Ancient Rome

Few periods in history have had a greater impact on humankind than that of ancient Rome. While its influence on western civilization, in particular, has been ubiquitous, its remnants can be found virtually everywhere, from our calendar and political systems to our alphabet. The ...read more

By the time Julius Caesar stepped in front of the Roman Senate on the Ides of March in 44 B.C., the nearly 500-year-old Roman Republic had been ailing for years. Wealth inequality, political gridlock and civil wars had all weakened the republic in the century prior to Caesar’s ...read more

After decades of political dysfunction, civil wars and assassinations that caused the Roman Republic’s downfall, Ancient Rome flourished during two centuries of relative tranquility and prosperity known as the Pax Romana (Latin for “Roman Peace”). Ushered in by the ascension of ...read more

Legend has it that Romulus and Remus—twin brothers who were also demi-gods—founded Rome on the River Tiber in 753 B.C. Over the next eight and a half centuries, it grew from a small town of pig farmers into a vast empire that stretched from England to Egypt and completely ...read more

Imagine a world in which political norms have broken down. Senators use bad faith arguments to block the government from getting anything done. An autocrat rigs elections and gives himself complete control over the government. Even stranger, many voters subscribe to the ...read more

On March 15, 44 B.C. a group of Roman senators murdered Julius Caesar as he sat on the podium at a senate meeting. The dictator fell bleeding to his death from 23 stab wounds before the horrified eyes of the rest of the house. It was a little after noon on the Ides of March, as ...read more

The most influential empire in all of ancient times, Rome, at its peak, encompassed most of continental Europe, Britain, much of western Asia, northern Africa and the Mediterranean islands. In addition to many external battles, numerous civil wars befell the Ancient Roman empire. ...read more

1. The Gauls The story of the first sack of Rome is steeped in myth and legend, but it most likely began when the young city became embroiled in a conflict with a band of Gallic Celts led by the warlord Brennus. On July 18, 387 B.C., the two sides met in battle along the banks ...read more

Claudius (full name Tiberius Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus) was the fourth Roman emperor from 41 to 54 A.D. Best know for the successful expansion of Rome into Britain and parts of Africa and the Middle East, Claudius was an accomplished leader who brought forth ...read more

1. Julius Caesar was his great-uncle and adopted father. Born on September 23, 63 B.C., Augustus grew up in a town about 25 miles southeast of Rome. His father was a senator (who died unexpectedly when he was four), and his mother was Caesar’s niece. As a child, Augustus ...read more

1. They were the key to Rome’s military might. The first major Roman road—the famed Appian Way, or “queen of the roads”—was constructed in 312 B.C. to serve as a supply route between republican Rome and its allies in Capua during the Second Samnite War. From then on, road ...read more

1. They weren’t always enslaved. Not all gladiators were brought to the arena in chains. While most early combatants were enslaved peoples and people who had committed crimes, grave inscriptions show that by the 1st century A.D. the demographics had started to change. Lured by ...read more

1. Invasions by Barbarian tribes The most straightforward theory for Western Rome’s collapse pins the fall on a string of military losses sustained against outside forces. Rome had tangled with Germanic tribes for centuries, but by the 300s “barbarian” groups like the Goths had ...read more

1. He wasn’t born by caesarean section. Gaius Julius Caesar arrived in the world on July 13, 100 B.C., but, contrary to popular belief, it’s unlikely he was born by caesarean section. Although the procedure existed at the time, it was usually fatal to the mother and therefore ...read more

1. Aqueducts The Romans enjoyed many amenities for their day, including public toilets, underground sewage systems, fountains and ornate public baths. None of these aquatic innovations would have been possible without the Roman aqueduct. First developed around 312 B.C., these ...read more

1. Caligula wasn’t his real name. Think of it as the ancient equivalent of miniature Nikes and tuxedo-imprinted onesies: Even in Roman times, parents liked to proudly dress their progeny in tiny versions of grownup gear. And so, when the respected general Germanicus brought his ...read more