Ancient Rome | Can’t Sleep? Learn About The Roman Empire

Can’t sleep, so you may as well spend some time with the Romans, who somehow turned roads, law, politics, and organized ambition into a whole civilization. In this calm, steady episode, you’ll hear about the rise of Ancient Rome, how the Republic worked until it very much didn’t, and the everyday ideas and systems that helped Rome leave its fingerprints all over history. No whispering, no jump scares, just a measured reading to give your brain something interesting to do while the rest of you powers down.

Happy sleeping!

Transcript

Welcome to the I Can't Sleep podcast, Where I help you drift off one fact at a time. I'm your host, Benjamin Boster, And today's episode is about ancient Rome. In modern historiography, Ancient Rome is the Roman civilization from the founding of the Italian city of Rome in the 8th century BC to the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century AD. It encompasses the Roman Kingdom, 753-509 BC, The Roman Republic, 509-27 BC, And the Roman Empire, 27 BC-476 AD, Until the fall of the Western Empire. Ancient Rome began as an italic settlement, Traditionally dated to 753 BC beside the river Tiber in the Italian peninsula. The settlement grew into the city and polity of Rome, And came to control its neighbors through a combination of treaties and military strength. It eventually controlled the Italian peninsula, Assimilating the Greek culture of southern Italy and the Etruscan culture, And then became the dominant power in the Mediterranean region and parts of Europe. At its height, It controlled the North African coast, Egypt, Southern Europe, And most of Western Europe, The Balkans, Crimea, And much of the Middle East, Including Anatolia, The Levant, And parts of Mesopotamia and Arabia. The empire was among the largest empires in the ancient world, Covering around 5 million square kilometers in AD 117, With an estimated 50-90 million inhabitants, Roughly 20% of the world's population at the time. The Roman state evolved from an elective monarchy to a classical republic, And then to an increasingly autocratic military dictatorship during the empire. Ancient Rome is often grouped into classical antiquity together with ancient Greece, And their similar cultures and societies are known as the Greco-Roman world. Ancient Roman civilization has contributed to modern language, Religion, Society, Technology, Law, Politics, Government, Warfare, Art, Literature, Architecture, And engineering. Rome professionalized and expanded its military and created a system of government called Respubblica, The inspiration for modern republics, Such as the United States and France. It achieved impressive technological and architectural feats, Such as the empire-wide construction of aqueducts and roads, As well as more grandiose monuments and facilities. Archaeological evidence of settlement around Rome starts to emerge circa 1000 BC. Large-scale organization appears only circa 800 BC, With the first graves in the Esquiline Hills necropolis, Along with a clay and timber wall on the bottom of the Palatine Hill, Dating to the middle of the 8th century BC. Starting from circa 650 BC, The Romans started to drain the valley between the Capitoline and Palatine Hills, Where today sits the Roman Forum. By the 6th century BC, The Romans were constructing the temple of Jupiter Optimus Maximus on the Capitoline and expanding to the Forum Boerium, Located between the Capitoline and Aventine Hills. The Romans themselves had a founding myth, Attributing their city to Romulus and Remus, Offspring of Mars, And a princess of the mythical city of Alba Longa. The sons, Sentenced to death, Were rescued by a wolf, And returned to restore the Alban king and found a city. After a dispute, Romulus killed Remus and became the city's sole founder. The area of his initial settlement on the Palatine Hill was later known as Roma Quadrata – Square Rome. The story dates at least to the 3rd century BC, And the later Roman antiquarian Marcus Terentius Varro placed the city's foundation to 753 BC. Another legend, Recorded by Greek historian Dionysius of Halicarnassus, Says that Prince Aeneas led a group of Trojans on a sea voyage to found a new Troy after the Trojan War. They landed on the banks of the Tiber River, And a woman traveling with them, Roma, Torched their ships to prevent them from leaving again. They named the settlement after her. The Roman poet Virgil recounted this legend in his classical epic poem, The Aeneid. Literary and archaeological evidence is clear on there having been kings in Rome, Attested in fragmentary 6th century BC texts. Long after the abolition of the Roman monarchy, A vestigial rex sacrorum was retained to exercise the monarch's former priestly functions. The Romans believed that their monarchy was elective, With seven legendary kings who were largely unrelated by blood. Evidence of Roman expansion is clear in the 6th