4/7/14 west civ notes

Answers to Rome worksheet

1. The geography effected the development of Rome because they were in the middle of Italy which was in the middle of the Mediterranean sea. So they were able to control almost everything in that area. The Tiber River provided fertile soil and the areas around them allowed easy expansion of their empire. They were in a perfectly located destined area.
2. The Etruscans influenced the development of Rome by showing them a better way of farming, they also introduced the Romans to their art and the Romans used the Etruscans inventions of the arch and streets in rows. The Romans became a more organized civilization because of them.
3. The two groups that competed for power in the ancient republic of Rome were the Plebeians who were the common people and the patricians who were the rich nobles/aristocrats
4. The significance of the Twelve Tables in Roman Law was that it was one of the first times that the basic laws of a civilization was set down in writing and not passed down orally. The laws were placed in the middle of the town for all to read. Also the common people couldn't be accused of doing something wrong unless the law was shown to them in the Twelve Tables.
5.  After the sacking of their city by the Gaul's the Romans regained control of Italy by creating new tactics and taking back Italy. After the rebuilding was done they fled into the Gaul's territory and destroyed almost everything in their town and took most of the people living in Gaul back to Rome as slaves.  

Additional Notes

• Etruscans showed the Romans the entertainment of the gladiator battles
• The Etruscans showed the Romans the use of arches in architecture which helped with the Roman aqueducts.
• The Gaul's were the ancient French
• The Punic wars was a three round war where the Romans battled the Carthaginians
• The first round allowed the romans to push Carthage out of Sicily and take control of it
• The second round started with Hannibal destroying many Roman armies but the romans perseverance allowed them to pull out a victory leaving carthage weak and helpless
• Fearing that Carthage would strike again, the romans started the third war with the Carthaginians and completely took control of Carthage. The senate ordered for all the people of Carthage to be sold into slavery, the ground leveled and the area to be cursed.