language. Its poetry and its patriotic theme—the origins, history, and destiny of Rome—inspired generations of writers, including the late medieval Tuscan poet Dante Alighieri, who in his own epic poem, the Commedia (see page 149), embraced Virgil as his guide to the underworld and his master in the literary arts.
Introduction He ruled an empire that stretched from Spain to Judea and turned the Mediterranean Sea into a peaceful Roman lake. Augustus Caesar, born Gaius Octavius Thurinus, was a part of the triumvirate that took over the rule of Rome after the murder of Julius Caesar in 44 BC. When the triumvirate fell apart, he took sole power of Rome in 27 BC when the Roman Senate voted him the title of Augustus, which means “illustrious one.” Later they would worship him, and all the emperors that followed him, as a god. Augustus’s rule marked the beginning of nearly 200 years of peace called the Pax Romana. Essential Facts Augustus was already an adult when Julius Caesar adopted him. Caesar had no male heir and had been impressed when the then-named Octavius made a perilous journey through hostile territory to join Caesar’s army. Octavius was a plebeian, the lower class of Rome, until his adoption by Caesar made him a patrician. Part of the reason for the deterioration of the triumvirate of Octavius, Marc Antony, and Marcus Lepidus was Antony’s involvement with Cleopatra. Antony was already married to Octavius’s sister when he made a marriage contract with Cleopatra. This duplicity did not sit well and Octavius used the incident to raise an army to defeat Antony. Augustus’s reorganization of the provincial Roman system created a stable environment for collecting taxes and administrating government throughout the empire. Augustus married Livia Drusilla, who had been married to Tiberius Claudius Nero. Both Augustus and Livia divorced their respective spouses to marry. Augustus lived a long life and served Rome well. When he died in AD 14 at the age of 77, he was declared a Roman god, and every emperor after him adopted the title of Caesar.
Roman emperor ( 14 – 37 AD ). He was the adopted successor of his stepfather and father‐in‐law Augustus, under whom he had pursued a distinguished military career. As emperor he sought to continue his stepfather's policies but became increasingly tyrannical and his reign was marked by a growing number of treason trials and executions. In 26 he retired to Capri, never returning to Rome. When Jesus said "Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's; and unto God the things that are God's" He was saying, decide who is your god . Is it the prince of this world or the God of Abraham? That's why the men that posed the question marveled at the answer. Jesus didn't tell you to serve any other master. The Jews would have looked at the image and inscription and would have known that Jesus was not saying to pay the tax. Would Jesus have acknowledged that Caesar was god? Yet without saying that, Jesus conveyed His message loud and clear to the wicked Jewish leaders. Caligula was not a nice person. . Caligula has become the archetype of a man with enough power to act out his basest fantasies. Caius Caesar was born in 12 A.D., the son of Germanicus and Agrippina Sr. He was nicknamed Caligula, meaning "little boots," by the legions because as a child his mother dressed him in military uniforms (including little boots). Initially he was very popular, succeeding Tiberius in 37 A.D. and for a few brief months ruling very well. However, an unknown disease drove him mad and his reign soon degenerated into debauchery and murder. He was murdered by the Praetorian Guard in 41 A.D.
Nero, Claudius Caesar Drusus Germanicus ( c. 37 – 68 AD ) Roman emperor ( 54 – 68 AD ). He was adopted by Claudius , who had married his own niece, Agrippina , Nero's mother. On Claudius' suspicious death in 54 AD Nero succeeded to the throne and poisoned Britannicus, Claudius' son by Messalina . Nero then had his mother murdered, compelled his boyhood tutor and state counsellor Seneca to commit suicide, and had his own wife Octavia executed. Another wife, Poppaea , died as a result of Nero's violence...
