History

Using the Atlas, Internet and historical sources of information;

1. Identify the location, occupation and expansion of the Greek Civilisation in Europe.

2. Present your findings in classs.

From the ancient times to today, the Greeks have called their land Hellas while they call themselves Hellenes. The names Greek and Greece were used to describe them later on by the Romans. Superiority of Roman Civilisation made their names to stick.Greece is to be found in a rocky, mountainous southward extension of the Balkans, on the east of Mediterranean Sea. On one side, the eastern shore lays the Aegean Sea. The Ionian Sea, facing Italy, is on the western side. To the south, across the Sea of Crete from the portion of Greece known as the Peloponnesus, is to be found the large island of Crete. The whole country is stunning and very beautiful. It has over one thousand islands, the sea, the mountains and numerous fertile green valleys.

               

Only 20 percent of Greece is suitable for agricultural production. Most of the high mountains ranging unto 6000 feet, narrow fertile valleys and small to medium size but fertile plains such as those of Thessaly and Boeotia are usable for agriculture. Rivers are small and sometimes dry up during summer thus making farming a challenge. Nevertheless, most of her climate is mild and favourable for cultivation of crops such as wheat, olive and grape vines that could support the population of ancient times. As during the Ancient times, today, the hills and mountains provide pasture to goats, sheep and cattle.

Greece was founded on conquest. The area witnessed invasions from time to time from around 1900 BC. By the beginning of the eighth century B.C, The Greek Civilisation had taken shape. But it was not until the 4th Century BC that it became the common cultural currency of the Mediterranean and Near Eastern worlds. This was the time of the conquests of Alexander the Great’s empire.

Greece was invaded by various groups at different times. The decedents of these groups were the ones who were later to be known as the Greeks. They settled in the peninsula and evolved an unusual system of government for themselves on the hills and rocky coasts which gradually developed into city states.

Their entry into the Peninsula began around 2500 BC and was first done by Cretans. One of their ancient kings was known as Minos. Theirs was therefore known as Minoan civilization, named after their king. The civilization was mainly concentrated along the Aegean Sea. These people are described to have lived well had hot and cold running water, bathrooms and possessed elaborate furniture. They are also said to have protected their valuables with metal locks and keys. Their houses are also said to have had plastered interiors which were decorated with paintings called frescoes, a technique of painting on wet plaster still in use even today. Cretans are further said to have been fond of dancing, boxing, racing and bull leaping among other sports. Lastly, they are described to have been slender, short and had dark curly hair and been a very peaceful community who were among the earliest sea traders in the region. Trade what was thus brought them to the shores of main land Greece.

After the Cretans were the Achaeans who arrived about 2000 B .C. These groups came to dominate the trade and government of the area. Near the Sea, they met and interacted with the Cretans thus giving rise to a new civilisation called Mycenaean. This civilisation was marked by constructions of walled cities and development of bronze goods. They occupied Knossos around 1400 BC and ruled it until 1100 B .C hence making them rule the whole of the Aegean area.Later the Bronze – Age civilizations of the Mycenaens were acquired by later groups. One of the outstanding groups was the Dorians. They invaded the area and overran Knossos around 1100 BC.

The Dorians invaded Greece from the North and drove the Myceanaens off to Asia. At around the same time, another linguistic and religious subgroup known as Ionians reached the area. Around the 5th Century the Ionians and Dorians engaged in intensive rivalry in Greece. The Ionians mainly inhabited the city of Athens and even prohibited the Dorians from entering their sanctuaries. There was thus tension between the groups even though they interacted in various ways to give forth to the Greek Civilisation between 1000 BC and 800 BC.

The Greek city states that existed in the area during their civilisation included: Athens, Sicyon, Megara, Corinth, Thebes, Chalccis, Eretria, Boetia, Argolis, Phoxcis and Thessaly, Arcadia, Archaea, Aetolia.

