{A/N: Yep, you guessed it—it's a word count chapter. But hey, I wrote every single word myself because I'm an asshole… a gentleman asshole, mind you. Feel free to skip it if you're here for the juicy story bits.}
:The Middle Ages started with the fall of the Roman Empire and ended at the fall of the Roman Empire
:Founder of Rome: Romulus First Emperor: Augustus Last Emperor: Romulus Augustus
Founder of Constantinople: Constantine Last Eastern Roman/Byzantine Emperor Of Constantinople: Constantine XI
:The battle of lake trasimene in 217BC is still to this day the largest military ambush in human history. Hannibal was truly Rome greatest foe And similarly, the Battle of Cape Ecnomus in 256 BC during the First Punic War was, and still is, one of if not the largest naval battle in history
:The colosseum was used for mock naval battle during its inauguration
Then they built a dedicated arena for those
:In 117 ad, you could go from Nothern England, to the Persian gulf without crossing any frontieer. All of the Mediterranean coasts wer controlled by the same entity too. If you think about in a modern world, that makes it more impressive.
:You had to wait around 1500 years to have, in Europe at least, cities of the scale of Rome at its apogee (1-2 millions inhabitants), during the industrial revolution
:"Mile" is the word for one thousand in latin. A mile represents one thousand full strides of a man. So for example, every time your right foot touches the ground. 5280 feet. What about taller or shorter men, doesn't that make the unit useless? Nope. When troops march in formation their stride averages out. The Romans could very accurately predict the distance of a mile. Knowing exactly how far away your troops are, reinforcements, supplies, etc is a huge tactical advantage.
: Roman military medical standards arguably weren't met by modern armies until WW1
It was mainly due to sanitation and the ability to organise a chain of medical support that kept soldiers healthier and looked after them better when they were sick or injured.
So, as far as it can be observed, the rates of sickness and dying from disease were lower in Roman camps than in the Crimean War, for example. And there are examples of Roman soldiers surviving major injuries - eg traumatic head injuries - more regularly than 18th/19th century soldiers.
Obviously it's subjective and not directly comparable as war, health and disease were so different. But it broadly can be said that soldiers didn't survive illnesses and wounds with anything like the frequency in the 6th-19th centuries as they did in the 1st-5th
:They had a treatment for cataracts.
:
The industrial capacity of Rome, especially during its golden age, is hinted at in pollution deposits in polar ice that scientists can date.
It ebbs and flows with the empire's fortunes and it's estimated by some that Europe didnt see those levels of industrialization again until as late as the Industrial Revolution itself.
:Right of life and death (ius vitae necisque). Roman father can kill his children legally without age or status restriction.
:There's a massive artificial hill in Rome called "Monte Testaccio" which is the result of the Romans dumping hundreds of thousands of used oil jars over the centuries as they could not reuse them due to the residue. The hill is still accessible today and it's literally a huge pile of thousands of layers of terracotta.
:Caligula made it legal for slaves to prosecute their masters. He was murdered shortly after
:Women weren't given unique names the way men were. They were known by the female version of the nomen, or family name (eg Iulius > Iulia), and if there were multiple daughters in a family they were just numbered, as in Iulia Prima, Iulia Secunda, and Iulia Tertia. This tradition died out in the imperial period, however.
:Graffiti was a commonly used and popular political tool. If the Roman people were unhappy with something they would paint it on walls of buildings and it was just an accepted normal thing.
:At one time the Roman treasury was so full of gold they stopped taxes because they couldn't store any more.
:The Roman Empire didn't end until 1453, with the fall of Byzantium to the Turks. The fleeing of Byzantines to the west is thought to be the main catalyst of the Renaissance, since they re-introduced classical Roman and Greek culture back into Italy.
