Table of Contents
Introduction
This essay gives a summary of the lifestyle of the Romans in the golden age, how they lived in their political, economic and social beliefs.
The era of gold
Refers to the period of gold among the five ages in Rome when it was undergoing its prosperity and decline. The golden age was reigned by emperors Augustus and Marcus Aurelius’.
The Pax Romana
During this era they experienced peace and the empire became prosperous as the two leaders sustained them. They enjoyed this period as they were stable. They enjoyed the peace and lived a civilized lifestyle.
The various emperors of Rome during the golden age
Before the gold period, there was no description of a leader as an emperor because there was not even one leader that showed strong qualities of a leader and prowess. Several titles were used to refer to the leaders such as the senator, venerable and the commander officer. Several emperors ruled the Rome empire, others were good and others were harsh in ruling such Caligula who ruled harshly and involved killing so many people. The good ones like Marcus Aurelius was a member of the army, who fought with determination to protect his people against their enemies and also wrote books. Augustus was also among the best leaders as he leads life same that of the low-class people or the unprivileged. He brought big change to the empire, built buildings, bridges, roads, and theaters (Trimble).
The mode of clothing in the golden age in Rome
They used various kinds of dresses to cover their bodies hence protecting them from sunburn, rain, and cold. Above all, it protected their nakedness and covered them from shame. The clothes include sleeved and sleeveless, long sleeveless knee dresses .during formal situations men could wear a respectable toga to cover their informal inner clothes. The people in the nobility mostly the working class had their own clothes to distinguish them from the commoners. The people of Rome also wore shoes, clogs, and boots to protect their legs from sand and hurts (Trimble). They had also a cold weather wear that is the full-length trousers, hats, and coats to protect them. These clothes were very expensive and the low-class people could not afford them. The military had also its wear which involved belts and knee-length tunics and boots .during heavy weather they wore heavy coats and cloaks to protect them from wind and rain. This wears gave a clear distinction between the commoners and the soldiers. Hence they could be easily be identified from the commoners.
The Pretoria soldiers
These Pretoria soldiers were put in place at the end of the Roman Republic to provide security to the commander’s household. During Emperor Augustus’s time, he thought it was wise to change the guards to his private or personal army that provided enough security to the entire Rome and were highly paid. This army was also regarded important because they had powers to maintain the emperor his seat as a ruler or remove him out of his seat. The army was later removed by the emperor in succession because he knew he would be removed too (Trimble).
The designing of buildings and structures era
In this era, buildings and other structures were designed skillfully through in the whole territory of Rome.it led to the Romans praising their emperors in reign during that era. They enjoyed the strong and beautiful structures of their empire. Some of the great built buildings which were famous in the world were; collesium and pantheon buildings.in addition, weapons and protective defensive tools were invented by the Romans and helped them become conquerors in their fights (“Khan Academy”).
Another feature of the golden age in the Roman culture was the public baths
This affected the social life of the Romans. They went to have baths on a daily basis, they could have a good time with their friends and enjoy their baths as the baths were luxurious. They could enter or have baths in turns that is ladies had their baths for a given duration then men or even both of them could share the baths. The showering pools included both warm and cold baths and strigil massage, they remove oils they applied on their bodies .they never used soap in their sharing. Some of the pools for bathing could be owned privately or publicly owned (“Khan Academy”). They were situated in almost all places in the empire so as to make it easier for all people to go baths.
Roads and water channels structures
There was a very long and straight road that joined the whole state of Rome and its capital city. The roads provided services to the army as they moved quickly when there was an emergency so to attend to the emergency.it was also used to distribute goods and products to all parts of Rome and the also, the Romans themselves also used the roads to move to other parts of Rome. They were strongly built and were of high standards hence could last longer. The roads helped in maintaining the powers of the Romanian empire over its enemies and other states that tried to conquer the Rome state also had water channels that helped them get clean and fresh water channeled to their houses. The water could be piped or underground channeled to the homes, to the pools for baths and beautiful and luxuries fountains. There was also indoor sewers that removed waste products and direct them to the sewage (Trimble).
