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March 15, 44 B.C.E. Julius Caesar was assassinated. He created a triumvirate in 60 B.C.E. but tried to become the only ruler, or a dictator. Because of Julius gaining more and more power, a large group of senators gathered to assassinate him. In the Ides of March, Julius Caesar was killed.
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Octavian, Mark Antony and Lepidus create the second triumvirate. Octavian and Mark Antony persuade Lepidus to retire, so they become the two rulers of the Roman Republic.
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When Mark Antony meets Cleopatra, they fall in love, and seek to be the rulers of Rome, and over rule Octavian. Octavian sees this coming and battles with Mark Antony, Octavian comes out victorious. Cleopatra, thinking her lover had been killed, commits suicide with an asp, and when Mark Antony finds out his lover has died, he commits suicide as well. Octavian becomes the first emperor of Rome, and it becomes an empire.
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Pax Romana started 27 B.C.E. Pax Romana is Latin for Roman Peace. This 200 year peace started under Augustus Caesar's (Octavian) rule. Rome went under this because of the great amount of land they ruled, strong army, fair tax system, clear laws and improved roads that made trade easy.
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Marcus Aurelius reigned for 19 years, from 161C.E.-180C.E. He was the last of 5 consecutive good emperors. He unified the empire economically, and spent most of his rule putting down rebellions and fighting invasions. Before he died, Marcus chose the next emperor, his son Commodus.
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Constantine ruled from 306 C.E. to 337 C.E. During his rule civil war broke out. His army did not have a good chance of winning the war. But he saw the chairo symbol in the clouds. He had his soldiers put the symbol on the shields and he was victorious. Constantine believed the symbol was sent from the Christian God, and so he vowed to become Christian.
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The Edict of Milan, signed in 313 C.E., was a document that granted freedom to Romans to practice any religion they chose. The letter was signed by both Constantine, who ruled the western part of the empire, and Licinius, who ruled the eastern part. Constantine encouraged Christianity.
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In 330 C.E. Constantine moved the capital from Rome to Byzantium. He renamed this city Constantinople, meaning city of Constantine. He moved the capital because there were better trade routes on the eastern side of the empire. The trade routes allowed the Roman Empire to exchange goods, ideas and religion with other people. 337 C.E. marks the end of Constantine's rule.
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In 410 C.E. the Visigoths captured and looted Rome. The Visigoths were a group of Germanic people. This was the start of the fall of Rome.
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The Vandals, in 455 C.E., attacked Rome but they left powerless. The Vandals were an eastern German tribe.
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The Ostrogoths' attack on Rome lead its final collapse. In 476 C.E. Rome fell and was taken over by Germanic Tribes.
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180 C.E. marks the beginning of Commodus' rule and the end of Pax Romana, or Roman Peace. Commodus loved the idea of emperor, the money and fame, but not the ruling part. He spent the empire's money on social gatherings and entertainment. He ordered all rich people to death and as emperor took their money. Commodus was bringing the empire down.
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192 C.E. marks the end of Commodus' reign and his assassination. His sister plotted his first assassination, but it fell through. The second assassination plot did work though, and Commodus was no more. The empire falls into 50 years of decline.
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Diocletian's rule went from 284 C.E. to 305 C.E. He had a different take on being emperor. He named a co-emperor and two vice-emperors. He split the empire into two parts, the western and eastern empire. Diocletian decided to rule the eastern empire, while Maximian (co-emperor) ruled the western half. He improved the tax structure and army in the western half until he abdicated the throne in 305 C.E.
