Gaius Julius Caesar was born in 100 BC. e. (or, according to some researchers, in 104 BC). He came from the ancient aristocratic family of the Julians, which traced its origins back to the legendary ancestors of the Romans. However, due to his family connections, he was close to prominent figures of the so-called Popular Party. His aunt was the wife of the famous Marius, and his first wife was the daughter of another prominent popular leader, Cinna. Because of his wife, Caesar fell out of favor with the all-powerful dictator Sulla, as he refused the demand to divorce her. In connection with this, Caesar even had to leave Rome, where he returned again only after the death of Sulla.
From that time on, he began to take part in political life. At first, Caesar behaves extremely cautiously, avoiding participation in the most acute political conflicts of these years (for example, the attempted coup planned by the consul Lepidus), and strives only to gain popularity among broad sections of the Roman population. He spares no effort or money on this, spending huge sums on distributing bread, money, organizing games and shows. In 68, Caesar for the first time decided on a bold political demonstration: he used the funeral of his aunt, and then his own wife, to openly carry images of Marius and Cinna in the funeral processions, and in his funeral homily he praised these leaders of the popular party defeated under Sulla. Both supporters and opponents of Caesar regarded this demonstration alike as a bid by a young politician to restore and lead the democratic party.
In 65, Caesar was elected aedile (Aedile was an official in the Roman Republic who was in charge of urban improvement, as well as the organization of public games.). He marked his aedeliteship by organizing magnificent spectacles (he once brought 320 pairs of gladiators in silver armor into the arena), and also by restoring in the Capitol the statue and trophies of Marius, which had been removed at one time by order of Sulla. In 64, he brought two prominent Sullans to trial, accusing them of murdering citizens who were included under Sulla in the so-called proscription lists and thereby outlawed.
In 63, Catiline's conspiracy was discovered. Let us dwell in some detail on the factual side of events. It is not easy to give a general assessment of the movement, although we have a relatively large number of sources on this issue (the speeches of Cicero, special monograph Roman historian Sallust, etc.), but they all come from a camp hostile to Catiline and give an extremely biased account of events.
Lucius Sergius Catilina, an impoverished Roman aristocrat, after unsuccessful attempts to achieve a consular post, began to prepare a coup d'etat. He put forward the slogan of debt cancellation, which attracted supporters from various strata of Roman society - both bankrupt aristocrats and part of the urban plebs. Consul Cicero learned about the impending conspiracy through his agents. He made a series of speeches against Catiline, demanding his expulsion. Since the majority of the senators supported Cicero, Catiline had to flee to Etruria, where he recruited an army from the bankrupt Sullan veterans to march on Rome. The supporters of Catiline who remained in Rome prepared new plan coup (in particular, the murder of Cicero was planned) and entered into negotiations with the ambassadors of one of the Gallic tribes who were in Rome at that time. However, the Gallic ambassadors, despite the fact that the conspirators promised them a large reward, preferred to hand them over to Cicero. The leaders of the conspiracy were arrested and, after a heated discussion of the issue in the Senate, sentenced to death penalty. At the next meeting, the Senate presented Cicero with the honorary title of “Father of the Fatherland.” A few weeks later, the army hastily assembled by Catiline was defeated in northern Italy; Catiline himself fell in this battle. The conspiracy was suppressed.
Caesar's position during all these events is unclear. He was considered involved in the conspiracy. In any case, his political opponents, for example Cato, one of the prominent representatives of Senate circles, quite clearly hinted at this in his speech in the Senate. But Cicero showed extreme caution in this case, and no charges were brought against Caesar. Moreover, in the same year 63, Caesar was elected high priest, and in 62 - city praetor (City praetor is an official in the Roman Republic in charge of civil proceedings.). At the end of his praetorship, he received control of the province of Spain, but his debts were so enormous that creditors did not want to let him out of Rome, and only financial assistance and a guarantee from the largest Roman rich man, Crassus, helped settle the matter.
It can be considered that by this time Caesar had already passed several initial steps along the ladder of his career: he became a noticeable, although far from paramount, figure; he was considered the leader of the “democratic” party, although this “party” did not represent anything holistic, unified and organized, he - and this is perhaps the most important thing - enjoyed the unconditional support of all those who were opposed to the Senate, which, as always, stood on the most conservative positions. Caesar, in addition, managed to establish important political connections by this time: skillfully maneuvering between the two most prominent but warring political figures - Pompey and Crassus - he managed to maintain closeness to both.
At the very end of 62, Rome was excited by a new event. Having completed his eastern campaigns with brilliant success, Pompey landed in the south of Italy with his victorious army. The Senate trembled, believing that he, following the example of Sulla, would send an army to Rome. But, contrary to all expectations, Pompey defiantly disbanded his troops and with a small retinue stopped near Rome, awaiting permission from the Senate to triumphal entry. The re-energized Senate willingly allowed Pompey a triumph, but resolutely refused to approve the orders he had made in the East and to reward his soldiers with land. Thus, the “far-sighted” senators actually threw Pompey into the camp of their enemies.
In 60, Caesar returned from Spain. Managing the province gave him the opportunity to improve his financial affairs, in addition, he won a number of victories over the Lusitanian tribes. In this regard, he could claim a triumph, but the consular elections were approaching and Caesar was faced with a dilemma: either, without entering the city and not having the right (in absentia) to nominate his candidacy, wait for permission to triumph, or, having refused it, appear in Rome and take part in the elections. Caesar chose the second option.
There is every reason to believe that it was at this time that Caesar took one of the most successful steps in his entire political career, one of those political actions, all the consequences of which he could hardly even foresee at that time. Having achieved reconciliation between Pompey and Crassus, he organized an unspoken triple alliance (the so-called first triumvirate), the enormous political significance of which in the very near future was appreciated by contemporaries: the triple alliance was called the “three-headed monster.”
The first joint venture of the triumvirs was to prepare the consular elections accordingly. Every member triple alliance used both his personal influence and his money. The result was not long in coming - Caesar was elected consul in 59.
