According to legend, the city of Rome was founded by the brothers Romulus and Remus ca. 754/753 BC e. Legends mention 7 rulers in the 8th-6th centuries. BC e. kings. After the expulsion of the last king, Tarquin the Proud, a republic was established (510/509 BC). By the middle of the 3rd century. BC e., having subjugated the entire territory of Italy, Rome turned into a large state that achieved hegemony throughout the Mediterranean, which led to a clash with Carthage. After three Punic Wars, defeating Carthage in 146 BC. e., Rome becomes the largest Mediterranean power. The ruin of the peasants, which intensified due to the growth of large land ownership and slavery, caused a widespread movement of the rural plebs, slaves (the Spartacus uprising) and the first outbreaks of civil war on the streets of the capital. In the socio-political life of Rome in the 1st century. BC e. The army and its leaders began to play an increasingly important role (L. K. Sulla, G. Marius, G. Pompey, etc.). During the civil war of 49-45. BC e. G. Yu. Caesar became the unlimited ruler of the state. In 44 BC. e. As a result of a conspiracy by supporters of the republic, Caesar was killed. The new period of civil wars ended with the victory of Octavian, who received from the Senate in 27 BC. e. title of Augustus. Since the reign of Augustus, Rome has become an empire. Under Trajan in the 2nd century. n. e. the empire reached its maximum borders. Uprisings of the local population in the conquered lands, combined with barbarian invasions, led to the fall of a number of provinces and the division of the empire into Eastern and Western (395). In 476, the leader of the German mercenaries, Odoacer, deposed the last emperor of the Western Roman Empire, Romulus Augustulus.

CONTENTS: PART I. ROMAN FORUM: THE NERVE CENTER OF THE EMPIRE 9Sic transit gloria 33PART II. EMPEROR ADRIAN, CITIZEN OF THE WORLD 45Adrian's imperishable dream 69PART III. THE BLESSED DOMAINS OF THE VICTORIOUS PEOPLE 81Other Faces of Rome 107PART IV. THE ROMAN ARMY: A MOVING CITY 121Legacy in Stone 149Bibliography 161Index 164