Engineering an Empire:
Rome
Engineering an Empire: Rome
1. As an ambitious young general, he
had recognized the road to glory in
Rome began on ___________ far from
it?
Battlefields
Engineering an Empire: Rome
2. Julius Caesar led 8 Roman legions
north through ____________.
Gaul –
(France, Belgium,
Switzerland)
Engineering an Empire: Rome
3. How does Caesar and his engineers plan
to cross the Rhine River?
He built a bridge across the river so they
could “March” across.
Engineering an Empire: Rome
4. How many days did it take to construct
the Rhine bridge?
10 Days!
Engineering an Empire: Rome
5. What happened when the Germans
saw the Romans legions crossing the
Rhine River?
They Fled to higher ground
Engineering an Empire: Rome
6. What did Caesar do after he crossed
back over his bridge?
He disassembled it.
Engineering an Empire: Rome
7. How old was Caesar when he was
crowned dictator for life?
55 years old
Engineering an Empire: Rome
8. What happened to the brothers in the
story of Romulus & Remus?
Abandoned in the woods and raised by a
she wolf.
Romulus killed Remus after a dispute over
the building of their city.
Engineering an Empire: Rome
9. What did the Cloaca Maxima, the city’s
first engineering achievement, served
as?
Extensive sewer system. Parts are still in
use today
Engineering an Empire: Rome
10. In 312 B.C. the via appia, Rome’s first
national highway was how many miles
long?
132 miles
Engineering an Empire: Rome
11. What was Rome’s engineer’s secret
weapon that enabled them to build
bigger, stronger, and faster, than anyone
else?
Water proof concrete
Engineering an Empire: Rome
12. Of all the achievements of Rome’s
engineers, what was the most life
altering?
Running water
Engineering an Empire: Rome
13. In the capital city, how many aqueduct
lines were there? How many gallons of
water did they supply to the city each
day?
11 aqueduct lines
200 million gallons a day
Engineering an Empire: Rome
14. On the frontier, his legions conquered
__________, something even Julius
Caesar failed to do.
Britannia
Engineering an Empire: Rome
15. If the aqueduct walls needed to be higher
than 6 ½ feet off the ground, the Romans
saved building materials while still adding
strength by perfecting this ancient
engineering concept?
The Arch
Engineering an Empire: Rome
16. What is the name of the last stone
placed in the arch that evenly distributes
the weight?
Key Stone
Engineering an Empire: Rome
17. Who did Claudius marry that sent
shockwaves through the empire? What
did she convince Claudius to do?
He married his own niece - Agrapina
Make her son Nero, his heir, instead of his
own son
Engineering an Empire: Rome
18. Who was number one on the list of arson
suspects that started the fire of 64 A.D.?
Nero himself
Engineering an Empire: Rome
19. Who did Nero blame for the fire?
A new religious group…
The Christians
Engineering an Empire: Rome
20. What was the fate of Agrapina?
Nero had her murdered
Engineering an Empire: Rome
21. What was the engineering innovation
that is buried beneath Rome in Nero’s
Domus Aurea?
The vaulted ceiling
Engineering an Empire: Rome
22. What artists drew inspiration from the
Domus Aurea when it was rediscovered?
What did they call the art form that they
found?
Renaissance artists
Grotesque
Engineering an Empire: Rome
23. Vespasian drained the massive lake that
Nero built and constructed this famous
Roman structure on the same site.
The Coliseum
Engineering an Empire: Rome
24. How tall did this imposing structure grow
to in just 8 years?
160 feet tall
Engineering an Empire: Rome
25. Was it possible to flood the Coliseum for
naval battle?
Yes!
Engineering an Empire: Rome
26. What was the purpose of the
Hypogeum?
Staging area for the arena
Enabled animals and gladiators to pop up
out of the floor using elevators and trap
doors.
Engineering an Empire: Rome
27. What are two improvements under
Trajan’s building campaign?
He make repairs to roads, harbors, public
buildings
He had one of the last great aqueducts built
and new public baths
Engineering an Empire: Rome
28. What province did Trajan conquer in
order to acquire the money needed for
his expansive building campaign?
Dacia
Engineering an Empire: Rome
29. What story does the Trajan Forum’s
centerpiece column tell?
His invasion of Dacia
Engineering an Empire: Rome
30. Hadrian’s wall was 73 miles wide and
______ feet high.
15 feet high
PLUS 6 foot high parapets above that
Engineering an Empire: Rome
31. Hadrian’s wall was as much of a
____________ barrier as a physical
barrier.
Psychological
Engineering an Empire: Rome
32. How many years did it take to build
Hadrian’s wall?
5 years
Engineering an Empire: Rome
33. What was Hadrian’s most famous
structure?
The Pantheon
Engineering an Empire: Rome
34. What was at the heart of the structure’s
design?
The Rotunda
Engineering an Empire: Rome
35. The pantheon’s dome would remain the
largest unsupported concrete span in the
world for _____ centuries.
18 centuries (1800 years)
Engineering an Empire: Rome
36. What is the one mysterious flaw of the
Pantheon?
The front portico where the columns are is
ten feet too short
The height of the columns (40 feet instead of
50 feet) may have been an issue
Engineering an Empire: Rome
37. How many people could Caracalla’s
massive bath complex accommodate at
any one time?
Nearly 2000
Romans at one time
Engineering an Empire: Rome
38. How many furnaces supported
Caracalla’s bath complex?
50 furnaces
Engineering an Empire: Rome
39. What Roman structure was gutted by a
devastating fire in 217 A.D.?
The Coliseum