The consulate was for Caesar only a springboard with the help of which he could achieve a new and more significant goal: gaining control of the province, which gave the right to recruit troops, and, therefore, promised victory, glory, wealth, and power in the future. Based on the experience of Pompey and Catiline, Caesar at this time undoubtedly already understood that only a strong army loyal to its leader could be the decisive trump card in the further game.
Caesar received control (first for 5 years, then the period was doubled) of the province of Gaul. Part of this province was conquered, but a huge territory (from the Pyrenees to the Rhine) still had to be conquered. This is exactly what Caesar was striving for.
In total, he spent about eight years in Gaul. When the conquest of the province was completed, a general uprising broke out in the country. The struggle dragged on for several more years, and only towards the end of 51 the Gauls were forced to submit. The conquest of Gaul unusually increased Caesar's personal authority and popularity - according to ancient historians, during the war he took more than 800 cities, conquered 300 tribes, captured a million people and enormous military booty. The Romans' production was so great that gold in Rome itself fell greatly in price and was sold by weight.
During Caesar's stay in Gaul, the political situation changed significantly. The triumvirate actually collapsed: Crassus died in the East, waging war with the Parthians, Pompey, jealous of Caesar's successes and his enormous popularity, became increasingly close to the Senate. Anarchy reigned in Rome - consuls were not elected, pre-election meetings often turned into armed clashes. Under these conditions, the Senate decided to grant emergency powers to Pompey. He was elected for the year 52 as the only consul (in Rome there were always two consuls elected), which was essentially a softened form of dictatorship.
Caesar found himself in a difficult position. He stood with his army on the border of Italy and had to, in accordance with existing laws, disband the army and appear in Rome as a private citizen. However, remembering the experience of Pompey, Caesar was little inclined to take such a step. He demanded certain guarantees from the Senate. But the senators most hostile to Caesar and, under their pressure, Pompey himself took an irreconcilable position.
On January 7, 49, the Senate instructed Pompey to recruit troops, and Caesar was sent an ultimatum to resign, otherwise he would be declared an enemy of the people.
On January 10, 49, Caesar with one legion and auxiliary troops crossed the border river Rubicon. The civil war has begun.
Without encountering any resistance along the way, Caesar quickly moves towards Rome. Pompey, who did not yet have sufficient forces in Italy, fled to the Balkan Peninsula (most of the senators crossed with him to Greece). Caesar enters Rome. Instead of the expected executions and proscriptions, he puts forward the slogan of mercy - the prisoners received freedom, and he treated the senators who remained in Rome extremely mercifully.
But the civil war was essentially just beginning. The struggle, first with Pompey, and then with the Pompeians, dragged on until the year 45.
8 During this struggle, Caesar defeats Pompey's army on the Balkan Peninsula (Battle of Pharsalus, 48 BC), then goes to Egypt, where he intervenes in the internal dynastic struggle, supporting the Egyptian queen Cleopatra against her brother and rival Ptolemy Dionysus . From Egypt he made a campaign to the Pontic kingdom, where the son of Rome's old enemy Mithridates VI, Pharnaces, began military operations and captured Bithynia. The campaign against Pharnaces lasted only 5 days, and Caesar sent his famous report about it to Rome: "I came, I saw, I conquered".
In 47, Caesar defeated the main forces of the Pompeians in Africa (Battle of Thapsus, 45 BC). Ideological leader of the Pompeians, old enemy Caesar - Cato committed suicide. However, Pompey's sons fled to Spain, where they again managed to gather large forces. Caesar with selected legions goes to Spain, and in 45 the last battle takes place near the city of Munda. Caesar achieved victory this time, but not at an easy price. “I have often fought for victory, but today I fought for my life for the first time,” he said after this battle. But the last remnants of the Pompeians were defeated and Caesar’s autocracy was no longer challenged by anyone.
However, this autocracy after the end of the civil war lasted only a year. Returning to Rome in September 45, Caesar began to carry out a series of internal reforms.
During Caesar's triumphs (in 46 and 45), generous rewards and gifts were given out not only to military leaders and soldiers, but to all citizens. In addition to grain and cash distributions, Caesar, with his characteristic scale, organized grandiose shows, games, and mass treats. But this is where the “democraticism” of his events ends. At the same time, Caesar limited the number of citizens who received free bread, reducing it from 320 thousand to 150 thousand people. A special edict dissolved the so-called collegiums, which were the center of the urban plebs and centers of democratic agitation. The number of senators was increased to 900. Elections of officials still took place in the popular assembly, but Caesar now received the right to “recommend” half of all candidates.
It is not difficult to see that all these reforms were anti-democratic in nature. There is a fundamental change in Caesar's internal political line. He no longer acts as the leader of the popularists and the continuer of their policies, but as an autocratic ruler, concerned primarily with the creation of a strong centralized power. In this sense, Caesar acts as the founder of a new political and state form, namely the Roman Empire.
Caesar's power was essentially monarchical in nature, when outwardly it looked like the preservation of republican posts, only concentrated in one hand. Caesar was appointed dictator (from the age of 44 for life), he had lifelong tribunician power. From the age of 63 he was the high priest. Caesar was repeatedly elected consul, had the honorary title of “father of the fatherland,” and, finally, the military title of emperor, which also existed under the republic, acquired special significance for the first time under him.
But Caesar, apparently, was already striving for more. He was not satisfied with the actual position of the monarch; he dreamed of a royal crown. At the beginning of 44, at one of the holidays in front of a huge crowd of people, his closest friend and comrade-in-arms, Mark Antony, tried to place the royal diadem on him. This was probably a jointly considered step, a kind of “trial balloon”. Sensitively observing the crowd's reaction, Caesar sharply rejected Mark Antony's attempt and was rewarded with thunderous applause. Oddly enough, Caesar's position at this time cannot be called completely stable. The senators, frightened by his monarchical tendencies, as a rule, did not trust him, the “horses” were dissatisfied with his provincial policies (limitations of the tax-farming system), the urban plebs no longer felt in him their leader and protector. Caesar could not rely on the army, if only for the simple reason that it was disbanded, that is, it ceased to exist as an organized and cohesive corporation. Thus, at the height of his glory and power, Caesar found himself in a state of certain isolation.
