Roman Empire

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Timeline of development and extinction

381: Second Ecumenical Council in Constantinople declares Christianity the state religion of the Roman Empire

In 381, under Theodosius, the Second Ecumenical Council was convened in Constantinople, declaring Christianity in its Nicene form the state religion of the entire Roman Empire, and the widespread eradication of the remnants of paganism began. In 385 C.E., the temple of Sarapis was destroyed in Alexandria and part of the Alexandrian library was burned. In all these cases, the hard hand of the Alexandrian bishop Cyril, a Christian dogmatist, was felt.

361: Emperor Julian returns to supporting paganism

Emperor Julian, who ascended the throne of the Roman Empire in 361, became an ally of dying paganism in his struggle against the advancing Christianity. He forbade Christians from teaching in any schools, ordered the return to the pagan priesthood of the lands captured by Christians, sought to rally the best representatives of the pagan intelligentsia around him, and generally supported paganism in every possible way. Therefore, he received the nickname of the Apostate from Christians. But since his religious policy was turned to the past, it was not successful, and after the death of Julian the Apostate, Christianity easily regained its previous positions.

325: The first ecumenical council in Nicaea

In 325, the First Ecumenical Council was convened in Nicaea, condemning heresy.

320: Created a virtual 3D copy of Ancient Rome accessible to everyone. What he was before the collapse of the empire

In early November 2023, a virtual 3D model of Ancient Rome was opened, which allows you to explore the capital of the Roman Empire during its heyday. Anyone can admire the famous monuments, including the Colosseum, the Pantheon, the Terms of Caracalla and the Roman Forum, as they might have been in 320 AD. At this time, Rome was one of the most populous cities in Europe with a population of 1 million people and 7,000 buildings.

The author of the project is digital archaeologist Bernard Frischer of the Luddy School of Computer Science, Computer Engineering and Engineering at Indiana University Bloomington. The idea of ​ ​ recreating Ancient Rome in a virtual format was born to Frisher in 1974, when he was a fellow of the Roman Prize in Classics at the American Academy in Rome. Then he visited the Museum of Roman Civilization, saw a physical model of Ancient Rome and decided that he could create an improved computerized version of it. The project, dubbed Rome Reborn: Flight over Ancient Rome, was helped by educational technology company Flyover Zone. 3D copy of Ancient Rome access at this link.

A virtual 3D model of ancient Rome has been opened

The urban reconstruction of ancient Rome is as scientifically accurate as the surviving fragmentary evidence allows. As new data becomes available, project participants complete their model and add details. The virtual city can be studied from the ground or from a bird's eye view.

The Rome Reborn: Flight over Ancient Rome project is supposed to be useful for educational purposes. For example, teachers can organize virtual tours for their students. In turn, travelers and amateur archaeologists will be able to explore great cultural heritage sites without leaving their homes.^[1]

315: Emperor Constantine declared Christianity equal to other religions of the Roman Empire

In 315, Emperor Constantine declared Christianity equal to other religions of the Roman Empire.

303: Mass persecution of Christians by decision of Emperor Diocletian

From 284 to 305 C.E., Emperor Diocletian was at the head of the Roman Empire. In 303-304 he organized a mass persecution of Christians. Diocletian sought to completely eradicate Christianity, there were many victims of repression.

I-III centuries: Legionnaires

Roman helmets in the I-III centuries.

Diploma of the Roman Legionnaire

This is what a fragment of a diploma that was issued to a Roman auxilia warrior after graduating from 25 years of service looks like. According to this 4 by 4 cm bronze plate, the veteran received Roman citizenship, as all his wives received, with whom the warrior met during the campaigns (although this was prohibited) and, of course, children.

The document had another second part, which was connected to the first using a hinge. There, probably, other privileges of the servant were noted. Specifically, this diploma was found in 2019 in the territory of the former Thrace in the ancient city of Deultum (Debelt), where Legio VIII Augusta has been housed since Octavian. The find dates back to the 2nd century AD, the era of Emperor Hadrian.

223

A Roman toilet carved from chariot marble, Italy, 211-224 CE.

117

115 g: Emperor Traian's military campaigns

Military campaigns of the Roman Emperor Trajan in 101-115

50: Last Greek Black Sea colonies annexed to Roman Empire

Main article: Greek colonies in Russia

The last Greek colonies on the Black Sea were annexed to the Roman Empire in the first half of the 1st century CE after the Kingdom of Bosporus, which included large colony cities like Panticapaeus (Kerch) and Fanagoria, fell under Roman influence and actually became a dependent state.