Titus (r. 79 – 81): Titus completed the Colosseum and defeated the Jews in Palestine. His victory is commemorated by the Arch of Titus in the Forum. During his reign, Mount Vesuvius exploded, burying Pompeii and Herculaneum. Titus (Titus Flavius Vespasianus), Roman emperor, AD 79–81. Born on 30 December 39, he was the elder son of Vespasian and was brought up at court along with Britannicus, Claudius' son. He had considerable physical and intellectual gifts, especially in music and singing, so that at one stage some viewed him as potentially a second Nero . He married Arrecina Tertulla, daughter of the praetorian prefect of Gaius (Caligula); and she bore him a daughter, Julia. After her death he married Marcia Furnilla, whom he later divorced. He spent his early career as a military tribune in Germany and Britain, and it was probably in Lower Germany that he established his friendship with Pliny the Elder, who subsequently dedicated the Natural History to him. Although only of quaestorian rank, he joined his father in 67 in his mission to suppress the Jewish...
): Rome's expansion peaked under Spanish-born Trajan, the first emperor to come from the provinces rather than Rome. This conquering hero stretched Rome's borders from Europe to North Africa to west Asia, creating a truly vast empire. The spoils of three continents funneled into Rome. His conquests are carved into the 120-foot Trajan's Column, a well-preserved monument in the center of Rome. Trajan (born Marcus Ulpius Traianus ) ( c. 53 – 117 AD ) Roman emperor ( 98 – 117 ). Born in Spain, he was adopted by Nerva as his successor. Trajan's reign is noted for the Dacian wars ( 101 – 06 ), which ended in the annexation of Dacia as a province; the campaigns are illustrated on Trajan's Column in Rome. He was also an efficient administrator and many public works were undertaken during his reign. Dacian wars Campaigns fought by successive Roman emperors over territory corresponding roughly to modern Romania and part of Hungary. The Dacians threatened the lands south of the River Danube which Rome regarded as a natural frontier. Under Emperor Domitian peace was agreed and considerable financial aid given to the Dacians. Then Emperor Trajan stopped payments, crossed the Lower Danube, and fought two campaigns AD 101 and 105 – 6 that were commemorated on Trajan's column in Rome, which is still standing today. Dacia became a Roman province, until Emperor Aurelian abandoned it to the Goths in 270 .
A voracious tourist, Hadrian visited every corner of the enormous empire, from Britain (where he built Hadrian's Wall), to Egypt (where he sailed the Nile), to Jerusalem (where he suppressed a Jewish revolt), to Athens (where he soaked up classical culture and played backgammon). Back home, he beautified Rome with the Pantheon, his tomb (Castel Sant'Angelo), and his villa at Tivoli, a mini — theme park of famous places he'd visited. Hadrian (full name Publius Aelius Hadrianus ) ( 76 – 138 AD ) Roman emperor ( 117 – 38 ). He became emperor as the adopted successor of Trajan, and spent much of his reign touring the provinces of the Empire, promoting good government and loyalty to Rome, and securing the frontiers. The building of Hadrian's Wall was begun after his visit to Britain in 122.
The famous philosopher was a multitasker, writing his Meditations while at war securing the Danube frontier. His Danube campaign was commemorated by a column decorated with battle scenes (on Rome's Piazza Colonna). Beset by barbarian attacks and a plague, the time of Marcus Aurelius' reign marks Rome's tipping point, as the empire began its slow, three-century decline. The famous philosopher was a multitasker, writing his Meditations while at war securing the Danube frontier. His Danube campaign was commemorated by a column decorated with battle scenes (on Rome's Piazza Colonna). Aurelius, Marcus (full name Caesar Marcus Aurelius Antoninus Augustus) ( 121 – 80 ) Roman emperor ( 161 – 80 ). The adopted successor of Antoninus Pius , he was occupied for much of his reign with wars against Germanic tribes invading the empire from the north. He was by nature a philosophical contemplative; his Meditations are a collection of aphorisms and reflections based on a Stoic outlook and written down for his own guidance.
