Marisa Ziegler

    Today in class we read from the textbooks while some students took their tests. I read about the start of Christianity and the decline of Rome. Jesus was a Jew born in Bethlehem and began his public ministry at age 30. His teachings are found in the four Gospels. Christianity began to spread throughout the empire. Jew's rebelled against Rome, but many were killed after the rebellion was shot down. The Christians were persecuted because they did not worship the Roman gods, but one God (monotheism). Christianity still became a powerful force despite the persecution of the Christians. In AD 312, the Roman emperor Constantine accepted Christianity and ended persecutions. The Christian faith developed a hierarchy including a bishop and pope. Peter became the rock of the church. When Marcus Aurelius ruled (AD 161-180), it marked the end of the Pax Romana. The Rome economy was weakened, taxes were raised, and the empire was suffering from inflation. Also, the soil was no longer fertil

        Today in class we took our Rome test. I think I did okay. I know some questions I definitely got wrong. There was a question about Tarquin's son which we did not have notes on. Also, we did not have notes on the time until a consul can rerun. I said they can never rerun, and the answer was actually 10 years. Other than some of those, I think I did ok. However, if I got 6 wrong that means I got a 90. I really don't want a 90 because my grade in the class is very low and I need to bring it up. I studied for awhile and reviewed multiple sources of info, so I would be very upset if I get a B on this test. Our next unit is on Christianity, which I read about a little. Basically, the famous religion started in Rome, and took flight from there. I'm very anxious to see my test grade, and very nervous.

    Today in class we reviewed the material that will be on our test tomorrow. Here are some notes on the test topics: Emperors The first "emperor" was Caesar Augustus Significance of Tiberius: did not want to rule Tarquin the Proud was the final king of Rome Remus and Romulus were raised by a she- wolf Built Rome on Palatine hill Forum=Rome agora Twelve Tables= Bill of Rights for us (12 tables posted publicly in forum) SPQR= Senatus Populusque Romanum- decision made by Roman senate and people Res Republica= the people's affairs democracy: people's assembly + tribunes aristocracy: the senate (about 300 members) monarchy: consuls For the test we also have to know the U.S. government versus Rome, and how the branches are similar or different. Punic Wars First: fought on the sea, access to trade and shipping routes Second: Hannibal attacked Rome from the North with elephants, almost won Third: Rome did not want the threat of Carthage, burned down

    Today in class we talked about Octavian's accomplishments and the emperor's of Rome. Octavian's accomplishments included: expanding the Roman Empire into Africa, he set up a civil service to run the government/empire such as: Building a network of roads Collecting taxes Establishing a postal service Administering the grain supply Building awesome public facilities aqueducts, buildings Setting up a police department Running a fire-fighting organization  Octavian died of natural causes, which lead to the age of emperor's. Tiberius- excellent general, reluctant emperor, exiled himself from Rome after death of son Caligula- won power struggle after Tiberius' death, cruel and perversity, assassinated by praetorian guards, senators, and imperial court.  Claudius- suffered from cerebral palsy, last adult male in family, ruled well, built roads, aqueducts, canals and started conquest of Britain, killed by wife- wanted son to have power.  Nero- emph

    Today in class we talked about Caesar and Octavian. Here are some of my notes: Caesar appointed himslef governor of Gaul, making Pomepy jealous. caesar fights him in Greece, Asia, Spain, and Egypt with Caesar winning all the battles. 44 B.C.- Caesar is named dictator for 6 months, then for life. Caesar's Reforms Granted citizenship to people in provinces Expanded the Senate (added friends, less power). Created jobs for the poor (public works) Increased soldiers pay Those without land could own property. "Sic semper tyrannis"-"thus always to tyrants" Assassination Senators threatened by Caesar's rise to power They lured him into the Senate, stabbed him 23 times Brutus, Caesar's ally stabbed him  Senators not punished  Octavian- Caesar's sole heir END OF REPUBLIC Aftermath Octavian takes over at age 18 own triumvirate: Marc Antony and Lepidus Second Triumvirate (first: Caesar, Pompey and Crassus) Marc Antony and O

