Creation of Rome

To understand Rome, you must understand its beginnings. It all started with a mythical city called Alba Longa, ruled by Amulius. Amulius had a wife name Rhea and forced her to remain virgin in fear that she would give birth to rival clans. However, Rhea had twin children with the war god Mars, and Amulius was furious. He ordered that the twin children, Romulus and Remus, be drowned in a river. The children survived and were in the care of a she-wolf. Eventually, a shepherd found the twin children and took care of them as they grew into adults. The twins

learned of their past, took over Alba Longa, and killed the wicked king Amulius. They decided to create a city where the she-wolf found them and got into an argument over what to name it which ended in the death of Remus. Romulus then named the city "Rome".

Rome Becomes a Republic

Rome gave monarchy the boot for one main reason, and that was unjust ruling. A group of nobles banded together and usurped the king of Rome. They created a republic where the people were allowed to choose who became leader. This republic was a lot better for the Roman people because any unjust leader would be gone within a year. This system had two rulers, called consuls, who had the power of kings but could deny each other's decisions if they felt it was

unjust and they were changed every year. As Rome expanded its influence, this political structure proved resilient and adaptable. This structure was one of the things that allowed Rome to dominate its enemies and we still use principles from this republic today.

Julius Caesar: The First Dictator

Gaius Julius Caesar, better known as Julius Caesar, was born to a well-off family, but in no means was rich. However, Caesar's aunt was married to Gauis Marius, who had been consul 7 times. He was born in the Roman Republic to his parents, Aurelia and Cinna. Caesar grew up to become a Roman statesman and military general. Caesar eventually rose to power and became a part of the first triumvirate, along with massively wealthy Crassus, and the popular general Pompey. After his term as Consul, Caesar went to Gaul and became rivals with Pompey. Pompey ordered Caesar to disarm and come back, and Caesar responded by coming back and bringing an army with him.

This started a 4-year civil war, which ended with Pompey dead and Ceasar dictator of Rome. He then went about "fixing" Rome, reforming the state, lowering taxes, etc. which led to him winning the trust of the public.

Death of Caesar

The role of dictator was meant to give extraordinary power to an individual for a limited time in the face of a crisis. Caesar abused this power. He had his people showered along in the Senate, and he could veto anything he didn't like. Caesar's time as dictator expanded from one year to 10, then to life. However, Caesar didn't plan for everything. Some nobles were scared that Caesar would take their influence away, and they acted in their fear. On the Ides of March (15th) in 44 BC, a group of about 60 people, led by Cassius and his maybe illegitimate son Brutus, stabbed Caesar to death. Once Caesar was dead, the people of Rome cried "People of Rome, we are once again

FREE!." But alas, they really weren't. The death of Caesar led to a second shorter Civil War, which ended in Julius' great nephew Octavian taking power. Soon, the republic era of Rome ended permanently.