33: The first banking crisis in history

The very first financial crisis occurred in the first century CE in the Roman Empire. In 33, the financial sector of the empire was engulfed in a powerful panic due to lack of liquidity due to several reasons in different parts of the ancient world: due to a storm, three merchant ships with goods drowned in the Red Sea, an uprising began in Greece at several enterprises...

These events led to a massive withdrawal of money from the Roman banking house of Quintus Maximus, the flight of capital quickly spread to other bank houses, in a matter of days a financial panic began in the whole empire from France to Egypt - banks one after another declared bankruptcy.

The liquidity crisis was promptly resolved thanks to the policy of "quantitative easing" of the emperor Tiberius: the banking system was pumped up with liquidity from the imperial treasury in the amount of 100 million sesterces (an ancient Roman silver coin, the denomination of which was designated by the abbreviation IIS. According to one version, this designation became the prototype of the US dollar sign - $), which at the current exchange rate was about $2 billion. Tiberius also reduced the interest rate to zero for three years. Thus, the liquidity crisis was eliminated within a few weeks. It is striking that until 2 thousand years ago, remote parts of the ancient world were so closely ^[2].

14 AD

According to 2018 estimates.

2 BC: During the reign of Octavian Augustus, the road through the Iberian Peninsula, which received his name, is modernized

After the reign of the Roman emperor Octavian Augustus, when between 8 and 2 B.C.E., the Vía Exterior road, approximately 1,500 km long, was widened and improved, it was named after the emperor, the Augustow Road.

27 BC

44 BC: The Murder of Julius Caesar

In 44 BC, fearing Caesar's increased power, a group of conspiratorial senators led by Brutus stabbed him directly in the Senate.

After that, a commemorative dinary was released, on which Brutus is depicted on one side, and on the other - two daggers (denoting murder), a pylos cap (free man sign) and the inscription EID MAR (March Ides, i.e. March 15 - the day of the murder).

Since subsequently Caesar's successors dealt with Brutus and company, coins became rare. To this day, 60 pieces have survived - two of gold, the rest are silver. This is one of the most expensive coins - in July 2011, one copy was sold for more than half a million dollars.

47 BC: Caesar established control over the Kingdom of Bosporus while maintaining its formal independence

Main article: The Bosporus Kingdom

After the war with Farnak II (48-47 BC), Caesar actually established control over Bosporus, appointing in 47 BC King Mithridates of Pergamon.

129 BC.

312 BC: Construction of the Appian Road

The Appian road was built in 312 BC. e. under the censor of Appia Claudius Tzek. Passed from Rome to Capua, later was carried out to Brundisius. Through it, communication between Ancient Rome and Greece, Egypt and Asia Minor was established.

Along the Appian road there are many monuments: tombs and villas of the republican and imperial periods, Christian and Jewish catacombs, medieval towers and fortifications, often built on the ruins of Roman monuments, Renaissance and Baroque buildings.

Roman civilization was the first to begin systematic planning for the construction of a network of communications. Having created a system of roads longer than 140 thousand km, Rome was connected to almost all provinces of the empire as the center of cultural, political and commercial life.

Roads in the Roman Empire

This instrument of Romanization allowed military control, commercial and craft development of cities and made possible the very existence of the Roman state.

471 BC: The first case of decimation

Decimation is the highest measure of disciplinary punishment in the Roman army, which is the death penalty of every tenth by lot.

It was usually appointed for the loss of the banner, rebellion and even desertion. The earliest documented case of decimation dates back to 471 BC. e., when Rome fought with the Volsk (mentioned by Titus Livy).

In decimation, the unit being punished was divided into dozens, regardless of rank and service life. Each dozen threw lots, and the one on whom he fell out was executed by his own nine comrades, stabbing him with swords or spears, and sometimes stoning him with stones or batons. Later, the execution was carried out by lictors - representatives of the authorities, who also play the role of executioners. Sentenced first by sequins with rods, and then beheaded. The surviving soldiers were also punished: in their diet, wheat was replaced by barley, they were forbidden to sleep inside the camp. Then they were distributed to other legions for replenishment.

Notes