Archive for the ‘Ancient Rome’ Category
By: The Scribe on January, 2011
For some ancient cultures, bathing was a necessity. Others avoided keeping clean for a multitude of reasons. For the Romans, not only were baths important for maintaining health, they were also an important part of social life. Roman public bath houses were centers for socialization and in some areas, were quite large and lavish indeed.
Roman baths actually fell into two categories: balneae and thermae. Balneae were built on a smaller scale than thermae. There were public balneae as well as private ones that were attached to homes. Their main function was to enable people to clean themselves. Although these were popular and the Romans did enjoy using them to get clean it was at the thermae that the action really happened.
This is because thermae (some of which were large Imperial bath complexes) were much larger and were designed to allow a person to spend an entire day relaxing and getting clean. Some of the Imperial Roman bath complexes were absolutely massive. For example a public thermae that was constructed n 19BCE was a large complex that featured a 25 meter rotunda. It also featured a pool and an artificial river as well. Later complexes, such as the Baths of Diocletian were larger. Over 3,000 bathers used the Baths of Diocletian each and every day.
A Roman bath complex featured three main rooms. Two of the rooms contained pools of water. There was a frigidarium, a room with a pool of unheated water. In some baths, the frigidarium pool was large enough for swimming. This was the room that bathers entered first and where they would disrobe. After plunging into the cold water, a bather could decide whether they wanted to enter the tepidarium to be anointed, or whether they wanted to move on to the caldarium.
The caldarium was a room with a pool of hot water in it. It was built directly over a hypocaust. This was a form of central heating. A raised floor allowed hot air from a furnace to move around underneath and this warmed the entire room or complex. Because the caldarium was located directly over the furnace, the room was extremely warm and the water inside was very warm as well. Although women were welcome at the baths they did not use the same rooms as the men. Their rooms were generally smaller and configured differently although they did serve the same purpose as the men’s bath did.
Bathing was a process that could take hours. It was not uncommon for individuals to spend the day at the bath moving from one room to another. In some bathing complexes there were additional areas as well. One was the palaestra. This was an outdoor gym where men could exercise. Some thermae also had libraries and areas where food could be purchased and consumed. It was not uncommon for people to meet at the baths and make social plans or to us
e the baths to find an audience for political speeches.
As the Romans spread out and exerted their influence in other areas in Europe, they brought their baths with them. Some, like those built at the hot springs in Bath, England still have ruins that are visible today.
By: The Scribe on December, 2010
The ancient Romans loved their entertainment. The Coliseum was very popular and a variety of different entertainments were staged there. From full on naval battles to gladiatorial combat, Romans flocked there in order to be entertained. And although the Romans could accept quite a bit, one thing that they could not accept was an Emperor fighting in the ring like a gladiator.
Now, while it is true that the masses loved gladiators (in much the same way that we love professional athletes) there was a problem with an Emperor acting like a gladiator. Gladiators were slaves, plain and simple. They were bought, trained and forced to fight in the ring to the death. So, when an Emperor decided to fight like a gladiator and act like a slave in public, that public was not impressed.
Anyone who has seen the movie Gladiator remembers the Emperor Commodus fighting in the ring. In real life, not only did he do so to prove a point or to destroy an enemy, he did so regularly and enjoyed it immensely when he did so. But who was Commodus? What kind of man could be raised to wealth and privilege and still feel compelled to fight like a common slave?
The Emperor’s full name was Lucius Aurelius Commodus. He was the son of Marcus Aurelius who was one of the best loved emperors to rule Rome. He knew from a very early age that he would rule after his father. Much of this had to do with the fact that he was the only male child to make it to adulthood. Although many people think that the position of Emperor normally passed from father to son this was actually not usually the case. In fact, the fact that Commodus was born during his father’s reign was something very unusual indeed. Before Commodus, no other emperor had been born during the reign of their father.
Although Marcus Aurelius was known as being one of Rome’s “Five Good Emperors”, Commodus was not. He was known as being petty and megalomaniacal. He saw himself as having god-like power, something that is bound to go to the head of anyone given enough time. He loved the myth of Hercules and often compared himself to the Greek hero. A large number of statues were put up around the city that showed Commodus dressed as Hercules.
Of course, getting in the ring and fighting as a slave was not Commodus’ only unpopular action. He also changed the names of the calendar months and became known for killing his enemies regardless of whether they were real or imagined. Although his father had introduced a number of very popular policies, Commodus decided to discard many of them and began to lead a lifestyle that was full of cruel practices and wild excesses.
When Commodus entered the ring, he usually squared off against amputees, wounded soldiers, and citizens that were unable to fight. Of course, no citizen would fight back against the Emperor so it was unlikely that they would have won even if they were up to fighting.
Commodus’ lifestyle was so cruel and outrageous that it was no wonder he was assassinated in CE193, beginning a period that would see five different men take the position of Emperor in a single year.
