Roman Achievements
I. ROME: AN EMPIRE OF INNOVATION
A. The Romans developed ______that are still used today; what made them such ______innovators? Definition of “INNOVATION”: something new or original (such as an idea, an invention, a method)
1. LOCATION: Rome’s ______on the Mediterranean Sea allowed for trade and ______blending of cultures) with other people and nations; through the cultural diffusion, the Romans were able to ______the best ideas from other civilizations (especially the Greeks) and ______upon them
II. THE LIST OF ROMAN ACHIEVEMENTS
A. ARCHITECTURE
1. The Romans were tremendously ______they improved upon ______with two new architectural features: arches and domes
2. Arches: these are ______structures over an opening that can support its own weight; arches were used to create enormous buildings like the Coliseum and the Pantheon
3. Domes: they created vast open spaces and ______inside buildings (like the ______) and magnificent exteriors
4. The Romans built ______(like the famous ______in the city of Rome) so thousands of people could attend “circuses” (entertainments such as gladiator battles)
5. The ______was used for chariot races
- Just like today’s NASCAR
B. LAW
1. Roman ______were made by the Senate and then publicly posted for all to see in ______called the 12 Tables
2. The Roman legal system included a criminal ______(with lawyers and juries) so people accused of crimes could defend themselves; witnesses could give testimony to tell of what they saw or heard
3. Roman law allowed anyone (including the poor and slaves) to ______others of crimes
4. Most lasting and widespread contribution
5. Laws were ______and applied ______to all people.
– All persons had the right to ______treatment under the law.
– ______until proven ______
– The burden of proof lies with the ______, not the accused.
– A person should be punished for ______, not for ______.
– Guilt must be established “clearer than daylight” through ______.
6. These laws became the basis for legal systems in ______and America
C. ENGINEERING: ROADS & AQUEDUCTS
1. The Romans built the largest and longest-lasting network of ______in the Ancient World
2. At the height of the Empire, Roman roads stretched for ______and included 29 major highways
3. At first, the roads were built to ______quickly, but eventually the roads served many people for many purposes, especially as ______
4. One of the Romans’ greatest engineering feats was ______to their cities throughout the Empire
5. Roman engineers built the ______to move the cold, clear water from ______to towns; sometimes they would be up to 250 miles long
D. LANGUAGE
1. Roman conquest spread their language, ______, through much of Europe; over time, different regions in Europe developed their own languages based in Latin
2. Languages based in Latin are known as the ______
3. Words in the five major Romance languages often sound alike: for example, the Latin word for liberty, libertas, translates as liberta in Italian, liberte in French, libertad in Spanish, liberdade in Portuguese, and libertate in Romanian
E. CALENDAR
1. The Romans began using a new ______that borrowed heavily from the Egyptian calendar and was improved by scholars from Alexandria
2. This new calendar (called the “______” after Julius Caesar) had ______days and one extra day every fourth year; ______was named after Julius because it included his birthday
F. CIVIL SERVICE
1. Rome’s first emperor, Augustus, created several systems to help himself rule the ______Roman Empire; Augustus set up a ______with skilled and salaried workers to take care of the ______of the Empire
2. These bureaucrats helped oversee the Empire by keeping track of such operations as ______, the roads, mail delivery, and ______
G. THE IMPORTANCE OF THE GREEKS AND ROMANS
The ______that the Greeks and later on the Romans had on ______cannot be overstated.
Many facets of modern American life can be traced back to the innovations of the Greeks and Romans: things like government, language, religion, law, education, entertainment, literature, art, mathematics, astronomy, engineering, science, buildings, customs, traditions, sports, philosophy and medicine all can trace their roots back to Greece and Rome