Roman first draft essay

 Did you know that Ancient Rome was one of the most withstanding and ever growing civilization in history? Hi, my name is Brandon Firchau, and I'm going to tell you plenty about that little tidbit of information and even more about Ancient Rome in itself.


 From legend, the city of Rome was founded by twin bothers Romulus and Remus on April 21st, 753 BC. They were considered half divine, as they are children of Rhea Silvia; Rhea Silvia was raped by the Roman god of war, Mars. The current king at the time, Rhea Silvia's father Numitor, ordered them to be drowned, as he feared they would take his throne from him. Both Romulus and Remus were saved by a female wolf, as wolves are sacred to Mars. As they grew older, the twins decided to create a city of their own where they were brought ashore. They disputed where to start the city, ending with Remus being slain by Romulus. This city is now known to countless as Rome. The Roman kingdom began as a monarchy, with Romulus as it's first king. This continued through 7 different kings with it's end at Tarquinius Superbus, who was overthrown in 509 BC. Superbus' family were "exposed and expelled" when his son, Sextus Tarquinius, raped a noble's daughter and sparked a small revolution against Superbus. This overthrow began the Roman Republic, which sparked the true power of the Roman civilization. The Republic had a consitution, with all kinds of checks and balances, similar to the governmental system of America today. The Republic was driven by it's brutal military force and the senate. The Republic strived and grew from 509 BC to 27 BC. Through this time, the Roman Republic grew exponentially through countless triumphs and allegieances. Rome grew across Europe, Italy, North Africa, and entirely anything that was in the Mediterranean. Towards the end of the Republic's run, Juilus Caeser, a seasoned general, became dictator of the Roman Republic for his countless triumphs and honors. This was short lived, however as he was assassinated by a group of conspiracers lead by Marcus Junius Brutus in 44 BC. Thus was the end of the Roman Republic, but not the end of the Roman civilization. After much internal conflict, Julius Caeser's adopted son, Augustus, began ruling as Rome's emporer and thus began the Roman Empire and what is called Pax Romana (Roman Peace in Latin). Through Augustus' reign, Rome was peaceful, but merciless if need be. Following Augustus were the "Five Good Emporers", who were Nerva, Trajan, Hadrian, Antoninus, and Marcus Aurelius. However, the Roman Empire endured much decline and collapse after the "Five Good Emporers," arguably beginning with Commodus. Despite holding off countless attempts of siege, most notably against Attila the Hun, the true Roman Empire split, and began using new placeholders such as the Byzantine Empire and eventually became the Turkish Empire within after several, several centuries. And before I forget, here is an excellent gif image that represents the expansion of the Roman Empire throughout the 1,200 years or so that it existed: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ea/Roman_Republic_Empire_map.gif


 Thankfully, the daily lives of Romans did not change drastically throughout the many changes within it's longevity. Also, the daily life of Romans were not too different than what we experience today, but was heavily governed by your economic status. There were homes, education, occupations, and all had a language. Children began going to school around 6, learning to read, write, and count. Around 12, they would learn literature, such as Latin and Greek, which the majority of Romans spoke. Many people still lived outside of the big cities on their farms and own homes, to which their lifestyles focused however they wanted them to; however, for those in the city, it could be either extremely grievious or almost a luxury. Countless were homeless and could barely get a bite to eat, as occupations were difficult to find. Typical rent-based apartment buildings did exist during Ancient Rome and were nearly 7 stories high, which is impressive for the time period of which they existed. Ground floors in these apartments were like suites, with comfortable floors, running water, glazed windows, and were paid annually. Higher stories did not have many of these luxuries and were to be paid daily or weekly - the residents were in constant fear of eviction. Those of higher economic status lived on private villas that were extremely close to the imperial palace. There would be atriums with shopkeepers and greeting areas, personal pools, copious space, kitchens, bedrooms, gardens, and even libraries. Regardless of your economic status, your household is what is cherished most, which still exists to this day. However, for most of the Roman life (specifically during the Roman Republic), the father had all the power within the household. They could sell children, discard children, and essentially had the final say. However, this dimished over time. A woman's power within a household was not limited, despite being limited by the general lifestyles of Rome. The power of men and women's rights began to change exponentially throughout the longevity of Ancient Rome. Men's powers dimished ever so gradually, and women that could barely leave the house could now play games, sit with their husband, and even have occupations of their own if they wished. Divorce also began an option within married couples, which didn't exist in Rome towards the beginning. Also regardless of the economic status, a Roman diet was extremely similar. Wine, or water if you were poor, with some vegetables, cereals, and breads. Despite being in Italy, many of the vegetables, fruits, and dishes that exist today did not exist or weren't found in this time period. Breakfast and noon dishes would consist of bread, while dinner in the evening would be a large meal. Of course, if you were poor, you wouldn't have many of these meals if not any if unlucky. But middle class could still barely afford meat, unless it was after a sacrifice to the Gods, as only internal organs are used as a sacrifice.


