Julius Caesar Takes Control

Chapter 6-2 Notes
Setting The Stage- Rapid growth brings political, economic and social changes. Leaders attempted to adapt but the republican government could not fix the problems being caused by the changes.
Expansion Creates Problems in the Republic

-Punic Wars, expansion, and increasing wealth brings larger gap of rich and poor

-Latifundia were estates that the rich lived on, most often they were conquered lands and later deserted.

-Captured people during wars were turned into slaves and forced to work on the estates, by 100 b.c. slaves were 1/3 of the population

- Smaller farmers, mostly former soldiers, had trouble competing with the slave labor estates and often sold off their land, some stayed in the country side as migrant workers and some traveled to the cities and usually remained unemployed and joined the “Urban Poor” a group that made up ¼ of the population

-Discontent slaves, resentful poor and a very lavish upper class brought a class tension that was the base for the republic’s collapse

The Republic Collapses

-Two Brothers, Tiberius and Gaius Gracchus who were tribunes, attempted to impose reforms, limiting the size of estates, and giving land to the poor, the senate was threatened by this and they both met violent deaths and civil war followed their deaths

-the army started recruiting soldiers from the landless poor, with promises of land and pay, replacing the citizen soldier

- The new soldier had allegiance to their commander instead of the republic; this switch in loyalty made it possible for military leaders to attempt political takeovers, such as Gaius Marius and Lucius Cornelius Sulla, Sulla would eventually become dictator

-Military rivalries plagued Rome until Julius Caesar brought order
Julius Caesar Takes Control

-Julius Caesar Joined forced with Crassus, a wealthy Roman and Pompey, a popular General together they formed a triumvirate

-Caesar

-Strong leader and genius at military strategy

-served one year as consul and then appointed himself leader of Gual (France)

-Later conquered all of Gual 58-60 b.c.

-his actions in battle gained him respect and loyalty

-50 b.c. Pompey who was now a political rival urged the senate to have Caesar break up his legions and return home as his popularity and power were growing and he had become a threat

-Jan 10, 49 b.c. Caesar would now engage in act of civil war as he would disobey orders and move towards Rome with his troops, Pompey would flee the city and Caesar would defeat his Armies in Greece, Asia, Spain, and Egypt

-46 b.c. he would return to Rome and two years later he would be appointed dictator for life by the senate

- He governed as an absolute ruler

-granted citizenship to people in provinces, expanded the senate, created jobs and started colonies where the landless could obtain land

-March 15 44 b.c. stabbed to death in senate chamber by a number of senators including friend Marcus Brutus
Beginning of the Empire

-Caesar’s death brought a second civil war lead by his grand nephew and adopted son Octavian and a general Mark Antony and politician Lepidus. Together they avenged his death and regained control of Rome

-43 b.c. they took control of Rome for ten years creating the second Triumvirate

-Octavian eventually would force Lepidus to retire and engage in a bitter rivalry with Mark Antony

-Antony would meet Cleopatra and fall in love and follow her back to Egypt and Octavian would accuse him of being an absentee ruler, Octavian would defeat the combined forces of Cleopatra and Antony in the battle of Actium in 31 b.c. and they would later commit a double suicide

-Octavian would restore some traditions of the republic and kept the senate but they only consulted, he took the title of Augustus and imperator (supreme military commander) and Rome was ruled by one man

A Vast and Powerful Empire

-27b.c. – a.d.180 was Rome’s most prosperous and peaceful time, embodied by the label of Pax Romana

-facts- 3 million square miles, 60-80 million people, 1 million people in Rome

-90% of the people were engaged in farming, most of Romans diet was acheived through agriculture

-other items came through trade

-Augustus’ time saw currency in the form of the silver coin denarius

-Rome traded through out the Mediterranean and China and India

-Roads used by the army now served traders all the way through Russia and the “Silk Roads” were named as such because they imported silk from China

-Roads and trade also pushed Roman tradition further out to the outskirts of empire

-by the second century the empire went from Spain to Mesopotamia and N. Africa to Britain, spanning 10,000 miles

-it encompassed many cultures and languages but the Roman way of life pushed further out as soldiers were enlisted as auxiliary or support forces through out the empire

-Augustus implemented civil service that lasted through out the Roman Empire (tax collection, postal, workers in grain supply) and was made up of plebeians and even former slaves

-Augustus system was so effective that neither insane nor incapable leaders would halt its progress in later years

The Five Good Emperors –Rome had no written law for selecting emperors so when one died there was always the threat of civil war. This problem ceased to exist beginning with Nerva in a.d. 96 and ended with Marcus Aurelius in a.d 180 as the emperors would select a successor that had the support of both the people and army

Life in Imperial Rome

-Cities were crowded and filled with many different people but most live in the country and farms

-values that Romans emphasized were discipline, strength and loyality

-good qualities were ones that could be utilized - strength, power and usefulness

-Paterfamilias “father of the family” was the eldest male and ruled the household by law

-women enjoyed more rights under Roman rule than any other previous empires and women wouldn’t see as much rights again until the 19^th century, but they still couldn’t vote

-boys were favored over girls as boys were seen as more of future citizens and carrying out family traditions, girls would take on the fathers name, giving them a lack of identity

-the wealthy were schooled until 16, girls were educated at home and prepared for marriage and often were married by 12-15 to older men, poor children worked and were illiterate

-slavery was a very significant part of civilization, reaching 1/3 of the population

-most slaves were conquered people or born into slavery

-healthy male slaves often became gladiators

-early Romans worshipped Numina(powerful spirits) and Lares(guardian spirits of families)

-worship of the emperor also became part of the religion

*to distract the poor of the disparity between them and the rich, there was constantly public games and contests. There was also battles and other acts of cruelty in the Colosseum. By 250 a.d there were as many as 150 holidays