Why Romans Had Such A Prolific Faith

Chalking up the fall of the Roman Republic to a decline in traditional Roman morality, while not false, sells the events and changes that were the causes for the fall of the Republic short. At the end of The Third Punic War with Carthage we arguably see the Republic at its height. However in only a decade things begin to change, we see events that send Rome as a Republic past a point that Rome could not recover. Gaius Marius’s military reforms, specifically that of allowing for the captive cencsi, men who owned no property, and the creation of professional soldiers is the true catalyst for the downfall of the Republic. By enacting these reforms Marius opened up military duty to Rome’s largest group of citizens, however it created unforeseen issues, such as what to do with these men once they returned from battle. These reforms opened the door for military generals like Sulla and Caesar to gain the unquestioned support of their troops, in many instances gaining more respect from the soldiers then they had for the Roman state itself. These military reforms are a constant through line through the fall of the Republic, touching large political issues such as the conflicts between the Populares and the Optimates, or the rise of The First Triumvirate; socioeconomic issues such as the rise of Roman aristocracy, development of a slave based agriculture system to the profits from war. The complexity in which these reforms help lead to this immoral Roman state is complex and has been

As the “abundance of slaves led to the growth of latifudia” (Document 3) the great estates took over the agricultural industry. As latifundia took over, more farmers became out of work and in the persuit of finding work they moved into the cities and “added to the unemployment there” (Document 3). But the expansion didn’t stop there. As “the overwhelming majority of the population had been systematically excluded from political responsibilities, they could not… protect themselves… serve in the army… Their economic plight was hopeless” (Document 1). As missionaries fled into the Roman Armies, the citizens were being forced to pay a huge amount of taxes. But with no farmers to grow the food for the soldiers, who would? Expansion brought wealth into the empire, but “when the empire ceased to expand; however economic progress soon ceased” (Document 3). The inflation rate spiked, the rise in prices on everyday necessities decreased the value of money. The Romans were having to trade with exterior partners for items that could not be produced. The flow of money coming in could not match the amount of money going out. The values of the Romans depleted as their economy crumbled.

For 350 years the Roman Republic had grown, retracted, and grown again, surviving and thrived. Through it all the Romans never turned away from their basic founding principle that no king shall rein in Rome. Every year men stood for election and every year free ballots were cast by free citizens. The winner won and the looser lost, and power was transferred between them. It was a remarkable run and the republic’s track record was and is the case of much justifiable envy. The Roman’s success would be the undoing of the Roman republic. Over the years the republic had survived for two major reason, the lower class had not been so impoverished that they

Additionally, political influence and wealth shifted to the Senate. The Senate made decisions on policies, regulations and, Rome’s military operations. Therefore, Roman citizens quickly came to accept their authority on matters of the state. Moreover, The prospects of profiting from war resulted in bribery and competition for high offices. Jugurtha, the Numidian evaded captivity by positioning some of his own men

The Roman Republic’s origins began at approximately 509 BCE when two Roman aristocrats, Collatinus and Brutus, overthrew the Etruscan tyrant ruling over Rome. This act freed the Romans from Etruscan rule and established the sovereign Roman Republic, which prospered until 30 BCE where the Roman Republic would transition into the Roman Empire. During this expansive reign, the Roman Republic exhibited vast imperialism, evolving from the city of Rome with humble origins as a small village near the mouth of the Tiber River, to an eventual transcontinental empire, Romanizing the landscape of the Mediterranean world. Through a system of complex interactions, the imperial republic came to hold lands as far west as present day Spain and France,

     Two problems facing the late Roman Empire was the instability and non unification caused by inner family civil wars. Rome's rapid expansion, after the Punic Wars, resulted in changes that permanently divided the state. Both Aristocrats and Plebeians wanted total control of Rome and tried to destroy each other. Civil war was the the only way to solve problems in politics. Consequently, the power of the military became strong. Control of Rome's armies changed from the government to the generals because the soldiers began to listen to their generals rather than to the Government. On dismissal from military service, the soldiers had no farms to return to, and they

Ancient Rome’s neighborhood was somewhat like the Greek city-states, consisted of small states competing against each other during the early years of the Roman Republic. Most of the people were farmers at the time, for that reason the need for fertile land intensified as the population increased. The need for additional resources and a desire to dominate the region created numerous wars in Rome’s neighborhood. brfencing.org (n.d.). According to brfencing.org (n.d.). “Roman politicians knew that they could relieve population pressures at Rome by fighting to gain more land, so political leaders, who were also, you remember, military leaders actively sought wars.”

The wars of conquest ultimately created grave political difficulties for the Romans. When the soldiers returned home, they discovered their farms virtually in ruins. Rome was also separating into two political groups, both of which coveted political power.

