A Brief History of Humanity: From Ancient Times to the 21st Century

Chapter 9 The Rise of the Roman City-State

[-]. Italy before the rise of Rome
While Hellenistic civilization was prevalent along the eastern Mediterranean coast, a new powerful country was quietly being conceived.A city in Italy put Italy on the road to a world empire, and this emerging city-state must have attracted great attention.

The Italian tribes were at the end of the Bronze Age, around 1000 BC. If we come to Italy at this time, we will find that there are many alliance tribes living on the fertile plains in the southwest of the Apennine Mountains.These Italian tribes were actually mixed peoples.Some of them were farmers who grew grains such as wheat and beans, raised cattle, made wine, and provided flax for their wives and daughters to weave.And some people are coppersmiths, who can use bronze to cast exquisite swords and daily utensils.Most of their houses are built of earth and wicker.The inhabitants practiced many different occupations, but few could read or write, nor could they design a temple, let alone build a palace out of marble.The Latins who lived on the top of the mountains around the Tiber River were originally a tribe of Latium, from where Latin language and Latin law were born and spread to the world through the city of Rome.

The Etruscan cities Around 900 BC, a group of explorers, no, perhaps a group of pirates would be more appropriate.They sailed up the west coast of Italy and landed just north of Latium.They took it by force and built a dozen walled cities here by their kin.Historically, they were known as the Etruscans, and they are said to have come from the region of Asia Minor.The city-state they established in Italy was called Etruria in history, and it was also called Tuscany in modern times.

The Etruscans connected Italian culture with the ancient culture of the East, and played an important role in the progress of human history, far exceeding their own value.Commercial trade between the Etruscans and the Greeks was flourishing long ago.The Greeks were more than happy to exchange their pottery and cloth for the copper and iron of the Etruscans.Likewise, the alphabet, armor, tactics, and Greek styles of painting and carving that the Greeks created carried over to Etruria, and the Etruscans brought these cultures to Rome.What is even more surprising is that they also possessed the craftsmanship of the Babylonians in building arches and sewage treatment technology. Not only that, but later generations also found traces of other ancient civilizations in the world in their city-states.

The Greek colonies followed in the footsteps of the Etruscans, and the Greek colonists soon followed.Greek colonists mainly occupied southern Italy and Sicily, and the longest-lasting colony was Kumai.Founded around 800 BC, Cumae was located south of the Tiber, further north than other southwestern Italian colonies north of the Gulf of Naples.Between the 7th and 8th centuries BC, the number of colonies grew rapidly along the southern Italian coast and in Sicily, especially in the eastern part of Sicily.The ancient city of Syracuse had actually become the largest colony at that time.As we know, eastern Sicily and southern Italy have become an important part of the Greek world, and it is also a very crucial part.Later, this area became known as "Great Greece", or even "Greater Greece".It was not until about 300 BC that the great cities of Greece were considered more important and more promising than Rome.However, at this time Greece had been conquered by Rome, and their culture was assimilated by Roman culture.

[-]. City of Rome
A small country and a city-state with few people. According to the legend handed down from ancient Rome, Rome was built in 753 BC by twin brothers who were raised by a she-wolf. They were Romulus and Lemo.However, this is a legend after all, and modern historians do not believe it.Rome was once a small country with few people, or a city-state.It has repeatedly had disputes and even wars with surrounding countries.Its last dynasty, the Tarquin dynasty, was lost to history at the end of the 6th century BC.According to historical records, Rome developed into a republic in 509 BC.

An unprecedentedly powerful republic Early Rome was an agricultural country, and agriculture was the economic foundation of Rome, so farmers naturally became the first-class citizens of early Rome.At that time, farming was an honorable profession, and their farmland and pastures were just outside the city walls. They not only provided abundant resources for their country, but also assumed the responsibility of defending the country.In that era dominated by agriculture, there were few commercial activities and transactions between items, and there was no currency for transactions, so they used cattle and copper nuggets as the medium of transaction.Rome once spawned a maritime civilization, so the Roman cities located by the river were not as developed as the cities by the sea for a long time. For example, the cities by the Tiber River were lagging behind the cities by the Aegean Sea.Rome in the 5th century BC did not appreciate art and literature very much, and naturally there were no such people as Phidias, Aeschylus, and Socrates.At that time, the Roman citizens were not highly educated, and their residences were also very simple, mostly thatched huts with earthen walls.

The Romans believed in and enshrined the gods, and they learned from the Etruscans to build temples for the gods. The difference is that they used ordinary rough stone as a building material instead of granite or stone like the Etruscans. marble.But they still had to employ Etruscan and Greek artisans to decorate their new buildings.At that time, Roman blacksmiths were able to manufacture agricultural implements, armor for self-defense, and offensive weapons.

