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Introduction | The emergence of Rome
| The beginning of empire
The power of the myth | Pax
romana | Seeds of destruction | Find
out more
In about 800 BC, Italy was a sparsely populated area with one dominant tribe concentrated just north of Rome. Some 750 years later, Julius Caesar led a legion across the Rubicon and everything changed.
Once a republic, with annually elected dual rulers, Rome now declared that one man could become dictator for life. Although Caesar was murdered for daring to think himself emperor, the die was cast. Under Augustus, the republic itself died.
Here you will find why the Romans were so successful in spreading their rule so that a city-state eventually became an empire. We also examine how Augustus became the first true Roman emperor, yet felt compelled to hark back to the republic to find legitimacy for his rule.