    Today in class we discussed Roman war tactics and the Punic Wars. In the Roman legion, there were 5000 soldiers, and were the most elite soldiers. They had calvary on horseback and had weapons like shields, swords, daggers, and an armor and tunic. The Punic Wars were Rome vs. Carthage and lasted from 264-146 BCE. There were three wars. The First Punic War lasted from 264-241 BCE. There were many naval battles to gain control over the island of Sicily. Rome won this battle. The Second Punic War was from 218-201 BCE. A 29-year-old Carthaginian general attacked Rome from the north and almost took it. He laid a siege for 15 years, but could never get to Rome. Rome won this one as well. The third and final Punic War was between 149-146 BCE. Rome was done with Carthage and wanted to remove the threat of them. Merciless Romans attacked the city and burned it for 17 days. Other cities and buildings were destroyed as well. Carthage's territories were annexed into the Roman province of A

    Today in class we discussed politics in Rome. Plebeians were victims of discriminatory decisions made in judicial trials. Rome did not have written laws, but unwritten customs. Patricians took this to their advantage by interpreting them differently. The Plebeians refused to serve into the military until The Laws of the Twelve Tables were written, the laws were posted in public, and tribunes were elected. The SPQR designates any decree or decision made by "the Roman Senate and People." Res publica is the people's affairs. The brand new republic was ready to run. This republic had a hint of multiple other governments. The people's assembly and tribunes represented democracy. The Senate had about 300 members, which represents the aristocracy. The two consuls represent the monarchy, and they did not include a tyranny because they did not want to go through that again. The US modeled their government by the Romans. Both have three branches of government: Legislative,

    Today in class, we talked more about Tarquin and his story. It is all pretty corrupted. Tarquin's families behavior made the people of Rome NEVER want to be ruled by a king again. The rule of the kings was replaced by two consuls. The consuls could veto each other, and were elected officials. They were in office were one year, and they were always aristocrats. All patricians traced their descent from a famous ancestor, or pater (father). Their duties were dealing justice, making law, and commanding the army. Since the consul's had the ability to veto each other, the power was reduced among one of the individuals. Plebeians dominated 98% of the population, but the patricians (2%) dominated most of the government. Plebeians were forced to serve in the army, and could not hold office. They were threatened by debt slavery and had no legal rights. Tarquin's family was very corrupt with both him and his son taking advantage of their power. The people of Rome expelled them fro

    Today in class, we went to the Genocide Vigil. This event was a worldwide event to commemorate instances of genocide throughout the 20th century. The main event was the Holocaust. We had many people come and speak about as person experience or how they felt about the experience. During part of the Vigil, students, teachers, or guests would read off names of the lives taken through acts of genocide. It was in a thick binder, and on lady said they had 5 more of the same size binders with names. This is when it really hit me, how many lives were taken during these horrible events. We stayed until the very end, when a WWII soldier's sone spoke. His father had spoken at our school in previous years, but sadly he passed away last year. His son talked about how his father discovered a concentration camp, and how he spent the rest of his life protecting Jews and educating the rest of the world about this event.

    Today in class we started talking about Rome. First, we talked about the people who settled Rome. The Etruscans came from the north- central part of the peninsula. They were metalworkers, artists, and architects. There were two foundation myths. First, Virgil's Aeneid where Aeneid escapes Troy. The other myth was twin brother's Romulus and Remus who were abandoned and raised by she-wolf's. As they grew, they wanted to decide which hill to start Rome on. Romulus wanted Palatine and Remus wanted Aventine. The Greeks had many colonies around the Mediterranean. Romans borrowed many ideas from the Greeks such as religious beliefs, the alphabet, their art, and military techniques. The Latins were descendants of Indo- Europeans and settled on the banks of the Tiber River. They were at a spot where trading ships could come, but not get through the Tiber. It was a commercial port, but they were almost safe from attacks. Tarquin the Proud's grandfather built the Cloaca Maxima

    Today in class, two kids had to finish their test so the rest of the class took notes and read about Rome. After we did this, we went over all the test questions. I got an 88 on the test and got 4 questions wrong. The questions were some of the ones I was unsure about. There was only one person in our class that got an A. Some of the questions we brushed over briefly, so those were the ones I struggled on. I took a little bit of notes on Rome in the time I had. I mostly wanted to get the information in my head rather then writing it down because we usually go over the information again when Mr. Schick gives us our notes. Some of the notes I took included: The first settlers of Rome arrived in prehistoric times in three groups: Latins, Etruscans, and Greeks. Latins were the first settlers. Also, there are many stories as to how Rome was founded.