These cities were involved in various wars. Examples of such wars are:

• Peloponnesian war (431 – 404 BC); and

• Corinthian war (395 – 386 BC

Using the Internet and other sources of historical information;

1. Identify the unique elements of the Greek Civilisation.

2. Write them down in your notebook.

3. Present them in a class discussion.

The Greek Civilisation permeated virtually every aspect of the human life. It marked a complete refinement of its predecessors, that is Egyptian and Mesopotamian civilisations. Some of its elements were:

All the Greece islands spoke an identical language known as Greek. They were thus able to communicate easily with one another. The common language also brought feelings of togetherness among the islands’ inhabitants.

Greeks had forgotten their diverse backgrounds. All of them considered themselves as one race. They regarded non-Greeks as barbarians- men and women whose speech was to them meaningless noise

The Greek language gave them a great advantage. It was something of superb beauty and clarity. The people closely associated settlement in city states with it.Greek was spoken and written. The language was also used for instruction in both private and public functions. The Greeks also had a common alphabet. This formed the basis of the Greek language. In the 8th Century BC, they adopted a simpler alphabet from the Phoenicians.

City states were a major feature of the Greek Civilisation. Greeks lived in cities which were all independent of each other. Each city and the farms around it formed a separate state called a polis. Sometimes a city sent out a band of its citizens to found a daughter city elsewhere. The new city was quite independent of its parent city, although naturally it had close ties with the latter.

By the 8th and 7th Centuries BC, cities were built almost everywhere throughout Greece. All these cities were independent. The city-states forged alliances with one another.

Each city state was proud and jealously guarded its independence. This made them to be characterized by battle and shifting alliances. Cooperation among them also took place. The citizens were very patriotic. Where the enemy was non-Greek, the other city states came to the defense of their counterpart.

The city-states governed themselves differently. Sometimes they had kings for example at Sparta. Other cities were led by a self-imposed strong man who ruled the way they wanted. Such a leader is known as a tyrant. Sometimes the nobleman ruled, and this was called an aristocracy. Sometimes all the citizens took part in the government. This was called a democracy. It was practised in Athens. All adult male assembled together to discuss issues of interest to their polis. Other forms of government in the city states were: monarchy, oligarchy and aristocracy.

In groups visit the library and research to find out what kind of governments these are:

1. Monarchy                2. Oligarchy

3. Aristocracy              4. Democracy

What form of government do we have in our country? Explain.

In city states were found the asty (city itself) with its watchtower, the agora(public square/market place) and surrounding rural- agricultural lands referred to as the chora. The asty was the business, political, religious and social centre of the entire community while the Chora provided the food to both the villages and to the city.

                       

Participation in games In Ancient Greek, there was a strong belief that athletic competitions were a way to please the gods and honour the dead heroes. Greeks therefore participated in the Olympic games from 776 BC. During the games, fighting city-states even suspended wars between them to allow the competitions to go on.

The games were held after every four years. They attracted some 40,000 Greeks into the stadium built in Olympia. The games were dedicated to the god Zeus, father of the gods. The games lasted for more than five days.

                                         

Games events included foot races, wrestling, boxing, jumping, javelin, discus throwing and chariot-riding. Athletes were proud of their bodies and emphasized physical fitness. A greek by the name Myron, made a famous marble sculpture of a discus thrower around 450BC. This sculpture survives in the Roman copy of the Greek Bronze. The most celebrated event during the Olympic Games was known as the pentathlon. It was considered the supreme contest of athletic skill. Winners were crowned with a wreath of olive leaves, a coveted Olympic prize. The wreath of olives awarded the candidate was considered sacred to Zeus.

The Greek Olympic Games came to an end in 393 AD. They were banned by a Christian Roman Emperor. He saw them as pagan practices. But fifteen hundred years later, the games were revived through the efforts of a French baron, Pierre de Coubertin, who was inspired by the ideals of the Ancient Greeks. In 1896, the first modern Olympic Games were held in Athens, Greece. Since then, the games have been a major event in the history of sports in the world.

