Essential Questions: What were the Punic Wars and how did Rome gain control over Carthage? How did expansion change the Roman Republic?
I. Roman Military Domination of the Mediterranean Basin and Western Europe
A. Rome Fights Carthage
1. The First Punic Wars (264 B.C.)
a. Carthage was a powerful city on the coast of North Africa
-Rome felt that Carthage�s navy would control the Mediterranean
b. Rome built a powerful navy and eventually defeated Carthage after 23 years of war
2. The Second Punic Wars (218 B.C.)
a. The Carthaginian General Hannibal crossed the Alps and defeated the Roman army
b. Eventually, Rome turned the tables and invaded North Africa
-Rome was now the most powerful force in the Mediterranean
B. The Problems of Expansion
1. Rome now had a vast area to govern
2. Farmer/soldiers came back from the war and found their livestock killed,
their homes in ruins, and their olive groves uprooted
a. They didn�t have enough money to restore the land, so they sold it
b. Many farmers moved to the cities
-Many could not find jobs and had to rely on government for food
c. Trade within the vast empire created a class of business people
and landowners with great wealth
-This resulted in a huge gap between rich and poor
II. The Birth of the Roman Empire
A. A Weakening Republic
1. The Social War
a. Citizens in other Italian cities, who served in the Roman Army, wanted to
share in the benefits of Rome�s growing power
-The Senate resisted the allies demands
b. Finally the allies rebelled
-Rome eventually put down the rebellion
-The Senate eventually gave all the people of Italy Roman citizenship
B. Caesar in Power
1. The First Triumvirate (rule of three)
a. Caesar, Crassus, and Pompey
-Caesar was a great general who gained a huge following among the poor
-Caesar eventually became consul and later dictator for life
2. The Rule of Caesar
a. Caesar increased the Senate to 900 members but reduced its power
-Many senators feared Caesar�s power so they killed him