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264,146 BCE
The Punic Wars
The First Punic War (264–241 BC) was fought over control of the island of Sicily, and many of the crucial clashes were naval battles. Rome demonstrated its adaptability in building its first large war fleet, and its almost limitless manpower in building several replacements after repeated catastrophic disasters. Victory gave Rome her initial overseas possession in Sicily. -
753 BCE
The “foundation of Rome”
By the last century BC, Romans believed that Rome had been founded in exactly 753 BC. The story was that the twins Romulus and Remus, sons of the god Mars, were left to die by being put in a basket, set adrift on the river Tiber.When the twins reached adulthood, Romulus founded a city on the Palatine Hill. When Remus jumped over the furrow that marked where the walls would be built, Romulus killed him. -
509 BCE
The creation of the Roman Republic
As with the foundation of the city, later Romans believed they knew the precise date of the beginning of the Republic: 509 BC, when the seventh and last king of Rome, the tyrannical Tarquinius Superbus, was thought to have been ousted by an aristocratic coup.The Republican system itself was based around the idea that only an assembly of the people had the right to pass laws and elect magistrates. -
338 BCE
The settlement of the Latin War
Between 341 and 338 BC the Romans faced a rebellion by their neighbouring Latin allies. After Rome emerged victorious, the settlement they imposed underpinned subsequent Roman conquests of Italy and overseas territories. The Latins, and other Italian allies, were forbidden to conduct diplomacy or enter into treaties with other states. -
100 BCE
the Hellenisation of Rome
During the last two centuries BC, Rome conquered the Eastern Mediterranean by defeating the Hellenistic [ancient Greek] kingdoms founded by the successors of Alexander the Great. These conquests had profound implications for Roman society. -
67 BCE
Pompey in the East
Although far less well known than Caesar’s conquest of Gaul (58–51 BC), the exploits of Pompey in the eastern Mediterranean were more significant in the expansion of Rome. Pompey initially went to the east in 67 BC as part of his campaign against pirates who were infesting the Mediterranean