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284 A.D.: Rise of Diocletian and the Tetrarchy

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284 A.D.: Rise of Diocletian and the Tetrarchy

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Emperor Diocletian established the Tetrarchy ('rule of four') to address the empire's growing instability. He divided the empire into Eastern and Western halves, with two emperors (Augusti) and two junior emperors (Caesars). This administrative reform marked the beginning of significant changes that would eventually lead to the empire's division and decline. Diocletian also implemented economic reforms and intensified persecution of Christians.

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Watch this two minute video on the Emperor

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Watch this two minute video on the Emperor

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Two minute History on the Roman Emperor Diocletian!

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Constantine defeated his rival Maxentius at this pivotal battle. According to legend, Constantine had a vision of a Christian symbol before the battle, leading him to paint Christian symbols on his soldiers' shields. His victory paved the way for Christianity to become the dominant religion of the empire, transforming Roman religious institutions and culture. The Arch of Constantine, built to commemorate this victory, still stands in Rome today as an architectural masterpiece.

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Emperor Constantine issued the Edict of Milan, officially granting religious tolerance throughout the empire. This proclamation ended the persecution of Christians and allowed the Christian church to grow in power and influence. This shift in religious policy would fundamentally change Roman society and create religious institutions that would outlast the empire itself. The spread of Christianity also influenced Roman literature, art, and philosophy.

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Watch this short video on the Edict of Milan

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Watch this short video on the Edict of Milan

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13th June 313: The Edict of Milan formally ends the persecution of Christians in the Roman Empire

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324-330 A.D.: Founding of Constantinople

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324-330 A.D.: Founding of Constantinople

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Constantine established a new capital at Byzantium, renaming it Constantinople (modern Istanbul). This strategic location bridged Europe and Asia, shifting the empire's power center eastward. The city featured magnificent Roman architecture, including forums, aqueducts, and the Hippodrome. Constantinople would survive for another thousand years as the capital of the Byzantine Empire after Rome's fall, preserving Roman technological innovations, legal traditions, and artistic achievements.

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354-430 A.D.: St. Augustine and Christian Philosophy

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354-430 A.D.: St. Augustine and Christian Philosophy

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Born in North Africa, Augustine became one of the most influential Christian philosophers of all time. His works 'Confessions' and 'City of God' blended classical Roman philosophy with Christian theology. As Rome faced barbarian invasions, Augustine provided a philosophical framework that helped transition from classical to medieval thought. His writings on human nature, free will, and divine grace would influence Western philosophy and religious thought for centuries to come.

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361-363 A.D.: Julian the Apostate's Reign

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361-363 A.D.: Julian the Apostate's Reign

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Emperor Julian attempted to restore traditional Roman religious practices and suppress Christianity. His short reign represented the last significant effort to revive classical Roman religious institutions and philosophy. Despite his efforts, Christianity had become too deeply embedded in Roman society. Julian was also known for his philosophical writings, showing the continued importance of philosophical discourse in late Roman culture. His death during a Persian campaign marked the end of serious attempts to reverse Christianity's dominance.

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In this devastating defeat, Eastern Roman forces under Emperor Valens were destroyed by Gothic cavalry. This military disaster demonstrated Rome's vulnerability to 'barbarian' forces and accelerated the empire's decline. The battle also revealed the technological and tactical shifts occurring in warfare, as Gothic heavy cavalry proved superior to traditional Roman infantry formations. The battle led to significant changes in Roman military organization and recruitment practices.

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Emperor Theodosius I issued edicts prohibiting pagan worship throughout the empire, making Christianity the official state religion. This marked the end of classical Roman religious traditions that had existed for over a thousand years. Many temples were closed or converted to churches, while Roman art and architecture increasingly featured Christian themes. Despite this religious transformation, many aspects of Greco-Roman culture were preserved within a Christian context.

