Early History
What country is Rome in?
Italy
What were 2-3 ways they built a city to make sure they could protect it from their enemies?
High walls, High aqueducts, guard positions, inner walls higher ...
Tell of 1 Roman hero we ready about.
some are: There was the hero of Curitus that leaped with full battle into the chasm in the forum. There was a tame Raven, he was capable of pecking out the eyes of an ememy. The tall Gaul taunted the Roman soldiers to battle and one day a small man named Valerius said he would fight him. They started to battle and the Gual was so busy trying to get the raven away that Valerius slain the giant.
Tell the story of the Trojan Horse
The War Before the Horse
For ten long years, the Greeks tried to conquer the city of Troy after the Trojan prince Paris abducted Helen, the wife of the Greek king Menelaus. The Greeks fought endless battles outside Troy’s massive walls, but they could not break in.
Odysseus’ Clever Plan
The Greek hero Odysseus, known for his wit, came up with a daring strategy:
Pretend to give up the war and sail away.
Leave behind a gigantic wooden horse as a “gift” to the Trojans.
Hide Greek soldiers inside the hollow horse.
The Greeks burned their camps and boarded their ships—at least, so it appeared. In reality, they sailed just far enough to be out of sight.
The Trojans Debate
The Trojans found the huge horse outside their gates. Some saw it as a sign of victory. Others were suspicious.
Laocoön, a Trojan priest, warned:
“Beware of Greeks bearing gifts.”
He even hurled a spear into the horse’s side.
But another Trojan, Sinon, a Greek spy left behind, tricked them. He claimed the Greeks built the horse as a sacred offering to Athena and that destroying it would bring disaster to Troy.
Then, according to legend, two giant serpents appeared and killed Laocoön. The Trojans took it as a sign that the gods favored the horse.
The Fall of Troy
The Trojans pulled the horse inside the city and celebrated all night.
At midnight:
The hidden Greek soldiers slipped out.
They opened the gates from within.
The Greek army—who had secretly sailed back—rushed in.
Troy was set ablaze, and the long war finally ended.
Aftermath
Helen was returned to Greece.
Troy was destroyed.
The Greek heroes returned home—some easily, others, like Odysseus, faced years of wandering.
Legacy
Today, “Trojan Horse” means a deceptive trick that hides danger inside a gift—even in modern cybersecurity.
It remains one of history’s most famous examples of cunning triumphing over force.
Why do they say "All Roads lead to Rome?"
The saying "all roads lead to Rome" originated from the Roman Empire's vast and efficient road system, which had major routes radiating outwards from the capital. Bonus: Describe how a road was built.
Tell me 1 thing about the Farmer Hero
Hint: His name was Cincinnatus
Rome was consistently fighting and always at war. They were about it face an army and we need people to go and fight. One brave family named Fablus bravely volunteered. There were 306 men and they went out of the city but after a few wins they got ambushed and lost a big battle and ALL men were killed. The gate they went out under was called unlucky. They left their children and wives stranded and the city greatly mourned over them.
Then there was another battle and they needed a new general b/c their army was surrounded. They went to an old solider that was now a farmer. He dropped everything and went to the field of mars to recruit all the able bodied men. He went out and surrounded the enemy and the enemy surrendered. The army had to go through walking the yolk, and then when they came back to Rome the old farmer got a triumph (he had been named a dictator) but when they got back he let go of the title and went back to being a farmer. His name was Cincinnatus and our American city Cincinnati is named after him.
Describe the culture of Rome
It was a lawless city, built on people fighting with each other an being lawless.
Describe any battle we read about between the Romans and another group.
Guals, Tarquin
What heroic act did Horatius do? Hint: think bridge
Horatius was a brave soldier, There was an army that was going to attack Rome. The romains were not sure what to do and they thought the only way to save the city was to cut down the bridge leading in to Rome over the Tiber river. They needed volunteers to stay on the far side and hold off the army. The three soldiers fought bravely but when the bridge was about to go two of the men ran back over the bridge. But Horatius stayed and fought bravely. Then he jumped into the river and swam back. Rome made him a statue for his bravier.
Tell the story of who or how Rome was built/founded
Romulus wanted an adventure so he built Rome. A Shepard was walking by and saw a stranger noise and it was the two babies and so him and his wife raised them. One day they were in trouble for taking care of the sheep and they were brough before Numitor, who was their grandfather, and then they helped him to take back his kingdom and they killed their uncle who was in charge. They put their father in charge but they got bored and wanted to set up their own kingdom. They found a place and they both wanted the power to name it and so the next day they stood on the two hills and Remus only saw 6 vultures and Romulus saw 12 and so he got to name the city. Romulus named the city Rome and later in a fit of anger he killed his brother. He led this lawless city. This was 753 years before Christ.
Describe 2-3 key places or businesses that were present in a Roman city
Key places in an ancient Roman city included the Forum (the civic, religious, and business center), amphitheaters and circuses for entertainment, and public baths for socializing and hygiene. Other essential locations were temples, basilicas, government buildings, aqueducts, private homes called domus, and multi-story apartment buildings known as insulae.
Tell me about Brutus (Brutus was newphew of Tarquin. They thought he was dumb but he was not.)
Pg. 54 clue.
The people wanted Brutus to be there King but he did not want to be the King alone so he prepose a plan to have two people rule called Consuls. This was the birth of the republic. He and another man shared the ruling of Roman but then they realized that Tarquin was planning a plot against him. The traitors were talking to loudly and a save overheard them and told Brutus what he heard and that his two very own sons were part of the traitors. Brutus held court to discuss their sin and it was determined that they were indeed traitors and therefore Brutus had his sons executed b/c he did not want them to live as traiotrs. Then Tarquin waged war against Rome. The two sides fought, Brutus and one of Tarquin saw each other and battled it out, they both died in battle. Both sides continued fighting and it was an even match. The body of Brutus was brought back to Rome where the women wept over him for over a year.
Tell the story of the Sabines and the Romans. ***Hint: Sabines women played a key role in this battle.
The Sabine army was going after the Romans. They were equally matched. They both fought on the Palatine Hill but both armies got tired and rested. After the rest they were about to gift again but the women came out of their houses and put themselves between the two sides. One side was their husbands and father of their children and the other side was their Fathers and brothers and the women did not want to have them war. So the two sides made a peace treaty and they invited the Sabines to come and live in Rome. The Sabine King Tatius ruled w/ Romulus until he died. Then Romulus made rules and regulations and then appointed men to help make laws and have the people obey, these people were called Senators.
Describe a Roman Triumph?
A Roman triumph was a grand civil ceremony and religious rite in ancient Rome that celebrated a victorious general's military conquest through a public procession. The procession featured the general in a chariot, accompanied by his army, soldiers singing songs, war spoils, and captured prisoners, all designed to showcase Roman military superiority and the general's personal glory.
In Rome there were two classes. Tell me the two classes and what are the difference between them.
Ancient Rome there were two class, the rich and the poor. The poor were called the plebians, the rich were called the patrions. The Patrians got to treat the poor however they wanted. They would put them in jail and take their land. The poor usually worked in the wars with the patrians even though they did not get paid. When they came home from the war they would lose their farms b/c they did not earn money. One man escaped the prison and told a story of being in 20 battles and not being paid and then returning home and losing his farm b/c he could not pay his debt. He was then thrown in jail b/c he could not pay his debt. He escaped from prison and went out to the forum and told his pitiful story. The poor rallied with him and they left the city for good. The rich were mad b/c they had to do things for themselves and asked the poor to return but they would not.