Early Rome and the Republic

Tuesday, October 27

A Trip To Rome and Italy

Main Idea: Rome began as a small tribe of people on the Tiber River in Italy, but because of its location and the influences of those who settled there, Rome became a great empire.

Italy--a boot-shaped nation in southern Europe on the Mediterranean Sea
Mediterranean Sea--main sea between Europe and Africa
Rome--city halfway up the boot, 7 miles up the Tiber River
Tiber River--river that flows through Rome
Sicily--the island below Italy that it appears the boot is kicking
Alps--mountain range over the top of Italy
Apennines--mountain range that runs down the spine of Italy
Italy is halfway from one end of the Med .Sea to the other, and Rome is halfway up the boot of Italy. Strategically placed for conquest.
Climate--same as Greece
Main products---same as Greece
Rome grew on seven hills for protection, next to the Tiber River
Rome was founded by Romulus and Remus, twin sons of the Roman god Mars and a Roman princess. The twins were cast into the Tiber after birth and raised by a she-wolf until adopted by a shepherd. They fought over where to build Rome and who would rule. Romulus killed Remus and founded Rome.Video to Watch for Romulus and Remus: Romulus and Remus Story

Wednesday, October 28 and Friday, October 30

Who Were the Romans?

Main Idea: Three different cultures combined to create Roman culture--Latin, Etruscan and Greek.

1. Latins---

• came over the Alps about 1,000 BC
• Contribution---Latin Language--this language became the language of the Roman Empire, the
• language of learning in the Middle Ages, and formed the basis for the Romance 
• languages of Italian, French, Spanish, Portuguese, and Romansch. It also gave 
• English about 1/3 of all of its words.
• Latin Language Video Clip (Very good)---History of the Latin Language

2. Etruscans---

• lived in Northern Italy
• Contributions:
• The Etruscan Alphabet became our alphabet.
• The arch

Metal Working and Art
Etruscan Video Clip: The Etruscans

3. Greeks---750-600 BC--

• Contributions: Art, Philosophy, Religion, Agriculture

Greek Video Clip: Greek Contributions to Rome

The Roman Republic

Main Idea: The Romans got rid of kings and put power in the hands of the people.

• Republic--a form of government in which power rests with the citizens who elect their leaders
• Rome was not a true republic. Some Romans could not vote, such as women and slaves.
• Roman Classes
• Patricians---old-school nobles, like the lords in England, who owned land and whose wealth extended back generations.
• Plebeians--middle class, including workers, farmers, and craftsmen
• Both patricians and plebeians were citizens. Women and slaves were not represented.
• Plebeians get rights when the patricians need their help to overthrow the tyrant, King Tarquin. 
• Plebeians demand that the Patricians post the laws of Rome in the Forum (meeting place) so that everyone can read them and see that the patricians are not taking advantage of the plebs.
• Twelve Tables--laws posted in Roman Forum, like our Constitution
• The Plebeians get more rights when the Patricians agree to let the Plebeians have representatives in the Patrician Senate. These representatives, called Tribunes, are Patricians but represent the interests of the Plebs.
• Roman Government Graphic Organizer:

• The two consuls were elected for terms of only one year, and could not serve again for ten years. This kept either from getting too much power or support. Also each consuls could VETO any idea of the other, preventing either from getting too much power.
• In cases of extreme emergency, when something had to be dealt with quickly, the Senate could appoint a DICTATOR to serve with complete control for 6 months only.
• The danger of this was that if a dictator was able to get enough support, he could refuse to step down. That is what Julius Caesar will do eventually.

Video Clip Links for this Lesson:
Seeds of theRoman Republic: History Channel

Monday, Nov 2.
Guest Speaker.  Tyrel Butikofer, former Pro MMA fighter on "Reaching your Dream"

Tuesday, November 3

Map Assignment
Using the map below or the map in the book on pages 138 and 145 to complete the map.  Due Friday.

Main Idea:  Rome fought a trade war with the North African city-state of Carthage.

