1. Rome (Ch 6)
Sections 3 & 4

2. Romans Conquered Judea in 6 AD.
Jesus was born here about 10-12 years
before it became part of the Roman
Empire.
The Life and Teachings of Jesus
-Many Jews
believed Jesus
was the Messiah
(savior) destined
to free them

3. Jesus’ Death
•Roman governor Pontius Pilate sentenced Jesus
to be crucified.
•Apostles believed Jesus ascended into heaven
after death, giving all Christians the ability to go to
heaven.
•Christos, Greek word for “savior”; Christianity
derived from “Christ”.

4. Growth of Christianity
•Followers spread Christianity—new religion
based on Jesus’ teachings. It was open to
all converts (and it was easy to convert to
Christianity).
Paul’s Mission
Apostle Paul spends his life preaching and
interpreting Christianity. The Christian message
was translated into the common languages of
Latin and Greek help to spread the religion.
Christianity Spreads Through the Empire

5. Jewish Rebellion
Jews rebelled against Roman rule; Roman
troops stormed Jerusalem, destroy Temple
Rebellions in A.D. 66, 70, 132 fail; Jews
were driven from their homeland.
•Diaspora:
centuries of
Jewish exile.
(from Greek
word for
“dispersal”)

6. Persecution of the Christians
•Christians would not worship Roman gods;
were considered enemies of Roman rule
•Roman rulers use Christians as scapegoats for
hard times
•Towards the
end of the Pax
Romana,
Christians
were
crucified,
burned, killed
in the arena

7. The earliest organized persecutions took place
in 64AD under the rule of emperor Nero.
However, most of the violence that occurred was
sporadic and done by violent mobs. The only
exception being between 303-312AD, known as
the “Great Persecution”, a direct order was given
by the emperor (Diocletian) to destroy all
Christian books and do not allow Christians to
congregate (hold meetings).

8. People who are willing to sacrifice their lives
for the sake of a belief or cause.

9. Constantine Accepts Christianity
• Constantine—Roman emperor,
battles for control of Rome in
A.D. 312.
• Has vision of cross, Christian
symbol; places on soldiers’
shields.
• Believes Christian God helped
him win; legalizes
Christianity.
• In A.D. 380 Emperor
Theodosius
makes Christianity official
religion of the empire.

10. Section-4
The Fall of the
Roman Empire
Internal problems and innovations spur the
division and decline of the Roman Empire.

11. A Century of Crisis
The Empire Declines:
Pax Romana ends in A.D. 180 with
death of emperor Marcus Aurelius.
Subsequent emperors were unable to
govern the giant empire.

12. Rome’s Economy Weakens
Rome was running out of sources of silver and
gold to make new coins. They started to mint
coins that contained less silver, and caused
inflation (drop in the value of money and
rise in prices).

13. More on “Inflation”
A continual increase in the price of goods and
services (Webster).
Side note: Hyper-Inflation, is when inflation
rates are at 50%+ a month (For example, on
January 1st a bottle of Coke at the CU is 1,300
won. On February 1st, its up to 1,950 won).
Trillion Dollar Bill

15. Military and Political Turmoil
• Soldiers loyal to commanders, not Rome;
commanders fought each other for control
• Government enlists mercenaries—foreign
soldiers paid to fight
• Average citizens lose interest in the affairs
of Rome, lose patriotism.

16. Eastern and Western Empires
Diocletian thought the empire was too big for
a single ruler to govern, so he spit it into two
parts. This division didn’t last long: the next
emperor Constantine united the empire
again.

17. Constantine Moves the Capital
Constantine becomes emperor of Western
Empire in A.D. 312 Seizes Eastern Empire in
A.D. 324; moves Roman capital to Byzantium
Byzantium eventually renamed Constantinople.

18. Germanic/Mongolian Invasions
Mongol nomads from Asia, the Huns,
invade northern borders of empire
Germanic tribes flee Huns, enter Roman
lands, sack Rome A.D. 410
The Western Empire Crumbles

19. “Barbarians”

20. Attila the Hun
Attila—unites the Huns in A.D. 444;
plunders 70 cities in East
Attacks Rome in 452; famine and
disease prevents victory
Not Genghis Khan
100,000
soldiers

22. An Empire No More
The last Roman emperor (Romulus Augustulus, 14
years old) falls to Germans in 476; this was the
end of the Roman empire in the west.
Romulus Augustulus

23. The East would continue to flourish
with Constantinople as its capital
-Continuing on the Greco-Roman traditions
-Would go on to last as the Byzantine Empire
-This empire would continue on to till 1453
when overthrown by the Ottoman Turks.