Roman Timeline

Rome was Founded

753 BCE

Rome was founded by Romulus and Remus, brothers said to have been raised by wolves. Romulus killed his brother and gave his name to the city.

Roman Monarchy

Period: 753 BCE to 509 BCE

Rape of the Sabine Women

750 BCE

Rome, under the rule of Romulus, was growing greatly. Most of his followers, however, were mostly men. With a shortage of women, it was feared that the pioneers would not have any children to carry on their legacy. Initially, Romans sought out alliances from their neighbors, however this failed. To take more drastic measures, Romulus threw a festival and invited their neighbors, one being the Sabines. The Romans abducted the women and took them for wives.

Etruscans Conquer Rome

600 BCE

Rome was conquered by several Etruscan princes from across the Tibetan River shortly before 600 BCE. Under the rule of the Etruscans, Rome grew in power and importance. Large scale public works, such as sewers, were built and trade flourished.

Tarquin the Proud begin to Rule

534 BCE

LuciusTarquinius Superbus was the last King of Rome and ruled until the Latin Aristocratic Rebellion. He was known for being cruel and harsh. He killed many Senators during his reign of terror and supposedly murdered Tullius and established an absolute despotism.

Tarquin the Proud is overthrown

509 BCE

Tarquin was a tyrant that ruled the city of Rome and the final monarch. The patricians, or wealthy landowners, opposed his rule and overthrew him. Instead of creating another monarchy, the government established elected officials.

End of the Roman Monarchy

509 BCE

the Romans revolt against the Etruscan Kings. This revolution of the Latin Aristocracy resulted in the expulsion of the last king of Rome Lucius Tarquinus Superbus, and the beginning of the Roman Republic. A system of government was created run by a Senate and an Assembly

Roman Republic

Period: 509 BCE to 27 BCE

First Dictator

501 BCE

Titus Lartius was the first Roman dictator. Octavius, prince of Tusuclum and son-in-law Lucius, the seventh and last king of Rome was forming an alliance with the towns of Latium with the aim of restoring Tarquin to the throne. So it was decided to have a single magistrate or "master of infantry" to oversee the defense of the city. A different was chosen every six months.

Plebeian Rights

287 BCE

All the plebeians (farmers, craft workers, common soldiers) in Rome won their rights to be full citizens. They could pass laws and select magistrates- officials who carried out the day to day operations of government.

First Punic War

264 BCE

This is the first of three wars fought between the Romans and ancient Carthage. The Carthaginians established a presence on the island of Sicily. Rome responded to this challenge by attacking Messana and forcing them to withdraw. Eventually Carthage surrendered, ceding Sicily and the Lipari Islands to Rome and agreeing to pay an indemnity.

Carthage And Beyond

146 BCE

Carthage was a city across the Mediterranean on the North Coast of Africa. The reason for the conflict between Rome and Carthage was because both Rome and Carthage wanted to control the Mediterranean trade. In the end, Rome destroyed Carthage in 146 B.C.E, enslaved their citizens and salted their lands to make it infertility. This gave Rome power over North Africa, Spain, and Sicily.

First Servile War

135 BCE

The first of a series of Slave revolts, this one was led by a slave named Eunus, who was thought to have supernatural powers. The war was fought using guerrilla tactics as opposed tom open warfare. General Cleon, who resisted Roman forces, was sent to put down the rebellion. It took three years for the rebellion to be put down. Eventually Cleon was killed and Eunus was captured.

Second Servile War

104 BCE

This slave conflict occurred twenty-three years after the first one in Sicily. The conflict lasted a few years and was similar to the first one. A slave named Salvius followed in the footsteps of Eunus and led this rebellion with an army of equipped slaves. This war, like the first, was also unsuccessful.

Invasion of Britain

55 BCE

Julius Caesar invaded Britain as part of the Gallic Wars. He decided to make an expedition to Britain. He summoned merchants in order to gain information about the island, such as their military tactics. News of his plans soon reached the island. His attempts to take the land was in vein for his campaign was unsuccessful.

