Photos from Our World

Ancient Rome

The first known settlers of ancient Rome, a people called Latins, lived on the Palatine Hill and the region surrounding it. Around 600 BC, Rome and other towns in Latium, as that region was called, came under the control of the Etruscans, a people originally from Asia Minor, who lived north of Latium. A people with an advanced civilization, the Etruscans built roads, temples, and public buildings, promoted trade and transformed Rome from a village of farmers and shepherds into a prosperous city.

In 509 BC the Latin people overthrew the Etruscan monarchy and established the Roman Republic. By 396 BC Rome had become the largest city in Latium and offered protection and certain privileges of Roman citizenship to the cities it conquered, in return of its men joining the army. Rome ruled most of the Italian Peninsula by 275 BC and expansion overseas made Rome a mighty empire during the 200's and 100's BC, conquering Spain and North Africa and expanding into Asia Minor.

But, although the Romans had triumphed overseas, they faced growing discontent at home. Revolts by Rome's Italian allies, a war in Asia, and unrest at home weakened the republic. In 82 BC, the Roman general Lucius Sulla became dictator and, after more conquests in the Middle East and the subjugation of the Gauls in the 50's BC, Julius Ceasar eventually prevailed over his rivals and by 45 BC he had become sole ruler of the Roman world. A group of aristocrats who hoped to revive the Roman Republic however assassinated him in 44 BC

Civil war again broke out after Caesar's death. In 43 BC, Caesar's adopted son and heir, Octavian, after internal battles with his rivals, conquered Egypt and became eventually the unchallenged leader of the Roman world. In 27 BC, he became the first Roman emperor and took the name Augustus, meaning exalted. The reign of Augustus marked the beginning of a long period of stability, which became known as the Pax Romana (Roman Peace), lasting about 200 years. Trade flourished, and art and literature reached a high point during what has been called the Augustan Age. In AD 43, Emperor Claudius invaded Britain and Trajan seized Dacia (now part of Hungary and Romania) in AD 106. The authority of the Roman emperors gradually grew stronger and the Romans worshiped an emperor as a god after his death, providing a common base of loyalty among the empire's peoples, who otherwise observed many different religions and traditions.

	Model of ancient Rome	Forum Romanum	From Palatine Hill	Atrium Vestae
	Arch of Titus	Sculpture, Arch of Titus	Via Sacra	Trajan's column
	Colosseum	Colosseum and Circus	Circus Maximus	Forum Boarium

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