Claudius
Claudius was Roman emperor from 41 to 54. A member of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, he was the son of Drusus and he was born at Lugdunum in Gaul, the first Roman Emperor to be born outside Italy. Claudius infirmity probably saved him from the fate of other nobles during the purges of Tiberius and Caligulas reigns. His survival led to his being declared Emperor by the Praetorian Guard after Caligulas assassination, despite his lack of experience, Claudius proved to be an able and efficient administrator. He was a builder, constructing many new roads, aqueducts. During his reign the Empire began the conquest of Britain, having a personal interest in law, he presided at public trials, and issued up to twenty edicts a day. He was seen as vulnerable throughout his reign, particularly by elements of the nobility, Claudius was constantly forced to shore up his position, this resulted in the deaths of many senators. These events damaged his reputation among the ancient writers, though more recent historians have revised this opinion, many authors contend that he was murdered by his own wife.
After his death in 54 AD, his grand-nephew and adopted son Nero succeeded him as Emperor, Claudius was born on 1 August 10 BC at Lugdunum. He had two siblings and Livilla. His mother, may have had two children who died young. His maternal grandparents were Mark Antony and Octavia Minor, Augustus sister and his paternal grandparents were Livia, Augustus third wife, and Tiberius Claudius Nero. During his reign, Claudius revived the rumor that his father Drusus was actually the son of Augustus. In 9 BC, his father Drusus unexpectedly died on campaign in Germania, Claudius was left to be raised by his mother, who never remarried. When Claudius disability became evident, the relationship with his family turned sour, Antonia referred to him as a monster, and used him as a standard for stupidity. She seems to have passed her son off on his grandmother Livia for a number of years, Livia was a little kinder, but nevertheless often sent him short, angry letters of reproof. He was put under the care of a former mule-driver to keep him disciplined, under the logic that his condition was due to laziness, however, by the time he reached his teenage years his symptoms apparently waned and his family took some notice of his scholarly interests.
In 7 AD, Livy was hired to tutor him in history and he spent a lot of his time with the latter and the philosopher Athenodorus
Province of Viterbo
The province of Viterbo is a province in the region of Lazio in Italy. Its provincial capital is the city of Viterbo, as of 2015, the province has a total population of 321,955 inhabitants over an area of 3,615.24 square kilometres, giving it a population density of 89.05 inhabitants per square kilometre. The provincial president is Marcello Meroi and the province contains 60 comuni, the area of the province of Viterbo contained a number of Etruscan cities including Tuscina, Vetralla and Viterbo. Matilda of Tuscany gifted the city to the papacy in the eleventh century, Frederick I, Holy Roman Emperor was based in Viterbo as he planned to invade Rome in 1153, and Frederick I conquered the city in 1160 while preparing to attack Rome. The Knights of Saint John were expelled from Rhodes in the 16th century and were granted refuge in Viterbo before they could travel to Malta. Pope Paul III described himself as a citizen of Viterbo and formed a university in the city and it joined the Kingdom of Italy on 12 September 1870 and during World War II, Viterbo was heavily bombed
Livy
Livy and Augustuss wife, were from the same clan in different locations, although not related by blood. Livy was born as Titus Livius in Patavium in northern Italy, there is a debate about the year of Titus Livius birth,64 BC or more likely 59 BC. At the time of his birth, his city of Patavium was the second wealthiest on the Italian peninsula. Patavium was a part of the province of Cisalpine Gaul at the time, in his works, Livy often expressed his deep affection and pride for Patavium, and the city was well known for its conservative values in morality and politics. Livy’s teen years were during the 40s BC, a time that coincided with the wars that were occurring throughout the Roman world. The governor of Cisalpine Gaul at the time, a man called Asinius Pollio, had tried to bring Patavium into the camp of Marcus Antonius, the wealthier citizens of Patavium refused to contribute money and arms to Asinius Pollio, and went into hiding. Therefore and the residents of Patavium did not end up supporting Marcus Antonius in his campaign for control over Rome.