1.  First Punic War---264-241 BC 

• lasts 23 years
• Rome reverse engineers a Carthaginian ship and builds a navy
• Rome wins Corsica, Sardinia, Sicily and control of the Mediterannean Sea

2.  Second Punic War----218 BC- 201 BC

• Hannibal, great Carthaginian general, attacks Rome by way of Spain, France and the Alps with 40,000 men and 37 war elephants.
• Fought in Italy for many years.  Outwitted politically-appointed Roman generals.  At one battle, Cannae, he kills 50,000 Roman legionaries despite being outnumbers
• Finally, Roman general Scipio attacks Carthage, forcing Hannibal to return to defend it
• Scipio defeats Hannibal at the Battle of Zama

Wednesday, November 4 - Mr. Morris Gone, Mrs. Donnelly here

3. Third Punic War ---- 149-146 BC

• War of Revenge - Cato the Elder says Carthage must be destroyed if Rome is ever to be free of threats
• Carthage was destroyed, looted, all residents killed or enslaved, farmland salted (so it can't grow) 

MAIN IDEA: The Roman army was highly structured which made it very successful in expanding Rome and defeating Carthage in the Punic Wars.

Watch the Roman Army MME here.

All land owning citizens were required to serve in the Roman Army. 

Roman soldiers were organized into units called LEGIONS. A legion had 5,000 infantrym 

The legion was further broken into COHORTS of about 600 men. 

Each legion was broken up into smaller groups, called a CENTURY. Each century was led by a highly skilled, highly paid leader called a CENTURION who led 80 men.

THURSDAY, November 5th: Problems of the Republic

Main Idea:  As Rome became rich and powerful after the Punic Wars, the Republic began to have problems with its government and its people.

I.   Problems

Widening gap between rich and poor

Latifundia---large plantations owned by wealthy patricians that used many slaves, much like the plantations in the American South before the Civil War.  These latifundia put the smaller farmers out of business.

Soldiers--lose their farms while they are away fighting in Punic Wars.

Poor farmers and soldiers move to cities, where they live in slums, are usually unemployed, and learn to hate and distrust the government

Military

The military was set up so that a successful general who shared the spoils of war with his men got their loyalty rather than the government.  The men would follow the general before they would obey a government that they thought was corrupt and didn't care about them.

Corruption

Patricians in Senate do nothing to help the plebeians and the poor, and instead focus on getting more wealth and power.

Slavery---1/3 of all Rome's population is now slave.  These slaves take a lot of the labor from Roman citizens and non-slaves

II.  Solutions

Gracchus Brothers---Tribunes who try to get reforms passed to help the Plebeians, but they are assasinated.

Civil War---Battle of rival generals.  Sulla wins and declares himself dictator.   

Watch this 10 minute video: http://study.com/academy/lesson/reform-in-the-roman-republic-pompey-the-gracchi-marius-sulla.html

Friday, November 6

Julius Caesar's Rise to Power

Main Idea:  Julius Caesar became a dictator but did great things for Rome.

• Born 100 BC. Died 44 BC.
• Month of his birth, Quinctillus, was changed to July in his honor.
• Legend says he was born by Caesarian section, thus the name of the operation.
• Born to a poorer patrician family.
• Raised in the poorer section of Rome, friends with slaves and plebeians growing up.  Could speak with them and relate to the middle class and poor unlike most patricians.
• Ambitious--hero was Alexander the Great
• Grew up in a time of civil war in Rome.  To him, the Republic did not work very well.
• Had to flee Rome when Sulla became dictator.
• Became a military hero and diplomat in Asia Minor.
• Later conquers Gaul
• 55 BC Conquers England
• 50 BC  Senate orders him back to Rome, thinking he has become too powerful.  If he goes, he knows he will be imprisoned or killed.  He decides to risk it all and take his army.
• 49 BC  Crosses the Rubicon River.  If a general crossed the Rubicon with his army, he was entering Roman territory and was guilty of treason.  From that point, there was no turning back.  He would either become dictator or die.
• "Crossing the Rubicon"--an expression meaning passing the point of no return in one's life.
• Pompey flees, JC defeats rivals
• 44 BC  Name dictator for life by the Senate,which he has stacked with his own supporters

Watch the MME HERE!!!

