Roman History

The history of the Rome is a long one! Many events happened, people and empires rose and fell. Do you need some Roman facts for school, impressing your friends or a pub quiz? Then check out the selection we have put together.

Want to add your own? Email us at info@culturecoventry.com with a source and we might add it to this page!

During the later years of the Eastern Roman empire, they started hiring Norsemen known as the Rus who had travelled down the rivers of eastern Europe into their military as an Elite Guard.

Known as the Varangian Guard, it is said they were so ferocious and frightening that in one of their first battles the enemy general; a Rebel named Bardas Phokas, took one look at them and died of a heart attack on the spot. They also proved incredibly loyal, on one occasion fighting to the death in an ambush to ensure their Emperor’s escape.

In 541 AD the eastern Mediterranean was the first known outbreak of the Bubonic Plague. One of the victims of the plague was Emperor Justinian, who fell into a coma. The Plague killed some 30 million people and brought a temporary end to the Romans’ war with the Sassanid Persians which had been brewing for some time, as both sides became more focused on the epidemic sweeping through their empires. Justinian would later recover from his affliction, which unfortunately brought the looming war back on track.

During the height of the Roman Empire, in the 1st and 2nd century AD, people’s life expectancies were surprisingly close to our own. Should a Roman Citizen survive to be a teenager, it is estimated they could have easily lived to their 60s if not longer. In fact Augustus, the first Emperor of Rome, lived to a ripe old age of 77.

When the Roman Army was on the march it was expected that it was able to look after itself in the field. To that end, Roman Soldiers had to develop some engineering skill in order to be effective. They built their own forts, laid down roads, even constructed aqueducts from time to time. Julius Caesar’s army even built a bridge over a supposedly unfordable river just to show off their power to the local tribes.

For much of Rome’s history the Emperor was protected by an elite guard known as the Praetorians. Whilst initially very useful, it wasn’t long before they became sort of kingmakers, assassinating Emperors they didn’t like and naming new ones. The most egregious example of this was in 193 AD, when the Emperor Pertinax was murdered by the Praetorians for not paying them enough. They then proceeded to sell the position of Emperor to the highest bidder. The winner of the auction was Didius Julianus, who bought the throne for 25000 Sesterces (roughly between £75,000 and £125,000 in today’s money). He was Emperor for a whole 9 weeks before being killed by a soldier who worked for the next guy to be Emperor

For women of Ancient Rome appearance was very important. There was a vast multitude of cosmetics such as eyeliner, blusher and painted nails, although oddly there seems no evidence for lipstick. In particular, Roman women seemed to love the use of wigs to accentuate their beauty, and blonde wigs were particularly prised. As such a great deal of money could be made in the selling of women’s hair from places like Germany where blonde hair was common to make wigs back in Rome, and German Women’s hair became a surprisingly valuable commodity.

Being the tallest flower in the garden is often the fastest way to be picked, and this was no exception in Rome. More often than not, Roman Emperors ended up dead at the hands of assassins or enemy soldiers working for the next guy to want to be Emperor. In fact, of the first 9 people to hold the title of Emperor of Rome, only two; the first Emperor Augustus and the Ninth Emperor Vespasian, died without being in some way Murdered.

The Colosseum was built by the Flavian Emperors, started by Emperor Vespasian, and finished under his second son Domitian. During the reign of Vespasian's first son Titus the Arena was finished enough to use, but some of its internal infrastructure was only temporary and could be removed. As such, it became possible to empty out the central Arena and fill it with water, which led to the fighting of pitched naval battles for the crowd’s entertainment. Known as Naumachia, these bouts would pit several scaled down warships in open combat against each other, with ramming, boarding and other such things playing out for the people’s amusement.

Known as the Antonine wall, it was over 100 miles further north than Hadrian’s wall, and was built 14 years after Hadrian’s wall finished under the reign of Antoninus Pius. Construction of the wall took 12 years, finishing in 154 AD, but despite this it was abandoned only 8 years later, with the garrison being reassigned back to Hadrian’s wall. It is thought it was considered no longer of any use, as the tribes between it and Hadrian’s wall had become Romanised, and would act as a buffer between Hadrian’s wall and any attackers.

The Fortress of Masada is a truly imposing sight. Located in modern Israel, it is built atop a natural rock formation over 1000 feet high, and is so resilient that much of it still stands today, some 2000 years later. In the first Roman-Jewish war of the late 1st Century, the Xth legion was tasked with capturing it from a force of Rebels inside. Utilising all their vast engineering and logistical skill, the Romans overcame this great obstacle by simply building a gigantic dirt ramp up to the wall and pushing a siege tower up there. The dirt ramp was in fact so big, that the remains of it are still visible on the side of the Fortress today.

Constantine the Great is one of the most important and influential of all Roman Emperors. He legalised Christianity, ended 80 years of infighting and fragmentation, and breathed new life into a somewhat dying Empire in its later years. He was named Emperor by his army in 306 AD in the city of Eboracum, known today as York, and from there swiftly took power over the whole empire.