Later on, Asinius Pollio made a jibe at Livys patavinity and his jibe at Livy and his patavinity, may have been said because the city of Patavium had rejected Asinius Pollio, and he still harboured harsh feelings toward the city as a whole. Titus Livius probably went to Rome in the 30s BC, and it is likely that he spent an amount of time in the city after this. During his time in Rome, he was never a senator nor held any other governmental position and his elementary mistakes in military matters show that he was never a soldier. However, he was educated in philosophy and rhetoric and it seems that Livy had the financial resources and means to live an independent life. He devoted a part of his life to his writings. Livy was known to give recitations to small audiences, but he was not heard of to engage in declamation and he was familiar with the emperor Augustus, formerly Octavian, and the imperial family. Octavian was one of the three men fighting for the control of Rome during the Civil Wars in the 40s BC, Octavian gained power after defeating Marcus Antonius and Cleopatra, and was given the honorary name of Augustus.
Considering that Augustus came to be known as the greatest Roman emperor in the eyes of the Romans and it is said that Livy was the one who encouraged the future emperor Claudius, who was born in 10 BC, to explore the writing of history during his childhood. Livy himself was married and had at least one daughter and one son, Livy’s most famous work was his history of Rome. In it he explains the history of the city of Rome. Because he was writing under the emperor Augustus, Livy’s history emphasizes the great triumphs of Rome and he wrote his history with embellished accounts of Roman heroism in order to promote the new type of government implemented by Augustus when he became emperor
Necropolis
A necropolis is a large, designed cemetery with elaborate tomb monuments. The name stems from the Ancient Greek νεκρόπολις nekropolis, literally meaning city of the dead, the term usually implies a separate burial site at a distance from a city, as opposed to tombs within cities, which were common in various places and periods of history. They are different from fields, which did not have remains above the ground. While the word is most commonly used for ancient sites, the name was revived in the early 19th century and applied to planned city cemeteries, such as the Glasgow Necropolis. Aside from the pyramids which were reserved for the burial of Pharaohs the Egyptian necropoleis included mastabas, naqsh-e Rustam is an ancient necropolis located about 12 km northwest of Persepolis, in Fars Province, Iran. The oldest relief at Naqsh-i Rustam dates to c.1000 BC, though it is severely damaged, it depicts a faint image of a man with unusual head-gear and is thought to be Elamite in origin. The depiction is part of an image, most of which was removed at the command of Bahram II.
Four tombs belonging to Achaemenid kings are carved out of the face at a considerable height above the ground. The tombs are known locally as the Persian crosses, after the shape of the facades of the tombs, Sassanian kings added a series of rock reliefs below the tombs. In the Mycenean Greek period pre-dating ancient Greece burials could be performed inside the city, in Mycenae for example the royal tombs were located in a precinct within the city walls. This changed during the ancient Greek period when necropoleis usually lined the roads outside a city, there existed some degree of variation within the ancient Greek world however. Sparta was notable for continuing the practice of burial within the city, the Etruscans took the concept of a city of the dead quite literally. The typical tomb at the Banditaccia necropolis at Cerveteri consists of a tumulus which covers one or more rock-cut subterranean tombs and these tombs had multiple chambers and were elaborately decorated like contemporary houses.
The arrangement of the tumuli in a grid of streets gave it a similar to the cities of the living. The art historian Nigel Spivey considers the name cemetery inadequate and argues that only the term necropolis can do justice to these burial sites. Etruscan necropoleis were located on hills or slopes of hills. In ancient Rome families originally buried deceased relatives in their own homes because of the Roman practice of ancestor worship, the enactment of the Twelve Tables in 449 BC forbade this, which made the Romans adopt the practice of burial in necropoleis. List of necropoleis Funerary art Catacombs
Civitavecchia
Civitavecchia is a town and comune of the Metropolitan City of Rome in the central Italian region of Lazio. A sea port on the Tyrrhenian Sea, it is located 80 kilometres west-north-west of Rome, the harbour is formed by two piers and a breakwater, on which is a lighthouse. The name Civitavecchia means ancient town, population was around 53,000 as of 2015. The modern city was built over a pre-existing Etruscan settlement, the harbour was constructed by the Emperor Trajan at the beginning of the 2nd century. The first occurrence of the name Centum Cellae is from a letter by Pliny the Younger, the origin of the name is disputed, it has been suggested that it could refer to the centum halls of the villa of the emperor. In the early Middle Ages, Centumcellae was a Byzantine stronghold and it became part of the Papal States in 728. As the port was raided by the Saracens in 813-814,828,846 and finally in 876, a new settlement in a more secure place was therefore built by order of Pope Leo VII as soon as 854.
