Roman History Outline
This list of events will help students prepare
their newspaper projects.
Legendary Founding of Rome
Aeneas -
Romulus
and Remus Take a quiz
about Romulus!
Because there weren't enough women in the new
village of Rome, the men kidnapped the Sabine women! Eventually
they became their wives and according to some stories, they tried
to prevent their relatives and new husbands from fighting each
other.
famous
picture of Sabine woman trying to stop the battle between her
relatives and her new husband - David.
Horatius
at the Bridge - a hero
story.
509 B.C. Getting
rid of King Tarquin and starting a
republic [From Ancient History
Timeline] The Patricians (rich and
powerful people) and the plebians (merchants, farmers, and
artisans of Rome were allowed to vote, but only Patricians were
allowed in the senate. ) set up a republic in which senators were
elected. A
new form of government
The Roman Republic 509 BCE The Republican
Revolution: The Etruscan monarchy is overthrown and the Republic is
established
The historical record of the
early kings of Rome is hostile, the early monarchy was
overthrown and banished. The history of this period is a
mixture of myth and fact, passed on as oral tradition until
recorded centuries later by historians such as Livy and
Diodorus.
Apparently, Rome was ruled by seven kings
from 753 BCE until 509 BCE, when Tarquinius Superbus was
defeated in a popular rebellion. The idea of the Republic
became an icon, the honour of which all future leaders would
have to publicly ascribe.
The Republican Revolution established
principles of self government which Romans would nostalgically
emulate even in the Augustan age. That the primary sources
recording this important event are largely historical myth is
frustrating to the modern scholar, they are more valuable for
what they reveal towards the Roman idea of virtue, morality,
and the Roman perception of the ideal woman, than actual
events.
The cause of the revolution is said to be
the rape of Lucretia. [See
the Anceint Roman Timeline to learn more!]
The Punic Wars
Punic
Wars (First Punic War: 264-241 BC,
Second 218-202 BC and Third 149-146 BC ) [Washington State
University site; by Richard Tucker]
The
Roman Navy in the First Punic War -
"
The
Punic Wars
Hannibal
Barca and the Punic Wars - A Tour
Battles of the Punic Wars
The
Second Punic War (with
maps)
Hannibal
Barca (general of the 2nd Punic
War)
Destruction
of Pompeii by Mount Vesuvius in
79 A.D. and the Eruption
of Vesuvius
Pompeii
and Herculaneum
- Two cities were covered by the eruption of the volcano Vesuvius.
Also see The
Day Vesuvius Awoke
Today these cities have been uncovered and are
fascinating places to visit! It's like stepping back into
time.
Slavery - and the Revolt led by
Spartacus
scene
from the movie Spartacus
Building an Empire
Julius Caesar
Julius
Caesar and Julius
Caesar, the Last Dictator
Julius
Caesar and the conquest of Gaul
Julius
Caesar returns to Rome (crossing the
Rubicon)
Cleopatra's
meeting with Julius Caesar
Cleopatra
and another biography of Cleopatra
.
. .
Cleopatra
statue, British Museum
44 B.C. Ides of March (March 15)
Assassination
of Julius Caesar and more about
Julius
Ceasar's Life
The Emperors: (For general
introduction, see Those
Whacky Emperors!)
Caesar
Augustus (Octavian) and
Emperor
Augustus 27 BC - AD 14
[NorthPark University,
Illinois] And a good, short
biography
of Caesar
Augustus.
[Electronic Passport, Mr. Dowling]
Caesar
Augustus statue
Caligula
- a crazy emperor who was assassinated! He made his favorite horse
into a senator! There are rumors that he even married and then
killed his sister. He thought he was a god! (12 - 41 A.D.; ruled
37 - 41 A.D.) Read another biography of Caligula
Emperor
Nero (ruled 54 - 68) He was known for
persecution of Christians who were scapegoats for the great fire
of Rome. Nero
37-68 A.D. (Student report)
Many historians thought he was insane. He
murdered his mother and his wife and threw thousands of Christians
to the lions. There is a legend that he played a harp while Rome
burned!
Did
he fiddle while Rome burned?
More links about Nero
and more about Nero
Hadrian
The Wall
of Hadrian across northern England
to keep out the "barbarians" first built by order of emperor
Hadrian between AD 122 and 128
See images of Birdoswald
& Chesters
& Vinolanda
(all parts of Hadrian's Wall in Northern England near the
border with Scotland.
Constantine
fought a battle with his rivals for Roman power after he
saw "a vision of a cross"and heard a voice saying, "In This Sign,
You Will Conquer (In Hoc Singo Vinces) ." He made his battle sign
a Christian symbol. After he won, he stopped the persecution of
Christians in Rome and became a Christian on his deathbed.
In 324 AD Constantine the Great became the Emperor under the
sign of the Cross. After that came an edict [a new law
that was announced] to allow Christianity and to stop
persecuting Christians. But Constantine's cruel increased rather
than decreased. Within three years of his championship of orthodox
Christianity at the Council of Nicaea, Constantine put a nephew to
death, drowned his wife in a bath, and murdered a son.
Constantine also moved the capital of Rome to Byzantium and the
capital was named Constantinople (city of Constantine) and the
Eastern Roman Empire became known as the Byzantine Empire. Thus
Rome was no longer the center of the empire.
