Overview

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After describing Italy before the rise of Rome, the society of royal Rome, and the early republic and its constitution, this chapter tells the story of Rome’s expansion: the conquest of Italy, the wars with Carthage, the increasing involvement with the Greek world, and the eventual takeover of the Hellenistic east. The chapter outlines the decline of the republic amid political factions and civil war, the Augustan settlement, and finally the fall of the Roman Empire.

After reading this chapter you should be able to:

Describe the major steps in the emergence of the Roman republic and the development of the republican constitution

Discuss the development of Roman imperialism and the fall of the republic

Outline the Augustan constitution and the organization and government of the Empire

Describe some of the outstanding features of Roman society and culture in the republican and imperial eras

Trace the early history of Christianity

Discuss the causes, course, and consequences of the decline and fall of Rome

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