Ancient Greeks were very religious. They believed in gods and goddesses. They had a common religion based on twelve chief gods and goddesses. These deities were thought to live on Mt. Olympus, the highest mountain in Greece. The gods and goddesses include the following:

• Zeus – the chief god and father of the gods• Athena – goddess of wisdom and craft

• Apollo – god of the sun and poetry• Aphrodite – goddess of love and beauty

• Poseidon – brother of Zeus and god of the seas and earthquakes

• Hades – the god of the underworld – where the spirits of the dead went

• Nemesis – god of vengeance

• Nike – goddess of victory

Apollo - god of archery, music, poetry, prophecy, medicine and later on god of the sun

Although the twelve gods and goddesses were common to all Greeks, each city-state usually singled out one of the twelve Olympian gods as its guardian e.g. Athena was the patron goddess of Athens, for example. Each polis also had its own local gods. These local gods, remained vital to the community as a whole.Important elements in the Greek religion were rituals and festivals. The Greeks wanted the gods and goddesses to look favourably upon their lives and activities. This was what informed these religious practices.

The Greeks attached a lot of importance to artistic expressions. Their arts have greatly influenced the standards taken by those of other European groups.

Human beings were the subject matter of ancient Greeks’ art. In them, people were presented as objects of great beauty. It was based on the ideals of reason, moderation, balance and harmony in all things.

                          

Greek art was shown in their unique architecture and sculptures. Here, they went to great lengths to show their expression of beauty. Some of these works still stand today. On architecture, their artistry was visible in the temples they built for their gods and goddesses. An example was the famous building built in the fifth century BC, the Parthenon. This temple was built between 447 and 432 BC under the supervision of Ictinus and Callicrates as the master builders. The temple covered 23,000 square feet.

It was dedicated to Athena, the patron goddess of Athens. The temple was also dedicated to the glory of Athens and the Athenians. It shows the principles of classical architecture: the search for calmness, clarity, and freedom from unnecessary detail. The Parthenon still stands on the Acropolis in Athens. Its classical beauty and symmetry symbolize the power and wealth of the Athenian empire. The temple was decorated with statuary and beliefs by the sculptor Phidias.

They also made sculptures and statues. Their sculptors, showed relaxed attitudes. Most of their faces were self-assured, their bodies flexible and smooth muscled. They were life-like as the figures bore natural features. The sculptors shown their ideal standards of beauty. Most were informed by Doryphoros, a reknown sculptor at the time, who operated on the theory that use of ideal proportions, based on mathematical ratios found in nature, could produce an ideal human form, beautiful in its perfected features. The figures were graceful, strong and perfectly formed. Their faces showed neither laughter nor anger, only serenity. Sculptors also tried to capture the grace of the idealized human body in motion. They valued order, balance and proportion in the works.

In the Greek society, there were thinkers who challenged the belief that events were caused by the whims of gods. Instead, these thinkers, used reason and observation to establish the causes of things. They were known as philosophers or lovers of wisdom.The philosophers explored many subjects from mathematics and music to logic (rational thinking). Some were interested in ethics and morality. Through reason and observation, the thinkers believed that, they could discover laws that governed the universe.

They based their philosophy on two assumptions:

• the universe is put together in an orderly way, and subject to absolute and unchanging laws;

• people can understand these laws through logic and reason.

Greek philosophers were divided into two. There were those who questioned people’s unexamined beliefs and ideas of justice, and other traditional values. These were known as the sophists. The most famous of them was Protagoras. He took a position questioning the existence of the traditional Greek gods. Pythagoras also argued that there was no universal standard of truth, saying ‘Man (the individual) is the measure of all things ...’ These ideas were considered dangerous and radical.

 

Then there were critics of the sophists. One of their harshest critics was Socrates. Socrates believed that absolute standards did exist for truth and justice. He however, encouraged Greeks to go further and question themselves and their moral character. But like the sophists, his ideas were considered radical and poisonous. He was later sentenced to death over the same. Others were Plato (a student of Socrates) and Aristotle (a student of Plato).