century BC. By its end, Rome controlled a territory of some 780, 000 square kilometers, With a population perhaps as high as 35, 000. A palace, The Regia, Was constructed circa 625 BC. The Romans attributed the creation of their first popular organizations in the Senate to the regal period as well. Rome also started to extend its control over its Latin neighbors. While later Roman stories like the Aeneid asserted that all Latins descended from the character Aeneas, A common culture is attested to archaeologically. Attested to reciprocal rights of marriage and citizenship between Latin cities, The Euslatii, Along with shared religious festivals, Further indicate a shared culture. By the end of the 6th century, Most of this area had become dominated by the Romans. By the end of the 6th century BC, Rome and many of its Italian neighbors entered a period of turbulence. Archaeological evidence implies some degree of large-scale warfare. According to tradition and later writers, Such as Livy, The Roman Republic was established circa 509 BC, When the last of the seven kings of Rome, Tarquin the Proud, Was deposed and a system based on annually elected magistrates and various representative assemblies was established. A constitution set a series of checks and balances and a separation of powers. The most important magistrates were the two consuls, Who together exercised executive authority such as imperium, Or military command. The consuls had to work with the Senate, Which was initially an advisory council of the ranking nobility, Or patricians, But grew in size and power. Other magistrates of the Republic include tribunes, Quaestors, Aediles, Praetors, And censors. The magistracies were originally restricted to patricians, But were later opened to common people, Or plebeians. Republican voting assemblies included the Commitia Centuriata, Which voted on matters of war and peace and elected men to the most important offices, And the Commitia Tributa, Which elected less important offices. In the 4th century BC, Rome had come under attack by the Gauls, Who now extended their power in the Italian peninsula beyond the Po Valley and through Etruria. On July 16, 390 BC, A Gallic army under the leadership of tribal chief Din Brennus defeated the Romans at the Battle of the Aulia and marched to Rome. The Gauls looted and burned the city, Then laid siege to the Capitoline Hill, Where some Romans had barricaded themselves for seven months. The Gauls then agreed to give the Romans peace in exchange for 1, 000 pounds of gold. According to later legend, The Romans supervising the wain noticed that the Gauls were using false scales. The Romans then took up arms and defeated the Gauls. Their victorious general, Camillus, Remarked, With iron, Not with gold, Rome buys her freedom. The Romans gradually subdued the other peoples on the Italian peninsula, Including the Etruscans. The last threat to Roman hegemony in Italy came when Tarentum, A major Greek colony, Enlisted the aid of Pyrrhus of Epirus in 281 BC, But this effort failed as well. The Romans secured their conquests by founding Roman colonies in strategic areas, Thereby establishing stable control over the region. The imperial city of Rome was the largest urban center in the empire, With a population variously estimated from 450, 000 to close to 1, 000, 000. Around 20% of the population under jurisdiction of ancient Rome lived in innumerable urban centers, With population of 10, 000 and more, And several military settlements, A very high rate of urbanization by pre-industrial standards. Most of these centers had a forum, Temples, And other buildings similar to Rome's. The average life expectancy in the Middle Empire was about 26 to 28 years. The roots of the legal principles and practices of the ancient Romans may be traced to the Law of the Twelve Tables, Promulgated in 449 BC, And to the codification of law issued by order of Emperor Justinian I around 530 AD. Roman law, As preserved in Justinian's codes, Continued into the Byzantine Roman Empire, And formed the basis of similar codifications in continental Western Europe. Roman law continued, In a broader sense, To be applied throughout most of Europe until the end of the 17th century. The major divisions of the law of ancient Rome, As contained within the Justinian and Theodosian Law Codes, Consisted of Ius Queile, Ius Gentium, And Ius Naturale. The Ius Queile, Citizen law, Was the body of common laws that applied to Roman citizens. The Praetoris Urbani were the people who had jurisdiction over cases involving citizens. The Ius Gentium, Law of nations, Was the body of common laws that applied to foreigners and their dealings with Roman citizens. The Praetoris Peregrini were the people who had jurisdiction over cases involving citizens and foreigners. Ius Naturale encompassed natural law, The body of laws that were considered common to all beings. Roman society is largely viewed as hierarchical, With