The development of Rome (original) (raw)
Related papers
Fortifications in and around Rome, 950 - 300 BC
Abstract: Defensive systems of main settlements in the region around Rome are diverse during the period 950–300 BC. They consist originally of natural defences in the form of steep hillsides, trenches as well as monumental earthworks with or without stone walls. Often an efficient combination of fortification works is recorded to prevent the construction of full-blown artificial battlements around the entire settlement with sizes up to 200 ha. Rome is the exception because it became, within its fortification, at least twice as large as its Etruscan peers around 600–550 BC. The beginning of the construction of full-size city walls with rectangular stones is disputed. They became more common from the 6th century BC onwards. The full circuit, retaining walls made of massive polygon stones, expands the number of options for battlements but seem hardly constructed any longer after the 3rd century BC. Some issues regarding concepts of fortification in central Italy are reviewed. The paper presents cases of fortifications at main sites around Rome such as Veii, Ardea and Crustumerium revealing that concepts of defences were frequently modified once the perimeter of a proto-urban/urban settlement was established. These cases are subsequently integrated to address the long-standing debate on Rome’s Esquiline agger and an argument on the rise of the Roman state.
The fortifications of archaic Rome: social and political significance
The paper discusses the political meaning of the fortification of Rome in parallel with the social and urban transformations which took place in central Tyrrhenian Italy in the 6th century BC. As matter of fact, the city of Rome in the course of the 6th century BC appears already as one of the largest settlements in the central Mediterranean area, which makes this site one of the most advanced experiments in archaic urban fortification. The paper focuses on the relationship between fortification and evolution of settlement and contextualizes the evolution of the city walls in Rome with the social and political background of its community.
Shielding Rome: analyzing the Influence of the Armies Siege weapons, tactics, and Battle results on its City Defense., 2023
Rome's army was able to adopt to changes and threats over time, but did Rome itself benefit from these lessons? Are there any relations between the evolution of the Roman army, the development and improvement of the siege weapons, the battles Rome has been in between 753 BC and 476 AD and the walls in Rome. This thesis tries to find a relation between these topics and tries to prove them if found.
Form or function? Towards a typology of Augustan city walls in Roman Italy
Journal of Ancient History and Archaeology, 2017
During the Augustan period, some 18 cities in Roman Italy constructed city walls around their urban centres – the last cluster of city walls to be built here until the late third century AD. There was no defensive imperative for walls at this time, as the heart of the empire was relatively peaceful, so what motivated urban communities to undertake such a time-consuming and expensive project? This article notes the superficial similarities in the physical form of Augustan city walls and their towers and gateways, but downplays the notion of a shared design model. Rather, it argues that a more important theme which links this group of city walls was their symbolic and ideological meaning. The common ways in which Augustan city walls engaged with their physical and cultural environment are examined, and shared characteristics such as the visual prominence and imposing display of city walls and gateways, connections with pre-Roman sanctuaries and foundation rituals, and imperial involvement and patronage are explored. The article concludes that in terms of typology, Augustan city walls are surprisingly diverse in their physical form despite apparent congruencies, but that they share important political and social themes. In summary, Augustan city walls were built to impress – icons of visual dominance and cultural manipulation of the landscape, promoting the status and prestige of the city they surrounded.
City Walls in Late Antiquity: An Empire-wide Perspective
2020
The construction of urban defences was one of the hallmarks of the late Roman and late-antique periods (300–600 AD) throughout the western and eastern empire. City walls were the most significant construction projects of their time and they redefined the urban landscape. Their appearance and monumental scale, as well as the cost of labour and material, are easily comparable to projects from the High Empire; however, urban circuits provided late-antique towns with a new means of self-representation. While their final appearance and construction techniques varied greatly, the cost involved and the dramatic impact that such projects had on the urban topography of late-antique cities mark city walls as one of the most important urban initiatives of the period. To-date, research on city walls in the two halves of the empire has highlighted chronological and regional variations, enabling scholars to rethink how and why urban circuits were built and functioned in Late Antiquity. Although these developments have made a significant contribution to the understanding of late-antique city walls, studies are often concerned with one single monument/small group of monuments or a particular region, and the issues raised do not usually lead to a broader perspective, creating an artificial divide between east and west. It is this broader understanding that this book seeks to provide. The volume and its contributions arise from a conference held at the British School at Rome and the Swedish Institute of Classical Studies in Rome on June 20-21, 2018. It includes articles from world-leading experts in late-antique history and archaeology and is based around important themes that emerged at the conference, such as construction, spolia-use, late-antique architecture, culture and urbanism, empire-wide changes in Late Antiquity, and the perception of this practice by local inhabitants.
Urban Fortification in Roman Britain: military defence or civic monument?
This Word document is the English-language text subsequently published in Spanish as 'Fortificacion en la Britannia Romana: defensa militar o monumento civico?' in the volume edited by Rodriguez Colmenero and Roda de Llanza. Readers are referred to the published version for the accompanying illustrations.
Roman Architecture and Urbanism
2019
Romulus showed great forethought. .. Even back then he must have divined that the city would one day furnish the seat and home of a mighty empire. In all probability, no other city located in any other part of Italy could have more easily secured such extensive power. Cicero De Rep 2.5.10
On the Meaning of City Walls in Late Roman Spain
During three or four decades of the late 3 rd and early 4 th century, a number of cities across the Empire were refortified in a pattern that cannot be explained in defensive terms alone. Regional and especially local authorities seem to have played a decisive role in the process, and Lusitania is a clear case of non-military initiative. About a dozen sites, a minority that is, did invest in these new structures, which were highly disruptive to daily life, private property, and public resources. These same cities would find a relevance in the post-Roman world, as bishoprics and as military structures, an argument probably absent in their original builders' purpose.
Talanta. Proceedings of the Dutch Archaeological and Historical Society 48-49, 2016-7
The period between the Social War and the Augustan settlement is often described by Roman historians as an era of socio-political turmoil: civil wars, proscriptions, random violence, looting and destruction of cities and towns are vividly described in these histories. However, the end of the Social War also marked the beginning of an unprecedented period of building projects which changed cities and towns into monumentalized urban landscapes. This period of so-called monumentalization continued well into the last decades of the Republic and throughout the early Principate. From an empiric perspective there seems to be a discrepancy between these different – literary and archaeological – types of sources. I am arguing, however, that no dichotomy is necessary between these sources. Furthermore, this increase in building schemes can be interpreted as the agency of an elite responding towards crisis and trauma. In framing the argumentation, I have used an approach known as cognitive archaeology (or cognitive-processual archaeology). In this paper I will try to show how architecture was used by the local elite to communicate ideology, identity and memory in the Roman and Italic cities. In doing so, I will use the principles outlined by this cognitive archaeological approach and provide a case study on the building, destruction and rebuilding of city walls which will support my assumptions.