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395 A.D.: Permanent Division of the Empire

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395 A.D.: Permanent Division of the Empire

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Upon Emperor Theodosius I's death, the Roman Empire was permanently divided between his sons: Arcadius in the East and Honorius in the West. This division formalized the growing cultural and economic differences between the regions. While the Eastern Empire would continue as the Byzantine Empire for another thousand years, the Western Empire would collapse within decades. The division affected all aspects of Roman society, from law and administration to art and literature.

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Read this short Article and then move on

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Read this short Article and then move on

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This division changed Roman life and government forever. There were now two emperors in each empire, and they governed independently. The capital of the Western Empire was Rome, and the capital of the Eastern Empire was Constantinople. Following this split, the Eastern Empire thrived. Constantinople was well-protected because it was on a peninsula that could be easily defended. It was also located on the frontiers of the empire allowing imperial armies to respond more easily to external attacks and threats.

The Eastern and Western Empires had similarities and differences. They both considered themselves Roman and celebrated the history of Rome. Although they governed separately, their forms of government were similar and they enforced some of the same laws. However, as time went on their differences grew, mainly in the aspects of religion, language, and culture.

Romans in the Western Empire spoke Latin while those in the Eastern Empire spoke Greek. The Western Empire was Roman Catholic and practiced traditional Roman culture, while the Eastern Empire was dominated by the Eastern Orthodox religion and had a more diverse culture influenced by different people. The Western Empire suffered from multiple invasions by barbarian tribes and eventually collapsed in 476 CE.

The Eastern Empire, also known as the Byzantine Empire, survived for almost 1,000 more years before being overtaken by the Ottoman Empire in 1453.

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A historical summary of why Rome was split into East and West by the Roman Emperor Diocletian in the year 286.

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370-390s A.D.: Theodosian Code Development

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370-390s A.D.: Theodosian Code Development

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During this period, Roman legal scholars worked to systematize and preserve Roman law, eventually resulting in the Theodosian Code (published in 438 AD). This massive legal compilation represented one of Rome's greatest and most lasting contributions to civilization. Roman law concepts such as legal equality, due process, and systematic legal reasoning would influence legal systems throughout Europe and eventually much of the world. The code demonstrates how Roman legal expertise remained vibrant even as the empire declined politically.

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Read through this article

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Roman law, the law of ancient Rome from the time of the founding of the city in 753 bce until the fall of the Western Empire in the 5th century ce. It remained in use in the Eastern, or Byzantine, Empire until 1453. As a legal system, Roman law has affected the development of law in most of Western civilization as well as in parts of the East. It forms the basis for the law codes of most countries of continental Europe ( see civil law) and derivative systems elsewhere.

The term Roman law today often refers to more than the laws of Roman society. The legal institutions evolved by the Romans had influence on the laws of other peoples in times long after the disappearance of the Roman Empire and in countries that were never subject to Roman rule. To take the most striking example, in a large part of Germany, until the adoption of a common code for the whole empire in 1900, the Roman law was in force as "subsidiary law"; that is, it was applied unless excluded by contrary local provisions. This law, however, which was in force in parts of Europe long after the fall of the Roman Empire, was not the Roman law in its original form. Although its basis was indeed the Corpus Juris Civilis-the codifying legislation of the emperor Justinian I-this legislation had been interpreted, developed, and adapted to later conditions by generations of jurists from the 11th century onward and had received additions from non-Roman sources.

Development of the jus civile and jus gentium

In the great span of time during which the Roman Republic and Empire existed, there were many phases of legalistic development. During the period of the republic (753-31 bce), the (civil law) developed. Based on custom or legislation, it applied exclusively to Roman citizens. By the middle of the 3rd century bce, however, another type of law, jus gentium (law of nations), was developed by the Romans to be applied both to themselves and to foreigners. Jus gentium was not the result of legislation, but was, instead, a development of the magistrates and governors who were responsible for administering justice in cases in which foreigners were involved. The jus gentium became, to a large extent, part of the massive body of law that was applied by magistrates to citizens, as well as to foreigners, as a flexible alternative to jus civile.

