Honors World History
Assessment 2 p. 160
1)
Key
Terms:
2)
What
factors led to the decline of the Roman republic and the rise of the Roman Empire?
A)
Failure
of Senate to address corruption
B)
Widening
gap between rich and poor
C)
Civil
wars
D)
Power
struggles among Roman leaders
3)
Compare
the positive had negative results of conquest for Rome. Which do you think had
the most impact?
A)
Positive: uniformity of law and relative peace during
the Pax Romana, great wealth from conquests and trade, creation of a new class
of rich Romans
B)
Negative:
widening gap between rich and poor led to riots, use of slave labor and imports
of grain drove small farmers out of business, increased corruption
4)
Do you
think the reforms Caesar enacted would have been enough to maintain the Roman
republic, had he not been killed?
A)
No, his
reforms did not address corruption, create a better civil service, or make the
tax system more fair
5)
How do
you think the founders of the Roman republic would have viewed the government
of the Roman Empire?
A)
They
may have been disappointed by the
corruption and unlimited authority given to the leaders
Focus Questions (10-21)
1)
Why
might the islands of Sicily and Sardinia be a good place for Rome to begin its
expansion?
Both were very close to the
Italian peninsula and could be reached without long supply lines
2)
How was
Rome’s treatment of the Carthaginians different from its treatment of conquered
peoples in earlier wars?
In earlier wars, enemies were
treated generously and include in the republic; in the Punic Wars, Rome sought
revenge, domination, and supremacy
3)
What
effect did Mediterranean conquest have on the Roman social class system?
It created a new class of
wealthy general, official, and traders, as well as a class of slaves from war
captives
4)
What
values replaced simplicity, hard work, and devotion to duty in Rome?
Greed and self-interest
5)
What
issue led to civil wars in the Roman republic?
Who should hold power – the
senate or popular political reformers
6)
How were
the new professional armies different from Roman legions?
Because their commanders gave
them more benefits than the state did, these soldiers owed their loyalty to
their commanders rather than to the state
7)
Why
might commanding a professional army make Caesar and other generals more
willing to engage in power struggles?
They had force to back up their
efforts to take power
8)
Why was
Caesar murdered?
His enemies feared he would
make himself kings.
9)
Why was
Augustus careful not to declare himself dictator while acting as one?
Because dictators were limited
to just six months in office
10)
What
event marked the end of the Roman republic and the beginning of the Roman
empire?
The Senate gave Octavian the
title of Augustus and allowed him to exercise absolute power.
11)
What
political and economic reforms helped Augustus create a stable government?
Political: created an
efficient, well-trained civil service to enforce laws; allowed cities and
provinces more self-government
Economic: ordered a census to
find out who should be taxed, set up a postal service, issued new coins to make
trade easier, put the jobless to work building roads and temples or farming the
land
12)
What as
the long-term effect of the reforms made by Augustus?
His reforms led to a 200 –year
period of stable government, peace and order within the empire, a unified
empire, and economic prosperity.
Vocabulary
1)
Imperialism
- domination by one country of the
political, economic, or cultural life of another country or region
2)
Latifundia
- huge estates bought up y newly wealthy
Roman citizens
3)
Tiberius
Gracchus - wanted reform by calling for
distribution of land to poor farmers; killed during a riot
4)
Gaius
Gracchus - wanted reform by calling for
the use of public funds to buy grain for the poor; killed during a riot
5)
Julius
Caesar - ambitious military commander and
politician who became dictator for life
of Rome; assassinated by members of the Senate
6)
Augustus
- title given to Octavian, the nephew of
Julius Caesar, who was given Rome by his uncle; he was the beginning or the
Roman Empire
7)
Census
- population count
8)
Hadrian
- an example of one of the good emperors;
codified Roman law, had Hadrian’s wall built across Britain to hold back
attackers
9)
Virgil
- wrote the epic poem Aeneid, in
which he tried to show that Rome’s past was as heroic as that of Greece.
