The Isarci were an ancient Alpine people who settled in the Eisack Valley ( Italian : Val d'Isarco ).
119-605: They were a Rhaetian tribe dwelling about the mouth of the river Isarco , from which their name appears to been derived. Val d'Isarco is also referred to as Val de Sarra or Sarcha , near Val Camonica in South Tyrol in references to the Isarci. Little is recorded about them, other than that they were conquered by Rome during the campaigns of Augustus against the Raeti and other alpine tribes that were undertaken by generals Druzus
238-456: A civil war against the Senate and Pompey. After his victory, Caesar established himself as dictator for life . His assassination in 44 BC led to a second Triumvirate among Octavian (Caesar's grandnephew and heir), Mark Antony and Lepidus , and to a final civil war between Octavian and Antony. In 27 BC, Octavian was named Augustus and princeps , founding the principate ,
357-646: A confederation of Alpine tribes, whose language and culture were related to those of the Etruscans . Before the Roman conquest, they inhabited present-day Tyrol in Austria , eastern Switzerland and the Alpine regions of northeastern Italy. After the Roman conquest, the province of Raetia was formed, which included parts of present-day Germany south of the Danube . The etymology of
476-510: A diarchy between the princeps and the senate. Over time, the new monarch came to be known as the imperator (hence emperor ), meaning "commander". During the reign of Nero , two thirds of the city was ruined after the Great Fire of Rome , and the persecution of Christians commenced. Rome's empire reached its greatest expansion in the second century under the Emperor Trajan . Rome
595-415: A senatore or patrizio . In the 12th century, this administration, like other European cities, evolved into the commune , a new form of social organisation controlled by the new wealthy classes. Pope Lucius II fought against the Roman commune, and the struggle was continued by his successor Pope Eugenius III : by this stage, the commune, allied with the aristocracy, was supported by Arnaldo da Brescia ,
714-464: A series of civil wars between rival claimants to power resulted in the unification of the empire under Constantine the Great in 324. Hereditary succession was restored, but the east–west division was maintained. Constantine undertook a major reform of the bureaucracy, not by changing the structure but by rationalising the competencies of the several ministries. The so-called Edict of Milan of 313, actually
833-562: A crusade against the Colonna family and, in 1300, called for the first Jubilee of Christianity , which brought millions of pilgrims to Rome. However, his hopes were crushed by the French king Philip the Fair , who took him prisoner and held him hostage for three days at Anagni . The Pope was able to return to Rome, but died a month later, it was said of shock and grief. Afterwards, a new pope faithful to
952-628: A few valleys of the Swiss canton Grisons (most of which is today German -speaking). However, a Raetian origin for Romansch is uncertain, as Rhaeto-Romance languages appear most closely related to the Gallo-Romance group, strengthening the argument that at least some of the Raeti had adopted Celtic speech before Latinisation. The evidence suggests that the original Roman district of Raetia et Vindelicia, as established under Augustus, had as its eastern border (with
1071-419: A fragment of a letter from his co-emperor Licinius to the governors of the eastern provinces, granted freedom of worship to everyone, including Christians, and ordered the restoration of confiscated church properties upon petition to the newly created vicars of dioceses. He funded the building of several churches and allowed clergy to act as arbitrators in civil suits (a measure that did not outlast him but which
1190-420: A fringe hypothesis. Traditional stories handed down by the ancient Romans themselves explain the earliest history of their city in terms of legend and myth . The most familiar of these myths, and perhaps the most famous of all Roman myths , is the story of Romulus and Remus , the twins who were suckled by a she-wolf . They decided to build a city, but after an argument, Romulus killed his brother and
1309-569: A full province with the official name of Raetia et Vindelicia (abbreviated to simply Raetia in the later 1st century), while the Poenine Valley ( Canton Valais , Switz.) was separated to join the province of Alpes Graiae . Raetia was governed by an equestrian procurator . According to the epigraphic record, the early Julio-Claudian period of the Roman Empire (30 BC - AD 37) saw the formation of at least 10 auxiliary infantry regiments from
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#17328770550601428-511: A large area in Rome, and the city has one of the largest areas of green space among European capitals. The most notable part of this green space is represented by the large number of villas and landscaped gardens created by the Italian aristocracy. While most of the parks surrounding the villas were destroyed during the building boom of the late 19th century, some of them remain. The most notable of these are
1547-632: A leader at the time of their supposed "expulsion" from the Po Valley. However, eponymous founders were a common, demonstrably fabricated, origin story. (The most famous illustration of this theory is the legend that the City of Rome derives its name from Romulus , its supposed founder, while if Romulus ever existed at all (which most scholars doubt), then it would be far more likely that he derived his own name from an existing place name Roma , rather than vice versa.). Virgil [70 BC-19 BC] in his Georgics II praises
1666-619: A monk who was a religious and social reformer. After the pope's death, Arnaldo was taken prisoner by Adrianus IV , which marked the end of the commune's autonomy. Under Pope Innocent III , whose reign marked the apogee of the papacy, the commune liquidated the senate, and replaced it with a Senatore , who was subject to the pope. In this period, the papacy played a role of secular importance in Western Europe , often acting as arbitrators between Christian monarchs and exercising additional political powers. In 1266, Charles of Anjou , who
1785-454: A person named 'Rhaetian' for the quality of wine grapes from the region. It is assumed from the context that he accounts it to a single person, and not the people in general. It would suggest that Virgil accounted Rhaetus to be the god-father of the Rhaetian people. It has also been suggested that the name Raeti may be connected with Reitia , a major goddess who was revered in northeast Italy and