Roman law, like other ancient systems, originally adopted the principle of personality-that is, that the law of the state applied only to its citizens. Foreigners had no rights and, unless protected by some treaty between their state and Rome, they could be seized like ownerless pieces of property by any Roman. But from early times there were treaties with foreign states guaranteeing mutual protection. Even in cases in which there was no treaty, the increasing commercial interests of Rome forced it to protect, by some form of justice, the foreigners who came within its borders. A magistrate could not simply apply Roman law because that was the privilege of citizens; even had there not been this difficulty, foreigners would probably have objected to the cumbersome formalism that characterized the early jus civile.

The law that the magistrates applied probably consisted of three elements: (1) an existing mercantile law that was used by the Mediterranean traders; (2) those institutions of the Roman law that, after being purged of their formalistic elements, could be applied universally to any litigant, Roman or foreigner; and (3) in the last resort, a magistrate's own sense of what was fair and just. This system of jus gentium was also adopted when Rome began to acquire provinces so that provincial governors could administer justice to the peregrini (foreigners). This word came to mean not so much persons living under another government (of which, with the expansion of Roman power, there came to be fewer and fewer) as Roman subjects who were not citizens. In general, disputes between members of the same subject state were settled by that state's own courts according to its own law, whereas disputes between provincials of different states or between provincials and Romans were resolved by the governor's court applying jus gentium. By the 3rd century ce, when citizenship was extended throughout the empire, the practical differences between jus civile and jus gentium ceased to exist. Even before this, when a Roman lawyer said that a contract of sale was juris gentium, he meant that it was formed in the same way and had the same legal results whether the parties to it were citizens or not. This became the practical meaning of jus gentium. Because of the universality of its application, however, the idea was also linked with the theoretical notion that it was the law common to all peoples and was dictated by nature-an idea that the Romans took from Greek philosophy.

Written and unwritten law

The Romans divided their law into jus scriptum (written law) and jus non scriptum (unwritten law). By "unwritten law" they meant custom; by "written law" they meant not only the laws derived from legislation but, literally, laws based on any written source.

There were various types of written law, the first of which consisted of leges (singular lex), or enactments of one of the assemblies of the whole Roman people. Although the wealthier classes, or patricians, dominated these assemblies, the common people, or plebeians, had their own council in which they enacted resolutions called plebiscita. Only after the passage of the Lex Hortensia in 287 bce, however, did plebiscita become binding on all classes of citizens; thereafter, plebiscita were generally termed leges along with other enactments. In general, legislation was a source of law only during the republic. When Augustus Caesar established the empire in 31 bce, the assemblies did not at once cease to function, but their assent to any proposal became merely a formal ratification of the emperor's wishes. The last known lex was passed during the reign of Nerva (96-98 ce).

The earliest and most important legislation, or body of leges, was the Twelve Tables, enacted in 451-450 bce during the struggle of the plebeians for political equality. It represented an effort to obtain a written and public code that patrician magistrates could not alter at will against plebeian litigants. Little is known of the actual content of the Twelve Tables; the text of the code has not survived, and only a few fragments are extant, collected from allusions and quotations in the works of authors such as Cicero. From the fragments it is apparent that numerous matters were treated, among them family law, delict (tort, or offense against the law), and legal procedure.

A second type of written law consisted of the (edicts), or proclamations issued by a superior magistrate ( praetor) on judicial matters. The office of praetor was created in 367 bce to take over the expanding legal work involving citizens; later, a separate praetor was created to deal with foreigners. Upon taking office, a praetor issued an edict that was, in effect, the program for his year in office. The curule aediles, who were the magistrates responsible for the care and supervision of the markets, also issued edicts. During the later stages of the republic, these praetorian and magisterial edicts became an instrument of legal reform, and leges ceased to be a major source of private law.

The Roman system of procedure gave the magistrate great powers for providing or refusing judicial remedies, as well as for determining the form that such remedies should take. The result of this magisterial system was the development of the jus honorarium, a new body of rules that existed alongside, and often superseded, the civil law. The edicta remained a source of law until about 131 ce, when the emperor Hadrian commissioned their reorganization and consolidation and declared the resulting set of laws to be unalterable, except by the emperor himself.