Monday, November 9

Julius Caesar as Dictator:  Julius Caesar's Assassination

Main Idea:   Julius Caesar did many good things for the common people, but he did them to further his own interests and to increase his power.  He was killed by Senators who feared his dictatorial rule.

Julius Caesar's Accomplishments

• Expanded the  Senate  (and packed it with his own supporters)Gave people living in the provinces outside Italy citizenship  (to increase his number of supporters)
• Helped the poor by creating jobs  (got their support, and also reduced the chance of social problems such as riots, crime, and hatred of the government)
• Started new colonies and gave the land to the poor  (got their support, but he took the land from those he conquered so he wasn't giving away anything that he hadn't first taken from someone else)
• Increased pay for soldiers   (always good to have the army on your side)

Death of Julius Caesar

44 BC--Fortune-teller warns Caesar to "Beware the Ides of March"  (March 15)

Members of the Roman Senate plot to kill Caesar

March 15, 44 BC.  Caesar goes to the Senate and is killed by Roman Senators

The Senators expect to be heroes, but the majority of the Roman people love Caesar and they becomc enemies of Rome

After a power struggle, Caesar's adopted nephew Octavian becomes his successor.

Wednesday, November 11

Veteran's Day Lesson:  The Bataan Death March and Its Aftermath
Watch the MME HERE

Notes from Wednesday

Bataan Death March:Part One

• US wins the Philippines in E. Asia in Spanish American War
• 20-30,000 American troops stationed there in 1941

• leader of Filipino and American military in the Philippines is American general Douglas McArthur.
• Dec. 7 1941 Pearl Harbor attacked by Japan.  US enters WWII
• Dec. 8, 1941   Japan attacks Philippines.  
• April 1942:  American and Filipino troops surrender
• marched from bottom of Bataan peninsula to prison camp at Camp O'Donnell

Thursday, November 12th: A Day in the Life of a Roman

We completed these skeleton notes in class. Please make sure these get into your notebook or you ask for a copy of the skeleton notes to fill in. 

Men and Women

·         Roman fathers, called the paterfamilias, had complete and God-like power over their family.  He could sell his children into slavery or kill them.  He could also tell them who to marry and how to live their lives and they had to obey.

·         Gravitas--the Roman ideal behavior--discipline, strength, loyalty

·         Women--higher status than in Greece, but could not vote. Rights belonged to father, even after marriage. However, women did rise to status and influence their husbands in decision-making.

Children and Education

·         Boys were favored because only they could be politically and economically successful.

·         Girls were not even given their own name.  Instead, they were named after their father, such as Julius' daughter would be called Julia.  Taught household skills and expected to be virtuous.

·         Only patrician boys are educated, to age 16, when they are adults.

·         Girls marry at 12-15, their father picks their husband, and the husband is usually an older, successful business man or comes from a politically powerful family.  It's not about love, it's about making an alliance with a powerful family.

Slaves

·         Slaves had varied treatment and lifestyles.   A valuable Greek tutor-slave might live with the family and be treated like a family member, while a worker in the salt mines would be treated like an animal.

·         Gladiators---trained warriors, like professional athletes but slaves.  Fought to the death in the arena.  Some lived 10-20 years and attained rock star status.

Food

·         Breakfast – a wheat pancake or bread with dates and honey

·         Early Lunch – bread and cheese

·         Cena (Supper) – bread, vegetables, maybe meat such as sausages for normal supper. For banquet, could take four hours, many exotic foods such as peacock or ostrich, with many courses.

·         Wine often drunk with every meal. Romans like spices, herbs, honey, and garum which was fish paste fermented for several weeks.

Entertainment

·         Public spectacles and activities kept revolts down and people happy.

·         Chariot races at the Circus Maximus were popular. Theater, beast hunts, and gladiator tournaments were also favorite activities.