The Popes gave the settlement as a fief to several lords, including the Count Ranieri of Civitacastellana and the Abbey of Farfa, and the Di Vico. The place became a port under Pope Innocent XII in 1696. The French Empire occupied it in 1806, on 16 April 1859 the Rome and Civitavecchia Rail Road was opened for service. The Papal troops opened the gates of the fortress to the Italian general Nino Bixio in 1870, during World War II, Allied bombings severely damaged Civitavecchia, and caused civilian casualties. Louis Till, the father of Emmett Louis Till was convicted of the rape of two local Italian women and the murder of another in Civitavecchia. Civitavecchia is today a major cruise and ferry port, the starting point for sea connection from central Italy to Sardinia, Malta, Tunis. The city is the seat of two power stations. The conversion of one of them to coal has raised the populations protests, the massive Forte Michelangelo was first commissioned from Donato Bramante by Pope Julius II, to defend the port of Rome.
The upper part of the tower, was designed by Michelangelo. North of the city at Ficoncella are the Terme Taurine baths frequented by Romans, the modern name stems from the common fig plants among the various pools. And next to the town is the location of the ship docks
Monterozzi necropolis
The Monterozzi necropolis is an Etruscan necropolis on a hill east of Tarquinia in Lazio, Italy. The necropolis has about 6,000 graves, the oldest of which dates to the 7th century BC, about 200 of the gravestones are decorated with frescos. The burial ground dates from the Iron Age, or Villanovan period, from the Villanovan period simple round tombs carved from rock for cremation burials can be seen at the site. Towards the end of the 8th c, BC, the first funerary chambers appeared as family tombs due to the rise to power of an aristocracy. These appeared on the surface as tumuli, sometimes assuming impressive proportions to enhance the power and prestige of the nobles, as can be seen especially in the so-called King, there were about 600 tumuli still visible in the 19th century, following which many were razed after excavation. The tumuli usually covered subterranean chambers carved into the rock, containing sarcophagi and personal possessions of the deceased, the earliest sarcophagi are carved with the image of the deceased supine on the lid.
During the second half of the 4th century BC sculpted and painted sarcophagi of nenfro and they were deposited on rock-carved benches or against the walls in the now very large underground chambers. Sarcophagi were decorated with reliefs of symbolic or mythological content, sarcophagi of this type, which continue until the second century, are found in such numbers at Tarquinia that they must have been manufactured locally. It is one of the rare Etruscan tombs which have erotic frescoes the Tomb of the Whipping and it is one of the rare Etruscan tombs which have erotic frescoes
Roman Empire
Civil wars and executions continued, culminating in the victory of Octavian, Caesars adopted son, over Mark Antony and Cleopatra at the Battle of Actium in 31 BC and the annexation of Egypt. Octavians power was unassailable and in 27 BC the Roman Senate formally granted him overarching power, the imperial period of Rome lasted approximately 1,500 years compared to the 500 years of the Republican era. The first two centuries of the empires existence were a period of unprecedented political stability and prosperity known as the Pax Romana, following Octavians victory, the size of the empire was dramatically increased. After the assassination of Caligula in 41, the senate briefly considered restoring the republic, under Claudius, the empire invaded Britannia, its first major expansion since Augustus. Vespasian emerged triumphant in 69, establishing the Flavian dynasty, before being succeeded by his son Titus and his short reign was followed by the long reign of his brother Domitian, who was eventually assassinated.
The senate appointed the first of the Five Good Emperors, the empire reached its greatest extent under Trajan, the second in this line. A period of increasing trouble and decline began with the reign of Commodus, Commodus assassination in 192 triggered the Year of the Five Emperors, of which Septimius Severus emerged victorious. The assassination of Alexander Severus in 235 led to the Crisis of the Third Century in which 26 men were declared emperor by the Roman Senate over a time span. It was not until the reign of Diocletian that the empire was fully stabilized with the introduction of the Tetrarchy, which saw four emperors rule the empire at once. This arrangement was unsuccessful, leading to a civil war that was finally ended by Constantine I. Constantine subsequently shifted the capital to Byzantium, which was renamed Constantinople in his honour and it remained the capital of the east until its demise. Constantine adopted Christianity which became the state religion of the empire. However, Augustulus was never recognized by his Eastern colleague, and separate rule in the Western part of the empire ceased to exist upon the death of Julius Nepos.
