Ancient Rome - From Rise to Divide

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Ancient Rome was one of the earliest civilizations in Europe, centered around the Italian Peninsula. It rose from a small settlement along the Tiber River, and grew into one of history’s most powerful empires within a few centuries. However, the significance of the Roman Empire diminished after its division into two parts in the 4th Century AD.

Alongside Ancient Greece, the civilization of Ancient Rome shaped the law, government, architecture, language, and culture in ways still felt today. These two ancient civilizations largely influenced the views of the Renaissance in Europe during the 14th Century.

There are four eras of this ancient civilization: the Roman Kingdom, the Roman Republic, the Roman Empire, and the division of the Roman Empire.

Roman Kingdom

According to legend, twin brothers Romulus and Remus founded the city of Rome in 753 BCE. Later, Romulus became the first king of the Roman Kingdom. Seven monarchs of this kingdom ruled for more than 200 years before its replacement by the Roman Republic in 509 BC. Due to the absence of any written record or other evidence, there is no certainty about the events and personalities of that period. However, modern historians believe there was a kingdom in Rome, later replaced by the Republic. 

Roman Republic

The era of Roman Republic started around 509 BC after the fall of the Roman Kingdom. The period is known for its system of checks and balances, featuring a constitution, the Senate, assemblies, and elected magistrates. The extension of Roman rule initially started during this period.

The Roman Republic started its expansion of the Italian peninsula in 338 BC after defeating the Latin  League to capture central Italy. By 272 BC, the Republic had taken full control of Italy with victories against Samnites, Greeks, and their allies in grueling wars. Roman conquest of Italy completed in 264 BC with their victory in the Roman-Etruscan Wars. 

Soon After the conquest of Italy, Romans initiated Punic Wars against Carthaginians in 246 BC. Carthage had its capital in modern-day Tunisia, while its rule was spread to the Mediterranean Sea, including most of Sicily, southern Iberia, North Africa, Sardinia, and several smaller islands. 

Success in the First Punic War enabled Romans to capture Sicily. The Second Punic War (218-201 BC) is known as the Hannibalic War due to the heroics of the great Carthaginian general Hannibal. However, Rome remained victorious despite initial setbacks and captured Carthaginian Iberia. Rome later captured Carthage after the Third Punic War, resulting in its fall. These victories made Rome a Mediterranean superpower and handed over control to key trade routes. 

In the 4th Century, the Republic faced a threat from powerful Celtic tribes of Gaul (central Europe and adjacent areas) as they expanded their rule. Around 390 BC, the two powers first engaged in the Battle of Allia, where the Gauls remained victorious, and the Romans almost lost Rome. But after initial defeats, the Romans struck back and won the later battles. The Battle of Mutina (193 BC) was the last battle between the two nations. After its victory, the area of Gaul (north of the Italian Peninsular) became a province of the Roman Republic. 

From 214 to 148 BC, the Roman Republic fought four wars against Macedon. The Romans won all these wars and conquered Macedon (Hellenistic Greece) at the end of these wars. The Romans fought against the north-African Berber kingdom of Numidia from 112-106 BC, known as the Jugurthine War. Victory in this war ended problems for Romans from Africa. 

From 113-101 BC, the Roman Republic had to fight the Cimbrian War in southern and central Europe against the Germanic tribes who migrated from Denmark. After initial defeats, the Romans were able to beat their opponents, who threatened even their homeland. In 63 BC, Romans completely captured Anatolia (Turkey) after their victory in the Mithridatic Wars (three wars from 88-63 BC).

Famous Roman leader Julius Caesar fought the Gallic Wars (58-50 BC) against numerous Gallic tribes, and victory in these wars helped them occupy the whole of modern-day Belgium and France. During the Gallic Wars, Caesar also invaded Britain in 55 and 54 BC, and the Romans set up a friendly king in Britain after their victory. Between 49-45 BC, the Great Roman Civil War was fought between Julius Caesar and the Roman Senate led by Pompey. Caesar became victorious in the war but was assassinated in 44 BC by a group of senators. 