Constantine
converts to Christianity
A good, brief biography
of Constantine and story of
Constantinople
[Mr. Dowling's Electronic Passport]
Justinian
and Theodora Rulers of the Eastern
Roman Empire - and read "The Secret History" which says terrible
things about them both! [From Timeline
VII of Ancient Rome]
Christian
Church History
Birth
of Jesus
Chronology
of Christianity
Introduction to Christian
History
[Mr. Dowling's site: Electronic Passport]
Also see how
early Christians worshipped.
Persecution: See The
Christians as the Romans Saw Them,
especially the report by Tacitus who tells that Emperor Nero
blamed the fire of Rome [summer, 64 C.E.] had been ordered
by Christians.
"Thus those who confessed (to being Christians) were
first arrested, then on evidence from them a large multitude
was convicted, not so much for the charge of arson
[setting fires] as for their hatred of the
human race. Besides being put to death they were made objects
of amusement; they were clothed in hides of beasts and torn to
death by dogs; others were crucified, others were set on fire
to illuminate the night after sunset. Nero threw open his
grounds for the display and put on a show at the circus where
he mingled with the people dressed like a charioteer and
driving about in his chariot. All this gave rise to a feeling
of pity, evens towards these men who deserved the most
exemplary punishment since it was felt they were being killed,
not for the public good but to gratify the cruelty of an
individual."
Fall of the Western Roman Empire
Battle
of Adrianople - the beginning of the
end for the Roman Empire. 378 C.E.
Read about the Vandals
who sacked Rome in 409 A.C. (from History
for Kids)
Attitla the Hun - Attila's
Invasion into Italy
Attila
the Hun (Reigned 434-453)
Attila
the Hun in 441 mounted an
invasion of the Eastern Roman Empire, the success of which
emboldened Attila to invade the West. He passed unhindered
through Austria and Germany, across the Rhine into Gaul,
plundering and devastating all in his path with a ferocity
unparalleled in the records of barbarian invasions and
compelling those he overcame to augment his mighty army. In
451 he was met on the Plains of Chalons by the allied Romans
under Actius and the Visigoths under Theodoric and
Thorismond, who overcame the Huns and averted the peril that
menaced Western civilization.
Turning then to Italy, Attila, in the spring of 452, laid
waste Aquileia and many Lombard cities, and was approaching
Rome, whither Valentinian III had fled before him, when he
was met near Mantua by an embassy -- the most influential
member of which was Pope Leo I -- which convinced Attila not
to sack (destroy) the city.
Priscus
at the Court of Attila - an
eyewitness account of a meeting with Attila.
455 AD Vandals Sack Rome ... The
Vandals viewed the assassination of the Western Roman Emperor
Valentinian III as an opportunity to attack Rome. Their attack
was successful and the city was sacked. Read more about the
History
of the Vandals.
476 AD Western Roman Empire Ends ...
The Western Roman Empire came to an end when the Emperor
Romulus Augustulus was deposed by German mercenaries at
Ravenna. The German mercenaries then declared themselves to be
the rulers of Italy.
The Last Emperor - Romulus Augustulus
475-476 CE
Romulus Augustulus was declared emperor of the western Roman
empire by his father, the Patrician Orestes, who led a
successful coup against the ruling emperor, Nepos. Nepos fled
from Orestes' formidible army by sea to Dalmatia.
A number of sources tell the tale:
After Nepos fled from Rome, Orestes took over but made his
son Augustulus emperor.
Augustulus was perhaps 14 years old at the time. His name
means "little Augustus". He was primarily a front for his
father, Orestes, who maintained power behind the scenes.
Orestes made a critical error in judgement however, in not
providing land grants for his troops, at their request. They
were a diverse lot, from various tribes and factions, and their
loyalty to Orestes was never secure.
When Orestes failed them, they turned to the barbarian
chieftain Odovacar, who promised to grant them their land
if they made him king. They agreed, and, in 476, they advanced
against Orestes. Orestes was killed, and Augustulus was granted
mercy because of his young age. Augustulus was banished to
exile in a castle in the provinces.
Augustus ruled for only ten months. He is often considered
to be the last Roman emperor of the western Roman empire. The
sixth Century chronicler Count Marcellinus stated that:
"The western Empire of the Roman people, which first began
in the seven hundred and ninth year after the founding of the
City with Octavian Augustus, the first of the emperors,
perished with this Augustulus, in the five-hundred and
twenty-second year of the reign of Augustus' successor
emperors. From this point on Gothic kings held power in
Rome"
The Fall of the Roman Empire - Three
Reasons for the Fall of the Western Roman Empire
General Links About Roman
History
Virtual
Tour of Rome
Roman
History by a Middle School Teacher - Mr. Dowling
Roman
Arms and Armor
The
Forum Romanum - market place about 100
A.D.
Roman
History - Children's Section
The
Roman Empire A good chronology of the
main events of Roman history with many active links.
Gladiator
- A Real Story?
Transvestites
of Rome - gender bending in ancient
Rome
The
Roman Art of Death - Famous deaths and
assassinations, funeral, and escapes
Map
of the Roman Empire
Timelines
of Roman History - a very good set of
sites from the beginning of Rome to its Fall
A Concise History
of the Roman Empire
Another great site for Roman
History - many links - very good on
games, gladiators, even ball games!
Ancient
Rome - great links for teachers and
students
Resources on Roman
Way of Life
Lesson Plans for Teachers
Roman
Culture and Daily Life