Pompeii Burns

photo of Pompeii

Pompeii was a littlie prosperous Roman town where wealthy Romans spent the summer.  On August 24, 79 Ad, shortly after Titus became Emperor (refer to the destruction of Jerusalem for more information on Titus) , a cloud appeared over Pompeii.   Before people knew what was happening a volcano, Mount Vesuvius, had erupted and buried the city in lava.  About 2,000 people were killed. (Put Mt. Vesuvius on your map--Click here for a map)

Pompeii remained buried and was not discovered again until the 16th century   By the 18th century, excavation efforts had begun.  Everything was well preserved because of the volcanic ash.  Consequently, we have been able to learn much about ancient Roman life from the discovery of the ruins of Pompeii. 

READ:  Pompeii.... Buried Alive!! by Edith Kunhardt  (Step into reading a step 3 book)

SCIENCE:  learn more about volcanoes

The Fall of Rome

By AD 200, Rome was showing signs of great weakness. It became harder and harder to govern because of its size and its inability to hold off barbarians.

The citizens complained of high taxes. Their populations had decreased by war and disease. The towns had grown smaller. There was less trade and thus less money to pay the armies, so the armies grew smaller.

In the eastern provinces things were not quite so bad. Trade had not stopped completely. But, throughout the empire the Roman people were discouraged. They had lost their faith in Rome.

In AD 286 the emperor Diocletian made some important changes. He appointed two emperors instead of one--one for the western part of the empire and one for the eastern part. Secondly, each emperor would have an assistant. (He thought this might discourage assassination.) Constantine was selected as one of these four rulers. By AD 311, the four rulers were fighting amongst themselves for control of the empire. Constantine emerged victorious.

Constantine changed the empire in two main ways. He sent out an edict that all religions were free to exist in Rome. Christians, in particular, were not to be persecuted. Secondly, he moved the capital of the empire from Rome to Byzantium. This city was eventually renamed Constantinople.

By the time of Constantine's death, the city was expanding rapidly, as was Christianity. The empire was divided between his two sons. One son ruled the east and the other the west.

Over time the eastern Byzantine empire gained strength while the western (Roman) empire faded away. The Romans could no longer hold back the barbarians. The provinces to the west were lost to the barbarians. By AD 410 the city of Rome was invaded and overtaken by barbarians.  Romulus Agustulus was the last emperor of the West.  The Roman empire in the west came to an end in AD 476 when a German captain named Odoacer declared himself King of Italy. 

GIFTS FROM ROME

Even today, over 1,500 years after the decline of the empire, Rome still has an enormous influence over our lives.

LANGUAGE:  The Romans invented the Latin language and spread it wherever they went. We speak Latin words everyday because the English language came from Latin. Many of the languages of Europe such as Italian, Spanish and French are based on Latin. Long after the end of the empire, Latin was used by scholars throughout Europe. It was the closest thing to a universal language that the Western world has ever known.

LAW AND GOVERNMENT:  Our legal and political systems can be traced to Roman times. Law school students still study the Twelve Tables and Code of Justinian. When our Founding Fathers were drawing up the Constitution, they looked to the Roman Republic. Our legislative branch, with the Senate and House of Representatives, is based on the Senate and Assemblies of the Republic.

ALPHABET:  The alphabet we use today was developed by the Romans.  The word alphabet is in the style of lettering called "Times Roman"

ENGINEERS:  Romans invented new ways to build bridges, large buildings, roads, water systems and many of the things we take for granted in today's world. 

MAPS AND HIGHWAYS:  The Romans were the first people to make maps of much of the western world.  They build roads to all parts of their Empire.   some of these roads are still used today, 2,000 years later.

In addition, we use Roman numerals, the calendar, the names of the planets (Jupiter, Mars, Saturn and others were names of Roman gods), and months of the year (July for Julius Caesar, August for Augustus, etc.).