1904-611: A population of 4,355,725 residents, is the most populous metropolitan city in Italy. Its metropolitan area is the third-most populous within Italy. Rome is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula , within Lazio ( Latium ), along the shores of the Tiber Valley . Vatican City (the smallest country in the world and headquarters of the worldwide Catholic Church under
2023-539: A warrior pope, to Alexander VI , immoral and nepotist , from Julius II , soldier and patron, to Leo X , who gave his name to this period ("the century of Leo X"), all devoted their energy to the greatness and the beauty of the Eternal City and to the patronage of the arts. During those years, the centre of the Italian Renaissance moved to Rome from Florence. Majestic works, as the new Saint Peter's Basilica ,
2142-458: Is a wide consensus that the city developed gradually through the aggregation (" synoecism ") of several villages around the largest one, placed above the Palatine. This aggregation was facilitated by the increase of agricultural productivity above the subsistence level , which also allowed the establishment of secondary and tertiary activities . These, in turn, boosted the development of trade with
2261-405: Is above 21 °C (70 °F) during the day and 9 °C (48 °F) at night. In the coldest month, January, the average temperature is 12.6 °C (54.7 °F) during the day and 2.1 °C (35.8 °F) at night. In the warmest month, August, the average temperature is 31.7 °C (89.1 °F) during the day and 17.3 °C (63.1 °F) at night. December, January and February are
2380-566: Is also a notable pine wood at Castelfusano , near Ostia. Rome also has a number of regional parks of much more recent origin, including the Pineto Regional Park and the Appian Way Regional Park. There are also nature reserves at Marcigliana and at Tenuta di Castelporziano. Rome has a Mediterranean climate ( Köppen climate classification : Csa ), with hot, dry summers and mild, humid winters. Its average annual temperature
2499-587: Is also the capital of the Lazio region , the centre of the Metropolitan City of Rome Capital , and a special comune (municipality) named Comune di Roma Capitale . With 2,860,009 residents in 1,285 km (496.1 sq mi), Rome is the country's most populated comune and the third most populous city in the European Union by population within city limits. The Metropolitan City of Rome, with
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#17328770550602618-605: Is another large green space: it has few trees but is overlooked by the Palatine and the Rose Garden ('roseto comunale'). Nearby is the lush Villa Celimontana , close to the gardens surrounding the Baths of Caracalla. The Villa Borghese garden is the best known large green space in Rome, with famous art galleries among its shaded walks. Overlooking Piazza del Popolo and the Spanish Steps are the gardens of Pincio and Villa Medici . There
2737-597: Is attested in a number of inscriptions on votive tablets of the Veneti people. One Raetic votive tablet, from the same region, contains the word reithus , which may refer to this deity. The earliest mention of the Raeti in surviving ancient sources is in the Histories of Polybius , written before 146 BC. The Raeti, according to Pliny the Elder , were Etruscans driven into the Alps from
2856-548: Is based on the amount of pork, 3,629,000 lbs. distributed to poorer Romans during five winter months at the rate of five Roman lbs per person per month, enough for 145,000 persons or 1/4 or 1/3 of the total population. Grain distribution to 80,000 ticket holders at the same time suggests 400,000 (Augustus set the number at 200,000 or one-fifth of the population). After the fall of the Western Roman Empire in AD ;476, Rome
2975-418: Is deduced to have been spoken by the Raeti based on various sources of evidence. Even if Raetian was the ancestral language of the Raeti, there is considerable uncertainty as to how widely Raetian was spoken among the tribes by the time of Augustus (ruled 30 BC - AD 14). In the Alpine region as a whole, there is evidence that the non-Celtic elements had, by the time of Augustus, been assimilated significantly by
3094-555: Is generally thought the population of the city until AD 300 was 1 million (estimates range from 2 million to 750,000) declining to 750–800,000 in AD 400, then 450–500,000 in AD 450 and down to 80–100,000 in AD 500 (though it may have been twice this). The Bishop of Rome, called the Pope , was important since the early days of Christianity because of the martyrdom of both the apostles Peter and Paul there. The Bishops of Rome were also seen (and still are seen by Catholics) as
3213-441: Is possible that the name Romulus was actually derived from Rome itself. As early as the 4th century, there have been alternative theories proposed on the origin of the name Roma . Several hypotheses have been advanced focusing on its linguistic roots which however remain uncertain: Rome has also been called in ancient times simply "Urbs" (central city), from urbs roma , or identified with its ancient Roman initialism of SPQR ,
3332-595: Is uncertain due to scanty evidence. It is possible that their speech was also related to Etruscan, possibly a sub-group of Tyrsenian languages . Alternatively their language may have been Indo-European , akin to that of their close neighbours, the Celts or the Veneti (whose language shares several similarities with Latin and the Italic languages, but also has some affinities with other IE languages, especially Germanic and Celtic). In addition, it appears that "Raetia et Vindelicia"
3451-614: Is uncertain. It has similarities to the endonym of the Etruscans: Rasenna , the root of which appears to be Etruscan rasna "the people". However, it is unclear whether the Rhaetians had a similar endonym or if Raeti is an exonym (a name used by outsiders to describe the Rhaetians). The Roman geographer Pliny the Elder , writing in AD 70, suggests that the people were named after "Raetus",
3570-632: The Age of Enlightenment , new ideas reached the Eternal City, where the papacy supported archaeological studies and improved the people's welfare. But not everything went well for the Church during the Counter-Reformation. There were setbacks in the attempts to assert the Church's power, a notable example being in 1773 when Pope Clement XIV was forced by secular powers to have the Jesuit order suppressed . The rule of