A conspiracy was formed among the senators against Caesar. About 60 people took part in it. Among the conspirators one could find former Pompeians, favored by Caesar, and recent Caesarians who changed their attitude towards Caesar in connection with his monarchical ambitions. The conspiracy was led by Gaius Cassius Longinus and Marcus Junius Brutus (the latter was personally close to Caesar, and, according to rumors, was even his son). When it became known that in connection with the preparation of a new campaign against the Parthians (large forces were already concentrated on the Balkan Peninsula), an ancient prediction was found saying that only the king could defeat the Parthians, this strengthened the resolve of the conspirators and accelerated the implementation of the conspiracy.
On March 15, 44, at a meeting of the Senate, Caesar was surrounded by a crowd of conspirators who, according to a conventional sign, rushed at him with drawn daggers. He was inflicted 23 wounds; Of these, only one was fatal. After the murder, the conspirators and the remaining senators fled in fear. The corpse of the all-powerful dictator lay abandoned by everyone for a long time, until three slaves put it on a stretcher and carried it home.
Caesar like historical figure has repeatedly attracted the attention of historians. Napoleon III, who wrote a three-volume history of Caesar, the German historian Druman, and the famous historian Theodor Mommsen considered Caesar a genius. Mommsen's point of view is especially characteristic. For him, Caesar is a great and multifaceted personality, but most of all he is great and brilliant as a statesman. He is the ideal of a “democratic monarch” and in this sense is a model, a standard for statesmen of all times and peoples.
Caesar is undoubtedly a major historical figure. But he's in in every sense words a man of his era and his class. Many years of experience in political struggle and intrigue suggested to him a certain direction of his practical activity; he saw the internal weakness of the republican government structure, he understood the importance of the army as a major socio-political force. But this only means that he Practical activities objectively coincided with the requirements of the era and with the class interests of certain strata of Roman slave-owning society. If we consider Caesar the founder of the Roman Empire, then only in this sense, and we, of course, are least inclined to attribute to his personality and activities that special, “providential” significance, which, in the opinion of a number of bourgeois historians, places him above classes and parties and makes him a model of a “democratic dictator”.
Lecture No. 5 Civilization of Ancient Rome.
The royal period of Rome.
Republic period.
Period of the Roman Empire.
a) Etruscans - northern Italy.
b) Latins (Italians) – center.
c) Greeks - southern Italy.
d) Phoenicians (Carthaginians) - the islands of Sicily and Sardinia.
Frequent wars took place between these peoples; thousands of refugees fled from the war and settled near fortresses and were subordinate to local authorities. Thus, in 753 BC, Rome arose, which had previously been a small fortress. According to legend, the founders of Rome are the brothers Romulus and Remus. The city of Rome (Latin name -Roma) was named after Romulus. Land and agriculture in Rome and Italy played a decisive role from the very beginning. The Italians were mainly engaged in agriculture and the main link of the community were the owners land plots. Initially, the land was in the communal ownership of the clans, private property consisted of livestock, but already in the 6th century BC. the land becomes private property.
Capitoline wolf
The Romans grew wheat and were engaged in winemaking, and numerous crafts developed. Trade was limited to Italy and was carried out at fairs, the main of which was the fair at Mount Sorakta. The entire population of Rome was divided into two categories:
Patricians are descendants of the founding fathers of Rome, noble and rich people who had full rights.
Plebeians - settlers, refugees and their descendants - did not have political and civil rights.
At least twice a year, a national assembly was held, in which only patricians (citizens) could participate. The meeting took place in the center of Rome, in a square called the Forum. The highest legislative power was exercised by the Senate - the Council of Elders, which included about 300 representatives of patrician families (descendants of the founding fathers of Rome). Domestic policy was aimed at strengthening the central government, and foreign policy was aimed at expanding the borders of the state and capturing new slaves. In 509 BC, the last king, Tarquin the Proud, was expelled from Rome because he did not consult with the Senate, sought autocracy and tried to confiscate the property of the patricians.
2. A republic was established in Rome, which lasted for 500 years, with Latin language The republic is a “common cause.” The beginning of this period was marked by the struggle of the plebeians with the patricians for rights. In 494 BC, the plebeians refused to participate in military campaigns, the patricians made concessions and granted the plebeians some rights. Executive power in Rome during the republic was exercised by two consuls, who were elected for a term of one year. The position of “tribunes of the people” appeared in the Senate - representatives of the plebeians in the Senate. They had the right of “veto” - the tribune of the people could prohibit any law that infringed on the rights of the plebeians. During the period of the Republic, a law was passed prohibiting Roman citizens from being enslaved for debt. There is an economic recovery and trade is flourishing. Under the consul, and later dictator Appia Claudius, special attention was paid to cleanliness in the city, safety, thermal baths (baths) and taverns were built. Excellent roads paved with stone were built, including the famous Appian Way. The city of Rome had the most advanced layout and was divided into quarters. City plan of Rome:
blocks streets central square
Forum
Hannibal
In foreign policy, Rome's main enemy was Carthage. By the end of the 3rd century BC. Rome's possessions approached the island of Sicily - the possessions of Carthage. This rivalry led to three Punic Wars. As a result of the first Punic War (264-241 BC), the islands of Sicily and Sardinia went to Rome. Second Punic War: 218 -201 BC. The Second Punic War began due to the rivalry between the Carthaginians and the Romans in Spain. The Carthaginian troops were commanded by the outstanding commander Hannibal. Hannibal marched with his army all over Italy. In 216 BC the Battle of Cannae took place. Roman 
Scheme: Battle of Cannes.
the army consisted of 80,000 infantry and 6,000 cavalry. The Carthaginian army consisted of 40,000 infantry and 14,000 cavalry. The blow of the Carthaginian cavalry to the rear of the Roman infantry turned out to be decisive. The Romans suffered a crushing defeat: 54,000 remained on the battlefield. 18,000 were captured. The Romans undertook a naval campaign against Carthage. Hannibal was urgently summoned from Italy to protect him. He left Italy without suffering a single defeat.