slaves, Servi, At the bottom, Freedmen, Liberti, Above them, And free-born citizens, Ciues, At the top. Free citizens were subdivided by class. The broadest and earliest division was between the patricians, Who would trace their ancestry to one of the 100 patriarchs at the founding of the city, And the plebeians, Who could not. This became less important in the later republic, As some plebeian families became wealthy and entered politics, And some patrician families fell economically. Another patrician, Or plebeian, Who could count a consul as his ancestor, Was a noble, Nobilis. A man who was the first of his family to hold a consulship, Such as Marius or Cicero, Was known as novus homo, New man, And ennobled his descendants. Patrician ancestry, However, Still conferred considerable prestige, And many religious offices remained restricted to patricians. A class division originally based on military service became more important. Membership of these classes was determined periodically by the censors, According to property. The wealthiest were the senatorial class, Who dominated politics and command of the army. Next came the equestrians, Equites, Sometimes translated knights, Originally those who could afford a warhorse, And who formed a powerful mercantile class. Several further classes, Originally based on the military equipment their members could afford, Followed with the proletarii citizens who had no property other than their children at the bottom. Before the reforms of Marius, They were ineligible for military service, And are often described as being just above freed slaves in wealth and prestige. Voting power in the republic depended on class. Citizens were enrolled in voting tribes, But the tribes of the richer classes had fewer members than the poorer ones, All the proletarii being enrolled in a single tribe. Voting was done in class order from top down. And stopped as soon as most of the tribes had been reached, So the poorer classes were often unable to cast their votes. Women in ancient Rome shared some basic rights with their male counterparts, But were not fully regarded as citizens, And were thus not allowed to vote or take part in politics. At the same time, The limited rights of women were gradually expanded. Due to emancipation. And women reached freedom from paterfamilias, Gained property rights, And even had more judicial rights than their husbands, But still no voting rights, And were absent from politics. Allied foreign cities were often given the Latin rights, An intermediary level between full citizens and foreigners, Peregrini, Which gave their citizens rights under the Roman law, And allowed their reading magistrates to become full Roman citizens. While there were varying degrees of Latin rights, The main division was between those cum suffragio, With vote, Enrolled in a Roman tribe, And able to take part in the Commitia Tributa, And sine suffragio, Without vote, Could not take part in Roman politics. Most of Rome's Italian allies were given full citizenship after the Social War of 91-88 B. C. , And full Roman citizenship was extended to all free-born men in the Empire by Caracalla in 212, With the exception of the Dediticii, People who had become subject to Rome through surrender and war, And freed slaves. In the early Republic, There were no public schools, So boys were taught to read and ride by their parents, Or by educated slaves, Called pedagogy, Usually of Greek origin. The primary aim of education during this period was to train young men in agriculture, Warfare, Roman traditions, And public affairs. Young boys learned much about civic life by accompanying their fathers to religious and political functions, Including the Senate for the Sons of Nobles. The Sons of Nobles were apprenticed to a prominent political figure at the age of 16, And campaigned with the army from the age of 17. Educational practices were modified after the conquest of the Hellenistic kingdoms in the 3rd century B. C. , And the resulting Greek influence, Although Roman educational practices were still much different from Greek ones. If their parents could afford it, Boys, And some girls at the age of 7, Were sent to a private school outside the home called a ludus, Where a teacher, Called a literator, Or a magister ludi, And often of Greek origin, Taught them basic reading, Writing, Arithmetic, And sometimes Greek, Until the age of 11. Beginning at age 12, Students went to secondary schools, Where the teacher taught them about Greek and Roman literature. At the age of 16, Some students went to rhetoric school, Where the teacher, Usually Greek, Was called a rhetor. Education at this level prepared students for legal careers, And required that students memorize the laws of Rome. Initially, Rome was ruled by kings, Who were elected from each of Rome's major tribes in turn. The exact nature of the king's power is uncertain. He may have held near-absolute power, Or may have merely been