SS 8 - Ancient Rome 04 - It Was Good to be Roman

It Was Good to Be Roman

The wealth of the empire made the city of Rome the greatest tourist attraction in the world. If you had the money you could enjoy a city full of entertainment and luxuries. The city of Rome itself had glorious temples, bustling open-air markets like the Forum which was based after the famous Agroa in Athens. They had amphitheatres for the arts and huge stadiums called the Colosseum where gladiators fought to the death, and the Circus Maximus where deadly chariot races were run. To be in Rome, was to be in the most modern and advanced city in the ancient world.

Roman Achievements

The ancient Romans were famous for their construction abilities. Bridges, arches, roads, buildings, aqueducts, the Romans built them all and many are still around today. The Romans mastered the art of concrete by mixing gravel, sand and crushed limestone. This important and versatile building material allowed them to create some of the largest man-made structures the world had ever seen.

Roads and Aqueducts

Another one of the most important infrastructure that the Romans built throughout the empire was their roads. These roads which criss-crossed all over Europe allowed not only the Roman army to travel quickly to the far corners of the empire, but it also provided for and encouraged trade to and from Rome. All of this trade created more wealth than anybody in the ancient world had ever seen.

As the city of Rome grew and as other Roman cities grew, they need more and more access to fresh water. The Romans built huge aqueducts that would extend for hundreds of kilometers to bring fresh mountain water to the city centres. What made them so amazing is that they would be built to cover great distances, but always have a slope to carry water over the dips and valleys of the land until they reached the city. When they would pass over a valley or a cut in the land like a river or creek, the Romans would build tall structures to act as bridges for the water. Some of these aqueducts are still being used by people today in the 21st Century.

Language and Schools

The language of Rome was itself a new idea. Latinwas spoken by Romans and all the people they conquered. Many modern languages such as French, Spanish, Italian, and Portuguese evolved from the Latin of Rome. For many hundreds of years, Latin was the language used by writers all over Europe. Even today, it is still the official language of the Catholic Church all over the world. Many prescriptions written by doctors today are still written in Latin.

Roman schools were an improvement over those of other nations. They helped carry on the ideas of the Greeks as well as start new ideas. These schools trained boys to become lawyers, book-keepers, and government workers. Education was one of the most important ingredients that helped Rome become great.

The Colosseum

The Colosseum was built at the pinnacle or peak of the Roman Empire. It was an engineering marvel for its time and is still considered by many to be the greatest Roman building ever built. The Colosseum itself is 189 meters long, 156 meters wide and reaches a height of 48 meters or 5 stories. The total building covers an area of just over 6 acres.

Capable of seating 50,000 people the Colosseum was used for gladiator battles, animal hunts, public executions and there is even record of the floor of the Colosseum being flooded so that a mock sea battle could be performed. The Gladiator matches were perhaps the most popular but so were the famous animal hunts. It was during these “hunts” that Romans saw the wide variety of animals that could be found within the reach of the Roman Empire. Animals such as rhinoceros, hippopotamuses, elephants, giraffes, lions, panthers, leopards, bears, tigers and crocodiles were brought in and butchered for entertainment.

The Gladiators were armed fighters who would battle to the death. Most often these gladiators were slaves that were sent to their death, however there are records of people volunteering to do battle as gladiators. There were many different “types” of gladiators. There were gladiators that fought on horseback and gladiators that fought like boxers but with gloves with spikes. The most recognizable gladiators were the “Retiarii” or “Net Fighters”. These fighters were equipped with a net and a trident or three-pronged spear. The Retiarii were often chosen to fight against a “Secutor” or a gladiator armed with a short sword and a shield. These bloody battles reflected the high value Romans placed on warrior culture, something they may have inherited from Greek influence.

SS 8 - Ancient Rome 04 - It Was Good to be Roman

It Was Good to be Roman

Directions: READthe handout entitled;”It Was Good to be Roman” and then answer the following questions;

  1. Use your textbook, the internet or a dictionary to provide definitions for the following terms; (1 mk each)

ForumAqueducts

LatinColosseumEngineering

2. On a separate piece of paper, answer the following questions using COMPLETE

SENTENCES;

  1. In your own words, describe and provide examples as to what the Romans were famous for. What enabled them to do this? (2 mks for quality of response and inclusion of details)
  1. In your own words, describe what roads and aqueducts did to benefit the cities of ancient Rome? (2 mks for the quality of your response and evidence of thought and effort)
  1. In your own words, describe what the Colosseum was built for and describe some of the events that took place in it. (2 mks for quality of response and evidence of insight)
  1. Using the cut-outs and directions provided, create your own scale, 3-D model of the Famous Colosseum

You will be marked out of 10 marks for ability to correctly assemble a model of the Colosseum

Total: ____ /21