In 202 BC, the battle of the Romans and Carthaginians took place at Zama, near Carthage. The Roman commander Scipio the Elder won. Hannibal fled. Soon he took poison. A triumph was held in Scipio's honor in Rome, and he received the honorary nickname "African".
Peace was signed in 201 BC. Carthage lost its Spanish possessions. During the third war (418-146 BC), Carthage fell and the city was destroyed to the ground. Later, Rome captured Macedonia, Asia Minor, and Greece.
In Rome, commodity-money relations actively developed: banks and usury appeared - lending money at a very high interest rate (up to 600% per year).
Large slave-holding farms appear:
Villa was a large slaveholding farm dominated by agriculture.
Latifundia is a complex economy: not only agriculture, but also gardening, cattle breeding, and crafts developed here.
Spartacus
He came from Thrace, was a gladiator, and ran a gladiator school in Capua. Spartacus gathered an army of runaway slaves and gladiators and introduced strict discipline. He repeatedly won victories over the Romans. All of Southern Italy recognized his power. In 71 BC, a Roman army of 8 legions was thrown against Spartacus. It was led by Crassus. In the decisive battle, the rebels were defeated, Spartacus died, thousands of slaves were captured and crucified.
Gaius Julius Caesar
The authorities began to understand the need for reforms and tried to carry them out. The brothers Tiberius and Gaius Gracchus proposed a reform project: all state-owned lands occupied by private individuals should be taken into the treasury and distributed to the poor for a moderate rent. Among the nobility, dissatisfied with the reforms, a conspiracy arose, as a result of which the brothers were killed and the reforms stopped. Civil wars broke out in Rome, and the republic collapsed in the middle of the first century BC. In 82 BC. commander Lucius Cornelius Sulla established sole power and declared himself dictator. Sulla used the army for the first time in political struggle. He captured Rome, carried out terror and mass executions of his opponents. These were the first steps towards empire. 
3.
The official founder of the Roman Empire is considered Gaius Julius Caesar, elected in 59 BC. consul. Julius Caesar (100 - 44 BC) came from a noble family, but belonged to the popularists. Populars (lat. populares from populus - people) - an ideological and political movement in the late Roman Republic at the end of the 2nd-1st centuries. BC e., reflecting the interests of the plebs, primarily rural. Julius Caesar was well educated and possessed various talents. He could do several things at the same time - read, write and carry on a conversation. He was impetuous and purposeful. Caesar's briefest military report read: “I came, I saw, I conquered.” The Senate granted Caesar the title of emperor. Supporters of the republic, led by Senator Brutus, organized a conspiracy against Caesar. In mid-March 44 BC, Caesar was stabbed to death by conspirators. However, the people did not support them. The time of the Roman Republic is irrevocably passed. The Roman Empire reached its peak under Emperor Octavian Augustus. The system of government under Octavian was the principate. Principate (lat. principatus, from princeps - first senator, senator opening a meeting) is a conventional term in historical literature to designate the specific form of monarchy that developed in Ancient Rome during the early empire (27 BC - 284 AD), combining monarchical and republican features. Octavian received the right to create the imperial treasury - “erika”, on which gold and silver coins were minted. Augustus reduced the number of members of the Senate to 600 people and established a property qualification for the Senate class of one million. Augustus restored many ancient temples and festivals. Foreign policy was aimed at expanding the borders of the empire. Under Emperor Trajan, the empire reached its maximum boundaries. Emerges new form land relations - colonat. Colonate is a form of production relations between a large landowner and the direct producer - colon, which became widespread in the Roman Empire. Under the colonata system, large land properties were divided into parcels - small plots of land leased by the landowner to colonas, which were gradually attached to the land.
After the fall of the monarchy in 509 BC. Rome gradually decreasing. They fell due to internal disputes, and also the tribes of the valley and Wolskami sabelskimi Ekwami descended from the mountain with the war. Internal conflicts undermine the introductions of 449 BC in XII tables, First codification of Roman common law. This codification zuniformizowała roman society. This has been clearly shown by the results of archaeological research. We have evidence that there are numerous monuments in Rome of aristocratic culture, based on models from Greece, Etruria and Phenicia. Conclusions regarding the emergence of the sixth and first half of the fifth century BC, numerous ceramics sympozjalna, which disappears after this period.
Since the introduction of the Twelve Tables, Rome for many years was primitive in terms of cultural and external conquests oriented peasant society. The first half of the century after the fall of the monarchy also formed the basis for the creation of republican institutions that would characterize this country for the next 400 years. Executive power replaced the monarchy by 2 Consuls are elected for a period of one year. Collegiality and the relatively short duration of the consulate prevent the seizure of power. Authorized the existence of an advisory body, which is located at the konsulach Senate. It consists of the heads of the largest clans, which in Roman society play key role. The successes achieved in the wars of conquest of the sabelskich peoples led Rome to attack the North. Fideny captured the city, which was located next to Rome's main Tiber checkpoint.
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Triumphal Arch of Constantine, Monument to the glory of the Emperor Constantine the Great, Erected in the center of ancient Rome, the so-called. Way triumphant, Near the Colosseum, 315 AD in memory of Constantine's victory over Maxentius his co-ruler at the Battle of Milwijskim Bridge in 312 AD. Before the collision, the emperor had a prophetic dream, pointing to the cross as a sign of triumph. Before his death, he was baptized and became the first emperor - a Christian. |
This conquest was merely a prelude to a much more important military achievement, that of victory in the war against Wejami. Impressive it was the closest neighbor of Etruscan Rome - a city of the same size, wealth and human resources. How this led to the doubling of Rome's territory. For some time it was not known what to do great achievements. Mobile assets Wejentynów rozszabrowali Roman soldiers. The problem, however, was the land. We had a big psychological shock to solve this problem, and this happened after the capture of Rome by the Gauls. The Gauls, after a dramatic defeat of the Roman army on the Alli River, took the city in 386 BC. They left them only after receiving a ransom, paid by Rome's ally Caere. Soon after, the lands captured in Rome by Wejentynach were divided among the men of the Roman Empire. Thus Rome became a city for a time deprived of landless citizens. At the same time, the struggle between the old aristocracy of patricians and citizens of large estates, but deprived of proper origin, intensified, which were grouped in terms of opposition patrycjuszowskiego to the plebeian state organization. For the next 100 years, Rome accepted the submission of Italy.