Athens led the other Greek city states in literature and drama. The latter was made up of both tragedy and comedy. Epic and lyric were other literary forms in the Greek world of literature. Drama is said to have developed out of the choruses that chanted lyrical poems also known as Odes, to the god Dionysius. A group of citizens judged the plays and awarded the winner a simple prize: a wreath of ivy. The plays were partly acted and partly chanted. Action was limited as emphasis was on the story and its meaning. Greek literature began with the epics of Homer, whose stirring tales inspired later writers.

The drama was closely tied to the political and religious life of the state, which sponsored it. The Dionysian odes were improved by adding characters and chorus into them, making them conversational, hence being able to bring human conflict on the stage.

In the drama, staging remained simple. There were two or three characters (all male) wearing masks, with a chorus of twelve to fifteen members chanting commentary on the action. Dialogue was in verse, and movements were slow, solemn and formal, punctuated by music and dance; but the emotional impact of tragic drama could be overwhelming.

Aristotle is credited with the introduction of definition and explanation of the nature of tragedy. He declared that the purpose of tragedy was to inspire pity and fear in the audience, and so to purge these emotions through a catharsis. Comedy, on the other hand, was even more directly a form of direct political commentary. It also addressed themes such as sex, farming, the good old days, the nightmare of politics, the oddities of religion and the strange manners of the town, among others. Prose was another literary genre that emerged in Ancient Greek.

The people, from the fifth century, began to express philosophical and political ideas through prose. This symbolised the increasing functional literacy of mostly, the Athenians. It was in this background that later major literary achievements, by Plato and Aristotle, were to emerge.

                         

Drama held a vital position in the public life of Athens that citizens were sometimes paid to attend the plays, just as they were paid to hold public office. As part of their civic responsibility, wealthy citizens bore the cost for producing the plays.

We owe the discipline of History to the Ancient Greeks. At first, History was part of literature until Herodotus campaigned for its separation from literature. The Greeks applied observation, reason, and logic in understanding the human past. Herodotus was the pioneer in this hence he is often referred to as the Father of History.

According to Thucydides, history was to be written in an accurate, factual and impartial way. He also vouched for the use of eye witness accounts in writing in this discipline.

In groups, discuss how History relates with literature today in the school curriculum. Which are some of the ways through which a student of history may make use of literature to learn the subject?

Ancient Greeks were also seamen and traders. They traded with the neighbouring lands in a variety of goods. The Greek city states also traded with each other. Trade made the city states to be rich and prosperous.

In sum, the Greeks were ahead of other people in virtually all fields. Little wonder, Cicero, the Roman scholar is quoted saying that “in all branches of learning, the Greeks are our masters”. He made this statement in the first century B .C. It still holds today. Even in medicine, astronomy and other sciences, they made their footprints. The Greek Civilisation spread to other parts of the world through education (literacy), trade and conquest. They built their civilisation from the wide array of resources which abounded in their environment.

A few examples were marble, limestone, copper and silver. Coupled with the bounty of the sea, and fertile land, they had a lot of wealth and food which supported their strong and growing population. The Greeks were united by geographic region, language, religion, economics and common customary practices. However, they remained divided politically into the scores of the independent city states. Loyalty was first and foremost to the city state before it extended to the more remote ideal of Hellas.

Use the Internet, the encyclopedia and History textbook to ;1. Find out the contribution of the Greek Civilisation to todays’s world.2. Write them down in your notebook3. Share your findings in a class presentation.

In sports we owe to the Greeks the Olympic games which are held after every four years. The games are today a global event which attracts teams from various nations in different parts the World.

Greeks pioneered drama as a form of entertainment. They performed plays which explored the struggles made by individuals to free themselves from the imperfections in their characters. The playwrights balanced their tragedies with comedies that poked fun at the important and the disliked. Some of the outstanding playwrights included:

• Aristophanes added his genius by using satire and comedy to make his points about society and politics of the time.

