ROME SPECIAL COMUNE ROMA CAPITALE THE CAPITAL ITALY LAZIO REGION COUNTRYS LARGEST POPULATED POPULOUS THE EUROPEAN UNION POPULATION CITY LIMITS METROPOLITAN CITY OF ROME THE ITALIAN PENINSULA LAZIO SHORES TIBER RIVER THE VATICAN CITY INDEPENDENT COUNTRY GEOGRAPHICALLY BOUNDARIES THE ONLY EXISTING EXAMPLE REASON DEFINED CAPITAL ROMES HISTORY MORE THAN TWO HALF THOUSAND ROMAN MYTHOLOGY DATES THE FOUNDING OF ROME THE SITE LATINS ETRUSCANS SABINES EVENTUALLY THE ROMAN KINGDOM REPUBLIC THE ROMAN EMPIRE AS ONE WESTERN CIVILIZATION EVER METROPOLIS AS ROMA ETERNAL CAPUT MUNDI CENTRAL NOTIONS ANCIENT ROMAN CULTURE AFTER THE FALL THE WESTERN EMPIRE MARKED THE BEGINNING OF THE MIDDLE AGES FELL POLITICAL CONTROL THE PAPACY SETTLED IN THE CITY THE CENTURY THE PAPAL STATES LASTED BEGINNING THE RENAISSANCE ALMOST ALL THE POPES NICHOLAS V PURSUED FOUR HUNDRED YEARS PROGRAM WORLDS ARTISTIC CULTURAL FIRST ONE THE MAJOR CENTERS RENAISSANCE THE BIRTHPLACE BAROQUE STYLE NEOCLASSICISM FAMOUS ARCHITECTS THE CENTER THE KINGDOM OF ITALY THE ITALIAN REPUBLIC STATUS GLOBAL CITY RANKED IN AS IN THE WORLD MOST POPULAR TOURIST ATTRACTION HISTORIC CENTRE UNESCO WORLD HERITAGE SITE MONUMENTS MUSEUMS VATICAN MUSEUMS THE COLOSSEUM TOURIST DESTINATIONS MILLIONS TOURISTS THE SUMMER OLYMPICS SEAT UNITED NATIONS FOOD AGRICULTURE ORGANIZATION FOUNDING MYTH THE ANCIENT ROMANS THEMSELVES TRADITION ORIGIN NAME ROMA BELIEVED COME FROM FOUNDER KING ROMULUS ACTUALLY DERIVED ITSELF ALTERNATE THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF HYPOTHESES ADVANCED FOCUSING UNCERTAIN RUMON ARCHAIC TIBER TURN ROOT THE GREEK VERB LATIN VERB MEAN FLOW THE ETRUSCAN WORD WHOSE POSSIBLE REFERENCE THE TOTEM WOLF SUCKLED TWINS ROMULUS AND REMUS SHAPE THE PALATINE AVENTINE HILL MEANS ARCHAEOLOGICAL EVIDENCE OF HUMAN OCCUPATION AREA YEARS AGO DENSE LAYER YOUNGER DEBRIS PALAEOLITHIC NEOLITHIC EVIDENCE STONE TOOLS POTTERY STONE WEAPONS EXCAVATIONS SUPPORT THE VIEW PASTORAL HILL ABOVE THE FUTURE ROMAN FORUM ARCHAEOLOGISTS ARGUE INDEED THE MIDDLE TRADITIONAL DATE SUBJECT TO THE POWER THE WELL TALE LEGENDARY FOUNDATION ATTENTION TRADITIONAL STORIES HANDED DOWN EXPLAIN HISTORY OF TERMS LEGEND MYTH FAMILIAR ROMAN MYTHS THE STORY OF THE TWINS BUILD BROTHER ANNALIST THIS LEGEND HAD TO DUAL TROJAN REFUGEE AENEAS ESCAPE THE LINE IULUS THE NAMESAKE DYNASTY THIS WAS POET VIRGIL FIRST CENTURY BC RULED PERIOD MONARCHICAL LATIN SABINE ETRUSCAN THE TRADITION SEVEN KINGS NUMA POMPILIUS TULLUS HOSTILIUS ANCUS MARCIUS TARQUINIUS PRISCUS SERVIUS