By: The Scribe on November, 2010
If you think that modern elections and politics can be confusing, be thankful that you didn’t live in Ancient Rome. Rome was always a place where an unpopular ruler could run into problems but one year in particular was really bad for anyone who wanted to call themselves a Roman Emperor. It has become known as the Year of the Five Emperors and was a tough time for anyone who wanted to rule the Empire.
Picture the scene: the year is 193AD. Commodus, that unpleasant emperor made famous by the movie “Gladiator” has just been assassinated. Since he was just about as bad a fellow as was portrayed in the movie it is no wonder that his reign did not end well. The problem was a simple one: who would take over? The first Emperor was a man by the name of Publius Helvius Pertinax. Pertinax was fairly down to earth and wanted to work with the Senate instead of against them. The politicians loved him. The common people loved him. The problem was that the soldiers did not.
Pertinax had only paid them half of the large sum of 12,000 sesterces that he had promised them for their support following Commodus’ assassination. Unfortunately, when you have underpaid soldiers they tend to react badly. Soldiers burst into the palace on the 28th of March and Pertinax was assassinated. This paved the way for his successor, Marcus Didius Severus Julianus to assume the position of emperor.
The problem with Julianus is that while the soldiers liked him the common people did not. Julianus found that wherever he went, mobs would call out insults and would often throw stones. Although the military that was based in Rome supported Julianus the outlying legions did not do so. They advanced and overthrew Julianus who was later executed. He had bee
n Emperor for three months.
The final three emperors were actually generals who vied for the position. Gaius Pescennius Niger took power next. Although a general named Lucius Septimius Severus actually overthrew Julianus it was Niger that seized the title of Emperor. Severus did not agree and fought Niger. Niger was defeated. In the course of fleeing to Parthia, Niger was killed.
One would assume that Severus would seize power and be the next in line but this was not the case. The fourth Emperor was a man by the name of Decimus Clodius Septimius Albinus. Again, Severus did not agree with this and brought his legions to bear against those of Albinus. They met and fought the Battle of Lugdunum. Albinus definitely did not come out on top. He was defeated and was then decapitated and trampled by the horse that Severus rode. 
Lucius Septimius Severus was the final Emperor in the Year of Five Emperors. Not only did he manage to hold on for the rest of the year, he actually reigned until the year 211. During this time Severus waged war on the Parthian Empire, fought Picts in Caledonia and was involved with the strengthening of Hadrian’s Wall. He was able to leave the empire to his sons Caracalla and Geta and provided a period of stability following the turbulent Year of Five Emperors.
By: The Scribe on November, 2010
Many people think that the only thing deadly about a volcanic eruption is the lava. All you have to do to realize that this is not the case is to look at the residents of Ancient Pompeii. Their city was destroyed in CE 79 when it was buried, not by hot lava, but by hot ash and gasses. Over nine feet of hot ash completely blanketed the city of Pompeii but it was the gasses that came first that did much of the damage and which killed many of the residents.
Before the volcano erupted, Pompeii was a very busy city and one that had much to offer in terms of culture and commerce. The town was located near where the city of Naples is located today. A large number of frescoes have shown archaeologists a lot about what daily life was like in Pompeii. It was a popular destination for many Romans who wanted an escape from the city and many holiday villas were located in the city.
Part of the reason that the area was so popular was the incredible richness of the soil. This made farming easy. Unfortunately, that rich soil had developed from years of repeated volcanic eruptions. Because there had been a number of smaller eruptions in the area for many years, the residents of Pompeii and its sister city, Herculaneum, felt secure that they would not be harmed should the volcano erupt again. They were very wr
ong.
Unlike previous eruptions, the eruption of CE 79 did not produce gouts of flame and rivers of molten rock and lava. In the earliest stages of the eruption, the cap blew off of the crater and the cities surrounding the volcano were pelted with rocks and other debris. The volcano also produced a lot of ash that choked the residents of Pompeii and its sister city, Herculaneum. The eruption had several stages and it was these later stages that proved to be so deadly.
The ash, rocks, gas and debris that had formed a massive cloud began to roll down the side of the mountain. It swept through Herculaneum first and killed the residents in an instant. A total of four surges of ash, toxic gas and rocks flowed through Herculaneum and Pompeii.
The destruction of Pompeii was terrifying both for the residents and for those that witnessed the destruction. Pliny the Elder (23 AD – August 25, 79), a Roman philosopher and author, and Pliny the Younger (61 AD – ca. 112 AD) a lawyer, both wrote about the destruction of the city in a number
of their writings.
Excavation of Herculaneum and Pompeii involved digging down through the meters and meters of thick ash. A number of voids had been found in the ash. These were where the bodies of victims had fallen after they succumbed to the hot ash and toxic gas. As they decomposed, they left behind vacant spaces. These were later filled with plaster and the shapes of these lost victims again came to light. Many of these can be seen in various museums as well as in the city of Pompeii itself, which has become a UNESCO World Heritage Site
Previous page | Next page
e the baths to find an audience for political speeches. 