The next races and schylały head under the yoke. The Romans confiscated most lands, defeated rivals and created military camps in the area. At the same time, to enter into military alliances with defeated enemies, which often the only chance for the return of assets, was to participate in the Roman conquests, and to participate in subsequent kolonizacjach. Thus, the combined army, consisting of the Romans and their allies, increased in strength from year to year. Conquest connect everything social groups in the Eternal City. Ordinary citizens were enriched and gaining strength. The aristocracy gained prominence in the system, patronymic, underdeveloped economy, currency, provides social status and prestige surrounding the device. Victory in a war, ending in triumph or a special procession that passes through Rome and ends up in the Capitol, was the dream of any aristocrat.
Complete control of Rome on the Apennine Peninsula ensured victory over the Samnitami in a series of difficult wars in the second half of the fourth and early third centuries BC. The culmination of this struggle Victory at Sentinum 295 BC in a more united army of Gauls and Samnites. After the defeat from the Romans, only Taranto. The city was named in 280 BC to help one of the best commanders of antiquity Pyrrhus, King of Epirus. He defeated the Romans in two successive battles, Herakleją and Ausculum, But at the same time suffer huge losses. Without judging the war, he moved to Sicily for hostilities, acting against Carthage. After returning to Italy, he suffered defeat in a battle with the Romans in 275 BC Benevento Taranto was left alone. The city surrendered in 272 BC.
After the defeat of Taranto, Apulia and Messapa shołdowaniu in 266 BC, and the capture of the last free Etruscan city Volsinii in 264 BC Rome ruled throughout Italy in the Apennines arc of the North, which began the Gallic territories.
- 510 BC e.), republican( BC. - 27 AD e.) And imperial(27 AD - 476 AD). The period can also be considered a continuation of the History of Ancient Rome Dominat V Byzantium ( -610 years).
Ancient Rome created the cultural soil for European civilization, having a decisive influence on medieval and the subsequent story. To the modern world Ancient Rome gave Roman law, some architectural forms and solutions (for example, the cross-dome system) and many other innovations (for example, water Mill). Christianity How creed was born on the territory of the Roman Empire. Official language ancient Roman state was Latin, religion for most of its existence was polytheistic, the unofficial emblem of the empire was the golden eagle (aquila), after the adoption of Christianity appeared labarums With chrisma.
Early Roman history
The city was founded around settlements at a ford across the river Tiber, at the intersection of trade routes. According to archaeological evidence, Rome was founded as a village, probably in 9th century BC e. two central Italian tribes, Latin And Sabines(Sabines), on the Palatine, Capitoline and Quirinal hills.
The Legend of Romulus and Remus
Fourteenth king Alba Longhi Numitor was overthrown by his brother Amulius. Amulius did not want children Numitora interfered with his ambitious plans: Numitor’s son disappeared during a hunt, and Rhea Silvia forced to become vestal virgin. In the fourth year of her ministry, God appeared to her in the sacred grove Mars, from whom Rhea Silvia gave birth to two brothers. The enraged Amulius ordered the babies to be put in a basket and thrown into the Tiber River. However, the basket washed ashore at the foot of the Palatine Hill, where they were nursed by a she-wolf, and the mother’s cares were replaced by the arrival of a woodpecker and lapwing. Subsequently, all these animals became sacred to Rome. Then the brothers were picked up by the royal shepherd Faustul. His wife Akka Larencia, not yet consoled after the death of her child, took the twins into her care. When Romulus and Remus grew up, they returned to Alba Longa, where they learned the secret of their origin. They killed Amulius and restored their grandfather Numitor to the throne.
Four years later, at the behest of their grandfather, Romulus and Remus went to the Tiber to look for a place to found a new colony, Alba Longa. According to legend, Remus chose the lowlands between Palatine And Capitol Hills, but Romulus insisted on founding a city on the Palatine Hill. Appeal to signs did not help, a quarrel broke out, during which Romulus killed his brother. Repenting of the murder of Remus, Romulus founded a city, to which he gave his name (lat. Roma), and became its king. The founding date of the city is considered April 21 753 BC e. when the first furrow was drawn around the Palatine Hill by a plow. According to medieval legend, the city was founded by the son of Remus, Senius. Sienna.
Latins and Etruscans
From the middle of the 2nd millennium BC. e. settled in the lower reaches of the Tiber Latin-Siculian tribes, branch Italians who came to Apennine Peninsula from the Danube regions at the beginning of the 2nd millennium BC. e. The Latins settled on the Palatine and Velia hills, and the Sabines occupied the neighboring hills. After the unification of several Latin and Sabine villages in the middle 8th century BC e. on the Capitoline Hill a fortress common to all was built - Rome.
The Etruscans were ancient tribes that inhabited the first millennium BC. e. northwest Apennine Peninsula(area - ancient Etruria, modern Tuscany) between rivers Arno And Tiber and created a developed civilization that preceded the Roman one and influenced it big influence. Roman culture inherited many customs and traditions from the Etruscan culture. Around the 2nd century BC. e., due to assimilation on the part of Rome, the Etruscan civilization ceased to exist.
Beginning of Rome
In order to increase the population of Rome in the first stages of its development, Romulus provided to the aliens rights , freedom And citizenship along with the first settlers, for whom he set aside the lands of Capitol Hill. Thanks to this, fugitives began to flock to the city slaves, exiles and simply adventurers from other cities and countries.