Roman Empire

After Caesar’s murder, his supporters Mark Antony (Marcus Antonius), Octavius, and Marcus Aemilius Lepidus jointly ruled the Roman Republic for ten years (43-33 BC). After the legal formation of their government, they killed all the senators who allegedly supported the assassination of Caesar. In October 42 BC, the new rulers defeated and killed the assassins of Caesar in the Battle of Philippi. Differences emerged between Octavian and Antony after 34 BC due to Antony’s marriage to the famous Egyptian pharaoh Cleopatra VII and his extra favor to her. In 31 BC, Octavian defeated Antony and Cleopatra in the Battle of Actium. Cleopatra and Antony committed suicide, and Octavian became the sole ruler of the Roman Republic. In 27 BC, Octavian adopted the name of Augustus (majestic), and this event is marked as the beginning of the Roman Empire. 

The Julian-Claudian dynasty was the first dynasty of the Roman Empire. There were five rulers in this dynasty, from Augustus to Nero. This dynasty lasted from 27 BC to 68 AD and ended with the death of Nero by suicide after several revolts and conspiracies against him.

The 2nd dynasty of the Roman Empire was the Flavian dynasty. Three rulers in this dynasty were Vespasian, Titus, and Domitian. It lasted from 69 AD to 96 AD and ended with the murder of Domitian.

The Nerva-Antonine dynasty was the third dynasty of the Roman Empire. The Empire reached its zenith during that dynasty while controlling many areas of Europe, North Africa, and western Asia. This period is also known for internal peace and economic prosperity. This dynasty lasted from 96 AD to 192 AD. It comprised six emperors, from Nerva to Commodus, while Trajan was the most famous and successful ruler. The initial five rulers are known as the Five Good Emperors. This dynasty ended with the death (murder) of Commodus.

The Severan dynasty was the last dynasty of the Roman Empire. The dynasty started in 193 AD with the empowerment of Septimus Severus and concluded with the death of the emperor Alexander Severus in 235 AD. By then, the Romans suffered heavy losses against the Parthians in the east and Germanic tribes in the north. Alexander was killed by his army, which was unhappy with his failures. The indiscipline attitude in the military was also prevalent at that time. 

Crisis and Transformation (3rd–4th Century CE)

After the death of Alexander, a crisis emerged in the Roman Empire, known as the Crisis of the 3rd Century. During that period, the Roman Empire faced invasions, internal conflicts, political instability, and poor economic conditions. Due to this situation, the Roman eastern areas of the Levant, Egypt, and Asia Minor separated into the Palmyrene Empire in 260 AD. Concurrently, the Western European regions formed a separate Gallic Empire. However, the situation reversed later as the Roman emperor Aurelian re-conquered Palmyrene and the Gallic empires by 275 AD.

Diocletian became emperor in 284 AD, and his rule lasted till 305 AD. His rule is known as the last effort to restore the glory of the Roman Empire. He expelled the Persians from Syria and divided the Empire into four parts with different emperors, known as Tetrarchy. He was also severely against the new emerging Christian faith, while the religion of Romans was Roman mythology. In 303 AD, he persecuted Christians, destroyed churches, and burned the scriptures. 

Division of the Roman Empire

In 306 AD, Constantine took over as the emperor of the Roman Empire. He stopped the persecution of Christians, accepted Christianity, and initiated the Christianization of Rome. He made Constantinople (now Istanbul) the new capital of the Empire and divided it into two parts in 330 AD: the Western Roman Empire and the Byzantine Empire (Eastern Roman Empire). The Western Roman Empire lasted till 476 AD when the king of Germanic Tribes occupied their capital. On the other hand, the Byzantine Empire collapsed in 1453 AD after the capture of Constantinople by the Ottoman Empire. 

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