Jack Goldstein - 101 Amazing Facts about Ancient Rome

Title Page

101 AMAZING FACTS ABOUT ANCIENT ROME

Jack Goldstein

Publisher Information

Published in 2014 by

Andrews UK Limited

www.andrewsuk.com

The right of Jack Goldstein to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1998

Copyright 2014 Jack Goldstein

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means without the prior written permission of the publisher, nor be otherwise circulated in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser. Any person who does so may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages.

All facts contained within this book have been researched from reputable sources. If any information is found to be false, please contact the publishers, who will be happy to make corrections for future editions.

Introduction

Do you know what the ancient Romans used instead of soap? Which emperor made his horse into a senator? Who was the god of music, light and truth? And how would a gladiator request an honourable death in battle? All these questions and more are answered in this fascinating easy-to-read guide to ancient Rome. Whether you are studying the subject and need access to the important information fast, or you are just interested in this fascinating period of history, this excellent quick-read guide containing over one hundred facts is a perfect addition to your bookshelf.

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Basic Facts

1. The City of Rome is thought to have been founded in 753 BC.
2. Ancient legend tells of how Romulus and Remus, twins who were the sons of Mars (the God of War) were abandoned due to a prophecy that they would overthrow their great uncle Amulius. The infants were nurtured by a she-wolf until a shepherd, Faustulus, found them. Taking the boys as his sons, he raised them until they were adults, at which point they fulfilled their prophecy and killed their great uncle. After this they decide to found a city, however they disagreed over the location and quarrelled, leading to Romulus killing his brother before establishing the city of Rome.
3. Until 45 BC, the city grew into the Roman Republic. Its leaders were fairly elected and served for a limited amount of time. There were written laws and a constitution, concepts which democratic governments today are still based on.
4. In 45 BC, Julius Caesar made himself supreme dictator, ending the republic. In 27 BC, Caesar Augustus became the first to hold the title of Emperor and thus the Roman Empire was born. The key difference was that he held ultimate power, with the ability to overrule the elected government.
5. The Empire grew as its armies conquered surrounding countries with military precision. At its peak, the Roman Empire is thought to have included one fifth of all of the people on earth.
6. When it became too large to manage from Rome alone, the Empire split in two, with the Western Empire being managed from Rome and the Eastern Empire from Constantinople (today Istanbul in Turkey).
7. Although the city of Rome itself fell in 476 AD (considered to be the end of the Western Empire), the Eastern Empire, now known as Byzantium, survived for another 1000 years.
8. In general, Roman society was highly advanced and it took many other cultures hundreds of years - and in some areas almost two thousand - to catch up.
9. Many things you see around you today were invented by the Romans, from central heating to running water, government systems, concrete, paved roads and more.
10. For hundreds of years, the Roman Empire was polytheistic, meaning they worshipped many different Gods. A great number of these appear to have been borrowed from Greek beliefs, being named differently but with similar legends. During the fourth century AD, Christianity became increasingly popular, and from 391 was the Empires state religion.

Did You Know?

1. The emperor Augustus established a fire brigade in Rome in the year 6 AD. After much of Rome was devastated by a huge fire that year, Augustus set up seven squads, each containing a thousand men to tackle any future blazes.
2. Dental care was important to those Romans who could afford it; not only did they use toothpaste but they also burned potassium or sodium carbonate and rubbed it on their teeth to brighten them.
3. The population of the city of ancient Rome was over one million. It was not until the 19 th century when Londons population reached the same level, the first city to do so for almost two thousand years.
4. Some Romans believed that having holes drilled into their skulls (a procedure known as trepanning) would let evil spirits escape, curing headaches and even insanity.
5. Common names in ancient Rome included Marcus, Julius, Antonius, Titus and Septimus for boys, and Julia, Antonia, Claudia, Livia and Drusilla for girls.
6. The phrase to decimate has its roots in the Latin word decimare , a Roman practice of killing every tenth soldier if they attempted mutiny.
7. The power and unity of ancient Rome was often symbolised by a bundle of rods tied with a red ribbon (sometimes including a bronze axe). This was known as a fasces , a word from which the term fascism is derived.
8. A religion known as Mithraism was very popular, especially amongst soldiers. Followers worshipped Mithra, a figure said to have slain the bull whose blood was the lifeblood of the universe. When Christianity took hold (and Mithraism was outlawed), the 25 th of December as the date of Jesus Christs birthday is believed to have been chosen as it would appease followers of Mithra, who was also said to have been born on that date.
9. On many ancient Roman buildings you will find the inscription SPQR. This translates as Senatus Populusque Romanus , meaning the Senate and people of Rome.
10. The month of January is named after the Roman God of beginnings, Janus, who has two faces - one looking forwards to the new year, the other looking backwards to the old.

Gods

Here are details of some of the many gods the ancient Romans worshipped...

1. Jupiter - god of the sky, lightning and thunder; ruler of all the other gods.
2. Apollo - son of Jupiter and god of music, healing, light and truth.
3. Juno - wife and sister of Jupiter, queen of the gods. She was considered guardian of the Roman Empires finances.
4. Mars - son of Jupiter and the god of war as well as farming, the spring, anger, revenge, courage and fertility.
5. Mercury - God of trade and profit, his festival the Mercuralia was celebrated on the 15 th of May.
6. Minerva - Daughter of Jupiter and goddess of Wisdom, science and medicine.
7. Neptune - Jupiters brother, god of the sea as well as horses, he is most often pictured with a trident.
8. Venus - originally goddess of gardens and vineyards, Venus evolved into the goddess of love and beauty with influence from the Greeks.
9. Vulcan - God of fire, craftsmanship and blacksmiths, Vulcans forge is said to be beneath Mount Etna where he makes weapons for gods and heroes.
10. Diana - goddess of the moon, of the hunt and of fertility. Usually portrayed as a huntress with a bow and Arrow, Diana was mother of creatures and protector of the wildwood.

Society

1. Only Roman citizens were allowed to wear the toga, and citizenship was an extremely complicated affair, governed by a number of laws. In the later years of the Roman empire, particular patterns and colours of individual togas signified various ranks and functions in society. Strangely however, the only Roman women to wear togas were prostitutes as they were not allowed to wear the stola , a womans traditional garment.