Rome also lacked the female population - neighboring peoples rightly considered it shameful for themselves to enter into kinship alliances with a crowd of vagabonds, as they called them at that time Romans. Then Romulus came up with a solemn holiday - Consular, with games, wrestling and various kinds of gymnastic and cavalry exercises. Many neighbors of the Romans gathered for the holiday, including Sabines(Sabina). At a moment when the spectators and, in particular, the spectators were captivated by the progress of the game, according to a conventional sign, a large crowd of Romans with swords and spears in their hands attacked the unarmed guests. In the confusion and crush, the Romans captured the women, Romulus himself took a Sabine woman as his wife Gersilia. Weddings with the ritual of bride kidnapping have since become a Roman custom.
Tsarist period
Seven kings
Tradition invariably speaks of seven Roman kings, always calling them by the same names and in the same order: Romulus , Numa Pompilius , Tullus Hostilius , Ankh Marcius , Tarquinius Priscus(Ancient), Servius Tullius And Lucius Tarquin the Proud.
Romulus
After the Romans abducted the Sabine women, war broke out between Rome and the Sabines. Led by its king Tatius, they went to Rome. However, the abducted women managed to reconcile both warring parties, since they had already taken root in Rome. Then the Romans and Sabines made peace and lived under the rule of Romulus and Tatius. However, six years after the joint reign, Tatius was killed by offended citizens of the colony Camerias where he was going. Romulus became king of the united nations. He is credited with creating Senate, which at that time consisted of 100 “fathers”, the strengthening of the Palatine and the formation of the Roman community (the division of the Romans into patricians And plebeians).
Numa Pompilius
Servius Tullius
Republican Rome
Early Roman Republic (509-265 BC)
The struggle between patricians and plebeians
The early history of Rome was marked by the dominance of the clan aristocracy , patricians, except for whom no one could sit in the Senate. They were obeyed plebeians, who were possibly descendants of the defeated people. However, it is possible that by origin the patricians were simply wealthy landowners who organized themselves into clans and appropriated the privileges of the upper caste. The power of the elected king was limited by the Senate and the assembly of clans, which granted the king after the election imperium (supreme power). Plebeians were not allowed to wear weapon, their marriages were not recognized as legal - these measures were designed to leave them without protection, without the support of family and clan organization. Since Rome was the northernmost outpost of the Latin tribes, adjacent to the Etruscan civilization, Roman aristocratic education resembled that of the Spartans in its emphasis on patriotism, discipline, courage and military skill.
The overthrow of the monarchy did not lead to major changes in the political structure of Rome. The place of the king for life was taken by two consuls elected for one year from among the patricians. They presided over the meetings of the Senate and people's assembly, monitored the implementation of decisions made by these bodies, distributed citizens according to centuries, monitored the collection of taxes, carried out judiciary, during the war they commanded troops. At the end of their term, they reported to the Senate and could be subject to prosecution. Assistant consuls for judicial matters were quaestors, to whom management later passed treasury. The People's Assembly was the highest state body, it approved laws, declared war, made peace, elected all officials ( magistrates). The role of the Senate increased: not a single law that was in force longer than the reign of the consuls who adopted it could come into force without its approval; he controlled the activities of magistrates, decided on foreign policy issues, and supervised finances and religious life.
The main content of the history of early republican Rome was the struggle of the plebeians for equality with the patricians, who monopolized the right to sit in the Senate and occupy higher master's programs and receive land from the “public field.” The plebeians demanded the abolition of debt bondage and the limitation of debt interest. The growing military role of the plebeians (by the beginning of the 5th century BC they already constituted the bulk of the Roman army) allowed them to exert effective pressure on the patrician Senate. In 494 BC. e. after another refusal of the Senate to satisfy their demands, they left Rome for the Sacred Mountain (first secession), and the patricians had to make concessions: a new magistracy was established - the tribunes of the people, elected exclusively from the plebeians (initially two) and possessing sacred immunity; they had the right to interfere with the activities of other magistrates (intercession), impose a ban on any of their decisions (veto) and bring them to justice. In 457 BC e. the number of tribunes of the people increased to ten. In 452 BC e. the plebeians forced the Senate to create a commission of ten members ( decemvirs) with consular power to write laws, primarily for the sake of fixing (that is, limiting) the powers of patrician magistrates. In 443 BC e. consuls lost the right to distribute citizens according to centuries, which was transferred to new magistrates - two censors, elected from among the patricians once every five years by the comitia centuriata for a term of 18 months. In 421 BC e. Plebeians received the right to hold the position of quaestor, although they realized it only in 409 BC. e. Restored on the condition that one of them must be a plebeian, but the Senate achieved the transfer of judicial power from the consuls praetors, elected from the patricians. In 337 BC. e. The position of praetor also became available to the plebeians. In 300 BC. e. according to the law of the Ogulniyev brothers, plebeians received access to the priestly colleges pontiffs And augurs.
Thus, all magistracies were open to plebeians. Their struggle with the patricians ended in 287 BC. e. The victory of the plebeians led to change social structure Roman society: having achieved political equality, they ceased to be class, different from the patrician class; noble plebeian families, together with the old patrician families, formed a new elite - nobility. This contributed to the weakening of the internal political struggle in Rome and the consolidation of Roman society, which allowed it to mobilize all its forces for active foreign policy expansion.
Rome's conquest of Italy
After the transformation of Rome into a republic, the territorial expansion of the Romans began. Initially, their main opponents in the north were Etruscans, in the north-east - Sabina, in the east - equs and in the southeast - Volscian.
In 509-506 BC. e. Rome repelled the advance of the Etruscans, who came out in support of the overthrown Tarquin the Proud, and in 499-493 BC. e. defeated the Arician Federation of Latin Cities ( First Latin War), concluding an alliance with her on the terms of non-interference in each other’s internal affairs, mutual military assistance and equality in the division of spoils. This allowed the Romans to begin a series of wars with the Sabines, Volscians, Aequi and powerful southern Etruscan settlements.
