-
Legend has it that on the 21st of April, brothers Romulus and Remus founded Rome. Romulus eventually kills Remus to become the first king and names the city after himself.
-
After the last of seven kings, Rome begins the Republic period during which it is ruled by senators and has a constitution.
-
Hannibal of Carthage attacks Rome and invades Italy during the Second Punic War.
-
Spartacus, a gladiator, leads an army of slaves in a series of battles. Spartacus and his men were caught and crucified.
-
After Julius Caesar wins the civil war, he establishes himself as a dictator for life and supreme ruler of Rome, thus ending the Roman Republic.
-
On March 15th, known today as the Ides of March, Caesar is assassinated on the steps of the Senate by factions wishing to bring back the Republic.
-
Even though Caesar was a dictator, the first leader to call himself ''Emperor'' or Augustus was Octavius.
-
Most of the city is destroyed in a vast fire. Emperor Nero has often been blamed, but modern scholarship doubts this.
-
One of the most iconic ancient buildings in Rome, the completion of the structure was a massive celebration.
-
A wall was built across the North of England and marked the northern boundary of the Roman Empire.
-
This marks a change in the way that Christians were treated in Rome. Constantine himself became a Christian.
-
This will have an effect on the rest of European history to the present day.
-
In an effort to make administration of the vast empire easier, Rome becomes two separate empires (Western Roman Empire and Eastern Roman Empire) with two capitals and two rulers.
-
This marks the beginning of the fatal weakening of Rome that would lead to its downfall.
-
The last Roman Emperor Romulus Augustus is deposed and the Middle Ages begin.