3689-683: The Camunni as a tribe of the Euganei people of northeast Italy, together with the Trumplini of the neighbouring valley, Val Trompia . However, neither of Pliny's comments is fatal to the identification of the Lepontii and Camunni as Raeti. The Lepontic language has been definitively classified as a distinct Continental Celtic language (e.g. Lejeune 1971, Koch 2008). As for the Euganei, their linguistic classification
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3808-857: The Cosuanetes and the Rucinates respectively in Augustus. However, the inscription text appears to identify the Rucinates as one of the 4 tribes of the Vindelici recorded as conquered. (But it is possible that the Strabo's Rucantii were actually another tribe, the Rugusci , in Augustus). Against Strabo, Pliny considers the Lepontii as a Celtic tribe akin to the Taurisci and classifies
3927-520: The Dominate , derived from his title of dominus ("lord"). His most marked feature was the unprecedented intervention of the State down to the city level: whereas the State had submitted a tax demand to a city and allowed it to allocate the charges, from his reign the State did this down to the village level. In a vain attempt to control inflation, he imposed price controls which did not last. Diocletian divided
4046-1163: The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the World Food Programme (WFP), the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and the UN System Network on Rural Development and Food Security . The city also hosts the European Union (EU) Delegation to the United Nations (UN) and the Secretariat of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM) as well as the headquarters of several Italian multinational companies, such as Eni , Enel , TIM , Leonardo , and banks such as BNL . Numerous companies are based within Rome's EUR business district, such as
4165-654: The Gauls , Osci - Samnites and the Greek colony of Taranto , allied with Pyrrhus , king of Epirus ) whose result was the conquest of the Italian peninsula , from the central area up to Magna Graecia . The 3rd and 4th century BC saw the establishment of Roman hegemony over the Mediterranean and the Balkans through the three Punic Wars (264–146 BC) fought against Carthage and
4284-635: The Po Valley by invading Gauls . This account of Raeti origins is supported by the Augustan -era Roman historian Livy . If this historiography is correct, then the displacement from the Po valley would have taken place in the period 600–400 BC, when major migrations of Celtic tribes from Gaul resulted in the Celtisation of that entire region. But the traditional "migration theory" espoused by classical authors and, until
4403-598: The Raetian language , an extinct tongue known only from a series of inscriptions, written in a variant of the Etruscan alphabet . This tongue is commonly regarded by most philologists to be related to Etruscan, a non- Indo-European language which is best documented in the central Italian regions of Tuscany , northern Latium and western Umbria , and also in other Italian regions of Emilia-Romagna , Campania and Lombardy . The language has been called "Raetian" by linguists because it
4522-449: The Roman Empire , and is regarded by many as the first-ever Imperial city and metropolis . It was first called The Eternal City ( Latin : Urbs Aeterna ; Italian : La Città Eterna ) by the Roman poet Tibullus in the 1st century BC, and the expression was also taken up by Ovid , Virgil , and Livy . Rome is also called Caput Mundi (Capital of the World). After the fall of
4641-586: The San Lorenzo district was subject to Allied bombing raids , resulting in about 3,000 fatalities and 11,000 injuries, of whom another 1,500 died. Mussolini was arrested on 25 July 1943 . On the date of the Italian Armistice 8 September 1943 the city was occupied by the Germans. Allied bombing raids continued throughout 1943 and extended into 1944. Rome was liberated on 4 June 1944. Rome developed greatly after
4760-638: The Sistine Chapel and Ponte Sisto (the first bridge to be built across the Tiber since antiquity, although on Roman foundations) were created. To accomplish that, the Popes engaged the best artists of the time, including Michelangelo , Perugino , Raphael , Ghirlandaio , Luca Signorelli , Botticelli , and Cosimo Rosselli . The period was also infamous for papal corruption, with many Popes fathering children, and engaging in nepotism and simony . The corruption of
4879-408: The Villa Borghese , Villa Ada , and Villa Doria Pamphili . Villa Doria Pamphili is west of the Gianicolo hill, comprising some 1.8 km (0.7 sq mi ). The Villa Sciarra is on the hill, with playgrounds for children and shaded walking areas. In the nearby area of Trastevere, the Orto Botanico (Botanical Garden) is a cool and shady green space. The old Roman hippodrome (Circus Maximus)
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4998-408: The founding of Rome at around 753 BC, the site has been inhabited for much longer, making it a major human settlement for over three millennia and one of the oldest continuously occupied cities in Europe. The city's early population originated from a mix of Latins , Etruscans , and Sabines . Eventually, the city successively became the capital of the Roman Kingdom , the Roman Republic and
5117-543: The western and eastern empires respectively. The seat of government in the Western Roman Empire was transferred to Ravenna in 408, but from 450 the emperors mostly resided in Rome. Rome, which had lost its central role in the administration of the empire, was sacked in 410 by the Visigoths led by Alaric I , but very little physical damage was done, most of which was repaired. What could not be so easily replaced were portable items such as artwork in precious metals and items for domestic use (loot). The popes embellished
5236-407: The 1960s, by most modern scholars, is no longer considered the only possible explanation for socio-linguistic change. It is just as likely that the Raeti, if they spoke an Etruscan-like language, were Alpine indigenes who had spoken it as long as, if not longer than, the Etruscans of Etruria - especially if, as most scholars believe, Etruscan represents the pre-Indo-European base language of Italy and
