ROME

Rise and Fall of the Empire

Christianity

Rome’s Impact

• Octavian became the first Roman Emperor in 27 B.C.

• The Senate gave him the title of Augustus which meant exalted.

• Augustus began the Julian line of emperors.

• He began a period of peace and prosperity known as the Pax Romana which began with Augustus and continued for 200 years.

Octavian - Augustus:

Rome’s First Emperor

• Encouraged widespread trade

• Glorified Rome with splendid buildings

• Created a stable system of government that lasted for centuries

• Encouraged the old values of simplicity, sober conduct and patriotism (Gravitas)

• Created a common coinage throughout the empire which made trade easier

• Established fair taxation

• Began highway construction to bind his empire together

• Began public works programs

• Established a civil service

Octavian - Augustus:

Rome’s First Emperor

Jesus of Nazareth

•Born in Judea in town of Bethlehem and

raised in village of Nazareth.

•Baptized by a prophet John the Baptist

•As a young man he was a carpenter.

•Around age 30 began a public ministry

where he preached, taught, did good

works, and reportedly performed many

miracles.

Teachings of Jesus

• Based on Jewish traditions of monotheism and the

Ten Commandments

• Stated that He was the true Son of God.

• His teachings emphasized:

• A personal relationship of all believers with God

• Love for God, one another, enemies and self.

• God would end wickedness and create an eternal

kingdom for those who believed and repented of

their sins

Death of Jesus

• Jesus drew large crowds who claimed He was the

Messiah that had been prophesized in Jewish

scripture.

• His growing popularity worried Roman and Jewish

leaders.

• Jewish leaders denied His deity and claimed that his

teachings were blasphemy.

• He was accused of disloyalty to Rome and its

leaders.

• He was sentenced to crucifixion by Roman

authorities around 30 AD.

Rise and Spread of Christianity • According to the Christian tradition:

• Jesus was resurrected from the dead after three

days and appeared to many of His followers.

• He ascended into Heaven after 40 days.

• He will return to establish a kingdom on earth for

believers.

• His disciples became known as apostles and began

spreading His teachings.

• They referred to Him as Christos (messiah or savior).

The name Christianity derives from it.

• Large numbers of people throughout the Roman

Empire were attracted to the new religion.

Apostle Paul • A Jewish scholar originally known as Saul of

Tarsus. He persecuted early Christians.

• On a trip to Damascus he claimed to have had a

vision of the resurrected Jesus who commanded

him to spread the gospel.

• Saul converted to Christianity and became

known as the Apostle Paul.

• Spent the remainder of his life teaching and

writing about Jesus on several journeys

throughout the Roman Empire.

• Had tremendous influence, especially on

Gentiles (non-Jews) because he claimed that

Christianity was open to all people.

• New Christian churches were formed

throughout the Empire and drew large numbers

of converts.

Diocletian - Divided the

Empire into Eastern

and Western halves in

order to better

manage it.

The Decline of the Empire Following the death of Marcus Aurelius, the Empire began

to slowly decline. Civil War, barbarian invasions and

internal strife threatened its very existence. Two strong

leaders managed to hold the Empire together for a while.

Constantine - Established a new Roman capital at

Byzantium which later became Constantinople.

He converted to Christianity in 310. He was the

last effective ruler.

The Decline of the Empire

Decline of the Roman Empire Political Weaknesses

• The Empire became to large to administer

• Decline of the military and loyalty to

government

• Series of weak rulers

Economic Decline

• Heavy government expenses drained the treasury

• Trade, industry, and agriculture began to

disappear

• Revenue from conquered lands declined

• Heavy taxation caused internal strife

Decline of the Roman Empire

Outside Invasions

• Germanic tribes invaded the outposts of the

Empire gradually weakening the defenses

• Visigoths, Ostrogoths and Vandals were the main

invaders.

• They were pushed into Roman territory by the

Huns

Other Factors

• Population of the Empire declined

• Decay in family life and morals

• Spread of Christianity discouraged aggressiveness

Fall of the Roman Empire

• In the late 300’s barbarian tribes began to

invade the Western Empire

• In 476 the Western Empire fell to the

invaders and ended the Empire.

•This date marks the end of the ancient

period of history.

The Legacies of Ancient Rome

Republican form of Government

Roman Law and Legal System

Latin and Romance Languages

Roman Catholic Church (Christianity)

City Planning

Roman Engineering

• Aqueducts

• Sewage systems

• Concrete

• Arch and Dome

• Roads & Highways