Excellent location The places where the great river civilization was born know how to take advantage of the convenient and abundant marine resources, which are beneficial to the developing towns.The cities near the Tiber River are relatively safe and can avoid pirate raids. The Tiber River also provides them with convenient water transportation and can conduct maritime trade very conveniently, so they have a relatively stable development environment.There is a small wooden bridge connecting the north and the south on the Tiber River. There are seven small hills gathered around the small bridge and distributed on both sides of the river.These places are not only suitable for building temples and palaces, but also can play a defensive role. Fertile farmland is distributed among them, creating good conditions for the development of cities.

The influence of Etruria Etruria transformed Rome from a village of huts with earthen walls into a country that used ashlar as a building material.In the process of completing the transformation, Etruria had the greatest influence on Rome.Because in the 6th century BC and later, Rome was deeply influenced by Etruscans in all aspects, so we infer that the last few kings of Rome may be Etruscans.The Etruscans learned writing from the Kumi, and the Romans learned the modified Greek alphabet from the Etruscans.However, this is not the most important thing. The most important thing is that the Romans learned the Greek phalanx in order to increase their military strength.Until then, the Romans, like other Italian tribes, had shown no regard for military order or discipline when it came to war.However, they learned from the Etruscans to equip infantry with Greek armor, spears, shields, etc., and to fight in dense formations.

Religion in Rome The main places where the early Romans engaged in religious activities were homes and farms, and the home was the most important temple and a place of worship.There are many gods enshrined in each family, such as Lares, the god of ancestors, and Vesta, the god of stove fire.In addition to each family, the city-state also has its own gods.The god Jupiter was considered a unique protector of Rome, like Athena of Athens.The supreme goddess Juno is the protector of women.Janus, the door god, has his temples, which he opens in times of war and closes in times of peace.And Mars was the god of war, and there were many other gods.

[-]. The nobles and commoners of Rome

Aristocratic Rome is a republic of nobles, and the early nobles were called "Patrician".Nobility is hereditary, and only nobles can hold seats in the Senate or hold the highest government office.The nobles were priests in the public halls; or interpreted the laws, which, of course, were still unwritten at the time.

The nobles not only enjoyed great political privileges, but also owned the largest farms and owned a large number of tenants called "protected people", who were considered to be superior to commoners in society.Commoners are called "Pleb" or "Plebeon".Most of them are workers, servants and lowly farmers.Although they were freedmen and Roman citizens, they enjoyed few rights.The common people are very dissatisfied with the status quo of life. They cannot participate more in politics, and the interest rate on the debt is too high. The cattle and sheep of the nobles are grazing in groups on the public grassland, resulting in nowhere to feed the cows raised by the common people.In addition, the aristocrats also took large areas of publicly owned land for private use, causing common people to complain and complain.

Main Offices in Rome The highest positions in the Roman administration were held by the two consuls, the administrator and the commander of the army.Around the middle of the 5th century BC, the Roman administrative organization gradually expanded. On the basis of the previous ones, two more "financial officers" were selected to be in charge of the treasurer and archives management, and then gradually increased to four.In addition, a "household registration officer" was elected to be responsible for the census, collection of taxes, and management of contracting tasks for public works.In addition, the "construction officer" is responsible for supervising the market, managing streets and water supply, etc.In the 4th century BC, Rome elected some "judges" to assist the consuls. They mainly acted as judges in litigation and announced the laws that should be implemented.In addition, except for the "building officials" who are held by nobles, other officials must be elected by the citizens' assembly, so as to increase the chances of citizens to enter the political arena.So far, the Roman official system has gradually become more perfect.

The Senate and the Assembly of the People The members of the Senate in Rome are all composed of nobles, which is a very powerful institution.All laws and all candidates for important office need to be approved by this institution, so it is not difficult to see the great power of the Senate.The opposite of the aristocratic politics of the Senate is the popular assembly of Rome.The form of the popular assembly is constantly changing, and there are different forms in different periods.In the 5th century BC, it was mainly an assembly of civilians, called an assembly, and naturally it would not have much power, let alone compare with the Citizens Assembly in Athens at the same time.Often the plebeian assembly merely ratified laws already drawn up by the officials, made treaties, and announced candidates already chosen by the aristocratic leaders.Therefore, the civilian assembly in this period can be said to be a formal meeting with "fake appearances".

Progress of the plebeians The plebeians have repeatedly risen up, threatening to quit, secede from Roman rule, and form their own government. Although these revolts were not successful, they did achieve some results, for example: They won the plebeian membership in 466 BC The four new officials elected by the central government are called "tribunes", that is, officials who protect the interests of civilians.Before long the law began to become civilized again, and there began to be fixed clauses to be followed, the nobles were no longer free to interpret the laws as they wished, and the plebeian assembly was more democratic.

