Geography

Location• Location was very important to Rome for

many reasons. One reason is because of natural barriers.(mountains, oceans, cliffs, ect.) Also, location was very important because the food you got depended on where you lived.

• The Romans also had an army as well as a navy. That was because they lived by the Mediterranean sea so there was always the possibility of invaders arriving in war ships. This could also be used as an advantage.

• If you were located in the right place, you could easily overthrow a “city” or empire. Like Rome did with Carthage. They made a peace treaty and as a result, Carthage became more beautiful than Rome because of their resources.

Punic Wars• During the Punic wars Carthage was was

merely a small town. It overthrew many other towns and soon became a large “city” that was filled with beauty. Rome grew jealous.

• Carthage resulted as a target for many empires because of its resources and location.(narrowest part of the Mediterranean sea) War broke out between Rome and Carthage which therefore started the Punic wars.

• The reason Rome made a navy was because Carthage had a very powerful and organized one. The Romans studied the structure of the ship and, as a result, made more than 200! Rome failed at first but in the end, Rome had finally overthrown Carthage.

Expansion• Rome expanded to areas near the

sea. They had a navy that could overthrow large empires such as Carthage. Once Rome did overthrow Carthage, they had an unlimited supply of sea food.

• When Rome expanded to Carthage, they started to create different foods such as salted jellyfish and sea urchins. The wealthy Romans got much more food than the others.

• Rome was also in a good farming area. They raised crops and chicken.

Resources• The Romans had an excellent

food supply. They had herbs, water, wines, fruits, vegetables, sea food, mice, and birds.

• The wealthy Romans had more food options than the other Romans did. They bought all of the rich foods available because the common people could only afford the simple things such as bread, water, and cheese.

• The farmers land grew most of the crops that Romans bought.

Religion*in Ancient Rome*

Roman Values• The Romans valued (worshiped)

many gods such as Jupiter and Aries. They also greatly valued family.

• When about to fight, some leaders prayed to the gods for luck. They also would ask for help and success during battle.

• They worshiped their gods with festivals and gladiator fights. The ones who died were considered sacrifices to please the gods.

Christianity• The Christians are monotheistic which

means thy believe in only one god. The also believed in gods son, Jesus Christ.

• They believed that he would help them survive the great fire. They did survive and then Nero accused them of starting the fire because supposedly they hated the human race. They then began to get killed because of their religious beliefs.

• Some Christian priests and people sacrificed their lives for what they believed in.

Judaism

• The Jews are mono- theistic but some don’t believe in Jesus Christ.

• They don’t believe in Jesus Christ because they only believe in the god in the old testament.

• Some people believe in Jesus Christ and are still Jews.

Greek Mythology

• The Greeks were polytheistic which means they believed in more than one god.

• They believe in Aries the god of war. Some say that he may appear in the battle field and wipe out their enemies.

• They believed that all gods have different jobs that control every every aspect of their life.

Achievements

Aqueducts• Aqueducts were Rome’s

main water transportation system. It delivered fresh water from lakes and rivers.

• The aqueducts run under ground and go to many different places in Rome.

• They were also important because the water is needed to water crops.

Travel

• Travel was very popular and important. The wealthy people went on vacations while merchants traded items in islands.

• When the wealthy Romans went on vacation they took their slaves and belongings with them. Before embarking on a journey, they consulted a fortune teller to see if it was safe to leave Rome.

• The merchants traded delicate items such as pottery. The ships they traveled in were crowded with many people.

Navy• The Romans had a very

well trained army. When Rome battled Carthage, the Romans created a navy of their own.

• The navy was trained to be as successful as their army. Their ships were made to be strong and built to win a war.

• The navy beat Carthage because their navy was strong and organized.

Bath houses

• Bath houses were made to relieve stress and leave the user with a cleansed body.

• The bath houses were made to start at one place and end outside. Once you’ve reached outside, you would repeat the cycle backwards.

• At the bath houses there was an exercise room that was meant to help you get rid of body oil.

Politics

Political Corruption• In Rome people would bid

on the throne. Once that person became emperor, his subjects would kill him and once again begin the bidding process.

• This soon got out of hand, and people became rather angry.

• The government then made the system of “electing” a ruler.

Nero

• Nero was a greedy ruler that spent money on only himself.

• After the great fire, the town was left poor because Nero spent all of his money on his dining rooms.

• Once the town was going to kill Nero, he blamed the Christians for the star of the fire. He said that they “hate the human race”. He then commit suicide and that is why the Romans began to kill the Christians.

Excessive military spending• Rome’s army was strong

and very big. The army of course,needed money for weapons, armor and animals.

• Taxes were raised because the army was to use the extra money.The weapons the army needed were spears, bows, and arrows.

• The Romans needed money for animals such as horses, so they could ride faster and kill more enemies.

Fall of Rome• The fall of Rome had to do with

the failing economy. With rising food prices and taxes, the Romans grew angry and soon poor.

• With citizens failing to pay their taxes, the poor population grew at an astonishing speed! That also meant more sick, dying people.

• Farmers were left job hunting because the slave had already taken all the jobs.

• Businesses were losing their workers which meant that they were out of business.

Economy

Inflation• Inflation was a major problem

in ancient Rome. With rising taxes and food prices, it was impossible to pay for anything!

• Unless you were wealthy, it was nearly impossible to pay for food. If you were a common Roman, you could only afford cheese bread and water.

• Wealthy Romans didn't have any problems with paying for food. They were also very busy throwing elegant parties.

Unemployment

• Many people lost their jobs because of rising prices.(besides the wealthy of coarse)

• Small businesses went out of business because of the economy. Some of those people were farmers.

• Farmers had to lower the prices on their crops so much that they eventually lost their jobs.

Urban decay• Poor Romans could either

live in a crowded house filled with sickness or live on the streets if they got kicked out. The houses were dangerously close to burning or collapsing.

• If you couldn’t afford to live in the house you would be forced to live on the streets.

• This was why you would see so many homeless people

Trade• Wealthy merchants could

trade by boat. They traded items in islands close to Rome.

• The merchants would trade fine crafted pottery and cups. These were essential for the wealthy Romans.

• They also traded chicken and peacocks,in other words birds.

Social Structures

Patricians

• They mostly lived in townhouses with courtyards. The central courtyards are called atriums.

• They were the leaders of Rome’s social and economic life.

• The Patricians also ran government through the control of the senate.

Plebeians

• The Plebeians practically didn’t have any influence on the Roman government.

• Most of them were peasant farmers that didn’t own much land.

• If a Plebeian was to fail to pay his debt, the Patricians could sell them into slavery.

Wealthy Romans• The wealthy Romans lived in

houses with two or moor rooms. They were decorated with pottery and other decorative things.

• The also had access to the richest foods ever. They could buy peacocks, chicken, mice, jellyfish, fish, shrimp, wine and more.

• They also threw lavish parties with all of this food. They hired musicians that played music for their guests when they entered and left.

Poor

• The poor Romans lived in crowded homes carrying sickness. They sometimes even lived on the streets.

• They could only afford bread and water.

• The poor could also look for jobs or simply live as a beggar.

What is the most important thing I have learned?

• I feel that the most important thing that I have learned about is travel. Travel was the most important because without travel you couldn’t trade or go on vacations. The Romans also needed travel because in was you would probably need to travel tom get weapons and armor for your army.