TULLIUS TARQUINIUS SUPERBUS THE ROMANS EXPELLED THE LAST KING OLIGARCHIC REPUBLIC INTERNAL PLEBEIANS LANDOWNERS CONSTANT WARFARE POPULATIONS CENTRAL ITALY VOLSCI AEQUI MARSI BECOMING MASTER OF LATIUM GAULS OSCI SAMNITES COLONY TARANTO ALLIED PYRRHUS KING OF EPIRUS THE CONQUEST OF THE ITALIAN THE CENTRAL UP TO MAGNA GRAECIA THE THIRD SECOND CENTURY BC SAW THE ESTABLISHMENT OF ROMAN HEGEMONY MEDITERRANEAN PUNIC WARS CITY OF CARTHAGE MACEDONIAN WARS MACEDONIA ROMAN PROVINCE SICILY SARDINIA CORSICA HISPANIA GREECE AFRICA FROM THE BEGINNING POWER ARISTOCRATS OPTIMATES REPRESENTING CONSERVATIVE THE SENATE POPULARES THE HELP PLEBS GAIN BANKRUPTCY FARMERS SLAVE THE MIGRATION LARGE NUMBER CONTINUOUS NECESSARY PROFESSIONAL ARMY LOYAL GENERALS THE SECOND HALF SECOND CENTURY INTERNALLY FAILED ATTEMPT SOCIAL REFORM TIBERIUS GAIUS GRACCHUS THE WAR JUGURTHA CIVIL WAR GAIUS MARIUS SULLA MAJOR SLAVE REVOLT SPARTACUS FIRST TRIUMVIRATE CAESAR POMPEY THE CONQUEST OF GAUL POWERFUL SECOND CIVIL WAR HIMSELF DICTATOR FOR LIFE ASSASSINATION SECOND TRIUMVIRATE OCTAVIAN GRANDNEPHEW MARK ANTONY LEPIDUS PRINCEPS CIVITATIS AUGUSTUS PRINCIPATE DIARCHY PRINCEPS DE FACTO REACHED GREATEST EXPANSION EMPEROR TRAJAN CONFIRMED THE CAPITAL OF THE WORLD EXPRESSION ALREADY THE REPUBLICAN CENTURIES THE EMPIRE FLAVIAN EPONYMOUS DYNASTIES THIS TIME SPREAD CHRISTIAN RELIGION PREACHED JESUS CHRIST JUDEA FIRST CENTURY POPULARIZED APOSTLE APOGEE TERRITORY THE ATLANTIC OCEAN THE EUPHRATES BRITAIN EGYPT AT THE END SEVERAN DYNASTY SUBSTITUTED MILITARY GOVERNMENT SOON MILITARY ANARCHY THE CRISIS SAME TIME ECONOMY INFLATION ROSE HISTORICAL ENEMIES GERMANIC TRIBES IN THE WEST THE PERSIAN BEAR PRESSURE ON THE FRONTIERS EMPEROR DIOCLETIAN ATTEMPTED ECONOMIC MILITARY PROBLEMS INTRODUCING THE DOMINATE ABSOLUTE MONARCHY EMPEROR DEIFIED IMPOSING PRICE CONTROLS ADMINISTRATION DIVIDED TWELVE DIOCESES EASTERN NICOMEDIA NAMING MAXIMIAN MEDIOLANUM SUCCESSION REGULATED THE CREATION TETRARCHY IN FACT JUNIOR RULE BEHALF THE ABDICATION DIOCLETIAN DYNASTIC SYSTEM CONSTANTINE CENTRALIZED EDICT OF MILAN GAVE FREEDOM OF WORSHIP PLEDGING GIVE STABILITY CIVIL POPE SYLVESTER CAPITAL CITY CONSTANTINOPLE CHRISTIANITY RELIGION THANKS TO EDICT THEODOSIUS THE LAST EMPEROR ARCADIUS HONORIUS WESTERN THE WESTERN ROMAN EMPIRE RAVENNA ROLE ADMINISTRATION OF VISIGOTHS ALARIC EMBELLISHED CONSTRUCTION OF SACRED BUILDINGS THE COLLABORATION IMPOVERISHED SUFFERED LOOTING KING OF THE VANDALS WEAK FIFTH CENTURY STOP THE DEPOSITION ROMULUS AUGUSTUS THE END THE BIS