Topic 2: History and growth of human settlements during the ancient periods
Roman Civilization
Sources:
The Urban Pattern” by Simon Eisner, Arthur Gallion and Stanley Eisner (Page 68 - 73)
# Evolution of Roman Civilization:
The period between the 8th and 1st centuries BC in which Rome grew from a
tiny settlement to an emerging empire while developing from monarchy to a
republican form of government.
Nearly 3,000 years ago shepherds first built huts on the hills beside the Tiber
River in central Italy. These encampments gradually grew and merged to
form the city of Rome.
In ancient times Rome extended its political control over all of Italy and
eventually created an empire that stretched from England to North Africa
and from the Atlantic Ocean to Arabia.
# Different Ages / Periods of Roman Civilization:
First period from 753–509 B.C., the city developed from a village to a city ruled by kings.
Then, the Romans expelled the kings and established the Roman Republic during the period from 509–27
B.C.
Following the collapse of the republic, Rome fell under the domination of emperors and flourished for
another five centuries as the Roman Empire from 27 B.C.–A.D. 476.
# Evolution of Roman Republic and Some Roman Natures:
Early Rome was ruled by kings who had wide military and judicial powers and represented the people to
their gods. The king was selected by the Senate (derived from the Latin senex, which means “old man”), a
governmental body comprised of the heads of noble families they called Senate. The Senate also advised the
king.
Under the monarchy, another governmental organization, the Assembly of the People, included all male
Roman citizens. Members of the Assembly were divided into 30 clans / class (curiae). In earliest times the
Assembly met to witness the announcement of a new king or a declaration of war. Eventually each clan
could cast a single vote to approve wills and adoptions, both of which were important for the transfer of
land.
The Roman aristocrats provided the leadership for the establishment of the Roman Republic, and they
continued to dominate it for centuries. Republic is from the Latin res publica, which means that which
belongs to the people. During the five centuries of the republic, Rome grew from a small city of 10,000 into a
great cosmopolitan metropolis of 1 million whose empire of 15 million subjects encompassed the entire
Mediterranean basin.
The Senate and the citizen Assembly survived from the monarchy into the republic. In theory the Senate
played only an advisory role, but because it contained mostly former civil officials, called magistrates.
Citizens participated in the Assembly, which could pass laws, elect magistrates, and declare war. Over the
centuries the Romans organized these popular assemblies in different ways, but the voting system always
favoured the rich.
There was slavery or slave economy in Rome. People who had money were the master and had all the
facilities. But slaves had no rights for themselves.
# Evolutions in Planning:
The typical Roman city of the later Republic and empire had a rectangular plan and resembled a Roman
military camp with two main streets—the cardo (north-south) and the decumanus (east-west) a grid of
smaller streets dividing the town into blocks, and a wall circuit with 1
gates.
The roads including highways were paved by stones.
The focal point of the city was its forum (1), usually situated at the
centre of the city at the intersection of the cardo and the decumanus.
The forum, an open area bordered by colonnades with shops, functioned as the chief meeting place
of the town.
It was also the site of the city's primary religious and civic buildings, among them the Senate house,
records office, and basilica. 2 2
The basilica (2) was a roofed hall with a wide central
area—the nave—flanked by side aisles, and it often had
two or more stories. In Roman times basilicas were the
site of business transactions and legal proceedings.
Colosseum (3) was the public place in Rome. The Colosseum in
Rome (70-82) is best known for its multilevel system of vaults made of concrete. It is called the Colosseum
for a colossal statue of Nero that once stood nearby, but its real name is the Flavian Amphitheatre. It was
used for staged battles between lions and 4
Christians, among other spectacles, and is
one of the most famous pieces of
architecture in the world.
Roman developed water supply system (4)
very technically. It was the network of
bridges and roads that facilitated water 3
travel throughout the empire, and the aqueducts that brought water to the
towns from mountain sources.
Baths of Caracalla, public baths (thermae) in Large cities and small towns alike also had; under the Republic
they were generally made up of a suite of dressing rooms and bathing chambers with hot- , warm- , and
cold-water baths (caldaria, tepidaria, frigidaire) alongside an exercise area, the palaestra.
There were developed drainage and underground sewers.
# Evolutions in Building Construction:
Quarried stone, used in conjunction with timber beams and terra-cotta tiles and
plaques. The stone chosen ranged from central Italian tufa and travertine to
gleaming white marble shipped from Greece and Asia Minor.
Arch and Vault, a fundamental construction system in architecture used to span the
space between walls, piers, or other
supports and to create a roof or a ceiling
used by Romans.
# Slums in roman Civilization:
Cities were congested.
Riches and civic leaders build huge
tenements and cities were crowded with
slums.
There were 6 to 8 storied buildings.
Building’s height had a limit of 70 feet.
Affluent were in enjoyments and normal were in slums.
# Evolution of Technology:
Romans were technologically very skilled and invented a lot.
New technologies invented as-
Heating System
Punishment (Crack wheel, Human press, Aquarius (Wooden Horse, Human Cantilever, Tree Terror,
etc) (Used in modern engineering in Park rides, steel mills, Aero rescuing, Excavator, Caterpillar
respectively).
Md. Sohel Rana
Chairmans
Department of Urban & Regional Planning (URP)
Pabna University of Science and Technology (PUST)
Email: sohelrana1017051@gmail.com
