Rome, Italy

Rome (pop. 2,775,250) is the capital of Italy and see of the Roman Catholic pope, whose residence, Vatican City , is a sovereign state within the city of Rome . Rome is also the capital of Latium , a region of central Italy , and of Rome province. It lies on both banks of the Tiber and its affluent, the Aniene, in the Campagna di Roma, between the Apennine Mts. and the Tyrrhenian Sea . Called the Eternal City , it is one of the world's richest cities in history and art and one of its great cultural, religious, and intellectual centers.

History

The rise of Rome from an insignificant pastoral settlement to perhaps the world's most successful empire-supreme as a lawgiver and organizer, holding sway over virtually all the then-known world W of Persia, on which it left a permanent imprint of its material and cultural achievements-is one of the great epics of history. Whatever its fortunes throughout history, Rome has remained the symbol of European civilization.

Ancient Rome was built on the east, or left, bank of the Tiber on elevations (now much less prominent) emerging from the marshy lowlands of the Campagna. Tradition tells of the founding of Rome by Romulus in 753 BCE. The Romans overthrew their foreign rulers c.500 BCE and established the Roman republic, which lasted four centuries. The patrician class controlled the government, but the plebs (who comprised by far the major portion of the population) were allowed to elect the two patrician consuls, who held joint power. As the majority realized its power and the aristocracy continued its rule, the people demanded (and received) privilege after privilege. Although the Roman republic was never a true democracy, historians have modified the traditional view that it was the tool of a powerful aristocracy and have acknowledged that the system had open aspects beyond the control of the ruling class. It remains true, however, that it was under senatorial administration that Rome began its march to world supremacy and that in the end the senate was crushed under the weight of the huge problems of empire.

At the death (44 BCE) of Caesar, the territories ruled by Rome included Spain (except part of the northwest), Gaul, Italy, part of Illyria, Macedonia, Greece, W Asia Minor, Bithynia, Pontus, Cilicia, Syria, Cyrenaica, Numidia, and the islands of the sea, and Rome completely controlled Egypt and Palestine. The rule of Caesar marked an epoch, for it completed the destruction of the republic and laid the foundations of the empire.

Caesar's assassination brought anarchy, out of which the Second Triumvirate emerged with the rule of Octavian (later Augustus), Antony , and Lepidus. Augustus organized provincial government and the army, rebuilt Rome , and patronized the arts and letters. His rule began a long period (200 years) of peace, called the Pax Romana. During this time the Roman Empire was the largest it would ever be; its boundaries included Armenia, middle Mesopotamia, the Arabian desert, the Red Sea, Nubia, the Sahara, the Moroccan mountain mass, the Atlantic Ocean, the Irish Sea, Scotland, the North Sea, the Rhine, the Danube, the Black Sea, and the Caucasus. Augustus' chief additions to the empire were a strip along the North Sea W of the Elbe and part of the Danubian area.

Rome Points of Interest

In the past half century Rome has expanded well beyond the walls started in the 3rd century by Emperor Aurelian, and it now extends north to the Aniene. Long sections of the ancient walls have been preserved, however, and archaeology remains an essential element of modern city-planning in Rome . Ancient marble columns and ruins rising beside modern apartments and offices, noisy boulevards, and luxurious villas and gardens characterize the modern city of Rome . As in ancient times, the larger section of Rome lies on the left bank of the Tiber , which intersects the city in three wide curves and is spanned by over 20 bridges.