:
Latin/Roman and Greek never completely died in the west even in the really Dark Ages(Justinian vs Goth wars until Caroligian Renaissance. And then Viking and Magyar invasions period in 9th and 10th century)
There were 3 Renaissances before the "official" one: Caroligian(mostly latin culture), Ottonian (Latin mostly but also Greek. Otto III was the son a greek/byzantine noble woman), and the 12th century Renaissance(which actually could be said that started in the late 11th century. In this last Renaissance Greek culture was more strong. Thank to Toledo being taken from the Muslims, several Greek authors were translated from Arab to Latin).
Aristotle became to be studied a lot more, and these are the times of Tomas Aquinas which quoted Aristotle a lot and based a lot of his work on the great philosopher. He was part of the Scholasticism movement which started in the 12th century and lasted in Europe until probably the 18th century. This movement basically used Aristotle categories.
And the Italian Renaissance started before the Fall of Constantinople. Petrarch and a group of humanists lived and did their work before the fall. Also the fleeing of Greek intelectuals started several decades before the fall of Constantinople.
:All the baths, at least in Bath, England, were lined in lead, so all the Romans who thought they were having a nice relaxing dip in the hot tub were exposing themselves to lead poisoning.
:After the Emperor Galba was murdered by the Praetorian guard, a slave bought his severed head for 100 gold pieces. He then took the head and threw it at the house of his former master who had been executed there on orders by Galba.
:Julius Caesar and his advisors made the calendar that we use today, with minor adjustments by Pope Gregory. It's called the Gregorian calendar nowadays but Caesar really contributed more.
Kinda of a naughty fact but I read somewhere that Romans referred to "doggy style" as the lioness position.
:They thought "soap" was kinda gross and only used it for textiles and other industry! For cleaning themselves they used olive oil, lotions and perfumes then just scraped it all off with a bronze or wooden stick called a Strigil
:Roman soldiers used to write crude messages on rocks before catapulting them to their enemies, like "X is bald" or "X has a small penis". Guess humans never really changed all that much lol
:Romans used to bring sacred chickens to battle with them and would "consult" the chickens before battle to see if they should proceed.
:
The stability, peace and infrastructure of Rome played a crucial role in the spreading of Christianity. Although early Christians did not enjoy being persecuted at times (like when Nero decided to burn Christians after the great fire), the apostles understood that the road system and interconnectedness created by the Roman empire, as well as the relative peace established by Augustus in the first century, were huge benefits in helping to spread their new religion.
If Jesus had existed in a more fractured, broken world that was constantly at war, we likely would have never known about him.
:The Roman road network through the Alps was denser than that of today.
:The Rostra, the platform in Rome where people would give speeches, has the Rams of enemy Warships from the Latin Wars built into it. (Rostrum = a warships ram)
:Per Plutarch's "Parallel Lives," in 75 BCE a mid twenties Caesar was kidnapped by a small band of Cicilian pirates.
They told him their ransom for him was 20 talents. Caesar scoffed at this figure and demanded the pirates ask for MORE money…..so they raised it to 50 talents.
:Not really a strictly "Roman fact" persay; but I get a lot of pondering when I tell people that the empires of Western Rome, Eastern Rome, and the Ottoman empires covers human history from the birth and crucifixion of Jesus, to the birth of Babe Ruth
-The city of Rome had a peak population density of 72,150 people per square kilometer, nearly double the population density of the most densely populated city today, Manila in the Philippines. Imagine what the Antonine Plague must have been like.
-Top charioteers were among the wealthiest Roman citizens.
-Even though there are no surviving direct accounts of Romans collecting lots of volcanic ash(that I know of), the Romans must have done so on a regular basis to make Roman concrete, which has stood the test of time.
-Many Romans thought elephants were mythical creatures until they saw Hannibal's armies at the door.
-The Romans thought beer was horribly uncivilized.
-Romans ate cannabis-cakes for dessert.
-At least some Romans like Galen were aware of alcoholism and lead poisoning.
-Using the price of gold as a gauge, the cost of getting a lion from Africa and moving it to the Colosseum was about 1.2 million US dollars(135,000 sesterces with one sesterce worth about 1/4500 pounds of gold). This does not include the cost of keeping it ready for games.