• Hommer believed to have been two people with the name to have written the Iliad and the Odyssey.

• Sappho brought lyric poetry as a genre.

• Aeschylus introduced ideas of dialogue and interacting characters to playwright hence inventing drama.

• Sophocles brought irony as a literacy technique.

• Plato introduced philosophy in literature through his dialogues.Writers valued and preserved much of the knowledge and writings of the past in libraries such as Alexandria, the most famous in the world.Athenians led other Greek city states in literary appreciation. They are famous for their love and appreciation of literature especially poems and plays. The world today has borrowed heavily from their rules and habits for writing, reaching and theatre arts performance. Some of their plays are still being performed in different parts of the World today.

The Ancient Greeks are credited with developing history as a distinct discipline of study. Prior to this, history was considered to be part of literature. Herodotus constructed a narrative of the Persians wars using critical methods and interpretative framework. Later, Thucydides (460 – 400 B .C) used scientific methods in writing the History of the Peloponnesian war. He used the analytic methods borrowed from science and philosophy in writing the history so as to produce ‘an exact knowledge of the past as an aid to the interpretation of the future.’

• Philosophy is the study of nature and meaning of the universe and of human life. The Greeks believed in rational explanation for the existence of the universe or wise people. They believed that truth was relative and depended on how one argued his or her case out not withstanding whether what was at stake was truthful or false.

• The philosophers tried to understand humanity’s relationship to nature, the gods, individual to another and between the individual and the groups of human society. Some of the most renown philosophers of ancient Greece are. Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, Zeno, Epicurious.

In groups of five, visit the library, read from history books and research from the Internet the contribution of the following ancient Greek philosophers.

• Socrates                 • Plato

• Aristotle                  • Epicureans

Are the works of these Greek philosophers relevant in the modern world? Show how.

Greeks made most pronounced legacy in science and mathematics. Various personilities made numerous contributions. A few examples include:

• Aristarchus of Samos living around 200 B.C discovered that the earth and the other planet revolved around the sun.

• Eratosthenes discovered that the earth is spherical.

• Euclid around 300 B.C, in his school at Alexaneria, borrowed from the ideas of other scientists from Mesopotamia and Greece and developed the basic principles of geometry. Later other Greek mathematicians developed trigonometry. In schools today, students still study Euclid geometry. Euclid also noted that light travels in straight lines and described the law of reflection.

• Archimedes (287 -212 BC). He was a student of Euclid. He developed various laws of physics. His discoveries included: the principle of determining specific gravity and the basic principle of the modern conveyor belt. He is also said to have known the use of the pulley system and the lever and once used them to pull a loaded ship out of the sea and brought it to the beach. Today, there is even a screw pump which bears his name. Archimedes also defined a spiral

• Hero living in Alexandria, around 100 BC made a long list of inventions some of which includes a fire engine and steam engine.

• Hippocrates is known today as the father of medicine. He believed that sickness is a result of natural cause and not a product of god’s wrath. He formulated the Hippocratic Oath which outlines the responsibilities of the medical profession up to today.

• Herophilus lived around 200 B .C. He made several discoveries on how the body functions. The main ones were that blood is pumped from the heart through the arteries to other parts of the body, the pulse is vital in revelation of sickness, there exists a relationship between the brains and the nerves and lastly, the brain is divided into many sections, each with its own functions in controlling various parts of the body.

• Thales of Miletus (640 – 610 to 548 – 545 BC ) – He travelled widely and learnt a lot during his travels. Thales brought Phoenician navigational techniques into Miletus. He also revised the calendar, brought Babylonian mathematical knowledge to Greece and used geometry to solve problems such as calculating the height of pyramids and the distances of ships from the shore. Thales studied astronomy in Babylon and came back home and predicted the eclipse of the sun.