The religious beliefs in the golden era of the Romanian Empire
They practiced various religious practices such as worshipping of royal gods, ancestors, animal sacrifices offering .ancestral worshipping of the emperor was highly practiced as a sign of respect and honor to their emperors. They also adopted the cult of their neighboring states such as god of Mithras was a person god, Isis was on Egyptian goddess. There were also religious ceremonies that were carried out both respected priest. They resided over Rome festivals of fashion and other duties (Trimble).
Form of food in the golden age in Rome
They took various types of foods to protect their bodies from diseases, get energy and maintain their health. They included, shells from shelled animals like lobsters, shrimp, bones from rabbit and broad beans, wheat bread, were also commonly taken. Fruits were also taken to enhance their diet. They included grapes, dates, strawberries, figs, and apples. The fruits also provided wine, juice, and vinegar which was added to food. They also took green herbs from pepper, mint and bay leaf. They had breakfast, a light lunch and cena for supper which was a heavy meal because it was the main meal (Trimble).
We can do it today.
Trade as an economic activity of the people of Rome in the golden age
The Romans also carried trade as a form of living to sustain their lives. They traded with their neighboring states such as India, Europe, and Mediterranean. They traded in exotic animals which helped the garner a lot of wealth which made them rich and hence become stable. Also, trade items such as ports, thin clothing, sweet clover, flint glass and storax were also used to get more wealth into their households (“Khan Academy”). This economic activity made their empire grow very fast and became a vast empire.
Jewish beliefs were also practiced in the Roman Empire
The Jews was a small group in Rome. The Romans saw them as a minor group and marginalized group and therefore the then emperor implemented laws to protect them. These laws made the people of Rome to treat the Jews in a good and human manner hence favored them in most times. Later the Jews were repelled by the people of Rome due to the influence if the emperor in succession. During the rebels, many of them were killed mercilessly and those who remained were taken into captivity and were made slaves in the Romanian empire. They were besieged by the Romanian army at the hilltop of Masada .the army cut all the food supplies into the settlement of the Jews and therefore they starved and most of them died while others were killed by the army during their fight. Others were also killed by the wild beast when the emperor in reign by then, instructed them to fight the wild beast in the empire as a punishment (Trimble).
Early Christians
The early Christians started their practice after the death of their teacher, who was mostly termed as Jesus of Nazareth. The teacher was crucified on the cross by the people of Rome. He used to teach the Christians believers ways of Christianity, the mode, and lifestyle. They adopted the practices which they incorporated into their daily lives and later spread them to the whole world. This practice of Christianity was believed to be practiced by the people in the low social class and the illiterate. Other forms of religion could be used in the ruling but this form of Christian was not used because the Christians refused to participate in the state celebrations and other state-related activities. Due to this act of Christians, the people of Rome started to wonder what form of believing was that. Religion was highly respected in Rome even involved or incorporated in ruling. Christians were persecuted so many times simply because they refused to participate in political matters and celebrations in the empire (Trimble).
The Italian city, Pompeii
This was a city in southern Italy. This city grew so fast into a beautiful and vast city but later was destroyed by an eruption of a mountain called Vesuvius. The mountain explored the city and buried it down, with its beautiful structures and scenaries. The city was long forgotten by the people of Rome. During a historical study in later years, the historians excavated the remains of the city, hence it became a historical ruin in later years (Trimble).
Public theater and performances in Rome
These were stated theater practical’s that were performed in several places in Romanian empire. They included comedies, plays and were presented during festive seasons and other celebrations. The early actors came from the neighboring countries to perform in Rome, hence they adopted this art. Acting in Rome depended on one’s ability and talent. These actors were allowed to enter in the courts of Rome and show their prowess. Those who entered or visited the Rome courts were highly respected as the noble (“Khan Academy”). Acting and theaters became popular as acting organizations and institutions grew to provide education and direction to young, aspiring and the actors in from east large.
- “Khan Academy.” Khan Academy. N.p., (2010). Web. 11 July 2017.
- Trimble, J. “Roman History.” N.p., (2005). Web. 11 July 2017.