User:Mr. Lagom

Daily Roman Life 509B.C.E to 14C.E

According to legend, Rome was founded by two twin brothers, Romulus and Remus, who were rescued and raised by a wolf after being thrown into the Tiber River by a cruel uncle. These brothers were the sons of the war god, Mars. Romulus later built the city of Rome in 753 B.C. and became its first king. The city was set on seven hills by the Tiber River on the Etruscan border, and was named Rome after Romulus. Rome was ruled by kings until the wicked Etruscan king, Tarquin the Proud, was overthrown in 509 B.C. After that, Rome became a republic. Male Romans were divided into two groups, plebeians who were the plain people and patricians who were the rich people. Each year, two patricians were elected as consuls. Females could not take part in government affairs, and plebeians could not become a consul. The richer people had many more privileges than the poorer ones. The Romans only selected one strong leader in times of great need, and only until the disaster was over. They had a place called the Forum, a political gathering place where people could come to hear politicians, war heroes, and religious leaders speak. There were government buildings surrounding this area. Rome soon became a major force, overpowering all its neighbors. The life of a lucky Roman child consisted of school and play. School went half of the day, and the children were sometimes thrashed if mistakes were made. Many children were unlucky, though, and had to work hard with no schooling at all. Some of these were slaves. Some slaves were treated very poorly, others were treated as family. Girls had a very limited education. They went to school for a short period of time, learning the basics, then after that they were kept at home to learn household skills from their mothers. Children were taught to look and act like miniature versions of their parents. Young children played with toys such as dolls, models, and games with dice, and also liked playing outdoor games with balls and hoops. Children often got married young. A girl could be twelve, while a boy could be fourteen! Girls would offer their toys as a sign that they were no longer children. Boys would have a special ceremony where they would take off their childish clothes and put on adult ones. Children usually did not get to pick who they wanted to marry, their parents or relatives would decide. A bride wore a red veil and a white dress, and the groom carried her to their new home, for if the bride stumbled it would be very unlucky. The Romans, like the Greeks, believed in gods and goddesses, in fact the gods and goddesses of theirs were mainly the same as the Greeks, only with different names. Here are the twelve main gods and goddess and a little bit about them. Jupiter, king of the gods, was the famous hurler of thunderbolts Juno was his wife, the queen of the gods, and also the queen of marriage. Jupiter and Juno did not have the best of relationships. Neptune was Jupiter's brother, the powerful god of the sea. Vulcan, the god of fire, was the blacksmith for the gods. He was lame, and could make beautiful jewels out of simple stones. Apollo was the god of light, music, and archery, and drove the chariot of the sun. The mighty god of war was Mars. He was also the god of farming. Mercury, the god of travel and trade, was also the messenger to the gods and was very quick, for he had winged feet. The goddess without a personality was Vesta, the goddess of home, and the hearth. She was not as important as some of the other goddesses, and didn't have any particular habits. Diana, the sprightly goddess of the moon, was also the goddess of women and young animals. Venus was goddess of love, beauty, and growing plants. She sprang, full grown, from the blood and foam of the dead corpse of her father which had been thrown into the sea. Minerva was goddess of learning and wisdom, and Ceres, the goddess of farming and grain. The Romans loved entertainment, especially fights and battles put on for amusement in great amphitheaters. An amphitheater is an outdoor theater with a stage at the bottom, and seats going up on all sides of the stage. The greatest and most well known of all the amphitheaters is the Colosseum. It was opened in 80 A.D. by Emperor Titus, and held around 50,000 people. It was and is a ‘marvel of engineering' for it was designed very cleverly and skillfully. The Colosseum used arched vaults that made 80 openings that were numbered, so people could easily find their seats. It also had many corridors and stairs leading to the seats. It was indeed a wonderful creation, but it served an awful purpose. People came to watch bloody battles between animals and/or humans. It was almost always a fight to the death. Gladiators were usually the ones to fight. Gladiators were specially trained men, usually slaves, trained or forced to fight each other or animals in these huge amphitheaters. Sometimes the Romans would have Christians persecuted in front of everyone by having a ferocious animal come in and attack the Christian. Romans also enjoyed theater. The Roman Theater was very similar to Greek theater. Bibliography Baxter, Nicola. Romans. New York: Franklin Watts, 1992. Dehnam, Betty "The Mini Page," The Daily Herald, March 16, 1998, C2. Gombrich, E.H. The Story of the Art. New York: Phaidon Press Limited, 1972. "Italy," Microsoft's Encarta. Funk & Wagnall, 1994. James, Ian. Inside Italy. London: Franklin Watts, 1988. James, Simon. Ancient Rome. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1990. Osman, Karen. The Italian Renaissance. San Diego, California: Lucent Books, 1996. Reid, T. R. "Roman Empire" National Geographic July 1997: 2-41. Rutland, Jonathan. A Roman Town. New York: Warwick Press, 1986. The Vatican. Musei E Gallerie Pontificie.