The Eastern Roman Empire endured for another millennium, eventually falling to the Ottoman Turks in 1453, the Roman Empire was among the most powerful economic, cultural and military forces in the world of its time. It was one of the largest empires in world history, at its height under Trajan, it covered 5 million square kilometres. It held sway over an estimated 70 million people, at that time 21% of the entire population. Throughout the European medieval period, attempts were made to establish successors to the Roman Empire, including the Empire of Romania, a Crusader state. Rome had begun expanding shortly after the founding of the republic in the 6th century BC, then, it was an empire long before it had an emperor
Lucius Tarquinius Priscus
Lucius Tarquinius Priscus, or Tarquin the Elder, was the legendary fifth king of Rome from 616 to 579 BC. According to Livy, Tarquin came from Etruria, after inheriting his fathers entire fortune, Lucius attempted to gain a political office. Disgruntled with his opportunities in Etruria, he migrated to Rome with his wife Tanaquil, legend has it that on his arrival in Rome in a chariot, an eagle took his cap, flew away and returned it back upon his head. Tanaquil, who was skilled in prophecy, interpreted this as an omen of his future greatness, in Rome, he attained respect through his courtesy. The king himself noticed Tarquinius and, by his will, appointed Tarquinius guardian of his own sons, upon the death of Marcius, Tarquin addressed the Comitia Curiata and convinced them that he should be elected king over Marcius natural sons, who were still only youths. In one tradition, the sons were away on an expedition at the time of their fathers death. According to Livy, Tarquin increased the number of the Senate by adding one hundred men from the leading minor families, among these was the family of the Octavii, from whom the first emperor, was descended.
Tarquins first war was waged against the Latins, Tarquinius took the Latin town of Apiolae by storm and took great booty from there back to Rome. According to the Fasti Triumphales, this war must have occurred prior to 588 BC and his military ability was tested by an attack from the Sabines, who received auxiliaries from five Etruscan cities. Tarquin doubled the numbers of equites to help the war effort, the Sabines were defeated after difficult street fighting in the city of Rome. In the peace negotiations followed, Tarquin received the town of Collatia. Tarquin returned to Rome and celebrated a triumph on September 13,585 BC, the Latin cities of Corniculum, old Ficulea, Crustumerium, Ameriola and Nomentum were subdued and became Roman. Since Tarquin had kept the captured Etruscan auxiliaries prisoners for meddling in the war with the Sabines, seven other Etruscan cities joined forces with them. The Etruscans soon captured the Roman colony at Fidenae, which became the focal point of the war.
After several bloody battles, Tarquin was once again victorious, at the successful conclusion of each of his wars, Rome was enriched by Tarquins plunder. Tarquin is said to have built the Circus Maximus, the first and largest stadium at Rome, raised seating was erected privately by the senators and equites, and other areas were marked out for private citizens. There the king established a series of games, according to Livy. After a great flood, Tarquin drained the damp lowlands of Rome by constructing the Cloaca Maxima and he constructed a stone wall around the city, and began the construction of a temple in honour of Jupiter Optimus Maximus on the Capitoline Hill
Ancient Rome
In its many centuries of existence, the Roman state evolved from a monarchy to a classical republic and to an increasingly autocratic empire. Through conquest and assimilation, it came to dominate the Mediterranean region and Western Europe, Asia Minor, North Africa and it is often grouped into classical antiquity together with ancient Greece, and their similar cultures and societies are known as the Greco-Roman world. Ancient Roman civilisation has contributed to modern government, politics, art, architecture, warfare, religion and society. Rome professionalised and expanded its military and created a system of government called res publica, the inspiration for modern republics such as the United States and France. By the end of the Republic, Rome had conquered the lands around the Mediterranean and beyond, its domain extended from the Atlantic to Arabia, the Roman Empire emerged with the end of the Republic and the dictatorship of Augustus Caesar. 721 years of Roman-Persian Wars started in 92 BC with their first war against Parthia and it would become the longest conflict in human history, and have major lasting effects and consequences for both empires.