·         Roman men and boys were very active and enjoyed games and races. Swimming, wrestling, foot races were held at the palestra, a part of the public bath.

Watch these two videos: 

Four Roman Sisters

Teen Life in Rome


Friday, November 13

Bataan Death March Day 2

Ben Steele Interview on Billings, MT television on Veterans Day, 2015

• 12,000-16,000 Americans and 60,000 Filipinos on the Death March
• lasted between 6 and 12 days
• prisoners divided into groups of 200-250 men with 3-4 guards

• marched 60 miles, very hot, not allowed to drink water
• those who fainted or could not continue were bayoneted or shot
• 5,000 Americans died on the March
• got on railway boxcars, packed in like sardines, many died 
• Camp O'Donnell--built by Filipinos, abandoned and sabotaged.  Japanese march prisoners there.
• only one working watter tap in one unit for thousands of men.
• many died in the camp
• 200 men died a day
• sent to other camps around the Philippines
• Later, loaded onto Hell Ships and sent to Japan
• 1,000-2,000 men per ship, packed in the bottom of the ships, many died
• slave laborers in Japan
• liberated in September 1945

Monday, November 16th: Roman Wonders

Main Idea: Romans were highly advanced in their planning of cities, engineering, and architecture. Their buildings, roads, and aqueducts are still standing today and are the inspiration for modern city planning.

Roman Cities – built in grids, each connected to roads and aqueduct, with forum, market, housing, baths, arena/theater

Water Systems: each block has water fountain for city dwellers to use and communal bathroom. Pipes and sewers move waste water out to clean city

Aqueducts – brought water to Roman cities using only gravity, built above and below ground over many miles

Concrete, Arches, Domes – advanced engineering inventions that created buildings, which still stand today. Concrete was cheap and strong, arches and domes were used to build strong, stable buildings.

Panthenon  - temple to all gods, in Rome. Still standing. Largest concrete dome in the world.

 WATCH THESE VIDEOS

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oTMrfyAt6Mo Aqueduct - 4 mins

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B8IcwFwNLr8 Roman Architecture - 10 mins

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yu94sFmNwMw Roads - 3 mins

https://youtu.be/GCWiR9cHw_w?t=4m31s - Roman City - 10 mins. Will post on website and show as much as I can if we have time. 

Study Guide Morris--ECA

1.       Mapping.  On a map, identify all of the following:  Greece, Troy, Macedonia, Italy, Crete, Sicily, Carthage, Alexandria Egypt, Mediterranean Sea, Aegean Sea, Ionian Sea, Hellespont, Spain, Gaul, England, Atlantic Ocean, Alps, and Apennines.

2.        Greece developed as a trading nation because __It was surrounded by water and they did not have very much room to grow their own resources.

3.       Greek city-states developed differently because ___ They were isolated by mountains. It was difficult to travel from city-state to city-state.

4.       Name one contribution of ancient Greece for each:  drama, sports, government, literature, military.  Drama: Satire, slapstick, comedy, tragedy. Sports: Olympics. Literature: Odessey, Illiad, Homer. Military: Phalanyx, triremes, formation style fighting.

5.       Describe the concept of Plato’s ideal forms.  Do you agree with this concept?  Why or why not? Everything on Earth is a shadow of the perfect self. Allegory of the cave.

6.       In order, give the evolution of government types in Greece.  Did they evolve the same way in Rome? Explain.  Monarchy, Oligarchy, Tryanny, Decomcracy.

7.       Is democracy the best system of government?  Why or why not? Yes: Everybody gets a vote.

No: People are not intelligent enough to rule themselves.

8.       What was Plato’s concept of ideal government? Oligarchy of philosopher kings

9.       Why is Homer’s The Odyssey such an important book? It gave us a glimpse of Greek culture during that time. It is the only original book. It introduced the idea of having a hero with a challenge that resolves the challenge in the end.

10.   Could Athens have prevented its own collapse in the Peloponnesian Wars?  Explain. They could if they had worked with Sparta instead of fighting in a Civil War. If Athens hadn’t built the wall they could have joined together and not collapse.