-The Colosseum would often feature naval battles and would obviously have to be flooded for the occasions.
:The Romans were incredibly superstitious and saw omens all over the place. Many of these practices found their way into modern Western weddings. My favorite is that tripping on the threshold as a woman entered her husband's house the first time was seen as a terrible omen. Thus, husbands would carry her over the threshold to avoid it which continues to be a theme today without explanation or much acknowledgment of its origin.
:After 286 AD, Rome was no longer the capital of the empire. Instead, Mediolanum (todays Milan) became capital for the WRE. It was moved again in 402 AD to Ravenna.
:Romans used human urine for oral hygiene. Due to urine's ammonia content it was used for mouthrinse and teeth whitening.
For some reason Portugal was a large exporter of this oral urine. I guess Portuguese urine was favored along the Roman populace
:There's a collection of stories about the Coliseum. Apparently they forced a rhino and elephant to fight each other. At first the rhino was winning and goring the elephant.
But then the elephant did as elephants tend to do, used his brain and handy-dandy opposable trunk, and picked up a broken spear tip and gouged out the rhino's eyes. Pretty sad.
:The city of Rome may have had a secret name, along with a secret protector deity.
One of Rome's military strategies (say, during a siege) was to try and entice a foreign city's protector god to their side, by performing rites and ceremonies in their honor or even promising to build a temple to them in Rome.
This was a matter of speculation from Varro on. Accounts are disputed and conflicting, as is scholarly opinion. But then again, rumors about a well kept secret would be.
:They didn't have toilet paper, they had sponges tied to a stick and rinsed them in vinegar. And that is where the phrase "the shit end of the stick" comes from.
:
One of the emperors who was near-sighted, had two large green emeralds ground and polished into lenses.
They improved his vision and also acted like sunglasses. No movie has ever depicted this because the public would not believe it, and...
It drew attention to his physical "flaw", and wearing glasses would have shown you have a weakness.
The field of optics would have started 1800 years sooner ifthe Roman's had not been so vain..
Also, they had glass cups in different colors, which were rare and quite expensive...
:Romans could only conduct business on certain days. And these types of days weren't always predetermined much in advance and weren't always the same each year.
Also, crimes were prosecuted privately. If someone wronged you, you would hire a lawyer yourself to prosecute them all at your cost.
Finally, Rome itself had no standing army. It relied on the wealthy elite to serve as generals and raise armies who then paid the soldiers out of their own pockets.
:The Romans put white shiny stones in some of their roads to increase visibility at night.
:
Some consider Roman charioteer Gaius Appuleius Diocles to have been the best paid athlete of all time.
He's said to have come in first place in 1,462 races and placed another 1,438 times (a total of 2,900 times) out of the 4,257 races he participated in. Sources record his total winnings as 35,863,120 sesterces over the course of his 24-year career though its unclear exactly how much would've gone to him versus his team management (he spent most of his career racing for the Reds).
Supposedly, these winnings would've been enough for an entire year's worth of Rome's grain dole, or about 1/5th the annual cost of salary for the entire Roman legion during the time period (he won most of his fortune during the reign of Hadrian, the pinnacle of Roman imperial power). It's estimated that would be the equivalent of about $15 billion in 2023.
:Augustus married Livia whilst she was pregnant from another man. That man, Tiberius Claudius Nero, the biological father of the future emperor Tiberius, officiated that same wedding.
Augustus also banished his daughter and grand daughter, both named Julia, for adultery. It is claimed that he referred to them (along with Agrippa Postumus) as his "ulcers". And because of their actions he refused to let them be buried in the family mausoleum
:Patricide was considered one of the worst crimes a Roman could commit, if not the worst.
Obviously the Romans had many forms of execution available to them but for patricide they had a specific method.
The condemned would be walked to the nearest river or lake while blindfolded because he was considered not deserving of light. Then they would rat pack him with sticks and kicks and whatever else they had on hand to beat his ass. After that, he would be put in a large sack with a monkey, snake and a dog and thrown into the river to be torn to shreds by the panicking animals and then drowned.