Under Trajan, the Empire reached its territorial peak, Republican mores and traditions started to decline during the imperial period, with civil wars becoming a prelude common to the rise of a new emperor. Splinter states, such as the Palmyrene Empire, would divide the Empire during the crisis of the 3rd century. Plagued by internal instability and attacked by various migrating peoples, the part of the empire broke up into independent kingdoms in the 5th century. This splintering is a landmark historians use to divide the ancient period of history from the pre-medieval Dark Ages of Europe. King Numitor was deposed from his throne by his brother, while Numitors daughter, Rhea Silvia, because Rhea Silvia was raped and impregnated by Mars, the Roman god of war, the twins were considered half-divine. The new king, feared Romulus and Remus would take back the throne, a she-wolf saved and raised them, and when they were old enough, they returned the throne of Alba Longa to Numitor. Romulus became the source of the citys name, in order to attract people to the city, Rome became a sanctuary for the indigent and unwanted.
This caused a problem for Rome, which had a large workforce but was bereft of women, Romulus traveled to the neighboring towns and tribes and attempted to secure marriage rights, but as Rome was so full of undesirables they all refused. Legend says that the Latins invited the Sabines to a festival and stole their unmarried maidens, leading to the integration of the Latins, after a long time in rough seas, they landed at the banks of the Tiber River. Not long after they landed, the men wanted to take to the sea again, one woman, named Roma, suggested that the women burn the ships out at sea to prevent them from leaving. At first, the men were angry with Roma, but they realized that they were in the ideal place to settle. They named the settlement after the woman who torched their ships, the Roman poet Virgil recounted this legend in his classical epic poem the Aeneid
Gravisca
Gravisca Graviscae) was the port of the Etruscan city of Tarquinii, situated 8 km west of the city center. The Etruscan settlement, occupied ca. sixth to third centuries B. C. had four principal occupational phases from ca.600 to 250 B. C and it was superseded by the establishment of a colonia of Roman citizenship at the site in 181 BC. The port functioned as an emporion and there is evidence for merchants. The cults of numerous Greek gods, including Aphrodite, Hera and Apollo, are attested
Haruspex
The reading of omens specifically from the liver is known by the Greek term hepatoscopy. The Roman concept is derived from Etruscan religion, as one of the three branches of the disciplina Etrusca. Such methods continued to be used into the Middle Ages, with Thomas Becket apparently consulting both an aruspex and a prior to a royal expedition against Brittany. The Latin terms haruspex, haruspicina are from an archaic word haru entrails and from the root spec- to watch, the Greek ἡπατοσκοπία hēpatoskōpia is from hēpar liver and skop- to examine. The Babylonians were famous for hepatoscopy, the Nineveh library texts name more than a dozen liver-related terms. The liver was considered the source of the blood and hence the basis of life itself, from this belief, the Babylonians thought they could discover the will of the gods by examining the livers of carefully selected sheep. A priest known as a bārû was specially trained to interpret the signs of the liver, the liver was divided into sections, with each section representing a particular deity.
One Babylonian clay model of a liver, dated between 1900 and 1600 BC, is conserved in the British Museum. The model was used for divination, which was important to Mesopotamian medicine and this practice was conducted by priests and seers who looked for signs in the stars, or in the organs of sacrificed animals, to tell them things about a patient’s illness. Wooden pegs were placed in the holes of the tablet to record features found in a sacrificed animals liver. The seer used these features to predict the course of a patients illness, haruspicy was part of a larger study of organs for the sake of divination, called extispicy, paying particular attention to the positioning of the organs and their shape. There are many records of different peoples using the liver and spleen of various domestic, the Assyro-Babylonian tradition was adopted in Hittite religion. At least thirty-six liver-models have been excavated at Hattusa, the Etruscans were well known for the practice of divining by the entrails of sheep.
A bronze sculpture of a known as the Liver of Piacenza. It is marked with the name of regions assigned to various deities of Etruscan religion, from as early as 1900, Ludwig Stieda sought to compare the Etruscan with the Babylonian artefacts. Further evidence has found of haruspices in Bath, England where the base of a statue dedicated by a haruspex named Memor. Anthropomancy Augur Auspice Haruspices, article in Smiths Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities Figurine of Haruspex, vatican Museums Online, Gregorian Etruscan Museum, Room III l. Chapters 1 and 2 of the bārûtu
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This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Ashby, Thomas (1911). . In Chisholm, Hugh (ed.). Encyclopædia Britannica. 26 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 430. This work in turn cites:
This article incorporates text from a publication now in the 
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