A third type of written law was the senatus consulta, or resolutions of the Roman senate. Although these suggestions to various magistrates had no legislative force during the republic, they could be given force by the magistrates' edicts. In the early empire, as the power of the assemblies declined and the position of the emperor increased, senatus consulta became resolutions that endorsed the proposals of the emperor. As the approval of the Senate became increasingly automatic, the emperor's proposals became the true instrument of power. Consequently, emperors ceased referring proposals to the Senate and, not long after the early imperial period, ended the practice of legislating through the Senate.

A fourth type of written law consisted of the constitutiones principum, which were, in effect, expressions of the legislative power of the emperor. By the middle of the 2nd century ce, the emperor was, essentially, the sole creator of the law. The chief forms of imperial legislation were edicts or proclamations; instructions to subordinates, especially provincial governors; written answers to officials or others who consulted the emperor; and decisions of the emperor sitting as a judge.

The last type of written law was the responsa prudentium, or answers to legal questions given by learned lawyers to those who consulted them. Although law, written and unwritten, was originally a rather secretive monopoly of the college of pontiffs, or priests, a recognizable class of legal advisers, juris consulti or prudentes, had developed by the early 3rd century bce. These legal advisers were not professionals as such but men of rank who sought popularity and advancement in their public careers by giving free legal advice. They interpreted statutes and points of law, especially unwritten law, advised the praetor on the content of his edict, and assisted parties and judges in litigation. Augustus empowered certain jurists to give responsa with the emperor's authority; this increased their prestige, but the practice lapsed as early as 200 ce.

During the early empire, numerous commentaries were written by the great jurists on individual leges, on civil law, on the edict, and on law as a whole. In the 5th century a law was passed stipulating that only the works of certain jurists could be cited. Legal scholarship declined in the postclassical period.

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Roman law | Influence, Importance, Principles, & Facts

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Roman law, the law of ancient Rome from the time of the founding of the city in 753 bce until the fall of the Western Empire in the 5th century ce. It remained in use in the Eastern, or Byzantine, Empire until 1453.

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4th Century A.D.: Advances in Roman Engineering

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4th Century A.D.: Advances in Roman Engineering

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Despite political decline, the 4th century saw continued Roman technological innovation. Engineers constructed massive structures like the Basilica of Maxentius in Rome and expanded aqueduct systems throughout the empire. Roman concrete technology, architectural techniques, and urban planning principles remained unmatched in Europe for centuries. Roman engineering achievements in water management, road construction, and building design represent one of the empire's most significant and lasting contributions to world civilization.

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Read through and watch the video and then move on

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Ancient Rome Live | Monuments of Rome | Basilica Iulia

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The Basilica Iulia (Basilica Julia) is now generally identified with the στόα Ποσειδῶνος built by Agrippa in 25 B.C. Read more about it here.

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4th Century A.D.: Roman Medicine and Science

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4th Century A.D.: Roman Medicine and Science

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Late Roman physicians continued the tradition of Galen, developing treatments based on observation and theory. Medical writers compiled encyclopedic works preserving Greek and Roman medical knowledge. Roman military hospitals (valetudinaria) provided sophisticated care for soldiers, while public health measures like aqueducts and sewers improved urban sanitation. Roman medical texts would be preserved in the Byzantine Empire and eventually transmitted to medieval European and Islamic physicians, influencing medical practice for centuries.

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Click this link for and read about some of the medicines these physicians used

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The Roman Empire began around 800 B.C.E. and existed for around 1,200 years. Medical knowledge and practice were advanced for the time, and the ancient Romans made progress in many areas.

The Romans encouraged the provision of public health facilities throughout the Empire. Their medicine developed from the needs of the battlefield and learnings from the Greeks.

Among the practices that the Romans adopted from the Greeks was the theory of the four humors, which remained popular in Europe until the 17th century.

