Ancient+Rome+Documents+and+Questions

A Roman Senator, named Cato the Elder, did not like Carthage. Rome had fought two wars with Carthage. They had taken everything away from it. But it recovered and grew rich through trade. Cato saw it as a threat to Rome. The only defense, he felt, was to destroy the city! He wanted to make sure others agreed. He adopted a slogan, “Carthage must be destroyed!” and he repeated it often. He said it at the end of speeches and even at parties. Cato was always talking about the threat of Carthage. His plan worked. Romans began to fear Carthage. Finally, a Roman army destroyed the city in 146 B.C.


 * __Why did Cato think Carthage was a threat? __**

The first Roman emperor, Augustus, died in A.D. 14. His last words were “Did you enjoy the performance?” Being emperor was all about appearance for Augustus. He did everything he could to act like people felt an emperor should. He made the military stronger and built roads, temples, and aqueducts. But, he made it seem as if he ruled only to protect the people. Augustus insisted he was part of the republic. He never called himself emperor. His efforts were a success. All Roman emperors after him used his names “Augustus” and “Caesar” as titles. The month of “August” was named after him. Shortly after he died he was even declared to be a god!


 * __Why did Augustus act so carefully? __**


 * __Why was Augustus called a god? __**


 * __What helped Christianity to grow from Jesus to Constantine? __**

In A.D. 160 the Roman Empire was very powerful. However, in just a few years things started to change. In A.D. 165 diseases swept through the empire. They killed over half the population in just twenty years. The army, too, became weak. Many Romans did not want to serve in the army. The government then looked to people from outside the empire for recruits. Soon, the Roman army had very few Romans in it! As the empire became weaker these outsiders turned on the Romans. Perhaps worst of all, the empire was just too large to manage. It was expensive to maintain roads, armies, and aqueducts. The strain of diseases, wars, and upkeep became too much and Rome fell in A.D. 476.


 * __Write a paragraph describing the fall of the Roman Empire. First, describe the causes of weakness. Then, explain why these hurt the empire. Could any of these problems have been avoided __**

A Roman Senator, named Cato the Elder, did not like Carthage. Rome had fought two wars with Carthage. They had taken everything away from it. But it recovered and grew rich through trade. Cato saw it as a threat to Rome. The only defense, he felt, was to destroy the city! He wanted to make sure others agreed. He adopted a slogan, “Carthage must be destroyed!” and he repeated it often. He said it at the end of speeches and even at parties. Cato was always talking about the threat of Carthage. His plan worked. Romans began to fear Carthage. Finally, a Roman army destroyed the city in 146 B.C.

__Was Cato right to call Carthage a threat to Rome? Support your opinion with facts. What could have happened, had he not adopted his slogan? __

Rome and Carthage were very much alike. Both cities were on the Mediterranean Sea. They expanded into the lands around them. Rome conquered Italy, while Carthage took North Africa and Spain. They traded with one another and shared much in common. But both cities wanted empires and they began to clash. They fought in three different wars called the Punic Wars. First they fought over the islands in the Mediterranean, like Sicily and Sardinia. Eventually, they fought to remove the other. Carthage invaded Italy and Rome barely survived. Then, in the final war, Rome conquered Carthage and removed their biggest obstacle to becoming an empire.


 * __Write about the Punic Wars. The wars between Rome and Carthage were the beginning of an empire. Did the Punic wars have to occur? What would have happened in history had Carthage conquered Rome? __**

The first Roman emperor, Augustus, died in A.D. 14. His last words were “Did you enjoy the performance?” Being emperor was all about appearance for Augustus. He did everything he could to act like people felt an emperor should. He made the military stronger and built roads, temples, and aqueducts. But, he made it seem as if he ruled only to protect the people. Augustus insisted he was part of the republic. He never called himself emperor. His efforts were a success. All Roman emperors after him used his names “Augustus” and “Caesar” as titles. The month of “August” was named after him. Shortly after he died he was even declared to be a god!


 * __Augustus knew that Romans did not like emperors or dictators. But he was one. What did he do to influence public opinion? __**