Marcus Aurelius broke with tradition and chose his blood son to succeed him. Commodus was a palace brat who ran around dressed in animal skins and wielding a club, pretending to be Hercules. As emperor, he ushered in a period of instability and decline. Commodus, Lucius Aurelius, sole emperor AD 180–92, one of twin sons born to M. Aurelius and Faustina in August 161, the first emperor ‘born in the purple’. Given the title Caesar in 166, he was summoned to his father's side after the usurpation of Avidius Cassius, the governor of Syria, in 175, received imperiumand tribunicia potestas . at the end of 176, and was consul in 177, now Augustus and co-ruler. He was married in 178 to Bruttia Crispina and left Rome with Marcus for the second Marcomannic War. On his father's death on 17 March 180 he became sole emperor, taking the names Marcus Aurelius Commodus Antoninus, rapidly made peace, and abandoned the newly annexed territories, holding a triumph in October 180. Septimius Severus (r. 193 – 211): This African emperor-general's victories on the frontier earned him a grand triumphal arch in the Forum, but he couldn't stop the empire from starting to unravel. Severus, Septimius (full name Lucius Septimius Severus Pertinax ) ( 146 – 211 ) Roman emperor ( 193 – 211 ). He was active in reforms of the imperial administration and of the army, which he recognized as the real basis of imperial power. In 208 he took an army to Britain to suppress a rebellion in the north of the country, and later died at York.
Aurelian (full name Lucius Domitius Aurelianus) ( c. 215 – 75 ) Roman emperor ( 270 – 75 ). Originally a common soldier, he rose through the ranks and was elected emperor by the army. By a series of military campaigns, including the defeat of Queen Zenobia at Palmyra ( 272 ), he successfully quelled rebellions and repelled barbarian invaders; he also built new walls round Rome, and established the state worship of the Sun. He was assassinated by his own army officers. To try to control Rome's decline, Diocletian split the sprawling empire into two administrative halves. He ruled the east from Asia Minor. The city of Split, Croatia, was later built in and around his retirement palace. Diocletian was an avid persecutor of Christians; it's poetic justice that his baths in Rome are now a church. Diocletian (full name Gaius Aurelius Valerius Diocletianus ) ( 245 – 313 ) Roman emperor ( 284 – 305 ). Faced with military problems on many frontiers and insurrection in the provinces, in 286 he divided the empire between himself in the east and Maximian (died 310 ) in the west. In 293 he further divided the empire, giving Galerius (died 311 ) control of Illyricum and the valley of the River Danube, with Constantius Chlorus (died 306 ) ruling Gaul, Spain, and Britain. An enthusiast for the old Roman religion, tradition, and discipline, Diocletian insisted on the maintenance of Roman law in the provinces and launched the final harsh persecution of the Christians
The first Christian emperor is known as Constantine the Great. In the belief that the Christian God helped him defeat his rival Maxentius in 312, he legalized Christianity. In 330, Constantine moved the capital of the Roman Empire to Constantinople (modern-day Istanbul), a decision that weakened Rome but built a solid foundation for the up-and-coming Byzantine Empire. Constantine I (the Great) (full name Flavius Valerius Aurelius Constantinus ) ( c. 274 – 337 ) Roman emperor ( 324 – 37 ). On the death of his father Constantius I in 306 at Eboracum (York) the army proclaimed him emperor. After a period of political complications, with several emperors competing for power, Constantine and Licinius divided the empire between them, East and West. War was fought between the two rulers ( 314 ) and Constantine defeated and killed Licinius ( 323 ) and he became sole emperor, founding a new second capital at Byzantium, which he named Constantinople (now Istanbul ).
