Roman Empire Notes

In class today, we took notes on the Roman social classes and Julius Caesar. The following is my notes on these topics:

Poor plebs (literally):
- How do you keep the plebs happy (or at least keep them from revolting)?
- the poet Juvenal said Rome "anxiously hopes for two things: bread and circuses"
- Bread (free grain from the state) and entertainment (Circus Maximus, Colosseum), partly to keep them alive, and partly to keep them quiet, distracted, and docile

A change in rule:
- Tiberius Gracchus recognized the advantages of courting the plebeians (even though he was ultimately unsuccessful)
- military generals worked that angle- lead an army that conquers a land, then give them a share in the spoils
- soldiers' loyalty was to their military leader, not necessarily to Rome or the Republic

Julius Caesar: nobody did that better than caesar
- 100-44 BCE
- a highly successful general
- he conquered the huge territory of Gaul

He could play the game (of politics)
- made common folks happy
- made friends in high places
- Pompey (a general who conquered Syria and Palestine)
- Crassus (the richest man in Rome, one of the richest men in all history)
- These three men formed the First Triumvirate ("rule of three men")
- "crossing the Rubicon"
crossing the point of no return

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