• Pytharogras (569 – 475 B.C). He was a philosopher and mathematician. He studied astronomy and geometry before founding the Pythagorean cult. The cult was devoted to the study of numbers which they saw as concrete. As a mathematician, Pythagoras also investigated the ratios of lengths corresponding to musical harmonies and developed methods of geometric proof. In geometry, he developed the Pythagoras theory or Hypotenuse theorem that is still being used today.

                            

Ancient Greeks excelled in great architectural works. Most of the formulas they invented as early as the 6th Century B.C have informed the world of architecture for the past two millennia. They built temples, theatre and stadiums which are still the envy of the present world. We owe today our theatres and stadium designs to this Ancient civilisation.Greek architecture still influences many people today. The US Supreme Court design, for example, was influenced by the Parthenon, the Greek temple to the goddess Athena.

Greeks are credited for introducing and practicing democracy, system of checks and balances in government, equality before the law and active citizen participation in the civic functions of the state. They also brought the issue of political and civil rights which were limited to citizens of a city state. As citizens, people had their duties and responsibilities to the state and fellow citizens clearly spelt out.

Athens was the first Greek city to set up a democratic government. All free men were members of the government. They passed laws and were allowed to serve on a jury of its 30,000 citizens, 500 were chosen on a yearly basis to run the city. Those chosen were given stipends as token of appreciation for their work. The outstanding Athenian leaders who contibuted towards the development of democracy were Solon (early 594 – 508 BC) Pericles (461 – 429 BC) and Alexander the Great (336 – 323 BC).

Greek art, music and dance have exercised an enormous influence on the culture of the present world. In art they made sculptures and statues of stones marble, limestone and clay. Drinking vessels were made from lumps of gold, silver or bronze, stamped with a geometric design.

One of the great sculptors was Phidias who lived during the 400 B .C. He is credited with carving the massive statues of Athena which stood within the Parthenon. He also carved the great statue of the seated Zeus at Olympia, the site of Olympic Games – today listed as one of the Seven Wonders of the World. Other well known sculptors were Praxiteles and Myron who both lived in the 300s B.C. On music and dance, Greek folk music and the ballad-like reciting of epic poetry.

The Greeks created their art to look natural and realistic. The depictions of nature, humanity and noteworthy events of society were designed to please the public, support civic pride and to reinforce Greek ideals of beauty. The Greeks civilizations as can be seen from these contributions left a rich legacy to the modern world. However, it equally had it flaws. Women and slaves had no political rights. Foreigners were also prohibited from owning land. These made the Greek system to be discriminative by today’s standards.

The Greeks shared a common religion and belief system. They believed in many gods and goddesses. Their belief system was also made up of heroes and myths.Greek gods and goddesses had human appearance.

They also bore human characteristics and attributes. The deities, participated directly in human affairs according to Greek beliefs. In addition, the Greeks believed in oracles to tell the future and to give prophesies.Today, religion is common to humanity. It is based on a system of beliefs just as during the Ancient Greek period.

Belief in oracles is still practiced in games and sports and many other fields of human endeavour. The belief in existence of gods (or god), life after death, provision of sacrifices and offerings to god, command of divine powers over human life and observance of festivals and rituals in religious life, were evident in the Greek Civilisation. We owe these partly to the Greek Civilisation.

Sparta, was renowned for her military power. She built an army which proved fatal to other Greek city – states and beyond. War was glorified and every efforts was made to train boys to serve in the military. Today, all world states have developed their military along almost similar lines. A might of a nation is partly seen through its military capability.

During training today, like during the Spartan period, body and mind held a central place. The recruits and those in service have their bodies and minds hardened and shaped for war. This is also what took place in Sparta.

Have you watched a movie called Spartacus? If not organise to watch it with your classmates. You can also watch it at home. Explain how it helps your understanding of the ancient Greek Civilisation.