Romulus Augustulus (r. 475 – 476): Rome's last emperor, 14-year-old "Little Augustus" was forced to abdicate by a barbarian chieftain, and the reign of Rome's emperors was over. Romulus' father Orestes was a Roman citizen, originally from Pannonia, who had served as a secretary and diplomat for attila the Hun and later rose through the ranks of the Roman army. [2] The future emperor was named Romulus after his maternal grandfather, a nobleman from Poetovio in Noricum. Many historians have noted the coincidence that the last western emperor bore the names of both Romulus, the legendary founder and first king of Rome, and Augustus, its first emperor. [3]
A Who's Who of Roman Emperors Marcus Aurelius: He let the good times roll...away. At its peak (c. a.d. 117), Rome ruled an empire of 54 million people, stretching from Scotland in the north to Egypt in the south, and from Spain in the west to the cradle of civilization (modern-day Iraq) in the east. As Rome's addiction to wealth and aggression suffocated its dream of democracy, the Republic died with Julius Caesar. Here's a who's who of emperors who followed (see if you can memorize them!): Augustus Caesar (ruled 27 b.c. – a.d. 14): After eliminating his rival Marc Antony (and his lover Cleopatra), Augustus united Rome and became the first Roman emperor. His reign marks the start of 200 years of power and prosperity, the Pax Romana. Tiberius (r. 14 – 37): Augustus' adopted son was the Caesar that Jesus Christ "rendered unto." Caligula (r. 37 – 41): Caligula was not a nice person. He squandered Rome's money, had sex with his sisters, tortured his enemies, and parked his chariot in handicap spaces. Caligula has become the archetype of a man with enough power to act out his basest fantasies. To no one's regret, assassins ambushed him and ran a sword through his privates. Nero (r. 54 – 68): Rome's most notorious emperor killed his mother, kicked his pregnant wife to death, and crucified St. Peter. When Rome burned in a.d. 64, Nero was accused of torching the city so that he could clear land to build an even bigger house. Titus (r. 79 – 81): Titus completed the Colosseum and defeated the Jews in Palestine. His victory is commemorated by the Arch of Titus in the Forum. During his reign, Mount Vesuvius exploded, burying Pompeii and Herculaneum. Trajan (r. 98 – 117): Rome's expansion peaked under Spanish-born Trajan, the first emperor to come from the provinces rather than Rome. This conquering hero stretched Rome's borders from Europe to North Africa to west Asia, creating a truly vast empire. The spoils of three continents funneled into Rome. His conquests are carved into the 120-foot Trajan's Column, a well-preserved monument in the center of Rome. Hadrian (r. 117 – 138): A voracious tourist, Hadrian visited every corner of the enormous empire, from Britain (where he built Hadrian's Wall), to Egypt (where he sailed the Nile), to Jerusalem (where he suppressed a Jewish revolt), to Athens (where he soaked up classical culture and played backgammon). Back home, he beautified Rome with the Pantheon, his tomb (Castel Sant'Angelo), and his villa at Tivoli, a mini — theme park of famous places he'd visited. Marcus Aurelius (r. 161 – 180): Beset by barbarian attacks and an awful plague, the time of Marcus Aurelius' reign marks Rome's tipping point, as the empire began its slow, three-century decline. The famous philosopher was a multitasker, writing his Meditations while at war securing the Danube frontier. His Danube campaign was commemorated by a column decorated with battle scenes (on Rome's Piazza Colonna). Commodus (r. 180 – 192): Marcus Aurelius broke with tradition and chose his blood son to succeed him. Commodus was a palace brat who ran around dressed in animal skins and wielding a club, pretending to be Hercules. As emperor, he ushered in a period of instability and decline. Septimius Severus (r. 193 – 211): This African emperor-general's victories on the frontier earned him a grand triumphal arch in the Forum, but he couldn't stop the empire from starting to unravel. Caracalla (r. 211 – 217): To strengthen Rome, Caracalla extended citizenship to nearly all free men in the empire. But no amount of bathing at his huge Baths of Caracalla could wash away his dirty deed of murdering his brother and rival. Caracalla was one of a series of third-century emperors who were assassinated. Aurelian (r. 270 – 275): Aurelian built a wall around Rome. The capital hadn't needed a wall for the previous six centuries, but now the crumbling, stumbling city feared barbarian attacks. Diocletian (r. 285 – 305): To try to control Rome's decline, Diocletian split the sprawling empire into two administrative halves. He ruled the east from Asia Minor. The city of Split, Croatia, was later built in and around his retirement palace. Diocletian was an avid persecutor of Christians; it's poetic justice that his baths in Rome are now a church. Constantine (r. 306 – 337): The first Christian emperor is known as Constantine the Great. In the belief that the Christian God helped him defeat his rival Maxentius in 312, he legalized Christianity. In 330, Constantine moved the capital of the Roman Empire to Constantinople (modern-day Istanbul), a decision that weakened Rome but built a solid foundation for the up-and-coming Byzantine Empire. Romulus Augustulus (r. 475 – 476): Rome's last emperor, 14-year-old "Little Augustus" was forced to abdicate by a barbarian chieftain, and the reign of Rome's emperors was over.
