Jillian Kurzmann's Blog 4/10/18

Jillian Kurzmann
4/10/18
Western Civilization

Today in class, we took textbook notes. We also started to go over our tests.

• Rome
• The Origins of Rome
• Rome was founded in 753 B.C. by Romulus and Remus, the twins of Mars and a Latin princess.
• They were abandoned and raised by a she-wolf.
• This area (Rome) was chosen for its location and soil.
• Rome was built on seven rolling hills on a curve near the center of the Italian Peninsula.
• It was midway between the Alps and Italy's southern tip. It was also near the midpoint of the Mediterranean Sea.
• The first Romans were the Latins, Greeks, and Etruscans.
• The very first were the Latins.
• The Greeks established colonies along southern Italy.
• These cities prospered.
• The Etruscans strongly influenced Rome's development.
• They boasted literature and architecture.
• The Early Republic 
• Kings ordered that the first temples and public centers be the heart of Roman political life.
• The Last King was Tarquin the Proud.
• He was a harsh tyrant driven from power.
• The Romans declared that they would never be ruled by a king again.
• They became a republic.
• A form of government in which power rests with the citizens, who have the right to vote for their leaders.
• There was a struggle for power.
• Patricians- wealthy landowners who held the most of the power.
• Plebeians- the common farmers artisans, and merchants, who made up the majority of the population.
• The Plebeians won and created Tribunes.
• Protected the rights of the plebeians from unfair acts of Patrician officials.
• They created laws that were carved into twelve tables.
• It was used to protect citizens.
• People believed that Rome had the best combination of Monarchy, Aristocracy, and Democracy.
• They had two Consuls.
• They commanded the army and directed the government.
• They only lasted 1 year.
• They had a Senate.
• The aristocratic branch of Rome's government.
• It had 300 members.
• They could have a dictator in a time of crisis.
• a leader who had absolute power and command for the laws and the army.
• They had legions.
• Roman soldiers were organized into them.
• The military was key to Rome's rise in greatness.
• Rome's Spread of Power
• Rome's power grew slowly but, steadily.
• Rome varied its culture among its conquered territories.
• Rome's location was also key to its rise in greatness.
• They traded throughout the Mediterranean.
• Rome and Carthage had a war known as the Punic Wars.
• They fought three wars.
• Hannibal was one of Carthage's generals.
• Scipio was a Roman general.
• He came up with a tactic to destroy Hannibal's army.
• It caused Hannibal to retreat back to defend its native city.
• By 70 B.C., Rome's Empire stretched from Anatolia to Spain.