5355-440: The Alps. Alternatively, if the Alpine indigenes previously spoke a language unrelated to Etruscan, they may have adopted Etruscan through processes other than mass immigration e.g. through cultural interchange with the Etruscans of the Po valley, or as a result of "elite-transfer" by an Etruscan elite that acquired political hegemony over the Alpine tribes. The Raeti are believed by many scholars to have spoken, originally at least,
5474-423: The Balkans made serious uncoordinated incursions that were more like giant raiding parties rather than attempts to settle. The Persian Empire invaded from the east several times during the 230s to 260s but were eventually defeated. The civil wars ended in 285 with the final victory of Diocletian , who undertook the restoration of the State. He ended the Principate and introduced a new authoritarian model known as
5593-568: The Church. Under the popes from Pius IV to Sixtus V , Rome became the centre of a reformed Catholicism and saw the building of new monuments which celebrated the papacy. The popes and cardinals of the 17th and early 18th centuries continued the movement by having the city's landscape enriched with baroque buildings. This was another nepotistic age; the new aristocratic families ( Barberini , Pamphili , Chigi , Rospigliosi , Altieri , Odescalchi ) were protected by their respective popes, who built huge baroque buildings for their relatives. During
5712-427: The Danube and the Alps was occupied by Vindelici, with the Raeti confined to the Alps themselves. The latter view accords with Strabo, who records that the territory occupied by the Raeti tribes stretched from the upper reaches of the river Rhine in northern Switzerland to as far south as the cities of Como and Verona in northern Italy. The Raeti were bounded in the East by the Celtic Taurisci of Noricum and in
5831-631: The Elder and Tiberius , the future emperor, between 16 and 15 BC . Their name is in fifth place in the Trophy of the Alps ( Tropaeum Alpium ), a Roman monument erected in 7 - 6 BC located near the French town of La Turbie to celebrate the submission of the alpine populations: GENTES ALPINAE DEVICTAE TRVMPILINI CAMVNNI VENOSTES VENNONETES ISARCI ... which can be translated: Conquered alpine peoples: Triumpilini , Camunni , Vennonetes , Venostes , Isarci ... Rhaetian people The Raeti ( / ˈ r iː t aɪ / REE -ty ; spelling variants: Rhaeti , Rheti or Rhaetii ) were
5950-405: The Empire in the west , which marked the beginning of the Middle Ages , Rome slowly fell under the political control of the Papacy , and in the 8th century, it became the capital of the Papal States , which lasted until 1870. Beginning with the Renaissance , almost all popes since Nicholas V (1447–1455) pursued a coherent architectural and urban programme over four hundred years, aimed at making
6069-412: The French was elected, and the papacy was briefly relocated to Avignon (1309–1377). During this period Rome was neglected, until a plebeian man, Cola di Rienzo , came to power. An idealist and a lover of ancient Rome, Cola dreamed about a rebirth of the Roman Empire: after assuming power with the title of Tribuno , his reforms were rejected by the populace. Forced to flee, Cola returned as part of
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#17328770550606188-463: The Gothic siege of 537, the population dropped to 30,000 but had risen to 90,000 by the papacy of Gregory the Great . The population decline coincided with the general collapse of urban life in the West in the fifth and sixth centuries, with few exceptions. Subsidized state grain distributions to the poorer members of society continued right through the sixth century and probably prevented the population from falling further. The figure of 450,000–500,000
6307-470: The Great (which by then was in a dilapidated state) was demolished and a new one begun. The city hosted artists like Ghirlandaio , Perugino , Botticelli and Bramante , who built the temple of San Pietro in Montorio and planned a great project to renovate the Vatican . Raphael, who in Rome became one of the most famous painters of Italy, created frescoes in the Villa Farnesina , the Raphael's Rooms , plus many other famous paintings. Michelangelo started
6426-399: The Greek colonies of southern Italy (mainly Ischia and Cumae ). These developments, which according to archaeological evidence took place during the mid-eighth century BC, can be considered as the "birth" of the city. Despite recent excavations at the Palatine hill, the view that Rome was founded deliberately in the middle of the eighth century BC, as the legend of Romulus suggests, remains
6545-416: The Italian Republic. In 2019, Rome was the 14th most visited city in the world, with 8.6 million tourists, the third most visited city in the European Union, and the most popular tourist destination in Italy. Its historic centre is listed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site . The host city for the 1960 Summer Olympics , Rome is also the seat of several specialised agencies of the United Nations , such as
6664-428: The Kings was built on seven hills: the Aventine Hill , the Caelian Hill , the Capitoline Hill , the Esquiline Hill , the Palatine Hill , the Quirinal Hill , and the Viminal Hill . Modern Rome is also crossed by another river, the Aniene , which flows into the Tiber north of the historic centre. Although the city centre is about 24 km (15 mi) inland from the Tyrrhenian Sea , the city territory extends to
6783-430: The North, the Vindelici , who are regarded by most historians to have been Celtic - speakers. The territories of the two peoples were combined for administrative purposes from an early stage and eventually, under the emperor Claudius (ruled 41-54), as the province of Raetia et Vindelicia . In addition, a pair of joint Raetorum et Vindelicorum auxiliary cohorts were established under Augustus. Further support for
6902-413: The Papal States were reconstituted by a decision of the Congress of Vienna of 1814. In 1849, a second Roman Republic was proclaimed during a year of revolutions in 1848 . Two of the most influential figures of the Italian unification , Giuseppe Mazzini and Giuseppe Garibaldi , fought for the short-lived republic. Rome then became the focus of hopes of Italian reunification after the rest of Italy
7021-435: The Popes and the huge expenses for their building projects led, in part, to the Reformation and, in turn, the Counter-Reformation . Under extravagant and rich popes, Rome was transformed into a centre of art, poetry, music, literature, education and culture. Rome became able to compete with other major European cities of the time in terms of wealth, grandeur, the arts, learning and architecture. The Renaissance period changed
