The city of Ancient Rome was the center of an empire that lasted 600 years. The empire grew from northern England to the Middle East.
Rome was founded a mystery. The ancient Romans believed that Rome was founded on April 21, 753 B.C, by the brothers Romulus and Remus, who were raised in the wild by a female wolf. The Romans venerated the place where the wolf supposedly nursed the brothers because it was so important to the legend.
In his book "Rise of the Early Roman Republic: Reflections on becoming Roman", Thomas Dynneson, professor of anthropology and education at the University of Texas, wrote that people have been living in Rome for over 3000 years.
The Romans believed that a republic style of government was set up in the place of the last king, who was deposed in 509 B.C. Modern-day historians are debating whether or not this line of kings ever existed and, if they did, when it ended.
The Etruscans and Greeks are thought to have influenced Rome's inhabitants, as well as two other peoples who had cities in Italy. The writing system that most likely had its earlier origins with the Aegean Greeks was developed as a result of Roman contact with the Etruscans.
The gladiators are saluting their ruler. The image is from Charles Phelps Cushing/ClassicStock.
The republic system of governance tried to balance the interests of the noble class of Roman citizens with those of the poor. Slaves were not included in Roman citizenship. It's not clear if the Romans adopted a Republic because of early attempts at democracy in some ancient Greek states.
Roman control expanded to include all of Italy, as well as parts of the Middle East and North Africa. Adrian Goldsworthy wrote in his book "Pax Romana: War, Peace and Conquest in the Roman World" that Rome had an empire before she had an emperor.
The Roman senate gave the title "Augustus" to the great-nephew of Julius Caesar. Mark Antony and Cleopatra VII died by suicide, leaving Octavian in control of Rome. The power of Augustus and his successors became concentrated after this time.
A map of ancient Rome.
The map depicts ancient Rome. The image is from duncan1890/
Augustus came to power and Rome had grown a lot. Peter Garnsey wrote that the growth of the capital city in the two centuries before Augustus was achieved by high levels of immigration of Italian peasants and enslaved provincials.
Other parts of the Roman world paid for growth. The city of Rome was financed from imperial taxes and rents from public properties in other states, according to Garnsey and Saller. The revenues were drawn from the provinces. Italy was not a province and did not have a direct tax on property.
The Roman colosseum is where gladiators would have fought. The image is from theVSD Software website.
One of the most important structures for entertaining was the Colosseum, which hosted gladiator fights. It was built in the A.D. 70s and paid for using money and treasure from Jerusalem.
The city may have had 1 million inhabitants in the first and second centuries A.D.
The end of Ancient Rome.
The "Roman Empire" was thought to have lasted between 27 B.C. and A.D. 476. England, Wales and parts of modern-day Romania were included in the Roman Empire during this period. It tried to conquer Germany, Scotland and Iraq.
The period between 27 B.C. and A.D. 180 is known as the Pax Romana because Rome was relatively stable compared to the times before and after those dates. There were assassinations and civil wars during this time.
The destruction of an empire like that of ancient Rome can be seen in this painting. The New York Historical Society has a painting in its collection. The image is from Fine Art Images/Heritage Images.
The period after A.D. 180 is often seen as a decline and change for the Roman Empire, as political unrest grew and the empire's borders came under attack. During the reign of Constantine, Christianity was allowed to grow in popularity. It became the official religion of the Roman Empire, replacing the deities that had been worshiped before.
The Western Roman Empire and the Eastern Roman Empire were formed after the empire split. Sometimes the emperors cooperated with each other and other times they were at odds.
The fates of the two parts of the Empire were different. The last Roman emperor dethroned the Western Roman Empire in A.D. 476. The Eastern Roman Empire lasted for over a millennium. The ancient inhabitants of this part of the empire continued to call themselves Roman despite being called the Byzantine Empire.
Constantinople was captured by the Ottoman Empire and the Roman Empire fell.
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