History of Rome

The city of Rome originates as a village of the Latini in the 8th century BC. At first ruled by kings,
the Roman Republic is established in 509 BC. During the 5th century BC, Rome gained regional
dominance in Latium, and eventually the entire Italian peninsula by the 3rd century BC. The
population of the city at this point is estimated at about 300,000 people.
With the Punic Wars, Rome gained dominance over the Mediterranean. Soon, Ancient Rome would
displace Hellenistic Greece as the dominant world power, with the city of Rome as its capital and
most dominant city for the next five centuries. After Julius Caesar'sconquest of Gaul, followed by
a period of civil war, the Roman Empire was established under Octavian in 27 BC. The city of Rome
now surpassed a population of one million, likely the first city in history to reach this size (compared
to world population of about 200300 million at the time).
At the peak of Roman imperial power in the 2nd century, the population of the city numbered some
1.6 million, a size it would never attain again until its becoming the capital of the Republic of Italy in
1946; close to 3% of the population of the empire lived within its limits. Following the Crisis of the
Third Century and the transfer of the imperial capital to Constantinople in AD 330, Rome entered a
period of gradual decline.
After the collapse of the Western Roman Empire, Rome managed to hang on to the empire, still
known as the Roman empire but long centered on the eastern Mediterranean, until the 8th century
as the Duchy of Rome. But the city was reduced to a fraction of its former size, being sacked several
times in the 5th to 6th centuries, in 546 even temporarily depopulated entirely.[1] With the final loss of
imperial control in Italy, Rome became the capital of the Papal States in medieval Italy. Papacy
struggled to retain influence in the emerging Holy Roman Empire, and during the Saeculum
obscurum, the population of Rome fell to as low as 30,000 inhabitants. Following the EastWest
Schism and the limited success in the Investiture Controversy, the Papacy did gain considerable
influence in high medieval Europe, but with the Avignon Papacy and the Western Schism, the city of
Rome was reduced to irrelevance, its population falling below 20,000.
Rome's decline into complete irrelevance during the medieval period, with the associated lack of
construction activity, assured the survival of very significant ancient Roman material remains in the
centre of the city, some abandoned and others continuing in use. Rome began to recover some
importance in the late 15th and 16th century, The Sistine Chapel was restored in 1480
and decorated by Michelangelo in 15081512. Construction of the Apostolic Palace began in 1589.
Construction of St. Peter's Basilica, the most renowned work ofRenaissance architecture, was begun
in 1506. The Roman Renaissance was cut short abruptly with the devastation of the city in 1527, but

the Papacy reasserted itself in the Counter-Reformation, and the city continued to flourish during the
early modern period.
Rome was annexed by Napoleon and was technically part of France during 17981814. During
the Italian unification in the 19th century, the Roman Question referred to the status of Rome under
the temporal power of the popes. Rome was declared the capital of thekingdom of Italy on 27 March
1861, but the Italian government could not take its seat there because it was defended by a French
garrison. Rome was eventually captured in 1870, and the dispute was finally resolved with
the Lateran Pacts of 1929 establishing theVatican State. Rome served as the capital of the Italian
Empire and Fascist Italy from 1870 to 1943. During this period, population hextupled from about
250,000 to 1.5 million. The Palace of Justice was completed 1910.
Under siege by the Allied invasion of Italy, Rome was bombed several times and eventually declared
an open city on 14 August 1943. As the capital of the Italian Republic (established in 1946), Rome at
a population of 4.4 million in its metropolitan area (as of 2015; 2.8 million within city limits) one of the
largest cities in Italy (after Milan, and roughly on par with Naples), is among the largest urban areas
of the European Union[2] and classified as a "global city".

Sparta (Doric Greek: , Sprt; Attic Greek: , Sprt) or Lacedaemon (/

lsdimn/; , Lakedamn) was a prominent city-state in ancient
Greece, situated on the banks of the Eurotas River in Laconia, in south-eastern
Peloponnese.[1] It emerged as a political entity around the 10th century BC,[citation
needed] when the invading Dorians subjugated the local, non-Dorian population.
Around 650 BC, it rose to become the dominant military land-power in ancient
Greece.
Given its military pre-eminence, Sparta was recognized as the overall leader of the
combined Greek forces during the Greco-Persian Wars.[2] Between 431 and 404 BC,
Sparta was the principal enemy of Athens during the Peloponnesian War,[3] from
which it emerged victorious, though at great cost of lives lost. Sparta's defeat by
Thebes in the Battle of Leuctra in 371 BC ended Sparta's prominent role in Greece.
However, it maintained its political independence until the Roman conquest of
Greece in 146 BC. It then underwent a long period of decline, especially in the
Middle Ages, when many Spartans moved to live in Mystras. Modern Sparta is the
capital of the Greek regional unit of Laconia and a center for the processing of
goods such as citrus and olives.
Sparta was unique in ancient Greece for its social system and constitution, which
completely focused on military training and excellence. Its inhabitants were
classified as Spartiates (Spartan citizens, who enjoyed full rights), mothakes (nonSpartan free men raised as Spartans), perioikoi (freedmen), and helots (state-owned
serfs, enslaved non-Spartan local population). Spartiates underwent the rigorous

agoge training and education regimen, and Spartan phalanges were widely
considered to be among the best in battle. Spartan women enjoyed considerably
more rights and equality to men than elsewhere in the classical world.