:46 BC was the longest year in history. Yes, you read that right. The Roman calendar year did not match the Solar year, so a leap or intercalary month was inserted every couple of years.
Due to the chaos of the late republic this was neglected for a number of years, and the seasons began to shift. Caesar fixed this by inserting 3 intercalary months to the year 46, which caused the year to have 445 days. But wait…it gets better. The onus for Caesar to fix the calendar in 46 BC is said to be the planned institution of the solar based Julian Calendar in 45 BC.
However, due to inclusive counting (adding a leap day every 3 years, not every 4)the calendar went off track very quickly, and had to be subsequently adjusted by Augustus around 9 BC. The Augustan realignment (skipping 3 leap days) did not fully fix the problem and the calendar would have to be adjusted again under Pope Gregory XIII. An interesting aside, an almost identical version of the Julian calendar was proposed by Ptolemy II, yet Egypt retained their traditional pharaonic calendar until the Julian calendar was instituted by Augustus after Actium.
:In 390 BCE the Gauls besieged Rome and attempted a sneak attack. The watchdogs were supposed to bark, but failed to; instead some sacred geese started making enough noise to wake the consul, Marcus Manlius Capitolinus, who then was able to repel the Gauls from the Capitoline Hill.
Because the dogs failed to bark, every single year dogs were ritually crucified and carried around on crosses while geese were carried on satin pillows.
:Roman wine would be mostly unpalatable to our modern tastes. While the production wasn't all that different than today, the Roman's liked to cut the wine with sea water and sweetened it with lead salts, plus it was stored in amphora lined with pitch imparting a tar flavor.
One of the most famous wines, Falernum, was like a Madeira and aged for 30 years or longer. The best vintage from 121 BC was served in 60 BC at a banquet honoring one of Caesar's conquests.
:Early roman religion, before the contact with Etruscans and Greeks, was very primitive.
Human sacrifices are attested by the archeological record.
They worshipped natural entities, particularly animals like eagles and, of course, wolves.
They wore wolf skins up above the head, with a military/religious significance. The standard bearers in the legion kept wearing skins for centuries.
An ancient, weird festival (Lupercalia) lasted for centuries as well. Priests wearing goat skins and sporting a primitive look, covered in mud, grease and blood, ran around the city whipping random people, especially the women.
:Romans put little round brass disks over the heads of statues to keep birds from roosting on the heads and pooping on them.
I am convinced, though I have no proof, that these round disks are where the convention of painting halos over the heads of saints came from. Am I wrong? Maybe. But I'm staying with my theory until someone shows me otherwise.
:Romans discovered a waterproof concrete made with "pozzolana" sand (from Pozzuoli). Waterproof as in, it magically dried under water and became hard as a rock. Without that, they couldn't have mantained the huge net of aqueducts they're famous for, and probably couldn't build the lasting empire we know.
:The famous or infamous gladiators of Ancient Rome usually did not fight to the death (Sine Missione). The matches were likely planned beforehand and even had judges on the sands of the arena, almost like a modern day boxing match.
Anyway the practice was discontinued due to the rise of Christendom in the empire. Along with the gruesome executions of criminals and the like by gladiators. Which would be one of the few times blood was actually spilled in the arena.
:There were no stalls on Roman Bathrooms. Everyone was just sitting there staring at each other as they did their business and then cleaned themselves with community sponges. For this reason alone, I would never want to, even temporarily "live" in ancient Rome (unless it was for a shorter period than when I need to poo).
:The Romans had an appetite for gold. In Spain they blew up a mountain (or hill most likely) to mine it. They would first dig a tunnel to the middle of the mine, there they would carve a large room. Then they released a fast quantity of water into the tunnel real fast, probably some sort of pre made pond or lake.
Because of the rushing water in the tunnel the air couldn't escape and is pushed forward, being compressed in the large room in the middle of the mountain, where it would get really hot and blows up the mountain. Then all they had to do is "hose" it down the slush boxes.