The nascent Roman Republic extended its influence more through mutual advantage. The Roman Republic got its power by forming alliances and making agreements. After the war with the Latin people, the Roman and the Latin people made an agreement. This agreement benefited both the Roman and the Latin people by the Romans getting young soldiers from Latin to fight with them in case of war. On the other hand, the Latins got the protection of Rome. During the war with the Samnites, Capua signed a treaty with Rome. In this treaty, though the Romans added an extra thing which was to get their young soldiers in the Roman military and to pay tribute to the Romans. “Rome’s relationship with its Italian allies further increased its resource base and army

The Romans were a well-established civilization of immense power in the Hellenistic era, conquering nearly the whole Italian Peninsula and most of Europe. Unfortunately, a time of continuous difficulty led Rome to its decline in 476 CE. The fall of Rome can be characterized as a series of troubling events that provoked an influx of citizens to Catholicism in the hope of receiving eternal salvation. Most importantly, it allowed the Catholic Church to rise in power from 590 to 1517 CE and become the most dominating and influential community in Europe. For one, Rome was unable to govern its excessively large empire, which set the beginning of a steady economic decline. Moreover, the public executions of Christians piqued the curiosity of the population, causing rumors of salvation to spread like wildfire. Finally, Constantine’s reign as emperor changed the tide of Rome from being initially an anti-Christian empire to being a fully in support of the religion. Accordingly, the fall of Rome influenced people to convert to Catholicism, which allowed it to thrive in power in Europe.

Rome went through many wars, including the First, Second and Third Punic Wars, along with the First, Second, and Third Civil Wars. These periods of history led to social and political strife among the Romans and their conquered nations. Cruel and ruthless dictators, who were usually greedy men, led the people. No one cared about what was going on around him or her in the upper portions of the government.

Rome was a major power because it always made certain its own military prowess was preeminent. There have been many ideas presented as to the fall of the Roman Empire. Many believe that Rome declined morally and the violence and decadence of the societal norms led to the demise. Gibbons has been credited with the theory of the influence and transference of Christianity over the Roman system of Gods and Goddesses that perpetrated the fall. Another theory lays the blame at the feet of the Emperor, that the happiness of the people and the functioning of the government was directly correlated with the personal merit and management skills of the reigning authority. This 10 page paper argues that

The patricians and plebeians were the two tribes that united to rule out the kingship in Rome. When the struggle to remove kingship ended, the patricians gained more power from the victory than its alliance the plebeians. Even though the plebeians could vote in the comitia centuriata, they could not hold office. Patricians were richer as compared to plebeians and despite Rome becoming a republic; it was an aristocratic way of government and not democracy. In this text I am to discuss how this economic and political imbalance between the two orders led to the inferior Romans known as plebeian to revolt.

Political conflicts were aroused, for the Romans, after the war of conquest. After coming back from war, soldiers’ farmlands were destructed. They sold their land to people who were rich and moved to the city but they were not able to find jobs. Citizens without land were not permitted to serve in the army. Romans believed that only people with lands should have the ability to serve in the army since they had something to fight for. Landless citizens were angry and willing to follow any leader that was willing to help them. Tiberius Gracchus was the only leader who promised to answer their prayers so they elected him in 133 B.C.E. He suggested that they divide the public land and distribute it amongst the poor. He was soon murdered by senators that disagreed with his proposal. This triggered political violence for a long period of time. Tiberius’ brother, Gaius Gracchus, proposed a law that supplied cheap grain to the poor to advocate change for the better. He, as well, was murdered by senators who disagreed. The next leader was Gaius Marius. He recruited men without land into the army. In exchange for their service, they were promised land but the senate declined his promise to the people. The civil war of the late republic was fought for full power by famous Roman figures. This war was fought between Pompey (consul) and Caesar (an able general) for power after the First Triumvirate fell apart. This First Triumvirate was a political alliance between

Roman civilization underwent a series of radical changes during its entire existence. It started off as a small city in Italy with tradition saying that its roots stem from the Trojan Aeneus . Roman legends also say that the twin brothers Romulus and Remus founded Rome in 753 B.C.E. . Until 509 B.C.E., kings ruled Rome as it continued to establish itself between the Etruscans and Greeks located in Italy. In 509 B.C.E., the Roman Republic was founded when the kings were driven out of Rome. The Republic balanced aristocracy, monarchy and democracy within its government to prevent an individual from having too much power. For almost half a millennium, Rome continued a slow and practical growth. Around the first century B.C.E., Rome began to experience turmoil that would pave the way for the emergence of the official Roman Empire. Before the first emperor, Rome was already an empire because of how much area it had conquered, but the civilization was still a Republic because of their government. The rise of the rule of a single emperor and Rome’s conquering of the Mediterranean world characterized the Roman Empire. However, the Empire also faced its own troubles and fell to the Germanic tribes from the east. Several of the primary causes for the fall of both the Republic and the Empire were because of corruption within the government, economic instability, and the sheer size of the empire.