Julius Caesar was Killed

44 BCE

Caesar was Rome's first dictator for life at the age of 55. He doubled the size of the empire and craved power. He was assassinated by Roman conspirators who attacked him on March 15th. This led to the competition between Octavian and Mark Anthony to take over the Roman empire.

Battle of Actium

31 BCE

Octavian defeats Mark Anthony and the Queen of Egypt, Cleopatra. It ended decades of Roman Civil war and led to the rise of the first Roman emperor.Octavian Took on the name Augustus and took control of Rome and its territories.

Roman Empire

Period: 27 BCE to 476

Pax Romana

Period: 27 BCE to 180

Latin for "Roman Peace", this refers to a period of stability that existed in the Roman Empire after the final war of the Roman Republic. Roman lands had spread from the British Isles to present day Iraq making this the largest the Empire had ever been. The citizens were relatively secure under the rule of an Emperor. This period also had many of Rome's large construction projects including the Colosseum and thousands of miles of roads.

Death of Emperor Nero

68

Nero was a tyrant who ruled from 54-68 C.E.. His mother, Agrippina, convinced the emperor Claudius to name Nero heir instead of his biological son. Nero was believed to have started a fire to make room for his pleasure palace and blamed Christians. Only months after moving into his palace, he was overthrown and declared an enemy, so he ran away and slit his throat.

Spartacus Rebellion

73

Slavery become harsher because of a slaved named Spartacus, who led one of the largest revolts in history, which caused the death of 6,000 slaves and also caused the existence of many slaves slowed down growth in the Roman economy. This was the third and final Servile War.

The Colosseum is Built

80

The Colosseum, also called the Flavian Amphitheater, was gifted to the Roman people by Emperor Vespasian in 80 AD. His son Titus opened the theater with 100 days of games. The arena was a source of entertainment for the Roman people. Here they held events such as gladiator and animal fights. It could hold up to 50,00 spectators who had seating arranged based on social class.

Trajan is the first Spanish emperor

98

Up until this time, all Roman emperors were Italian. He focused on conquest and expansion of the empire. He died in 117 C.E..

Hadrian Wall is Built

122

This 73 mile wall was built under the orders of Emperor Hadrian. The wall was the Northern limit of the empire and extended from the banks of River Tyne near the North Sea to Solway Firth near the Irish Sea. The wall was constructed of stone and was made to act as protection against foreign invaders, mainly barbarians.

Roman Pantheon was Built

125

Emperor Hadrian built this pantheon to replace Marcus Aggipa's pantheon that burned to the ground in 80 BCE. This building had religious purpose.

Hannibal Invades Italy

218

This invasion sparked the second Punic War. Hannibal marched his troops into central Italy and, after a series of victories, claimed foothold in the Southern part. He then pursued to conquer Rome itself. The Romans rebounded, driving the Carthaginians out of Spain and launching an invasion on North Africa. Hannibal abandoned his hold on Italy to defend North Africa. He was soon defeated.

Rome is Divided

284

The empire was expanding and becoming too large for a single man to rule. Emperor Diocletian split the empire into an eastern and western half. The western half would be based in Rome and the Eastern half would be based in Byzantium, later renamed Constantinople by the Emperor Constantine.The west spoke Latin while the East spoke Greek. Both halves were Christian however worshiped under different branches of the religion.

Constantine the Great ends Persecution of Christians

313

Christianity, which is monotheistic, ran counter to the traditional Roman religion, which was polytheistic. Constantine ended persecution and declared tolerance to Christianity throughout the empire by issuing the Edict of Milan. This change began the spread of this religion to all corners of the empire. 10 years later it became the official religion of the empire.

Fall of The Western Roman Empire

476

Romulus, one of the last Roman emperors in the west, was overthrown by Germanic leaders. The reason for the decline was complex. There were a series of internal problems that became to great to solve. When a good emperor ruled, they would soon eventually be replaced by a bad one. With a smaller army and civil conflicts, the Western Roman Empire soon fell to Barbaric invaders