11.   Why is Alexander the Great so important to Western civilization? We got Hellenistic culture from him which is all about learning. We also had Alexandria which became a center of learning.

12.   What four ancient cultures make up Hellenistic civilization? Greek, Indian, Persian, Egyptian

13.   Why is Alexander the Great so important to modern Western civilization? Alexander the Great built a library and museum, we have Geometry, Pi, and we know the circumference of the Earth and that the Earth revolves around the sun.

14.   Roman civilization is a combination of what three earlier civilizations? Latin, Greek, Etruscan

15.   Why was Rome strategically located to control the Mediterranean lands? It was in the middle of everything. It is easy to go anywhere from Rome.

16.   What Roman document is similar to our Constitution? The 12 Tablets of Rome

17.   Name three ways the Roman Republic separated powers to prevent tyranny. Consoles, Judicial, Legislative

18.   Why did these safeguards fail? They could temporarily put a tyrant into office. Sometimes they chose not to leave office.

19.   Name the two main voting social classes in Rome.  Wealthy Patricians and middle class Plebians.

20.   What fraction of those living in the Roman Empire were slaves?  What problems did this cause? 1/3 were slaves. This was a problem because the slaves may choose to revolt.

21.   How was Julius Caesar able to become dictator without the support of the Senate and most of the Patrician class? He was a general and shared his wealth with his class- The Plebians.

22.   Name four things Caesar did to get the support of the common people. He gave them land, citizenship, and provided jobs.

23.   What was the significance of Caesar crossing the Rubicon?  It was his point of no return.

24.   Who had more rights—Greek women or Roman women?  Explain your answer. Spartan women were free to own land and obtain an education. Roman women were allowed to leave the house without an escort, but they did not have their own names. They were named after their fathers.

25.   What is an aqueduct and why were they important? It is an extensive water system that uses gradients and gravity to bring clean water into the cities.

26.   Give three other advances in Roman engineering. Dome, roads, concrete

27.   Where did the Bataan Death March take place? Philippians

28.   Why were the American and Filipino soldiers abandoned? They were too far into enemy territory and too far away. General McArthur was too important to stay and get captured.

29.   What was the Death March and why was it marched? It was when they forced the soldiers to march over 60 miles to the trains.

30.   Why were most POWs later taken to Japan?  How did they get there? They were taken to be used as slave labor. They got there on the Hell ships.

31.   What did the POWs do in Japan?  They were used as slave labor to build airplane landings and they worked in the salt mines.

32.   Explain the Greek concept of arête. Be your best self. Highest ideal.

33.   Explain the Roman concept of gravitas. Roman ideal virtue- strong, disciplined, loyal to Rome.

34.   For what is Socrates known?   Plato?  Aristotle?

·         Socrates: Question everything

·         Plato: Concept of the Perfect Ideal. Allegory of the cave

·         Aristotle: Love of Greece and Question to find truth

35.   What is a republic? Was Rome a true republic? A republic is a system of government with elected leaders who represent the people. Rome was not a true republic because women and slaves were not allowed to vote.  

36.   Who did Rome fight in the Punic Wars? Why did they start? Who won? Fought Carthage over trade and Rome won.

37.   Who led Carthage in the Second Punic War? What did he do?  Hannibal, he brought war elephants through the Alps and pillaged Italy.

38.   What were some of the problems with Rome as it grew? Name 3. (We talked about 7.)

·         Slavery

·         Urban War because the wealthy were hoarding money

·         Farmers being run out of business

·         Soldiers losing their farms and land while they fought

·         Soldiers were loyal to their generals, not Rome

39.   What does paterfamilias mean? Who did this refer to? Why? What powers did they have?

It means Dad. It referred to the Father because they had Godlike powers. They could choose to kill or sell their wives or children.

40.   What type of entertainment did people in Rome enjoy?  Gladiators, Chariot Races, Theater, Sports

41.   What was the Pantheon? Why is it still important today? It is a Temple to all gods. It is important because it is the largest dome in the world made out of concrete and it is still standing.