 Many traditions and cultures within Ancient Rome were ultimately similar to ours, there was a "fashion sense" when it came to clothing and hair styles. There were marriages, eventually divorces, and still many rituals that each citizen performed. Many wore togas and simple tunics. Before the convienence of divorces, those who got married were bound for life, so choosing a suitable partner was taken with great care. You could not marry more than one person at a time or marry your relatives, thank god. Many marriage traditions that we do to this day still existed in Ancient Rome. Engagement rings, wedding dresses, veils, an after-wedding dinner and party, and even the bride being carried to the family's new house.


 Here comes (arguably) the most interesting part about Ancient Rome, which is their religion and devotion to gods and goddesses. Romans considered themselves to be extremely religious, but didn't follow a specific religion - they just worshipped the gods above and tried to keep good relationships with them. If they were fortunate, they believed it was because of their good relationship with a specific god, which can be said about a bad relationship if they weren't forunate. For example, if their voyage by sea experienced many hardships and storms, they would say it is because of their bad relationship to the god of the sea, Neptune. Romans would consistantly pray to and make sacrifices to their gods to keep this good relationship, assuring bountiful and fortunate lives ahead of them. Among some of the gods they worshipped are Jupiter (King of the Gods), Juno (Queen of the Gods), Neptune (God of the Sea), Pluto (God of Death), Apollo (God of the Sun), Diana (goddess of the Moon), Mars (God of War), and countless more. Many, if not all of them, resided upon Mount Olympus. This all may sound very familiar to you, because Romans borrowed a lot of their culture, religions, and many more aspects of their life from their Greek neighbors. Jupiter is the Roman equivalent of Greek's Zeus, Juno is Hera, Neptune is Poseidon, but some remain the same, such as Apollo. And while we are on the subject of Roman and Greek differences, I want to touch base on the half-man half-god, Hercules. Hercules is a Roman Divine hero, and yes, I said Roman. Greek's adaptation, Heracles, often uses this name within the Western part of the world (that's us) and in popular culture. Regardless, they are the same hero - much to many of the other gods being the same, just with different names and visual representations. Hercules is a divine hero that was ordered to devote 12 years of his life and complete 12 tasks to rid the shame of his past and eliminate his crimes. These 12 tasks are as follows: 1. Slay the Nemean Lion. 2. Slay the nine-headed Lernaen Hydra. 3. Slay the Golden Hind of Artemis. 4. Capture the Erymanthian Boar. 5. Clean the Augean stables in a single day. 6. Slay the Stymphalian Birds. 7. Capture the Cretan Bull. 8. Steal the Mares of Diomedes. 9. Obtain the girdle of Hippolyta, Queen of the Amazons. 10. Obtain the cattle of the monster Geryon. 11. Steal the apples of the Hesperides. And 12. Capture and bring back Cerberus.


 And thus was the lifespan of Ancient Rome, it's lifestyles, cultures, traditions, and religions of the inhabitants that resided within it. Rome is a beautiful culture that can easily rival that of Ancient Greece, despite them both being incredibly similar and taking a thing or two from one another. Either way, both are vast, rich, and have their own riches and beauties within them. Insert Latin phrase of saying goodbye here.