THE ROMAN REPUBLIC

ACTIVITY AND WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE• Greetings citizens! Welcome to the Roman Republic. Today, you have an opportunity to

meet some of the greatest characters of the Roman Republic and learn about their daily lives. Be sure and answer the guided questions as you go along. The presentation is hyperlinked so click on the names to navigate. Have fun and enjoy! Be sure and watch the videos as you go through.

• SWBAT (WH1.6c):• Students will be able to identify the Roman Social structure and explain how that affected

the development of Rome. • Students will be able explain what a Republic is and identify the right and duties of the

Roman citizenry.

HOME SCREEN

• 1. Introduction and History (with Livy)• 2. Roman Government (with Cicero)• 3. Plebian (with Tiberius)• 4. Patricians (with Plato the Younger)• 5. Roman Slaves/Gladiator (Spartacus)• 6. Roman Soldier

INTRODUCTION AND HISTORY• “Hello, my name is Livy and I am one of Rome’s greatest

historians. I have written long, complex histories of Rome but do not be concerned, I will keep it brief for you.”

• “According to our legends, Rome was founded by Romulus in 753 B.C. shortly after killing his brother Remus. They decided to build near the mighty Tiber River in Western Rome. Here click again and I will show you a picture. The mighty Alps protected us from invaders in the North and the Apennine Mountains divided almost in half. Those guys on the Eastern half are some weird guys! The West had it best!”

• “We were not alone in Italy, however. The Etruscans, the Latins, and the smelly Greeks were also there. The Etruscans even ruled Rome for over 100 years. In 509 B.C. we overthrew the last Etruscan King, Tarquin the Proud. We vowed that we would never have a king again. We would murder anyone claiming such a title. “• Return to Home Screen

ROMAN REPUBLIC• “Hello, my name is Cicero. I am afraid this must be quick for I am a Senator and

must get to the Forum for debate.”• “I am kind of a big deal in Rome as a Senator, I am someone who represents the

will of the people. Due to my large land owning and estates, I am high in society as an aristocrat. The SENATE for the most part is dominated by wealthy statesmen like myself and we spend a lot of time debating about government. My friend Plato the Younger once even talked from Sun up to Sun Down by himself!”

• “This form of government, where the people select their leaders to go make decisions for them is known as a REPUBLIC. The Greeks were crazy giving everyone the right to make decisions. What a waste of time! Would you not just rather choose me to make the decisions for you?”

• “We meet, as I mentioned before, at the FORUM (Click for image). It is an open public space where we conduct our business. This year I have been elected Consul with my friend, Gaius. This means that we are in charge of the army and directing government. It is as close as we come to King for now in our history. We were chosen by the Centuriate Assembly and only serve one year. Go ahead and watch this video for more information. • Roman Republic Video• Return to Home Screen

PLEBIANS• “Dogs they call us. Poor and Stupid they say. That simply is not the case. Hello,

my name is Tiberius. The term the wealthy PATRICIANS (aka the extremely wealthy landowners) gave us is PLEBEIAN. We are not slaves. We are a group of common artisans, farmers and merchants. They look down at us and it disgusts me but where else do I go? I need their wealthy support just to pay the bills and for protection. I just do not know what to do??”

• “We are citizens but poor at that. The social structure of Rome looks like the image to your right with the wealthy patricians at the top, us in the middle, and those repulsive slaves at the bottom. I understand in your country slavery has been based on race throughout your history. In Rome slaves usually are debtors and war captives. Both women and slaves are not citizens and believe me are government is better for it! As a citizen, I can vote and serve in the military so long as I pay my taxes.”

• “We haven’t always had this many rights, I led a rebellion against the patricians for more rights in 169 B.C.. In order to calms us down, the Senate allowed us to set up an ASSEMBLY (or group of people who vote). This now gave us a small say in government. They even let us elect TRIBUNES to serve as officials to protect the interests of the plebeians. “

• “Before the creation of a law code, PATRICIANS did whatever they wanted and did not have to answer to anybody. So as you might guess, we were the ones who got taken advantage of. With the help of the TRIBUNES we were able to write down a law code that the patricians agreed to, called the TWELVE TABLES. It is called that because we wrote it on tables (Click for image). This became the official law code of the Roman Republic. • Return to Home Screen

PATRICIAN

• “Hello, my name is Plato the Younger. I am sure you have already heard from the whiney Tiberius at this point. He is such a nuisance and an insignificant part of society but what choice do I have? If we take away all their rights, they will revolt and slaughter our families. I am a PATRICIAN of the wealthy land class. I am the top of society and am responsible for taking care of the lower classes. For instance, I have many slaves. Mostly war captives brought to me by my friend Julius. They work hard enough I suppose but I always worry that one day they will grow so large in number that they will take over Rome. As for the plebeians, several work on my estates and farm my land. I also offer protection to many of them and their business in exchange for their loyalty and support. Small price to pay for my business you understand.”

• “I am the hand from which those lowly plebeians feed and they know better then to irritate or make me angry. Power rests with the Patricians as it should and I will make the best decisions fro those beneath me. My wife, Julia is a good wife but often speaks about politics which makes my head hurt. To think that she actually believes she is capable of governing Rome…hah! Women are not even citizens in Rome! This is a male dominated society, as it should be! ”• Return to Home Screen

ROMAN SLAVES

• “Hello, my name is Spartacus. Unlike everyone you have heard from today. I am not Roman. In fact, I hate the Roman Republic for what they did to me and my family. I am actually Thracian (click for a map) and Rome came through and massacred my land and took me as a captive. I have not seen my family since the night I was captured. I do not even know if they are alive.”

• “These Roman pigs throw us in the stadiums for blood sport. The objective is kill or be killed. I have become quite good at killing people and I bring quite a crowd for my wealthy patrician who profits off the sales and the gambling. One day I would gladly like to slit his throat but I await my moment, for a slave to strike his master would most assuredly lead to my death. I am organizing my fellow gladiators, one day we will rise up in rebellion.”

• “For now, I survive the arena. It could be worse, I could be like all the other slaves and be whipped everyday while working the salt mines. See the video below for more information.”• Gladiators Video• Return to the Home Screen

ROMAN SOLDIER

• “Hello, my name is Maximus. I am a Centurion in the Roman Legion. As a landowning citizen I am required with my fellow country men to serve in the military. Our military is broken down into legions, roughly about 5,000 soldiers. Within each legion, it is broken down into 80-100 men called a century. So my title as centurion comes from that and I am responsible fro commanding the men in my unit. We are so well organized that we operate as those each century is its own army. We are the most fiercest fighting force the world has ever seen! Go ahead and watch the video below to learn more about tactics and weapons. Mars is our guide and we cannot be stopped!”• Roman Legion Video• Opening Scene From Gladiator (Warning contains graphic images)• Return to Home Screen