World History Unit 2A- Persia Greece Rome

Constantine

was a Roman Emperor from 306 to 337 AD. Constantine was the son of Flavius Valerius Constantius, a Roman army officer, and his consort Helena. He made Christianity a lawful religion in Roman society, and he founded the city of Constantinople.

Diocletian

was a Roman emperor from 284 to 305. Born to a family of low status in the Roman province of Dalmatia, Diocletian rose through the ranks of the military to become cavalry commander to the Emperor Carus. He ended the Crisis of the Third Century,and his administrative and military reforms gave the Roman empire - which was on the verge of collapse when he took over - nearly another 200 years of existence.

Julius Caesar

was a Roman politician, general, and notable author of Latin prose. He played a critical role in the events that led to the demise of the Roman Republic and the rise of the Roman Empire.

Constantinople

was the capital city of the Roman/Byzantine Empire, and also of the brief Latin, and the later Ottoman empires. the capture of the city made the Ottomans the most important power in southeastern Europe and the eastern Mediterranean and began a long period of expansion for the Empire. It also ended the Eastern Roman Empire.

Plebeian

A commoner in Ancient Greece, Plebeians were average working citizens of Rome - farmers, bakers, builders or craftsmen - who worked hard to support their families and pay their taxes.

Persian Royal Roads

A major road of the Persian empire, it was an ancient highway organized by the Persian king Darius the great. (5th century BCE)

Satrapy/satrap

A province governed by a satrap/A provincial governor in the ancient Persian empire. The satrap was important because they were the governors of the provinces of the ancient Median and Achaemenid (Persian) Empires and in several of their successors, such as the Sasanian Empire and the Hellenistic empires.

Republic

A state in which supreme power is held by the people and their elected representatives, and which has an elected or nominated president rather than a monarch. Romans overthrew their Etruscan conquerors in 509 B.C.E. Centered north of Rome, the Etruscans had ruled over the Romans for hundreds of years, soon later they created a republic.

Darius

Darius was the third king of the Persian Achaemenid Empire and he was the reason for expanding the empire. He also centralized administration of the Persian empire. Darius planned an expedition to Greece in order to punish the Greeks for supporting the Ionian Revolt.

Cyrus

He was the founder of the Achaemenid Empire. In 550 B.C.E. Cyrus the great was the leader of the Persians and had conquered the Medes and united the Iranian people under one ruler for the first time. Cyrus became the first king of the Persian Empire and went on to establish one of the largest empires in world.

Imperialism

Imperialism is a type of government that seeks to increase its size, either by forcing (through war) or influencing (through politics) other countries to submit to their rule. Rome expanded militarily to become the dominant power on the peninsula of Italy; in the following 200 years the same military establishment rose to assume authority over the entire Mediterranean world.

City-state/polis

It can also mean citizenship and body of citizens. In modern historiography, polis is normally used to indicate the ancient Greek city-states, like Classical Athens and its contemporaries, and thus is often translated as "city-state."

Mercenary

One who is primarily concerned with making money at the expense of ethics. The majority of Greek mercenaries were the citizens who formed the cores of poleis armies. The mercenary reflected Greek society because of the integral relationship between war, socio-economic organization and politics.

Roman Roads

Roman roads were a vital part of the development of the Roman state, from about 500 BC through the expansion during the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire. Roman roads enabled the Romans to move armies and trade goods and to communicate.

Assassination

The act or planning of killing someone or a group of people. One of the most known assassinations was Julius Caesar, who was a Roman politician, general, and notable author of Latin prose. He played a critical role in the events that led to the demise of the Roman Republic and the rise of the Roman Empire.

Zoroastrianism

The ancient pre-Islamic religion of Iran that survives there in isolated areas and, more prosperously, in India, where the descendants of Zoroastrian Iranian (Persian) immigrants are known as Parsis, or Parsees.

Alexander the Great

The king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon and a member of the Argead dynasty. He was known as one of the greatest military geniuses in history.

Augustus

The son of Julius Caesar and he was the founder of the Roman Empire and its first Emperor, ruling from 27 BC until his death in AD 14. He was born Gaius Octavius into an old and wealthy equestrian branch of the plebeian Octavii family.

King's Eyes & Ears

These were the imperial ... Persian Royal Road. major road of the Persian empire; it stretched from Lydia to Susa and allowed for the king to travel and communicate quickly with his empire.

Inflation

a general increase in prices and fall in the purchasing value of money. Nero and other emperors debased the currency in order to supply a demand for more coins. By debasing the currency is meant that instead of a coin having its own intrinsic value.

Latifundia

a large landed estate or ranch in ancient Rome or more recently in Spain or Latin America, typically worked by slaves. A latifundium is a very extensive parcel of privately owned land. The latifundia of Roman history were great landed estates specializing in agriculture destined for export: grain, olive oil, or wine.

Huns

a member of a warlike Asiatic nomadic people who ravaged Europe in the 4th-5th centuries. the Huns became one of the primary contributors to the fall of the Roman Empire, due to their invasions around regions of the Roman Empire.

Totalitarianism

a political system in which the state recognizes no limits to its authority and strives to regulate every aspect of public and private life wherever feasible. It refers to an authoritarian political system or state that regulates and controls nearly every aspect of the public and private sectors.

Dictator

a ruler with total power over a country, typically one who has obtained power by force. in the Roman Republic, a temporary magistrate with extraordinary powers, nominated by a consul on the recommendation of the Senate and confirmed by the Comitia Curiata (a popular assembly).

Democracy

a system of government by the whole population or all the eligible members of a state, typically through elected representatives. Of all the great works of philosophy and art. Ancient Greece gave the modern world, the birth of democracy could be considered its most important achievement.

Patrician

an aristocrat or nobleman; any member of a group of citizen families who, in contrast with the plebeian class, formed a privileged class in early Rome. patricians were leaders of the more important families or clans who formed the major part of the Senate of the primitive period.

Aqueduct

an artificial channel for conveying water, typically in the form of a bridge supported by tall columns across a valley. By the late 3rd century AD, the city was supplied by water from 11 aqueducts. Hundreds of similar aqueducts were built throughout the Roman Empire.

Consul

an official appointed by a government to live in a foreign city and protect and promote the government's citizens and interests there. The consuls were the chairmen of the Senate, which served as a board of advisers. They also commanded the Roman army (both had two legions) and exercised the highest juridical power in the Roman empire. ... Originally, the two consuls had to belong to the Patriciate, the Roman aristocracy.

Senate

the state council of the ancient Roman republic and empire, which shared legislative power with the popular assemblies, administration with the magistrates, and judicial power with the knights. The Consuls controlled the legions of Rome. A senator was selected by the Consuls and remained a senator for life. The Consuls also selected the new members of the Senate if a senator died.

Assembly

was the regular opportunity for all male citizens of Athens to speak their minds and exercise their votes regarding the government of their city. It was the most central and most definitive institution of the Athenian Democracy.