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The temple of Aesculapius stood on the Tiber Island. The original is now long gone, but this Renaissance-era replica may bear some resemblance to it.

The Romans had their first introduction to Greek medicine when Archagathus of Sparta, a medical practitioner, arrived in Rome in 219 B.C.E.

Other scientists and doctors came from Greece, first as prisoners of war and later because they could earn more money in Rome. They continued researching Greek theories on disease and physical and mental disorders.

The Romans allowed them to carry on their research and adopted many of their ideas. However, unlike the Greeks, the Romans did not like the idea of dissecting corpses, so they did not discover much about human anatomy.

The spiritual beliefs surrounding medicine in Greece were also common in Rome.

By the 3rd century B.C.E., the Romans had adopted a religious healing system called the cult of Aesculapius, which took its name from a Greek god of healing. Initially, they built shrines, but these expanded in time to include spas and thermal baths with doctors in attendance.

When plagues occurred in Italy in 431 B.C.E, the Romans built a temple to the Greek god Apollo, who they believed had healing powers.

The Romans also took a sacred snake from the Greeks. It escaped but reappeared on the Tiber Island, where the Romans built a sanctuary for it. People would come to this place in search of healing.

On conquering Alexandria, the Romans found various libraries and universities that the Greeks had set up. They contained many learning centers and places for research as well as a wealth of documented knowledge of medicine.

It was by observing the health of their soldiers that Roman leaders began to realize the importance of public health.

On the battlefield

Romans on the battlefield used surgical tools to remove arrowheads and carry out other procedures.

Most Roman surgeons got their practical experience on the battlefield. They carried a tool kit containing arrow extractors, catheters, scalpels, and forceps. They used to sterilize their equipment in boiling water before using it.

The Romans performed surgical procedures using opium and scopolamine to relieve pain and acid vinegar to clean up wounds.

They did not have effective anesthetics for complicated surgical procedures, but it is unlikely that they operated deep inside the body.

Maternity care

The Romans also had midwives, whom they treated with great respect. Records of medical instruments include a birthing stool, which was a four-legged stool with arm and back supports and a crescent-shaped opening for the delivery of the baby.

Cesarean sections did sometimes take place. The women would not survive, but the baby might.

Hospitals

In purpose-built hospitals, people could rest and have a better chance of recovery. In the hospital setting, doctors were able to observe people's condition instead of depending on supernatural forces to perform miracles.

As Roman doctors did not have permission to dissect corpses, they were somewhat limited in their understanding of human anatomy.

However, soldiers and gladiators often had wounds, which could be severe, and doctors had to treat them. In this way, they learned more about the human body.

Claudius Galen, who moved from Greece to Rome in 162 C.E., became an expert on anatomy by dissecting animals and applying his knowledge to humans.

He was a popular lecturer and a well-known doctor, eventually becoming Emperor Marcus Aurelius' physician. He also wrote several medical books.

Galen also dissected some human corpses. He dissected a hanged criminal and some bodies that a flood had unearthed in a cemetery.

As a result, Galen displayed an excellent knowledge of bone structure. After cutting the spinal cord of a pig and observing it, he also realized that the brain sends signals to control the muscles.

The Romans made progress in their knowledge of what causes diseases and how to prevent them. Medical theories were sometimes very close to what we know today.

For example, Marcus Terentius Varro (116-27 B.C.E) believed that disease occurred due to minute creatures too small for the naked eye to see. We now know about bacteria and viruses, which we can only see using a microscope.

However, others believed that the stars caused illness.

Lucius Junius Moderatus Columella, who lived from 4 C.E. to around 70 C.E., was an agricultural writer. He thought that diseases came from swamp vapors.

Until two centuries ago, many of these beliefs were still popular.

Roman diagnosis and treatment consisted of a combination of Greek medicine and some local practices.

As the Greeks did before them, Roman physicians would carry out a thorough physical examination of the individual.

Progress in diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis in ancient Rome was slow and patchy. Doctors tended to develop their own theories, which led them to diverge in several different directions.