Plot Overview O n the Mediterranean Sea, Aeneas and his fellow Trojans flee from their home city of Troy, which has been destroyed by the Greeks. They sail for Italy, where Aeneas is destined to found Rome. As they near their destination, a fierce storm throws them off course and lands them in Carthage. Dido, Carthage’s founder and queen, welcomes them. Aeneas relates to Dido the long and painful story of his group’s travels thus far. Aeneas tells of the sack of Troy that ended the Trojan War after ten years of Greek siege. In the final campaign, the Trojans were tricked when they accepted into their city walls a wooden horse that, unbeknownst to them, harbored several Greek soldiers in its hollow belly. He tells how he escaped the burning city with his father, Anchises; his son, Ascanius; and the hearth gods that represent their fallen city. Assured by the gods that a glorious future awaited him in Italy, he set sail with a fleet containing the surviving citizens of Troy. Aeneas relates the ordeals they faced on their journey. Twice they attempted to build a new city, only to be driven away by bad omens and plagues. Harpies, creatures that are part woman and part bird, cursed them, but they also encountered friendly countrymen unexpectedly. Finally, after the loss of Anchises and a bout of terrible weather, they made their way to Carthage. Impressed by Aeneas’s exploits and sympathetic to his suffering, Dido, a Phoenician princess who fled her home and founded Carthage after her brother murdered her husband, falls in love with Aeneas. They live together as lovers for a period, until the gods remind Aeneas of his duty to found a new city. He determines to set sail once again. Dido is devastated by his departure, and kills herself by ordering a huge pyre to be built with Aeneas’s castaway possessions, climbing upon it, and stabbing herself with the sword Aeneas leaves behind. As the Trojans make for Italy, bad weather blows them to Sicily, where they hold funeral games for the dead Anchises. The women, tired of the voyage, begin to burn the ships, but a downpour puts the fires out. Some of the travel-weary stay behind, while Aeneas, reinvigorated after his father visits him in a dream, takes the rest on toward Italy. Once there, Aeneas descends into the underworld, guided by the Sibyl of Cumae, to visit his father. He is shown a pageant of the future history and heroes of Rome, which helps him to understand the importance of his mission. Aeneas returns from the underworld, and the Trojans continue up the coast to the region of Latium. The arrival of the Trojans in Italy begins peacefully. King Latinus, the Italian ruler, extends his hospitality, hoping that Aeneas will prove to be the foreigner whom, according to a prophecy, his daughter Lavinia is supposed to marry. But Latinus’s wife, Amata, has other ideas. She means for Lavinia to marry Turnus, a local suitor. Amata and Turnus cultivate enmity toward the newly arrived Trojans. Meanwhile, Ascanius hunts a stag that was a pet of the local herdsmen. A fight breaks out, and several people are killed. Turnus, riding this current of anger, begins a war. Aeneas, at the suggestion of the river god Tiberinus, sails north up the Tiber to seek military support among the neighboring tribes. During this voyage, his mother, Venus, descends to give him a new set of weapons, wrought by Vulcan. While the Trojan leader is away, Turnus attacks. Aeneas returns to find his countrymen embroiled in battle. Pallas, the son of Aeneas’s new ally Evander, is killed by Turnus. Aeneas flies into a violent fury, and many more are slain by the day’s end. The two sides agree to a truce so that they can bury the dead, and the Latin leaders discuss whether to continue the battle. They decide to spare any further unnecessary carnage by proposing a hand-to-hand duel between Aeneas and Turnus. When the two leaders face off, however, the other men begin to quarrel, and full-scale battle resumes. Aeneas is wounded in the thigh, but eventually the Trojans threaten the enemy city. Turnus rushes out to meet Aeneas, who wounds Turnus badly. Aeneas nearly spares Turnus but, remembering the slain Pallas, slays him instead.
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