7140-399: The Popes was interrupted by the short-lived Roman Republic (1798–1800), which was established under the influence of the French Revolution . The Papal States were restored in June 1800, but during Napoleon 's reign Rome was annexed as a Département of the French Empire : first as Département du Tibre (1808–1810) and then as Département Rome (1810–1814). After the fall of Napoleon,
7259-418: The Raeti tribes (the cohortes Raetorum ). This represents some 5,000 recruits, an enormous levy from sparsely-populated Alpine valleys. It suggests that the Raeti were strongly attracted to a career in the Roman military. (See Alpine regiments of the Roman army ). City of Rome Rome ( Italian and Latin : Roma , pronounced [ˈroːma] ) is the capital city of Italy . It
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#17328770550607378-450: The Raeti tribes (those in northeastern Italy) probably continued to speak the Raetian language as late as the 3rd century AD. Others (those in Switzerland) were probably Celtic -speaking by the era of the Roman emperor Augustus (ruled 30 BC – AD 14). The Raeti were divided into numerous tribes, but only some of these are clearly identified in the ancient sources. The Raeti tribes, together with those of their Celtic-speaking neighbours to
7497-483: The Roman Empire, and therefore do not feature on the Tropaeum Alpium. The Tabula clesiana for instance mentions the Anauni , Sinduni and Tulliasses . Taking those that did get named that inhabited the territories of Raetia et Vindelicia province and Venetia et Histria regio of N. Italy, and eliminating those tribes considered probably Celtic by scholars ( Medulli , Ucenni , Caturiges , Brigiani , Sogionti , Ceutrones , Uberi , Nantuates , Sedunes , Veragri ),
7616-447: The Romans expelled the last king from their city and established an oligarchic republic led by two annually-elected consuls . Rome then began a period characterised by internal struggles between patricians (aristocrats) and plebeians (small landowners), and by constant warfare against the populations of central Italy: Etruscans, Latins, Volsci , Aequi , and Marsi . After becoming master of Latium , Rome led several wars (against
7735-400: The South, its border with the Italian regiones (administrative districts) of Gallia Transpadana and Venetia et Histria was roughly similar to the northern border of present-day Italy. The Vindelici were, according to Ptolemy, confined to the East of the river Licca ( Lech ), while West of that river, upper Bavaria was inhabited by Raeti. A contrary view is that the whole region between
7854-417: The Third Century , during which numerous generals fought for power and the central authority in Rome weakened dramatically. Around the same time, the Plague of Cyprian ( c. 250–270) afflicted the Mediterranean. Instability caused economic deterioration, and there was a rapid rise in inflation as the government debased the currency in order to meet expenses. The Germanic tribes along the Rhine and north of
7973-417: The West by the Helvetii . Although the ancient sources concur in ascribing an Etruscan origin to the Raeti, they are less clear as to precisely which tribes attested in the region known as Raetia could be classified as Raeti (and whether such a classification was based on geographical location or language or cultural factors). In addition, there are considerable discrepancies in the names of tribes given by
8092-458: The abundance of Celtic toponyms in the Rhaetian territory leads to the conclusion that, by the time of the Roman conquest, many of the Rhaetians were heavily Celticized. During the centuries of Roman rule, the Raeti became predominantly Latin -speakers. It has been suggested that a surviving relic of the Raeti's Latin speech is the Rhaeto-Romance languages , which includes the Ladin , Friulian and Romanssh languages. Romansch survives today in
8211-403: The birth of the conclave . In this period the city was also shattered by continuous fights between the aristocratic families: Annibaldi , Caetani , Colonna , Orsini , Conti , nested in their fortresses built above ancient Roman edifices, fought each other to control the papacy. Pope Boniface VIII , born Caetani, was the last pope to fight for the church's universal domain ; he proclaimed
8330-460: The city centre in order to build wide avenues and squares which were supposed to celebrate the fascist regime and the resurgence and glorification of classical Rome. The interwar period saw a rapid growth in the city's population which surpassed one million inhabitants soon after 1930. During World War II, due to the art treasuries and the presence of the Vatican, Rome largely escaped the tragic destiny of other European cities. However, on 19 July 1943,
8449-432: The city the artistic and cultural centre of the world. In this way, Rome first became one of the major centres of the Renaissance and then became the birthplace of both the Baroque style and Neoclassicism . Famous artists, painters, sculptors, and architects made Rome the centre of their activity, creating masterpieces throughout the city. In 1871, Rome became the capital of the Kingdom of Italy , which, in 1946, became
8568-557: The city took his name. According to the Roman annalists , this happened on 21 April 753 BC. This legend had to be reconciled with a dual tradition, set earlier in time, that had the Trojan refugee Aeneas escape to Italy and found the line of Romans through his son Iulus , the namesake of the Julio-Claudian dynasty . This was accomplished by the Roman poet Virgil in the first century BC. In addition, Strabo mentions an older story, that
8687-658: The city was affected by the divisions which rocked the Church. In 1418, the Council of Constance settled the Western Schism , and a Roman pope, Martin V , was elected. This brought to Rome a century of internal peace, which marked the beginning of the Renaissance . The ruling popes until the first half of the 16th century, from Nicholas V , founder of the Vatican Library , to Pius II , humanist and literate, from Sixtus IV ,
8806-554: The city was an Arcadian colony founded by Evander . Strabo also writes that Lucius Coelius Antipater believed that Rome was founded by Greeks. After the foundation by Romulus according to a legend, Rome was ruled for a period of 244 years by a monarchical system , initially with sovereigns of Latin and Sabine origin, later by Etruscan kings. The tradition handed down seven kings: Romulus , Numa Pompilius , Tullus Hostilius , Ancus Marcius , Tarquinius Priscus , Servius Tullius and Lucius Tarquinius Superbus . In 509 BC,