:The first recorded work of science fiction was a parody of a traveller's journal. (It was written in greek, but under the roman empire, so this counts for me)
At the time, a very popular form of litterature was journals describing travels (often made up but presented as true). For example, someone going to a land beyond Persia, finding fantastical beasts, some magic city...
Well, an author, Lucian of Samosata wrote "Vera Historia" (A True Story) where he describe his travel by ship, taken by a tempest.. landing on the moon, and his then partaking in what can only be described as a space battle between the nation of the moon and the sun, some being alien (insectoid IIRC)
And other travel. The story ends in a cliffhanger where he promises a follow up, without giving it, I believe.
:An organization called the Society of the Cincinnati (made up of descents of the Officer Corp of the Continental Army) was named in honor of George Washington who was seen as the American Cincinnatus. The city of Cincinnati OH, was named after the Society.
The legacy of the Roman Republic was a huge influence on early Americans. Ancient Rome still exerts influence on us 2400 years later.
:In 60CE the Romans set out to conquer the Druidic island of Anglesey. A mass of druids including many women came to the shore to resist them. Long story short the Druids acted so fuckin' weird in front of the Romans that many refused to leave the boats to fight them, at first anyway. According to Tacitus, the Legionnaires had to be "urged by their general's appeals and mutual encouragements not to quail before a troop of frenzied women, they bore the standards onwards, smote down all resistance, and wrapped the foe in the flames of his own brands." Antiquity was wild.
:Trivia is a Latin word!
It combines "tri-" and "via" meaning "three roads".
In ancient Rome, the term "trivia" referred to the three-way intersections where people would gather to socialize and exchange information. Over time, the word evolved to refer to common or insignificant bits of information, which is how we use it today when talking about trivial facts or details.
Romans invented the word for interesting facts!
:The farthest point the Romans physically controlled was territory on the Farasan Islands in the Southern Red Sea close to the border of modern day Yemen, NOT Scotland. Presumably the reason was to better monitor the international trade routes from Asia to Egypt, the exact same reason so many countries today have military forces stationed in the Red Sea.
:Trajan's bridge was built over the Danube river by Appollorus of Damascus. The bridge was about 1200 meters long, nearly a mile. It was believe to have been the longest arch type bridge in the world for about 1000 years. It consisted of 20 pillars, 12 of which are still visible today! Currently two pillars on either side of the river are above water and easily visible, the remaining are submerged under the water. Despite being so massive, and so sturdy that parts of it are still standing, it was constructed in only 2 years. The bridge was later destroyed on purpose to prevent barbarians from crossing the Danube into Roman territory.
:vestal virgins would be put to death if they ever lost their virginity, as it was believed that their virginity would protect rome from harm. however since no one was allowed to act violently against them, since they were religious leaders, they would instead be starved to death in an underground room. this happened most famously to a vestal virgin called Cornelia, who lost her virginity
:The poor part of republican Rome ("Suburra") often burned with fires. Tired of that, the early emperors built a 10 mt high stone wall to stop the fires right behind the forums area, that lasts to this day.
It was crossed with a single street towards the center of the city. In time, imperial forums were built around this street, leaving only a fairly narrow passage. Later, the second-to-last imperial forum was built right upon it (forum of Nerva), long and narrow. Coming from the city to downtown, people had to walk through this forum, which was later dubbed "foro transitorio" (passage forum).
The path survived until early 20th century, still being used through 1,500 years of decay of the forums area. It became a modern street, until it was dismantled with the excavations of the forums of Nerva and Augustus.
:First century Rome (and its provinces) had a pretty thriving foreskin market. Romans did not like the sight of the glans of a penis. Jews, who were circumcised for ritual reasons, could have a tough time in commerce or other daily activities, since these arrangements often happened in gymnasia, where men worked out in the nude. Jews (and others who were circumcised) could go through a painful and mostly unsuccessful foreskin restoration process (this involved repeatedly and forcefully tugging what foreskin may have been left behind after the circumcision) or, and of more success, purchase something akin to a "cock cosy," which would hide the glans.
