Unit: Fall of the Roman Empire

Transcription

1 Unit: Fall of the Roman Empire

2 Lesson Title: Roman Law and Government (see pages in textbook)

3 Who needs government and laws? What would happen if the government in our country disappeared? What if we erased all our written laws? (Hint: What would our school be like if we got rid of our principal and assistant principal and the office staff and all of our school rules?)

4 Key Facts From the 600s BCE (BC) to the 100s CE (AD) Rome grew from a city monarchy (a kingdom led by kings), to a republic (led by elected officials), and then to an empire (led by dictators) with millions of people. Early Rome was led by kings. But after only 7 kings, the Romans took power over their own city and ruled themselves by forming a republic.

5 There were 3 main classes of people in the Roman Republic. They were treated differently when it came to the law and government. 1. Patricians nobles or very wealthy citizens. 2. Plebeians free citizens but not very wealthy. 3. Slaves non-citizens owned by other people.

6 The Patricians were rich people who had the most power in Roman government. Do you think rich people in our country have more power than other people?

7 Some people had no power at all. Slaves were owned by other people. Women could be free citizens, but they had no say in government.

8 The Romans became very dependant upon their slaves to get work done. Look at how the number of slaves grew in Rome over time! YEAR ROMAN CITIZENS SLAVE POPULATION 115 BC 394, , BC 900, , BC 4,063,000 1,354,333 AD 13 4,937,000, 1,645,667 AD 47 6,944,000 2,314,667

9 But SLAVERY was not decent, or good for ROME. Slaves sometimes fought back. SPARTACUS led a slave rebellion, showing Romans how important freedom is to all people.

10 Roman Law The Roman Republic wrote its laws down. They were first written on bronze tablets called the Twelve Tables.

11 The laws on the Twelve Tables were displayed in the Forum (Rome s public meeting place) so all could read them. Why would it be important to write laws down?

12 The United States also writes its laws down. Our most important set of laws is called the Constitution. It was first written in 1787.

13 The United States Constitution The Constitution sets up the organization and main rules of our government. It also lists the rights of our citizens. Over more than 200 years we have amended (made changes) to our Constitution only 28 times.

14 The Government of the Roman Republic had 3 main parts: Assembly-included all of the Plebian citizens of Rome. They could suggest and vote on laws, but the Senate could block their decisions. Senate-a group of Patricians citizens that approved the laws. Senators were chosen by the 2 Consuls. 2 Consuls co-leaders of the government who carried out the laws. The 2 Consuls were elected by the Assembly from among the members of the Senate. The Consuls were like our president, but would only serve 1 year.

15 The Consuls shared power and had to agree on decisions. If they disagreed, they used a VETO - meaning I Forbid.

16 The Roman Republic had Checks and Balances = spreading power into its 3 parts of government. The Consuls had much power, but it was limited by the Senate. And the Consuls were elected by the Assembly.

17 America got its ideas of Checks and Balances from the Roman Republic We call it the 3 Branches 1. The Executive Branch The President 2. The Legislative Branch- The lawmakers- of Government 3. The Judicial Branch- The Supreme Court Judges

18 A closer look at the governments of the Roman Republic and the U.S. The checks and balances of power

19 In Class Exercise Part 1 Checks and balances of the Roman Republic 1. Read the Government under the Roman Republic handout. Mark each power of the Senate with a square Mark each power of the Assembly with a circle Mark each power of the Consuls with a triangle 2. As a class, let s make a table with 3 columns that lists the powers of the Senate, Assembly and Consuls. Senate Assembly Consuls

20 Three Branches Place the following qualifications or powers into three categories: Assembly, Senate or Consul: Elects the consul Controls the army The law makers Controls spending Elected by the Assembly Chooses Senators Serves for life Could block Assembly decisions

21 In Class Exercise Part 2 Checks and balances of the United States 1. Read The Balance of Government: Our Government s Seesaw handout. 2. Complete the Checks and Balances Worksheet for the Executive, Legislative and Judicial Branches of the U S. Government.