By the end of the 5th century BC, the treasurer could start to be a commoner; in the 4th century BC, there was the first civilian consul. Since then, one of the two consuls must be a commoner.In the 4th century BC, commoners were also elected for the first time as dictators, judges, and household registrars; by the end of the 4th century, they were also allowed to serve as priests of the city-state.All these changes made a small number of civilians enter the Senate every year, because some civilians held important positions, and these senior government officials in important positions were lifelong members of the Senate after retiring, so civilians began to enter the Senate.In the struggle for the interests of the common people and the nobles in Rome, it is obvious that the common people gradually marched in at a slow speed. It is no longer the privilege of the nobles to hold official positions.

In 287 BC, the Commonwealth Assembly gained greater legislative power, so that the common people took another step forward in competing for the interests of the nobles.Therefore, after a long and tortuous struggle, most of the old irreconcilable contradictions between the common people and the nobles were gradually broken by the common people.Some of the original commoners began to become richer, and they held important positions and entered the Senate, breaking the previous prohibition against intermarriage with nobles.From an economic point of view, there are still irreconcilable contradictions between some gradually developed common people and upper classes and poor farmers, tenant farmers and urban workers.To solve these problems, the politicians made all kinds of promises to gain popularity, but this verbal promises still failed to solve the land problem and debt problem, so these problems still plagued Rome for many years to come.

[-]. Rome unified Italy

While these political changes were taking place, Rome waged a series of wars that hardly ceased.From about 350 BC to 265 BC, from the Arno River to the south of the Rubicon River, the entire territory of Italy was controlled by Rome.

Rome's war equipment Almost all conquest wars carried out by Rome were successful, and one of the important reasons was that Rome's war equipment was very sophisticated.The Romans, having learned their equipment from the Etruscans, usually formed a well-armed phalanx, which was very effective in fighting on the plains.But when the Roman army entered the hills and mountains and had to fight long distances, it adopted another formation and equipment.It is very important to flexibly change the way of equipment in war.Because of this, the Romans invented the legion organization and widely used this method in the army. Usually, a legion can be broken down into several small armies. Each army has undergone skilled drills and can quickly change into different formations. Configure different equipment.When necessary, the legion can be quickly broken down into small groups, the team is scattered but not chaotic, and can be reassembled into a large army at any time.Every soldier in the legion is equipped with a helmet, shield and armor, which is very tightly protected.Soldiers hold heavy javelins with sharp iron points on them, which can be thrown at the enemy from a long distance. If they attack in a narrow place, they can use short swords.During the legion's march, they built camps every night, rested their troops, and fortified them tightly.

Roman warriors The military strength of Rome mostly relied on measures such as complete weapons, formation changes, training and defense, all of which had an important impact on the development of Rome's military.However, in the military, people are more important than machines.Soldiers grew up in an environment of defending against the enemy. They have long been used to being surrounded by enemies and fighting for their lives.As Rome's population grew and its resources became scarcer, soldiers fought again for land and loot.In addition, the Romans worshiped heroes, and they all fought for personal honor.

Rome and Viai Etruria consisted of twelve cities, of which the nearest city to Rome was Vei, located twelve miles north of Rome.The conflict between Rome and Viai is usually resolved by war. The two sides have been fighting for many years, but neither side is willing to compromise.In 396 BC, the Gaul army attacked Etruria from the north, and Rome took the opportunity to capture Viai and completely destroyed the city.Nine years later, Rome suffered the same fate, when the Gauls successfully attacked Rome and set fire to part of the Roman Empire.Regarding this incident, there are different records in history. The Romans claimed that the Gauls were eventually driven away by them, and they did not take advantage of it.Another record is that the Gauls got a ransom of [-] pounds of gold before they withdrew from the Roman territory.

Not long after the conquest of Latium, Rome recovered from the devastation of the Gauls and built a larger and stronger empire.On the border of Latium, the Romans captured two Italian tribes, the Aequi and the Volsci.The other Latin cities watched Rome grow and grow with envy.A century ago, these cities and Rome formed a loosely organized federation known as the Latin Confederation.However, more than 100 years later, war broke out between other cities and Rome, and the battle lasted for two full years (338-336 BC).After repeated attacks and sieges, Rome became the undisputed master of the plain.

The Samnite War In the east of Rome and the Apennines in the north of Naples, there are some fierce and tenacious tribes. They are composed of Samnite living in the mountains, and they gradually attract the attention of others.These tribes expanded their sphere of influence and went south to directly attack the plain area, because the plain area is coastal and extremely rich.The Samnite invasion caused panic in Naples and Capua, and they turned to Rome for help.Rome immediately sent troops to support these areas, but also to help itself.But the Samonites are extremely tenacious and not easy to submit. The war between the two sides is not only protracted, but also fierce and cruel.Rome has been repeatedly defeated by the opponent, but it has never given up admitting defeat.From 325 BC to 290 BC, the war lasted for 35 years.It ended with the defeat of the Samnites, who were conquered by Rome and their allies.So these tribes became the "allies" of Rome.