:Flamen dialis, high priest of Jupiter -- forbidden to touch metal, ride a horse, or see a corpse. There were many more regulations as well as a ridiculous pointy rod hat worn at all times. Highly restricted life, and you held the sacred bond of life and death between the people and the god. Ceasar was appointed as flamen dialis when young but managed the unprecedented event of no longer being so while still maintaining his seat in the order of the priesthood, and no one else was able to be appointed. He then had the liberty to pursue his ambitions. The rest is history, lol.
:In 175 CE the Roman general Gaius Avidius Cassius declared himself emperor after hearing false reports that Marcus Aurelius had died. He was a great-great-great-great-great-great grandson of the emperor Augustus through his mother's side. On his father's side he was a descendant of several prominent client kings from the eastern part of the empire. (Herod the Great, Kings of Commagene, Armenia, Cappadocia and so on). This play a major role for Cassius in gaining the support of the eastern provinces. Unfortunately for Cassius he failed to gain widespread support and his rebellion failed after 3 months.
:Roman general Publius Claudius before the battle of Drepana in the First Punic War, is attested in frustration of chickens refusing to feed – chickens feeding was a sign that it is time to start the battle – stated: "if they will not eat then they will drink," and threw them into the water. The battle would result in Roman defeat (Val. Max. 1.4.3; Cic. De Nat. 3.7).
...
:The Middle Ages started with the fall of the Roman Empire and ended at the fall of the Roman Empire
:Founder of Rome: Romulus First Emperor: Augustus Last Emperor: Romulus Augustus
Founder of Eastern Rome/Byzantium: Constantine Last Eastern Roman/Byzantine Emperor: Constantine XI
:The battle of lake trasimene in 217BC is still to this day the largest military ambush in human history. Hannibal was truly Rome greatest foe And similarly, the Battle of Cape Ecnomus in 256 BC during the First Punic War was, and still is, one of if not the largest naval battle in history
:The colosseum was used for mock naval battle during its inauguration
Then they built a dedicated arena for those
:In 117 ad, you could go from Nothern England, to the Persian gulf without crossing any frontieer. All of the Mediterranean coasts wer controlled by the same entity too. If you think about in a modern world, that makes it more impressive.
:You had to wait around 1500 years to have, in Europe at least, cities of the scale of Rome at its apogee (1-2 millions inhabitants), during the industrial revolution
:"Mile" is the word for one thousand in latin. A mile represents one thousand full strides of a man. So for example, every time your right foot touches the ground. 5280 feet. What about taller or shorter men, doesn't that make the unit useless? Nope. When troops march in formation their stride averages out. The Romans could very accurately predict the distance of a mile. Knowing exactly how far away your troops are, reinforcements, supplies, etc is a huge tactical advantage.
: Roman military medical standards arguably weren't met by modern armies until WW1
It was mainly due to sanitation and the ability to organise a chain of medical support that kept soldiers healthier and looked after them better when they were sick or injured.
So, as far as it can be observed, the rates of sickness and dying from disease were lower in Roman camps than in the Crimean War, for example. And there are examples of Roman soldiers surviving major injuries - eg traumatic head injuries - more regularly than 18th/19th century soldiers.
Obviously it's subjective and not directly comparable as war, health and disease were so different. But it broadly can be said that soldiers didn't survive illnesses and wounds with anything like the frequency in the 6th-19th centuries as they did in the 1st-5th
:They had a treatment for cataracts.
:
The industrial capacity of Rome, especially during its golden age, is hinted at in pollution deposits in polar ice that scientists can date.
It ebbs and flows with the empire's fortunes and it's estimated by some that Europe didnt see those levels of industrialization again until as late as the Industrial Revolution itself.
:Right of life and death (ius vitae necisque). Roman father can kill his children legally without age or status restriction.
