Sports And Politics In The Ancient Roman World

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Rome had many great things, especially within their love of brutality. Many of the Roman people enjoyed to take a break from their hard, ancient, lives and watch some grown men battle people, lions, tigers, and bears to the death (oh my!).

A shift in the nature and purpose of Roman gladiatorial games occurred in 264 BC at the funeral of Roman consul Julius Brutus Pera. This fight was different because it was put on in the public eye. The fight was pitched at a public oxen market and featured three contests at the same time . This escalation of public appeal and increase in overall size of event marked an important shift from private display of honor and deference to public display of spectacle and entertainment. The practice of Roman gladiatorial games being used as public displays of wealth, power, and status was also born at the funeral of Brutus Pera, adding display of societal standing to the purpose of gladiatorial games. The demand for gladiatorial games rose sharply from this point forward, so naturally, Rome had to supply more of what the people were demanding.

Some policies and institutions of the Roman Republic were useful to help them succeed in conquering first Italy and then the Mediterranean world. Before of the institution of the republic, the romans were a monarchy since their beginning and they were basically a pastoral people. Rome suffer several changes and improvements under the control of the Etruscan kings. The Etruscan were civilization settled north of Rome in Etruria, and they once had control over almost all the Italic peninsula. The Etruscans influences in Rome were profound, they transformed Rome from a pastoral community to a city (91). The Etruscan built the street and roads that help the development of temples, markets, shops, streets, and houses. They basically brought urbanization to Rome. It is fairly to say that the Rome republic was a fusion between the elements of the Etruscan civilization and the Rome elements. The combination of the different political institutions and policies made the Romans succeed in their conquest territories.

Over a long course of time the Romans had many different forms of government. From oligarchies to dictatorships Rome had experience with most forms of government. With all of these happening so far in the past many questions are asked today. One of the most talked and quested forms of Roman government is the Roman Republic. The Republic of Rome is normally thought to be a democracy. But an extremely common question still arise. This questions is whether the Roman Republic was truly democratic. In a simple answer the Roman Republic was a democratic government.

Within the societies of ancient Greece and Rome, there was a plethora of regimes, Caesars, and empires at the helm of everyday life. The political sphere encountered in the daily routines of ancient Greeks and Romans gave influence to the multitude of literary works produced in these societies. The works of Euripides, Virgil, and Ovid gave a vehicle for these writers to infuse commentary about the politics of the day. Politics is how groups of people organize making decisions that affect the individuals contained within said groups. The Bacchae, the Aeneid, and Book 15 of Metamorphoses all contain commentary concerning politics within their content.

The Roman Republic was a “democratic” republic, which allowed first citizens to vote, and to choose their governors in the senate (Hence, their consuls). However, it was a nation ruled by its aristocracy, and, consequently, the entire Republic`s power was concentrated in a few individuals. Furthermore, the Senate was controlled by Patricians, which directed the government by using wealth to buy control and power over the decisions of the senate and the consuls. This situation aroused the inconformity of the people; as result, a civil war took place in the Republic (destroying it), and then the Roman Empire was born.

Emperor Gaius Julius Caesar, afraid of losing the next election, as a form of distraction created the gladiator games we know today. Aristocrats tried to fight for control of the government, forcing Caesar to increase the growth of gladiatorial games across the empire. Without the games Caesar would lose popular vote with the Plebeians, and larger aristocrats would try and seize power. The ancient Roman people had the thirst for blood the only thing stopping them from rioting, gladiators. If the emperor could bring them joy he would a savior to them, but if local aristocrats put on the games then each state would think their governor stronger than the emperor. The plebeians made up about ninety-five percent of the population of Rome which meant that

Justin was akin to a father to Justinian, he gave him salvation where he struggled and practically reinvigorated his will to learn and do well in the world. While Justin enabled Justinian to learn and become an amazing man, he also attempted to find his way into the seat of the throne while the rule was weak. Justin had very obviously failed seeing as he was NOT fit to be a ruler, he was not an intelligent man after all. Justinian witnessed his uncle’s failure and was able to learn from the experience and, using his position as the King’s bodyguard (Citation), intelligence and military experience, weaseled his way into the throne, and into the position of King.