Conquering Etruria Before 280 BC, Rome conquered all the cities in Etruria, such as Viai, and these cities became Rome's "allies".At the same time, the Gauls were also expelled by Rome to the north of the Rubicon River, and their land was occupied and annexed by Rome.In this way, Rome's northern frontier was pushed as far as the Rubicon and Arno rivers.

Magna Graecia In the southern part of the Italian peninsula, some highly cultured cities are called "Graecia", such as Lycion, Rocri, Heraclea, Turi and Taranto.However, these cities are not good at fighting, and the citizens of the city-states have long since lost the warlike character of the Greeks.At that time, like many other Greek cities, citizens did not serve as soldiers to fight, but relied on hiring foreigners to fight for them in battle.More than this, the extreme lack of unity among the city-states is enough to prove that they have a Greek style and character.There were constant frictions and quarrels between the city-states. Turi once asked Rome to help attack Taranto, and Taranto sent envoys to the east and crossed the sea to seek help from Epirus. Rose, he is young and ambitious.

Pyrrhus, just as his name implies, is resolute like a fire, and shrewd and capable.He brought with him the best army the Romans had ever faced with such a good and powerful opponent.In addition, Pyrrhus brought a herd of elephants, all war elephants who had received military training.The Roman legions sent troops from the seven hills of the Tiber River, but suffered a disastrous defeat.Pyrrhus took advantage of the victory and pursued, driving straight from southern Italy, almost reaching the gate of Rome.Outside Rome, Pyrrhus attacked again, and the Roman legion was completely defeated.However, Rome did not give in and asked for peace. Instead, it united with Carthage, was very tenacious, and continued to fight.

Under such circumstances, Pyrrhus could only continue the war and further push the front to Sicily, hoping to defeat Carthage.Unfortunately, Pyrrhus relied on his allies in Sicily, but these Greek "friends" of his betrayed him and failed to render due aid, as a result the Carthaginians sank all his ships , his fleet was completely destroyed.When he retreated back to Italy, he was defeated by the Romans.Pyrrhus had no choice but to flee back to Epirus with his legionary phalanx, leaving the once powerful army with only remnants and defeated soldiers.Pyrrhus became silent and melancholy, but also learned to be wiser.Soon after, Taranto surrendered to Rome and opened its doors to Rome.By 270 BC, the entire southern part of Italy was under Roman rule.

The Romans are very practical, especially from the performance of the war. They obtained a lot of spoils in the war, and allocated part of it to build a 37-mile-long viaduct, which can smoothly lead the clear water from the mountain to the Go to Rome.

The policy of strength dealt with those conquered peoples, and the Romans were very resourceful, very shrewd, and very successful.Once Romans had subdued their opponents, they usually allowed them to keep most of their lands, follow their own laws, and manage local affairs according to their own customs.But Rome established colonies in those conquered lands.About [-] Roman citizens settled in each colony, and each citizen was assigned a small farm.Colonies were established not only to relieve the pressure on the Roman population and provide the Romans with plenty of land, but also to ensure that outlying areas had communities of citizens, all loyal to Rome.When the conquered peoples did show their allegiance to Rome and acted on it, Rome treated the cities more leniently, governed them more kindly, and continued to add privileges to them as long as they continued to perform well.

Rome's roads At the same time, Rome is always ready to deal with emergencies.For example, Rome built flat, wide roads extending in all directions.There is a saying: "All roads lead to Rome." In fact, their main purpose of building roads at first was to have roads that could lead from Rome to other cities.The real intention is that the legion can start from Rome and quickly march to various places during the war, and at the same time it is convenient for the city of Rome to contact the colonies and maintain a close relationship.However, the road of Rome has become the main artery of civilization development and progress, greatly promoting internal and external exchanges and commercial trade.In other words, after the Romans conquered southern Italy, they established access to Greek civilization.Around 269 BC, the Romans minted the earliest silver coins. With the development of Roman roads, the currency spread to all over the world, and the roads became the routes of trade exchanges, which greatly stimulated the development of commerce.Rome's first dramatist was a Greek captive who was taken from Taranto and brought to Rome along the famous Via Appius.This road goes all the way to the south, and it was built in order to win the war when Appius Claudius fought with the Samnites.

Roman roads often brought opportunities, and the Romans seized them in good time.When Alexander's empire was completely disintegrated, the Roman Empire was brewing and being created, and the road of Rome has always led it to the top of the empire.

(End of this chapter)