8925-466: The city with large basilicas, such as Santa Maria Maggiore (with the collaboration of the emperors). The population of the city had fallen from 800,000 to 450–500,000 by the time the city was sacked in 455 by Genseric , king of the Vandals . The weak emperors of the fifth century could not stop the decay, leading to the deposition of Romulus Augustus , who resided on Ravenna, on 4 September 476. This marked
9044-455: The coldest months, with a daily mean temperature of approximately 8 °C (46 °F). Temperatures during these months generally vary between 10 and 15 °C (50 and 59 °F) during the day and between 3 and 5 °C (37 and 41 °F) at night, with colder or warmer spells occurring frequently. Snowfall is rare but not unheard of, with light snow or flurries occurring on some winters, generally without accumulation, and major snowfalls on
9163-569: The decoration of the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel and executed the famous statue of the Moses for the tomb of Julius II. Its economy was rich, with the presence of several Tuscan bankers, including Agostino Chigi , who was a friend of Raphael and a patron of arts. Before his early death, Raphael also promoted for the first time the preservation of the ancient ruins. The War of the League of Cognac caused
9282-541: The empire in 286, ruling over the eastern half from Nicomedia , while his co-emperor Maximian ruled the western half from Mediolanum (when not on the move). The empire was further divided in 293, when Diocletian named two caesar , one for each augustus (emperor). Diocletian tried to turn into a system of non-dynastic succession, similar to the Antonine dynasty. Upon abdication in 305, both caesars succeeded and they, in turn, appointed two colleagues for themselves. However,
9401-521: The end of the Western Roman Empire and, for many historians, the beginning of the Middle Ages . The decline of the city's population was caused by the loss of grain shipments from North Africa, from 440 onward, and the unwillingness of the senatorial class to maintain donations to support a population that was too large for the resources available. Even so, strenuous efforts were made to maintain
9520-400: The entourage of Cardinal Albornoz , who was charged with restoring the Church's power in Italy. Back in power for a short time, Cola was soon lynched by the populace, and Albornoz took possession of the city. In 1377, Rome became the seat of the papacy again under Gregory XI . The return of the pope to Rome in that year unleashed the Western Schism (1377–1418), and for the next forty years,
9639-584: The face of Rome dramatically, with works like the Pietà by Michelangelo and the frescoes of the Borgia Apartments . Rome reached the highest point of splendour under Pope Julius II (1503–1513) and his successors Leo X and Clement VII , both members of the Medici family . In this twenty-year period, Rome became one of the greatest centres of art in the world. The old St. Peter's Basilica built by Emperor Constantine
9758-423: The failed attempt of social reform of the populares Tiberius and Gaius Gracchus , and the war against Jugurtha , there was a civil war from which the general Sulla emerged victorious. A major slave revolt under Spartacus followed, and then the establishment of the first Triumvirate with Caesar , Pompey and Crassus . The conquest of Gaul made Caesar immensely powerful and popular, which led to
9877-652: The first half of the first century (under Tiberius ) and popularised by his apostles through the empire and beyond. The Antonine age is considered the zenith of the Empire, whose territory ranged from the Atlantic Ocean to the Euphrates and from Britain to Egypt . After the end of the Severan dynasty in AD 235, the Empire entered into a 50-year period known as the Crisis of
9996-674: The first plunder of the city in more than five hundred years since the previous sack ; in 1527, the Landsknechts of Emperor Charles V sacked the city , bringing an abrupt end to the golden age of the Renaissance in Rome. Beginning with the Council of Trent in 1545, the Church began the Counter-Reformation in response to the Reformation, a large-scale questioning of the Church's authority on spiritual matters and governmental affairs. This loss of confidence led to major shifts of power away from
10115-614: The following list of possible Raeti tribes results: The Raeti, together with their probably Celtic neighbours to the North, the Vindelici , were subdued by the Roman emperor Augustus ' stepsons and senior military commanders Tiberius and Drusus in a two-pronged campaign in 15 BC. Until ca. AD 100, the region was garrisoned, on its western edge (at Vindonissa from ca. AD 15), by at least one Roman legion (probably legio XIX until AD 9, when it
10234-596: The governance of the Holy See ) is an independent country inside the city boundaries of Rome, the only existing example of a country within a city. Rome is often referred to as the City of Seven Hills due to its geographic location, and also as the "Eternal City". Rome is generally considered to be the cradle of Western civilization and Western Christian culture , and the centre of the Catholic Church . Rome's history spans 28 centuries. While Roman mythology dates
10353-471: The help of the plebs (urban lower class) to gain power. In the same period, the bankruptcy of the small farmers and the establishment of large slave estates caused large-scale migration to the city. The continuous warfare led to the establishment of a professional army, which turned out to be more loyal to its generals than to the republic. Because of this, in the late 2nd and early 1st century BC there were several conflicts both abroad and internally: after
10472-537: The hypothesis that the northern Raeti tribes converted to Celtic speech before the Roman imperial era is provided by the distribution of Raetian inscriptions. These have been found mostly in northeastern Italy: South Tyrol , Trentino , and the Veneto region. The Raetic inscriptions indicate that Raetian survived as late as the 3rd century AD, suggesting the existence at that time of Raeti tribes, at least in northeast Italy, which had not converted to Celtic speech. In addition,
10591-409: The influx of Celtic tribes and had adopted Celtic speech. According to Livy , the "sound" of the Raeti's original Etruscan tongue ( sonum linguae ) had become corrupted as a result of inhabiting the Alps. This may indicate that at least some of the tribes lost their ancestral Raetic tongue to Celtic. Celticisation also finds support in the Roman practice of twinning the Raeti with their neighbours to