the chief executive of the senate and the people. In military matters, The king's authority was likely absolute. He was also the head of the state religion. In addition to the authority of the king, There were three administrative assemblies. The senate, Which acted as an advisory body for the king, The committee a curiata, Which could endorse and ratify laws suggested by the king, And the committee a collata, Which was an assembly of the priestly college that could assemble the people to bear witness to certain acts, Hear proclamations, And declare the feast and holiday schedule for the next month. The class struggles of the Roman Republic resulted in an unusual mixture of democracy and oligarchy. The word republic comes from the Latin res publica, Which literally translates to public business. Roman laws traditionally could only be passed by a vote of the popular assembly. Likewise, Candidates for public positions had to run for election by the people. However, The Roman senate represented an oligarchic institution, Which acted as an advisory body. In the republic, The senate held actual authority, But no real legislative power. It was technically only an advisory council. However, As the senators were individually very influential, It was difficult to accomplish anything against the collective will of the senate. New senators were chosen from among the most accomplished patricians by censors, Who could also remove a senator from his office if he was found morally corrupt. Later, Under the reform of the dictator Sulla, Quaestors were made automatic members of the senate, Though most of his reforms did not survive. The republic had no fixed bureaucracy and collected taxes through the practice of tax farming. Government positions such as quaestor, Adelae, Or prefect were funded by the officeholder. To prevent any citizen from gaining too much power, New magistrates were elected annually and had to share power with a colleague. For example, Under normal conditions, The highest authority was held by two consuls. In an emergency, A temporary dictator could be appointed. Throughout the republic, The administrative system was revised several times to comply with new demands. In the end, It proved inefficient for controlling the ever-expanding dominion of Rome, Contributing to the establishment of the Roman Empire. In the early empire, The pretense of a republican form of government was maintained. The Roman emperor was portrayed as only a princips, Or first citizen, And the senate gained legislative power and all legal authority previously held by the popular assemblies. However, The rule of the emperors became increasingly autocratic, And the senate was reduced to an advisory body appointed by the emperor. The empire did not inherit a said bureaucracy from the republic, Since the republic did not have any permanent governmental structures apart from the senate. The emperor appointed assistants and advisors, But the state lacked many institutions, Such as a centrally planned budget. Some historians have cited this as a significant reason for the decline of the Roman Empire. The early Roman army circa 500 BC was, Like those of other contemporary city-states, Influenced by Greek civilization, A citizen militia that practiced hoplite tactics. It was small and organized in five classes, With three providing hoplites and two providing light infantry. The early Roman army was tactically limited, And its stance during this period was essentially defensive. By the 3rd century BC, The Romans abandoned the hoplite formation in favor of a more flexible system, In which smaller groups of men called maniples could maneuver more independently on the battlefield. Thirty maniples arranged in three lines with supporting troops constituted a legion, Totaling between 4, 000 and 5, 000 men. The early republican legion consisted of five sections, Manipular heavy infantry, A force of light infantry, And the cavalry. With the new organization came a new orientation toward the offensive, And a much more aggressive posture toward adjoining city-states. Until the late republican period, The typical legionary was a property-owning citizen farmer from a rural area, Who served for particular campaigns, And who supplied his own equipment. After 200 BC, Economic conditions in rural areas deteriorated as manpower needs increased, So that the property qualifications for compulsory service was gradually reduced. Beginning in the 3rd century BC, Legionaries were paid a stipend. By the time of Augustus, The ideal of the citizen-soldier had been abandoned, And the legions had become fully professional. At the end of the civil war, Augustus reorganized Roman military forces, Discharging soldiers and disbanding legions. He retained 28 legions, Distributed through the province of the empire.

Reviews

Amazing. Loved it!! Fell asleep

Loved this one Benjamin!!
History repeating itself…
Do Ancient Greece next, if you haven’t already!