The strengthening of the foreign policy positions of the Romans in Central Italy was interrupted by the invasion Gauls, which in 390 BC. e. defeated the Roman army at the river Alliya, captured and burned Rome; The Romans took refuge in the Capitol. Although the Gauls soon abandoned the city, the influence of the Romans in Latsii weakened significantly; the alliance with the Latins actually disintegrated; the Volscians, Etruscans and Aequians resumed their war against Rome. However, the Romans managed to repel the onslaught of neighboring tribes. After a new Gallic invasion of Latium in 360 BC. e. reborn Roman-Latin alliance(358 BC). By the middle of the 4th century BC. e. Rome already had complete control over Latium and Southern Etruria and continued expansion into other areas Italy. In 343 BC e. inhabitants of the Campanian city Capua, having suffered defeat from Samnites, became Roman subjects, which caused the First Samnite War (343-341 BC), which ended in Roman victory and the subjugation of the Western Campaign.
The growth of the power of Rome led to a deterioration in its relations with the Latins, which provoked Second Latin War(340-338 BC), as a result of which the Latin Union was dissolved, part of the lands of the Latins was confiscated, and a separate agreement was concluded with each community. Residents of a number of Latin cities received Roman citizenship; the rest were equal to the Romans only in property rights, but not in political rights. During the Second (327-304 BC) and Third (298-290 BC) Samnite Wars, the Romans defeated the Samnite Federation and defeated its allies - the Etruscans and Gauls. They were forced to enter into an unequal alliance with Rome and cede part of their territory to it. Rome strengthened its influence in Lucania And Etruria, established control over Picenum And Umbria and took possession of Senonian Gaul, becoming the hegemon of all of Central Italy.
The penetration of Rome into southern Italy led in 280 BC. e. to war with Tarentum, the most powerful of states Magna Graecia, and his ally Epirus king Pyrrhus. In 276-275 BC. e. The Romans defeated Pyrrhus, which allowed them to 270 BC. e. subjugate Lucania, Bruttium and all of Magna Graecia. Rome's conquest of Italy up to the borders with Gaul ended in 265 BC. e. capture of Volsinium in southern Etruria. The communities of Southern and Central Italy entered the Italic Union led by Rome.
Late Roman Republic (264-27 BC)
Rome becomes a world power
The expansion of Rome into other territories of the Mediterranean made it inevitable that the Roman Republic would clash with Carthage, leading power Mediterranean. As a result of three Punic wars between the two powers, Rome destroyed the Carthaginian state and incorporated its territory into the republic. This allowed him to continue expansion into other areas of the Mediterranean. After the conquests of the 3rd-1st centuries BC. e. Rome became a world power and the Mediterranean became a Roman inland sea.
First Punic War
The official cause of war for the Romans was the siege and capture of a Spanish city Sagunta(Rome's ally) Carthaginian commander Hannibal. After this, Rome declared war on Carthage. At first, the Carthaginian army led by Hannibal prevailed over the Roman troops. The most significant of the victories of the Carthaginians is Battle of Cannes, after which Macedonia entered the war on the side of Carthage. However, the Romans were soon able to seize the initiative and went on the offensive. The last battle war has become Battle of Zama, after which Carthage asked for peace. According to the terms of the peace, Carthage paid 10,000 talents of indemnity, could not maintain more than 10 warships and conduct military operations without the permission of the Senate, and gave Spain to the Romans.
As a result of the war, Carthage lost all its possessions outside Africa. Rome became the strongest state in the West.
Third Macedonian War
In 171-168 BC. e. The Romans defeated the Macedonian coalition, Epirus , Illyria and the Aetolian Union ( Third Macedonian War) and destroyed Macedonian kingdom, creating in its place four independent districts that paid them tribute; Illyria was also divided into three Roman-dependent districts; The Aetolian Union ceased to exist.
As a result of another victory of Rome in the Third Macedonian War, he no longer needed the support of his former allies - Pergamum , Rhodes and the Achaean League. The Romans robbed Rhodes of its possessions in Asia Minor and dealt a blow to its trading power by declaring the neighboring Business with free port. Rome became the hegemon of the Eastern Mediterranean.
Third Punic War
During the Third Punic War (149-146 BC), Carthage was taken by the Roman army and destroyed to the ground. As a result, the Carthaginian state ceased to exist.
Gracchi brothers
In 133 BC e. tribune of the people Tiberius Sempronius Gracchus put forward a project for land reform, which was supposed to limit the limit of ownership ager publicus (public land) 500 jugeras- 125 hectares. It was also allowed to increase the land allotment by 250 yugers for each son, but not more than by two sons. The rest of the land was confiscated and divided among landless citizens in plots of 30 yugers without the right to sell. After a bitter struggle, the law was passed and a commission was created to redistribute land. However, Tiberius was soon killed. A few years later, his younger brother Guy became the tribune of the people, proposing a series of bills. Soon, however, he was forced to commit suicide during the outbreak of unrest.
The end of the 2nd and the beginning of the 1st century BC. e.
An important issue at the beginning of the 1st century BC. e. there was a problem of rights Italians- during the conquest of Italy by Rome, the conquered communities received various rights, which, as a rule, were limited compared to the Roman ones. At the same time, Italics served in the Roman army and were often used as “cannon fodder”. The inability to obtain rights equal to those of Roman citizens pushed Italians to the Allied War.
Dictatorship of Sulla
Gaius Julius Caesar
Octavian Augustus and Mark Antony
After the death of Caesar, Octavian took control Cisalpinskaya and most of Transalpine Gaul. Mark Antony, who saw himself as the only successor to Caesar, began to openly compete with him for future power over Rome. However, a disdainful attitude towards Octavian, numerous intrigues, an attempt to take away Cisalpine Gaul from the previous procurator Brutus and the recruitment of troops for the war aroused hostility towards Antony among the people.