10710-457: The initial conquest. The Raeti (and the Vindelici) were obliged to pay taxes to Rome. However, their combined territory was initially organised not as a full Roman province but a military district under a Roman equestrian officer, attested as " praefectus of the Raeti, Vindelici and the Poenine Valley". It was apparently not before emperor Claudius (ruled 41-54), that the district became
10829-590: The luxury fashion house Fendi located in the Palazzo della Civiltà Italiana . The presence of renowned international brands in the city has made Rome an important centre of fashion and design, and the Cinecittà Studios have been the set of many Academy Award –winning movies. According to the Ancient Romans' founding myth , the name Roma came from the city's founder and first king , Romulus . However, it
10948-459: The mid-1980s when the comune had more than 2.8 million residents. After this, the population declined slowly as people began to move to nearby suburbs. Rome is in the Lazio region of central Italy on the Tiber ( Italian : Tevere ) river. The original settlement developed on hills that faced onto a ford beside the Tiber Island , the only natural ford of the river in this area. The Rome of
11067-614: The monumental centre, the palatine, and the largest baths, which continued to function until the Gothic siege of 537. The large baths of Constantine on the Quirinale were even repaired in 443, and the extent of the damage exaggerated and dramatised. However, the city gave an appearance overall of shabbiness and decay because of the large abandoned areas due to population decline. The population declined to 500,000 by 452 and 100,000 by 500 AD (perhaps larger, though no certain figure can be known). After
11186-504: The name Raeti is uncertain. The Roman province of Raetia was named after these people. Ancient sources characterise the Raeti as Etruscan people who were displaced from the Po valley by the Gauls and took refuge in the valleys of the Alps. But it is likely that they were predominantly indigenous Alpine people. Their language, the so-called Raetian language , was probably related to Etruscan, but may not have derived from it. At least some of
11305-714: The north Latium town of Sutri to the Church, starting its temporal power. In 756, Pepin the Short , after having defeated the Lombards, gave the Pope temporal jurisdiction over the Roman Duchy and the Exarchate of Ravenna , thus creating the Papal States . Since this period, three powers tried to rule the city: the pope, the nobility (together with the chiefs of militias, the judges, the Senate and
11424-468: The north, the Vindelici , were subjugated by the Imperial Roman army in 15 BC and their territories annexed to the Roman empire . The Roman province of Raetia et Vindelicia was named after these two peoples. The Raeti tribes quickly became loyal subjects of the empire and contributed disproportionate numbers of recruits to the imperial Roman army 's auxiliary corps. The origin of the name Raeti
11543-516: The outbreak of the Franco-Prussian War . Italian troops were able to capture Rome entering the city through a breach near Porta Pia . Pope Pius IX declared himself a prisoner in the Vatican . In 1871 the capital of Italy was moved from Florence to Rome. In 1870 the population of the city was 212,000, all of whom lived with the area circumscribed by the ancient city, and in 1920, the population
11662-504: The pope, the emperor, and each other. These were the times of Theodora and her daughter Marozia , concubines and mothers of several popes, and of Crescentius , a powerful feudal lord, who fought against the Emperors Otto II and Otto III . The scandals of this period forced the papacy to reform itself: the election of the pope was reserved to the cardinals, and reform of the clergy was attempted. The driving force behind this renewal
11781-453: The populace), and the Frankish king, as king of the Lombards, patricius, and Emperor. These three parties (theocratic, republican, and imperial) were a characteristic of Roman life during the entire Middle Ages. On Christmas night of 800, Charlemagne was crowned in Rome as Emperor by Pope Leo III : on that occasion, the city hosted for the first time the two powers whose struggle for control
11900-532: The province of Noricum ) the river Aenus ( Inn ) from its confluence with the Danube as far South as, and then by the river Isarcus ( Eisack ). Its northern border with the "free" German tribes was defined by the course of the upper Danube. On the West, Raetia et Vindelicia included the whole of Lake Constance and the upper Rhine valley and then a long tract westwards along the upper Rhone valley as far as Lake Leman . To
12019-478: The shore, where the south-western district of Ostia is located. The altitude of the central part of Rome ranges from 13 m (43 ft) above sea level (at the base of the Pantheon ) to 139 m (456 ft) above sea level (the peak of Monte Mario ). The Comune of Rome covers an overall area of about 1,285 km (496 sq mi), including many green areas. Public parks and nature reserves cover
12138-522: The sources. Some locations of the tribes recorded are uncertain, although most have been established securely by placename and personal-name evidence. Strabo names the Lepontii , Camunni (who gave their name to the Val Camonica , Lombardy , Italy), Cotuantii and Rucantii as Raeti tribes. Of these, the first two are listed with the same spelling in Augustus' inscription while the latter two are probably
12257-657: The successors of Peter, who is considered the first Bishop of Rome. The city thus became of increasing importance as the centre of the Catholic Church . After the Lombard invasion of Italy (569–572), the city remained nominally Byzantine, but in reality, the popes pursued a policy of equilibrium between the Byzantines , the Franks , and the Lombards . In 729, the Lombard king Liutprand donated
12376-532: The support system from its control. Christianity in the form of the Nicene Creed became the official religion of the empire in 380, via the Edict of Thessalonica issued in the name of three emperors – Gratian, Valentinian II, and Theodosius I – with Theodosius clearly the driving force behind it. He was the last emperor of a unified empire: after his death in 395, his young children, Honorius and Arcadius , inherited
