The Rise and Fall of the Roman Empire: Culture, Conquest, and Legacy
Rome and its Empire
The history of Rome unfolded in three main stages:
Etruscan Monarchy
Initially, the Italian Peninsula was inhabited by various peoples. Around 753 BC, the Etruscans imposed their rule, forcing the primitive inhabitants into submission. The first king of Rome was Romulus. The Romans disliked the Etruscans.
Roman Republic
Around 509 BC, the subjugated peoples, including the Latins, rebelled against the Etruscans. This led to the establishment of a republic, governed by magistrates and the Senate. The Romans conquered the entire Italian Peninsula and expanded their territory, fighting against the Carthaginians (led by Hannibal), Iberians, Celts, Greeks, and Egyptians (Cleopatra). This phase ended with Julius Caesar, who was assassinated by senators for his ambition to end the Republic.
Roman Empire
Starting in 27 BC, the Roman Empire emerged. Emperors assumed power, while the Senate played a secondary role. Notable emperors included Octavian Augustus, Nero, Trajan (under whom the empire reached its greatest extent), Hadrian, Constantine, and Theodosius I. The Roman Empire encompassed the Mediterranean region, from Mesopotamia to Hispania. The empire began to decline in the 4th century AD. After the death of Theodosius in 395 AD, it was divided between his two sons. The Western Roman Empire fell in 476 AD due to barbarian invasions, while the Eastern Roman Empire, known as the Byzantine Empire, continued for another 1,000 years.
Roman Culture
Culturally, the Romans were heavily influenced by the Greeks, adopting many of their customs and cultural practices. They imposed Latin as the language of the empire, which became the basis for Romance languages such as Spanish, Portuguese, Galician, Catalan, French, and Italian. The Romans developed a comprehensive legal system, known as Roman Law, which continues to influence legal systems today. Notable figures include Julius Caesar, Polybius, and Pliny in mathematics and history; Horace, Cicero, Virgil (author of the Aeneid), and Ovid in literature. In art, the Romans focused on construction, building cities with well-planned streets and public works such as aqueducts (Segovia), amphitheaters (Colosseum), circuses (Circus Maximus), triumphal arches (Arch of Titus), baths (Baths of Caracalla), roads, sewers, and bridges (Alcántara). Roman sculpture, while not as refined as Greek sculpture, excelled in portraits of emperors (Augustus of Prima Porta) and historical reliefs on monuments (Trajan’s Column). They also painted walls and created mosaics. Roman art is better preserved than Greek art.
Conquest of Hispania
When the Romans conquered the Iberian Peninsula, it was inhabited by various tribes, mainly the Iberians (along the Mediterranean coast) and the Celts (in the center and north). The Iberians were more educated and peaceful, having traded with Phoenicians, Greeks, and Carthaginians for centuries. The Lady of Elche is an example of their artistic development, and they had their own alphabet. The Iberians were organized into kingdoms, such as Tartessos. The Celts were warrior tribes, living in fortified villages. Examples of their sculpture include the Bulls of Guisando.
The Romans began their conquest of the Iberian Peninsula in 218 BC, taking advantage of the conflict with the Carthaginians led by Hannibal. Scipio defeated Hannibal in the Second Punic War. It took the Romans 200 years to fully conquer the peninsula, facing resistance from the Celts, including the Lusitanian Viriato, the people of Numancia, and the Cantabrians and Basques. The Romans built many monuments in Hispania, such as the Aqueduct of Segovia, the theaters of Mérida and Sagunto, the ruins of Italica, the arches of Medinaceli and Bara, and the walls of Lugo. The Romanization of Hispania lasted for 700 years.