Use the Atlas, Internet amd other historical sources of information to;

1. Identify the location, occupation and expansion of the Roman Civilisation in Europe.

2. Present your findings in class

The Roman Civilisation grew along the Tiber River in central Italy. It was mainly first concentrated in the city of Rome. This was after the Romans, conquered the Greeks in 146 B .C. They founded the city in 753 BC. According to Legend, this was done by two twin brothers – Romulus and Remus who were abandoned on the Tiber River as infants and raised by a she-wolf. The two decided to build the city. By the end of the Fourth Century BCE. the city was already the dominant power on the Italian peninsular.

For five centuries thereafter, Rome’s power steadily increased. By the first century CE, it controlled Greece and most of her colonies, as well as most of Western Europe. It expanded her hegemony in these areas through conquest. Rome also managed to take control of the powerful North African city of Carthage hence uniting the entire Mediterranean region. She also controlled the Mediterranean sea.

At the peak of its powers, her empire covered Egypt, Greece, Asia Minor, Syria – all to her East. To her west were Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco and Spain, Portugal, France, Switzerland, Belgium and England. She managed to Conquer all these lands.Rome’s development was greatly influenced by the geography of the Italian peninsular. The area had excellent marble and small quantities of lead, tin, copper, iron (on the island of Elba) and silver in its extensive coastline. There were few good harbours, most of which faced the west away from Greece and the Near East. Ancient Italy, nonetheless, was well endowed with large forests. It had more fertile land than ancient Greece.

However, it was more exposed to invasion. Invaders entered it easily, as the Alps posed no effective barrier to invaders from central Europe. To make matters worse, Italian low lying coastline opened it to invaders from the sea. All these made the Romans, from an early time in their settlements, to be absorbed in military pursuits to defend their own conquests against the invaders.

The geography of the Italian Peninsular made possible the rise of Rome. The peninsular extends about 750 miles from north to south with a width of about 120 miles. It is centrally located in the Mediterranean. The city of Rome is in the centre of Italy. This central location made Rome to expand, first in Italy, and later in the lands around the Mediterranean sea.Italy’s location made it easier to unify than Greece. The Peninsular is not broken up into small, isolated valleys.

The Apennine Mountains formed a ridge from north to south and divides the country into west and east. Italy was equally blessed by having broad, fertile plains, both in the north under the shadow of the Alps, and in the west, where the Romans settled. The fertile lands supported her growing population. Rome was built on seven hills and was easily defensible.

The earliest settlers in the Italian peninsular arrived in prehistoric times. From as early as 1000 to 500 BC the area was already settled. Three groups inhabited the region and eventually battled for its control. These were: the Latins, the Greeks and the Etruscans. The Latins were farmers and livestock keepers. They wandered into Italy across the Alps around 1000 BC These people settled along the Tiber river valley in a region they called Latium. They are credited with building the first settlement at Rome. This was a cluster of wooden huts on Palatine Hill, one of the seven hills in the city. Other main hills were Esquiline and Quirinal. The Latins were the first Romans.

  

Next to invade the area were Greek settlers. They arrived and settled in the area between 750-600 BC. They brought with them elements of their civilisation. They established about 50 colonies on the coasts of southern Italy and Sicily. Their cities became prosperous and commercially active. They taught the Romans farming, especially how to grow grapes and olives.

Unlike Latins and Greeks, the Etruscans (or Rasenna as they called themselves before they were given the name Etruscans) were native to northern Italy. These people were skilled in metal works and engineering. They exerted a great influence on the Roman Civilisation. This was especially in writing, (where the Romans, adopted their alphabet) and which had been borrowed from the Greeks) architecture (where they influenced Rome’s architecture, especially the use of the arch). The Romans are also said to have borrowed religious ideas from both the Greeks and the Etruscans e.g. from the Etruscans, they borrowed rituals which they believed helped them to win the favour of the gods. The Etruscans are also the ones who built the city of Rome and even gave the Romans their dress – the toga and short cloak. The Romans also borrowed their military organisation.

                           

The Romans, from the Greeks, even took Greek gods but changed their names e.g. Zeus became Jupiter, while Hera, the queen god, became Juno. They also gave Rome its artistic and cultural models through their sculpture, architecture and literature.