Herbal remedies

The Romans used a wide range of herbal medicines and other remedies, including:

Fennel: This plant was a standard treatment for nervous disorders because Romans believed that it calmed the nerves.

Unwashed wool: The Romans applied this to sores.

Elecampane: Also known as horseheal, people used this herb for digestive problems.

Egg yolk: Doctors prescribed egg yolk for dysentery.

Sage: This perennial had religious value. Its use was common among those who believed that the gods could heal them.

Garlic: Doctors advised that garlic was good for the heart.

Boiled liver: People with sore eyes used this.

Fenugreek: Doctors often prescribed this plant for lung diseases, especially pneumonia.

Cabbage: Cato recommended this for many purposes, including a hangover remedy and a cure for wounds and sores.

Silphium: People used this as a form of contraceptive and for fever, cough, indigestion, a sore throat, aches and pains, and warts. Historians are not sure exactly what silphium was, but they believe it to be an extinct plant of the genus Ferula, possibly a variety of giant fennel.

Willow: People used this as an antiseptic.

Pedanius Dioscorides lived around 40-90 C.E. He was a Greek botanist, pharmacologist, and physician who practiced in Rome when Nero was the ruler.

He became a famous Roman army doctor.

He wrote a 5-volume pharmacopeia called "De Materia Medica," which listed over 600 herbal cures. Doctors used "De Materia Medica" extensively for the next 1,500 years.

Many Roman doctors came from Greece. They firmly believed in achieving the right balance of the four humors and restoring the "natural heat" of people with medical conditions.

Galen said that opposites would often cure people. For a cold, he would give the person hot pepper. If they had a fever, he advised doctors to use cucumber.

Public health aims to keep the whole community in good health and prevent the spread of disease.

Today, among other things, it involves vaccination programs, promoting a healthful lifestyle and diet, building hospitals, and providing clean water for drinking and washing.

The Romans, unlike the Greeks and Egyptians, were firm believers in public health. They knew that hygiene was vital to prevent the spread of diseases.

Practical projects, such as creating a water supply, were very important to them. They built aqueducts to pipe water to cites. The sewage system in Rome was so advanced that nothing matching it was built again until the late 17th century.

One explanation of how the Romans were able to organize such major public projects is that they had a vast but centralized empire. The Emperor wielded his power across the Roman territory, and there was enough cheap labor and sufficient wealth to carry out these schemes.

Some of the wealthy even had underfloor heating in their homes.

The Romans also promoted facilities for personal hygiene by building public baths and washrooms. Their focus was on maintaining a motivated and healthy army, but their citizens also benefited.

Public health facilities

The Romans built baths, hospitals, and water supply channels throughout their Empire to encourage public health.

Examples of some Roman facilities include:

Public baths: There were nine public baths in Rome alone. Each one had pools at varying temperatures. Some also had gyms and massage rooms. Government inspectors were vigorous in their enforcement of proper hygiene standards.

Hospitals: Ancient Romans were responsible for setting up the first hospitals, which they initially designed to treat soldiers and veterans.

Water supply: The Romans were superb engineers, and they built several aqueducts throughout their Empire to supply people with water.

Planning: The Romans were careful to place army barracks well away from swamps. If marshes got in the way, they would drain them. They were aware of the link between swamps and mosquitoes and understood that these insects could transmit diseases to humans.

The Romans learned about medicine from the Greeks and Egyptians, and they made their own contribution to the discipline by focusing on public health and disease prevention.

However, they did not make significant progress in understanding how the human body works, and they were not yet aware of the association of germs with disease.

After the fall of the Roman Empire, medical knowledge in Europe did not make significant progress again until the Renaissance period.

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Ancient Roman medicine: Influences, practice, and learning

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The Roman Empire began around 800 B.C.E. and existed for around 1,200 years. Medical knowledge and practice were advanced for the time, and the ancient Romans made progress in many areas. The Romans encouraged the provision of public health facilities throughout the Empire. Their medicine developed from the needs of the battlefield and learnings from the Greeks.