As a descendent of the deified Emperor Augustus, Agrippina was born into a powerful and respected family. She exploited this power, obtaining a level of influence over her husband and son that was only available to ambitious, imperial men. Her use of manipulation and violence has led ancient writers, such as Tacitus, to describe her political career as inappropriate and excessive. But I will argue against these views. On the contrary, I will show that because of her political achievements, she played a positive role in advancing the Augustan principate in such a way that it was beneficial in keeping with the guise of the ideology of the Roman Republic.

Roman society was one of ever changing complexity. At a size of approximately one million people Rome was the pinnacle of an age long lost. Yet the society created by these ancient people remains in the ever changing culture of today. Whether it be the creation of a republic, the political entity still used by many today, to the mannerisms of war still taught by military schools the world over, Rome gave more to the development of civilization than almost any society. Even the phrase, “When in Rome, do as the Romans do” is commonly used around the world. In this essay Roman society will be analyzed from the rise to the fall of the great and vast republic and empire. Yet what was a Roman really? “The Romans thus created for themselves a “national self-image” or a “national character,” and they perceived of the ideal Roman as being stern, diligent, and self-sufficient.” Although this may be an image that many Romans accepted as their societies view of its subjects, there was much more to the Romans than that. As with any other society there were the rich and poor, as well as slaves. Looking back the Romans may seem to be a very militaristic society, but the every day life of a Roman was equally exciting. To discover the truth behind these ancient people’s lives one must however know the difference between fact and fiction, as many of the Romans writings were not entirely true, but instead full of myth. This essay will look at the politics, military, myth, and true everyday

Ancient Greece and Rome are some of the most famous time periods in the world, but what influenced them? Ancient Greece lasted roughly from 1000-400 B.C.E while ancient Rome was from 753 B.C.-476 A.D (Cole and Symes, 75). The Greek alphabet was influenced by Phoenician sea traders and their art was mostly influenced by Egypt and western Asia. On the other hand, Rome was influenced by the Greek and derived the alphabet, many of their religious beliefs, and much of their art (Cole and Symes, 147). Ancient Greece and Rome were influenced by the Ancient Near East sedentary societies through art, religion, and architecture.

The personification of the Roman Republic was not embedded in philosophy or art like the Greeks or similar civilizations, but instead the virtues of Rome where build on conquest, government, laws, and architecture. The Roman’s were a pragmatic civilization the measured progress by how much influence and wealth it could gain by expanding their boarders through conquest. One of the major personifications of Rome’s power was the development of an elaborate road system that stretched into many areas it conquered. The roads allowed easy access to the development of commerce that supplied Rome with the bounty of their conquered areas. It also provided an efficient means for Rome’s powerful military easy access to all parts of the Republic. Also,

The Era of the Roman Republic and the Roman Imperium lasted for over one-thousand years, and at its peak, its territories stretched from the Atlantic to the rivers of Mesopotamia to the west and east and from the Sahara wilderness to the River Rhine in south and north. A key part that lead to this remarkable feat was the achievements accomplished by the Roman Military. The military had prospered in expanding their campaigns and had prosperously forfended the borders against peregrine invaders for centuries. The fact of the matter was that the Roman Military was the controlling factor, deciding the fate of the Roman state with any successes or failures it sustained. And in the terminus, it was the prosperous strategies and procedures

Many people think that the Roman Republic was the first democracy, but how democratic was the Roman Republic actually? While Rome was democratic from 509 BC-27 BC, the majority of government offices during that time were held by Patricians. Rome’s government had 3 parts: Elected Magistrates and Consuls, the Senate, and the Assemblies. Plebeians could only be a part of the Plebeian Council, which only played a small-scale part in the whole government. Rome wasn’t very democratic due to the fact that the people only had a small part in the decisions, those people weren’t well represented and magistrates were the only ones who could propose laws.