Using the Internet and other sources of historical information;

1. Identify the unique elements of the Roman Civilisation.

2. Write them down in your notebook and present them in a class discussion.

Like other ancient communities, the Romans paid attention to architecture. Their architecture borrowed a lot from the Greek and Etruscans ones. They also introduced new designs and materials in their works. The Romans, for example, pioneered the use of concrete in construction. Roman architectural works were hence an improvement over the earlier Greek ones.

Roman civil engineering and building construction technology became developed and refined. Some of what they built have remained to date for example, the Pantheon (with one of the largest single span domes in the world), a building still found in the business district of the present city of Rome. There was also the Colossium, a theatre which could accommodate 50,000 spectators.

The pantheon was a temple of all Roman gods.Roman architectural developments were found in virtually all the cities under its control and influence. A few examples are: the Verona Arena in Verona Italy; Arch of Hadrian in Athens, Greece; Temple of Hadrian at Ephesos in Turkey; a theatre at orange in France and Lepcis Magna in Libya among others.The architectural works were visible in palaces, stadiums, temples, private dwellings, villas, public buildings and hydraulics. Roman architectural works emphasized grandeur.

Romans are known to have experimented with the dome and pioneered in the building of amphitheatres, public baths, and race courses. In the empire, public buildings were of massive proportions and solid construction.Roman architecture made use of rows and columns and rectangular buildings. They also used curvilinear forms (forms based on curved lines): the arch, vault, and dome. Combined with concrete, the curvilinear forms saw the Romans building massive building by their times.Closely related to architecture was road construction.

They made big strides in this area even though they did little in science. Engineering was thus their strength. The Romans built magnificent roads and bridges some of which have survived to date. Aqueducts brought water into Rome from nearby hills. The water was used for drinking and bathing. It also served as sewage system.

The early Roman republic had a written code of law which was heavily based on custom. It was known as the ‘Twelve Tables or tablets’. They were written to make the interpretation of the law objective. Work of writing the law begun in 451 B.C.

It involved a group of ten officials. Upon finishing the work, the laws were carved on twelve tablets or tables and hung in the Forum (market place). These laws became the basis for future Roman law. They were based on the spirit of equality of all citizens to the law. Every individual had thus a duty to protect the law.Through the universal laws, they were able to establish standards of justice that applied to all people.

The standards of justice brought by the Romans included principles that were recognizable by people. An individual was regarded innocent until proved guilty. Every suspect was allowed to face his or her accuser and himself or herself before a judge who was expected to weigh the evidence carefully before making a verdict. The Roman law was based on the following principles:

• All persons had the right to equal treatment under the law.

• A person was considered innocent until proven guilty.

• The burden of proof rested with the accuser rather than the accused.

• A person should be punished only for actions, not thoughts.

• Any law that seemed unreasonable or grossly unfair could be set aside

From the earliest times, the Romans had distrust of Kingship and of a sole ruler. This was due to the lessons they learned from their experience with Etruscans. As a result, the Romans devised a complicated system of government.

In the Roman republic, the chief executive officers were the consuls and praetors. Two consuls, chosen every year, ran the government and led the Roman army into battle. In 366 BC., a new office, that of praetor was created. The occupant was in charge of civil law. A counsul’s term was only one year, and once elected, he could not be elected again for ten years. One counsul could also overrule or veto the others’ decision.

The senate was made up of a select group of about 300 land owning men who served for life. It begun by serving as an advisory body to government officials. Later, by the 3rd Century BC ., it got the force of law. Senators each year, elected from the patrician class two consuls. The power of the consuls was thus checked by the senate. Consuls’ power was further checked by limitation of terms. They could only serve for one term. Membership to the senate was for life.

There were also a number of assemblies in the Roman republic. It was organized by classes based on wealth. This assembly was fixed in such a way that the wealthiest citizens always had a majority. It elected the chief officials and passed laws.