The Senate instructed the consuls of 43 Pansa and Hirtius to support Octavian. In mid-April, Antony defeated Pansa, but was later defeated by Hirtius. Together with Hirtius, Octavian inflicted a crushing defeat on Antony, and he was forced to flee. Soon Anthony managed to gather 23 legions, of which 17 and 10 thousand horsemen moved under his command to Italy. However, Octavian, who did not receive the desired recognition from the Senate, managed to come to an agreement with Antony during the negotiations. In 42 BC. e. Antony and Octavian completely defeated first Cassius and then Brutus in two battles. After his own campaigning in Greece, Anthony arrived in Asia, where he was going to raise money to pay soldiers' salaries and from Cilicia sent to the Egyptian queen Cleopatra proposal to enter into an alliance with the new triumvirs. However, Cleopatra appeared before him in person, and the seduced Antony followed her to Alexandria, where he led an idle life for quite a long time. Rome was dissatisfied with Antony's pro-Egyptian policies. When Octavian, yielding to public pressure and at the same time pursuing his own goals, began to prepare for war, Antony divorced Octavia, but did not take energetic action, continuing his pleasure trip around Greece. Soon Caesarion at the insistence of Cleopatra, he was proclaimed successor to Caesar, which put an end to the alliance between the former triumvirs. Anthony was declared an enemy of the state, deprived of all positions and the future consulate. At the Battle of Actium, the combined forces of Antony and Cleopatra were defeated. Soon after this, Antony's remaining troops abandoned him. After the invasion in 31 BC. e. Octavian to Egypt, all of Antony's proposals for peace were rejected. When Octavian appeared at the gates of Alexandria, Antony and his cavalry detachment repelled the first attack. Having received false news that Cleopatra had committed suicide, Antony threw himself on his sword. Octavian Augustus became first roman emperor in the history of the entire state.
Fall of the Republic
The main reason for the fall of the republic was the contradiction between the political form of the republic of the 1st century BC. e. and its social and class content. The wide Mediterranean market, new groups of provincial slave owners, complex relationships between Italy and the provinces, between citizens and “non-citizens” urgently demanded new system management. It was impossible to govern a world power with methods and apparatus suitable for a small community on the Tiber.
The old classes, whose interests were reflected by the Roman Republic, by the end of the 1st century BC. e. disappeared or degraded. The Italian peasantry almost completely disappeared; nobility And horsemanship as a result civil wars a significant part of them died physically or went bankrupt. The nobility and equestrianism were replaced by new social groups: new rich people, lumpenproletariat, military colonists. They had nothing to do with the old republic. Their existence was closely connected with military empire, with the victorious commanders of the end of the republic.
The professional army, which grew out of civil wars, was the direct support of these commanders and the main instrument of the military coup.
The fall of the republic was inevitable. Octavian won because Italy stood behind him and he could use the unified apparatus of the Roman state. He was more cunning, more careful, more self-possessed than Anthony, he was adopted son Caesar. Octavian finally won because his political will was united and purposeful, because around him there was not that struggle between two parties, Roman and Eastern, the party of Roman emigrants and the party of Cleopatra, which weakened and paralyzed the will of Anthony.
Imperial Rome
Article The Roman Empire contains general material from the imperial period of Rome
Early Roman Empire. Principate (27/30 BC - 235 AD)
Reign of Augustus (31 BC - 14 AD)
The basis of Octavian's powers were the tribunate and the highest military authority. In 29 BC. e. he received the honorary nickname " August" ("Exalted") and was proclaimed princeps (first person) of the Senate; hence the name of the new one political system- principate. In 28 BC. e. the Romans defeated the tribe mezov and organized a province Moesia. In Thrace Meanwhile, a fierce struggle developed between supporters and opponents of the Roman orientation, which postponed the final conquest of Thrace by the Romans for several years. In 24 BC e. The Senate freed Augustus from any restrictions imposed by law in 13 BC. e. his decisions were equated to Senate resolutions. At 12 BC e. he became the great pontiff, and in 2 BC. e. was awarded the title of “Father of the Fatherland.” Having received in 29 BC. e. censorship powers, Augustus expelled the Republicans and supporters of Antony from the Senate and reduced its composition.
August carried out military reform, completing the century-long process of creating a Roman professional army. Now the soldiers served for 20-25 years, receiving a regular salary and constantly being in a military camp without the right to start a family. Upon retirement, they were given a monetary reward and given a plot of land. The principle of voluntary recruitment of citizens into the legions and provincials into auxiliary units, guard units were created to protect Italy, Rome and the emperor - guardsmen (praetorians). For the first time in Roman history, special police units were organized - cohorts vigils(guardians) and city cohorts.
Yulio-Claudian Dynasty
Tiberius
Tiberius Claudius Nero(14-37 AD) was the second Roman emperor, adopted son and successor of Octavian Augustus, founder Julio-Claudian dynasty. He became famous as successful commander, and his reputation as an arrogant and dissolute man is most likely unfounded.
Together with your younger brother Drusus, Tiberius was able to expand the borders of the Roman Empire along the Danube and into Germany (16-7 BC, 4-9 AD).
In order to save public funds, the emperor reduced cash distributions and the number of spectacles. Tiberius continued the fight against the abuses of provincial governors, completely eliminated the taxation system and switched to direct tax collection.
Caligula
Caligula (Full name Gaius Caesar Augustus Germanicus) (37-41 AD) - third Roman emperor, great-nephew of Tiberius. Caligula tried to establish an unlimited monarchy, introduced a magnificent court ceremony and demanded that his subjects call him “lord” and “god,” and the imperial cult was implanted everywhere. He pursued a policy of open humiliation of the Senate and terror against the aristocracy and horsemen. Caligula's support was the praetorians and the army, as well as the urban plebs, to attract whose sympathy he spent huge amounts of money on distributions, spectacles and construction. The depleted treasury was replenished by confiscation of the property of convicts. Caligula's regime caused general discontent, and in January 41 he was killed as a result of a conspiracy by the Praetorian elite.
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