12495-569: The symbol of Rome's constituted republican government . Furthermore, Rome has been called Urbs Aeterna (The Eternal City), Caput Mundi (The Capital of the world ), Throne of St. Peter and Roma Capitale. While there have been discoveries of archaeological evidence of human occupation of the Rome area from approximately 14,000 years ago, the dense layer of much younger debris obscures Palaeolithic and Neolithic sites. Evidence of stone tools, pottery, and stone weapons attest to about 10,000 years of human presence. Several excavations support
12614-467: The three Macedonian Wars (212–168 BC) against Macedonia . The first Roman provinces were established at this time: Sicily , Sardinia and Corsica , Hispania , Macedonia , Achaea and Africa . From the beginning of the 2nd century BC, power was contested between two groups of aristocrats: the optimates , representing the conservative part of the Senate , and the populares , which relied on
12733-686: The view that Rome grew from pastoral settlements on the Palatine Hill built above the area of the future Roman Forum . Between the end of the Bronze Age and the beginning of the Iron Age , each hill between the sea and the Capitoline Hill was topped by a village (on the Capitoline, a village is attested since the end of the 14th century BC). However, none of them yet had an urban quality. Nowadays, there
12852-433: The war as part of the " Italian economic miracle " of post-war reconstruction and modernisation in the 1950s and early 1960s. During this period, the years of la dolce vita ("the sweet life"), Rome became a fashionable city, with popular classic films such as Ben Hur , Quo Vadis , Roman Holiday and La Dolce Vita filmed in the city's iconic Cinecittà Studios . The rising trend in population growth continued until
12971-472: Was 660,000. A significant portion lived outside the walls in the north and across the Tiber in the Vatican area. Soon after World War I in late 1922 Rome witnessed the rise of Italian Fascism led by Benito Mussolini , who led a march on the city . He did away with democracy by 1926, eventually declaring a new Italian Empire and allying Italy with Nazi Germany in 1938. Mussolini demolished fairly large parts of
13090-444: Was also inhabited by a number of non-Raetic tribes. The Breuni and Genauni are classified as Illyrian by Strabo, while a number of tribes in the region have plausible Celtic etymologies: e.g. Caturiges from catu- ("fight" or "warriors") and Nantuates from nantu- ("valley") respectively. The Tropaeum Alpium inscription contains the names of 45 Alpine tribes. The Raetic tribes south of Meran were peacefully integrated into
13209-511: Was destroyed in the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest ). In addition, Roman auxiliary forces and leves armaturae ("light troops", probably a local militia) were stationed there. But these forces were mainly for security against external threats, not internal unrest. Strabo wrote that the Alpine tribes as a whole adapted easily to Roman rule and had not rebelled in the 33 years that had elapsed since
13328-649: Was first under the control of Odoacer and then became part of the Ostrogothic Kingdom before returning to East Roman control after the Gothic War , which devastated the city in 546 and 550 . Its population declined from more than a million in AD 210 to 500,000 in AD 273 to 35,000 after the Gothic War (535–554), reducing the sprawling city to groups of inhabited buildings interspersed among large areas of ruins, vegetation, vineyards and market gardens. It
13447-443: Was governed by creating regional dioceses. The existence of regional fiscal units from 286 served as the model for this unprecedented innovation. The emperor quickened the process of removing military command from governors. Henceforth, civilian administration and military command would be separate. He gave governors more fiscal duties and placed them in charge of the army logistical support system as an attempt to control it by removing
13566-561: Was heading south to fight the Hohenstaufen on behalf of the pope, was appointed Senator. Charles founded the Sapienza , the university of Rome. In that period the pope died, and the cardinals, summoned in Viterbo , could not agree on his successor. This angered the people of the city, who then unroofed the building where they met and imprisoned them until they had nominated the new pope; this marked
13685-647: Was known as the caput Mundi , i.e. the capital of the known world, an expression which had already been used in the Republican period. During its first two centuries, the empire was ruled by emperors of the Julio-Claudian , Flavian (who built an eponymous amphitheatre known as the Colosseum ), and Antonine dynasties. This time was also characterised by the spread of the Christian religion, preached by Jesus Christ in Judea in
13804-405: Was restored in part much later). In 330, he transformed Byzantium into Constantinople , which became his new capital. However, it was not officially anything more than an imperial residence like Milan , Trier or Nicomedia until given a city prefect in 359 by Constantius II . Constantine, following Diocletian's reforms. regionalised the administration, which fundamentally changed the way it
13923-566: Was the monk Ildebrando da Soana , who once elected pope under the name of Gregory VII became involved into the Investiture Controversy against Emperor Henry IV . Subsequently, Rome was sacked and burned by the Normans under Robert Guiscard who had entered the city in support of the Pope, then besieged in Castel Sant'Angelo . During this period, the city was autonomously ruled by
14042-582: Was to be a constant of the Middle Ages. This event marks the beginning of the Carolingian Empire , the first phase of the Holy Roman Empire . In 846, Muslim Arabs unsuccessfully stormed the city's walls , but managed to loot St. Peter 's and St. Paul's basilica, both outside the city wall. After the decay of Carolingian power , Rome fell prey to feudal chaos: several noble families fought against
14161-585: Was united as the Kingdom of Italy in 1861 with the temporary capital in Florence . That year Rome was declared the capital of Italy even though it was still under the Pope's control. During the 1860s, the last vestiges of the Papal States were under French protection thanks to the foreign policy of Napoleon III . French troops were stationed in the region under Papal control. In 1870 the French troops were withdrawn due to
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