Life In Ancient Rome (1964)

[Music] [Applause] in the 11th year of the reign of the emperor traan 106 years following the birth of Christ the Roman army returned from DEA Victorious for 5 years the legions had fought Barbarian tribes across the dang and now once again Roman Mastery of The Art of War had secured Victory the Roman Empire was at peace the power of Rome extended from Spain to Syria from Africa to Britain most of the Known World this was the vastest richest most powerful and perhaps most contented empire history had ever known troops from the conquered provinces were hired to protect the Frontiers from Attack centuries of Conquest had brought a great variety of races and National ities under Roman rule Jew Greek Gaul all were now United under a common Roman civilization and were generally content to live under Roman domination although cruel in war the Romans governed justly two cultures Roman and Barbarian Victor and vanquished were now joined in common cause the preservation of the Roman peace the political Center of this vast Empire was the city of Rome itself dominated by its first citizen the emperor Tran supported by the Loyalty of the legions his power was absolute earlier in Rome's history elected representatives exercised the power rather than one man but by now every function of government had been absorbed by the Emperor who was above the law and ruled by decree from a small minority of wealthy citizens the emperor chose State officials and civil servants needed to administer the Empire though they had little real power the wealthy enjoyed the honor of public office and a life of ease and elegance it was the wealthy few rather than the many who benefited from the riches and vast resources of the empire this imbalance and the irresponsible behavior of public officials would become major reasons for Rome's eventual decline wealth was attained largely through trade into the warehouses flowed goods from all over the Empire and Beyond her provinces kept Rome amply supplied the markets were well stocked and provided work for hundreds of merchants Tradesmen and laborers of various kinds the Roman housewife could buy a surprising variety of food stuffs if she had the money here a Roman might select a new toga purchase Pottery for use in the home have a letter written or a contract drawn up by a scribe only a small percentage of the population could read or write to the elves Rome was the largest and perhaps the most beautiful city of the ancient world but also a city of contrast and contradiction behind the Splendor of the Forum were vast areas of crowded slums most of the million inhabitants were tightly packed into multi-story Department buildings which lined the narrow streets physical conditions of life in these tenaments constantly threatened by fire and collapse could not have been Pleasant escape from the slums was difficult for there were few jobs available and practically none for the unskilled under Tran onethird of the City's population depended upon the Dole the first social welfare system in history a daily ration of food and a small sum of money were provided by the public assistance office this system of public welfare arose out of necessity for thousands of hungry citizens would have been a serious threat to the Peace of the city and the Romans above all were a practical people outside the city Chariot drivers practiced for the races in the circus Maximus to keep idle citizens entertained and out of Mischief frequent games and spectacles were held at public expense at first only chariot races were sponsored but by the reign of traun brutal combat to the death had become popular Man became less than animal that a people as civilized as the Romans with the most Humane system of law ever devised could tolerate slavery and the violation of human beings is a astonishing as in all ancient civilizations Roman society was sharply divided into two groups those who were free those who were slaves one-third of Rome's population were slaves and the Roman economy was vitally dependent on the institution of slavery on slaves to labor on the great EST States in the minds on educated slaves who worked as tutors and teachers and enjoyed perhaps greater comfort and privilege than those who served in the homes of the wealthy brutality and cruelty are recorded but in general slaves were not ill treated and many were set free by their masters slaves were considered subhuman however and enjoyed none of the rights of Roman citizenship citizen ship from which women were also excluded was acquired either by birth or through a special Grant of the emperor one of the great benefits of citizenship was equality before the law here in the Basilica Julia as in other courts throughout the city and the Empire a citizen could plead his case before impartial judges and an audience of his fellow citizens he was considered innocent until proven guilty from the Romans and their genius for creating order the Western world has gained much of its knowledge of the theory and practice of law in the Forum stood the temples of the state Gods the temples of Jupiter Vesta and of Castor and Pollock statues of the Gods adorned the buildings many were borrowed from the Greek and truscan civilizations but their names and functions were changed to express Roman traditions and ideas there was a God for every activity and one for the protection of every household but by the reign of traan the appeal of the Gods was declining and many now sought a deeper experience in Judaism or Christianity h public readings were popular the average citizen could enjoy Roman literature even though he could not read or afford the purchase of books in literature as in religion and other fields the Romans borrowed from the Greek civilization using Greek literary forms and often the Greek language instead of Latin but whatever they borrowed the Romans adapted and changed in such a way that the content emphasis and style became nearly always distinctively Roman in private publishing houses educated slaves produced handwritten copies of favorite Works while the Romans were more interested in ideas which led to action than in literary thought the Roman alphabet Latin literature and the Latin language from which all of the romance languages of Europe are derived are are still among the most priceless heritages of Western Civilization the public baths were also popular both because personal cleanliness was important to the Romans and because here surrounded by mosaics and sculpture the citizen could spend a pleasant social time with friends the very practical nature of the Roman led to remarkable engineering achievements the baths were among the most impressive buildings in Rome the beautiful arches which were a Roman invention the many public buildings were constant reminders of the glory of Roman civilization the Roman genius for engineering made possible aqueducts which carried water from great distances and an extensive system of roads which linked the widely separated provinces roads made possible the creation of an Imperial Post the first organized postal system in history good roads also made possible the rapid dispatch of the legions to wherever they might be needed and thus could Rome control her far-flung Empire to the farthest reaches of this Empire to wherever he traveled the Romans saw the influence of his civilization and culture truly he was a citizen of the world the Magnificent facade of the Empire however could not conceal the seeds of Decay the unhealthy dependence of the economy on slaves the disparity between rich and poor these and other problems could not be solved by engineering under Tran Roman power was at its height during the next two centuries the Empire would fall victim to internal Cancers and external attack and would finally disappear forever but in the year 106 it was a Roman [Applause] [Music] world the ancient gods no longer watch over the city from the amphithe the the anguished cries of the Gladiators are no longer heard the triumphal trumpets of the Conquering Legions are still the Forum is empty and quiet a civilization is no more but are these Stones all that remain of Rome what if there had never been a Rome how much longer and harder might our climb have been from Antiquity to the achievements of the 20th century how is it that the Western World cannot escape the influence of its Roman past these questions have answers not in these stones but living in the modern world of today [Music]