Chapter 11 Lesson 2 Rome as a Republic

Chapter 11 Lesson 2: Rome as a Republic

Governing Rome Early Romans were divided into two classes: Patricians and Plebeians The Patricians were Rome’s ruling class. They were wealthy landowners and came from Rome’s richest families. The Plebeians were ordinary citizens. They were not as wealthy as the patricians. They included artisans, shopkeepers and owners of small farms.

Government of the Republic The government of the Roman Republic was organized into three branches. One branch made laws, another ran the daily affairs of government and a third branch acted as judges. The republic had a system of checks and balances. Just like the United States today but they did NOT separate their powers.

Government of the Republic A consul is a head of government, usually with a limited term in office. Two patrician consuls headed the government. Each consul could veto, or reject, the other’s decision. Rome also had other major government officials called praetors. They interpreted the laws and served as judges in court. They could also lead armies.

Government of the Republic The Senate was Rome’s legislature. The Senate served the republic for life. The Assembly of Centuries was another legislative body of Rome. The assembly elected consuls and praetors and passed laws.

Roman Empire: 3 minutes https: //www. youtube. com/watch? v=b 9 bcohqs. TGk

Conflict Between Classes As time passed, the plebeians grew frustrated. They had to serve in the army and pay taxes, yet they had no power in the government. In 494 B. C. , many plebeians went on strike refusing to fight in the army. They even left Rome to create a government of their own. The patricians feared that the republic was in danger of collapsing so they agreed to share power with the Plebeians.

Conflict Between Classes The patricians allowed the Plebeians to have their own body of representatives, called the Council of the Plebes. The Council of the Plebes elected officials called tribunes. A tribune’s job was to protect the rights of ordinary citizens. Tribunes could also veto government decisions. In 287 B. C. the Council of the Plebs were given the right to pass laws for all Romans.

Cincinnatus and Civic Duty To lead Rome, the Romans created the office of a dictator, which is a person that is granted absolute power. During a crisis, the dictator had complete control over Rome. When the crisis was over, the dictator was expected to give up his power and the regular government’s power would then be restored.

Cincinnatus and Civic Duty One of the most famous Roman dictators was Cincinnatus. He became a respected Roman consul who was known for his loyalty to Rome. In 458 B. C. , a powerful enemy of Rome threated to destroy their army. The Senate appointed Cincinnatus as a dictator to handle this emergency. He accepted the role immediately and created an army. He was easily able to defeat the enemy.

Cincinnatus and Civic Duty When the war was over, he resigned as dictator. He was widely admired because he fulfilled his civic duty. Civic duty is the idea that citizens have responsibility to help their country. This idea was important to the Romans and has been valued by other people as well.

Cincinnatus- 1 minute 40 seconds. https: //www. youtube. com/watch? v=71 e. Y 67 Ht 4 Lo

Rome’s System of Law One of Rome’s greatest contributions to later civilizations was its system of law. In 451 B. C. , Rome adopted its first written code of laws known as the Twelve Tables. These laws supported the ideal that all free citizens had a right to be treated equally. As the Romans conquered more people they expanded their system of laws. They created laws that would apply to people who weren’t Roman citizens. These laws were known as the Law of Nations.

Roman Justice The Roman system assumes that a person is innocent until proven guilty. People accused of crimes have the right to defend themselves before a judge. The rule of law is one of the key ideas that the Romans passed on to the world. It means that laws apply to everyone equally. In many regions, people of upper class enjoyed special privileges but the Romans extended the idea of the rule of law to all their lands.

Turn and Talk What was the emergency that caused Cincinnatus to be appointed dictator?

End Day 1 Here

Chapter 11 Lesson 2: Rome as a Republic Day 2

The Punic Wars Carthage was a powerful trading empire based along the north African coast. Carthage became the largest and wealthiest city in the western Mediterranean area because of trade. Carthage became Rome’s main rival. Each wanted to control the entire Mediterranean world. Their rivalry grew into a series of wars that took place over a period of nearly 120 years.

The Punic Wars Begin The original conflict between the Romans and the Carthaginians (people of Carthage) is known as the First Punic War. The First Punic War began when Rome tried to control the fertile island of Sicily. The Carthaginians had already established colonies on the island so they were determined to stop Rome’s invasion. Carthage=Strong Navy Rome=Strong Army Rome was forced to build a fleet quickly. Romans built a small moveable bridge on the front of each ship, it allowed Roman soldiers to board Carthaginians ship and fight hand-to-hand on its decks.

Turn and Talk Why did the first Punic war begin?

The Punic Wars Begin For more then 20 years, the Romans and Carthaginians fought each other at sea. Finally, in 241 B. C. , a Roman fleet badly defeated Carthage’s navy off the coast of Sicily. Carthage was forced to give up Sicily and pay a huge fine to the Romans. Rome then took control of the island.

Hannibal Attacks: The Second Punic War After losing Sicily, Carthage tried to expand its empire into Spain because Spain had valuable resources like silver, copper, gold, lead and iron. The Romans bitterly opposed Carthage’s attempt to establish territory so near to Rome. Romans encourage the Spanish to rebel against Carthage. In response, Carthage sent its greatest general, Hannibal, to attack Rome. This started the second Punic War

Hannibal Attacks: The Second Punic War Hannibal planned to fight the Romans in Italy. To do this he gathered an army of 46, 000 men and 37 elephants. The Carthaginians crossed the Alps with their elephants hoping to overpower the Roman army. Instead, the bitter cold and attacks by mountain tribes killed half of the soldiers and most of the elephants. The remaining army was still a powerful fighting force when it reached Italy.

Hannibal Attacks: The Second Punic War In 216 B. C. , Hannibal defeated the Romans at the Battle of Cannae in southern Italy. Following the battle, Hannibal's army raided the country. In 206 B. C. , Roman forces, led by Scipio, captured Spain and then attacked the city of Carthage. Hannibal returned home to defend his people. Scipio’s troops defeated the Carthaginians in 202 B. C. at the battle of Zama. Carthage was forced to give up its navy, give up the Spanish territory and pay Rome a large sum of money. As a result, Rome became the supreme power in the western Mediterranean.

Turn and Talk How did Hannibal lose the Second Punic War?

The Third Punic War Rome still considered Carthage a military threat. . Rome finally destroyed it in the Third Punic War. At the same time, Rome also waged war against other states in the eastern Mediterranean region. In the 140 s B. C. , all of Greece fell under Roman rule. About 20 years later, Rome acquired its first province in Asia.

The Punic Wars: 4 minute video https: //www. youtube. com/watch? v=n. Uo. Vm. Ao 9 FH 8