:There's a massive artificial hill in Rome called "Monte Testaccio" which is the result of the Romans dumping hundreds of thousands of used oil jars over the centuries as they could not reuse them due to the residue. The hill is still accessible today and it's literally a huge pile of thousands of layers of terracotta.
:Caligula made it legal for slaves to prosecute their masters. He was murdered shortly after
:Women weren't given unique names the way men were. They were known by the female version of the nomen, or family name (eg Iulius > Iulia), and if there were multiple daughters in a family they were just numbered, as in Iulia Prima, Iulia Secunda, and Iulia Tertia. This tradition died out in the imperial period, however.
:Graffiti was a commonly used and popular political tool. If the Roman people were unhappy with something they would paint it on walls of buildings and it was just an accepted normal thing.
:At one time the Roman treasury was so full of gold they stopped taxes because they couldn't store any more.
:The Roman Empire didn't end until 1453, with the fall of Byzantium to the Turks. The fleeing of Byzantines to the west is thought to be the main catalyst of the Renaissance, since they re-introduced classical Roman and Greek culture back into Italy.
:
Latin/Roman and Greek never completely died in the west even in the really Dark Ages(Justinian vs Goth wars until Caroligian Renaissance. And then Viking and Magyar invasions period in 9th and 10th century)
There were 3 Renaissances before the "official" one: Caroligian(mostly latin culture), Ottonian (Latin mostly but also Greek. Otto III was the son a greek/byzantine noble woman), and the 12th century Renaissance(which actually could be said that started in the late 11th century. In this last Renaissance Greek culture was more strong. Thank to Toledo being taken from the Muslims, several Greek authors were translated from Arab to Latin).
Aristotle became to be studied a lot more, and these are the times of Tomas Aquinas which quoted Aristotle a lot and based a lot of his work on the great philosopher. He was part of the Scholasticism movement which started in the 12th century and lasted in Europe until probably the 18th century. This movement basically used Aristotle categories.
And the Italian Renaissance started before the Fall of Constantinople. Petrarch and a group of humanists lived and did their work before the fall. Also the fleeing of Greek intelectuals started several decades before the fall of Constantinople.
:All the baths, at least in Bath, England, were lined in lead, so all the Romans who thought they were having a nice relaxing dip in the hot tub were exposing themselves to lead poisoning.
:After the Emperor Galba was murdered by the Praetorian guard, a slave bought his severed head for 100 gold pieces. He then took the head and threw it at the house of his former master who had been executed there on orders by Galba.
:Julius Caesar and his advisors made the calendar that we use today, with minor adjustments by Pope Gregory. It's called the Gregorian calendar nowadays but Caesar really contributed more.
Kinda of a naughty fact but I read somewhere that Romans referred to "doggy style" as the lioness position.
:They thought "soap" was kinda gross and only used it for textiles and other industry! For cleaning themselves they used olive oil, lotions and perfumes then just scraped it all off with a bronze or wooden stick called a Strigil
:Roman soldiers used to write crude messages on rocks before catapulting them to their enemies, like "X is bald" or "X has a small penis". Guess humans never really changed all that much lol
:Romans used to bring sacred chickens to battle with them and would "consult" the chickens before battle to see if they should proceed.
:
The stability, peace and infrastructure of Rome played a crucial role in the spreading of Christianity. Although early Christians did not enjoy being persecuted at times (like when Nero decided to burn Christians after the great fire), the apostles understood that the road system and interconnectedness created by the Roman empire, as well as the relative peace established by Augustus in the first century, were huge benefits in helping to spread their new religion.
If Jesus had existed in a more fractured, broken world that was constantly at war, we likely would have never known about him.
:The Roman road network through the Alps was denser than that of today.
:The Rostra, the platform in Rome where people would give speeches, has the Rams of enemy Warships from the Latin Wars built into it. (Rostrum = a warships ram)
:Per Plutarch's "Parallel Lives," in 75 BCE a mid twenties Caesar was kidnapped by a small band of Cicilian pirates.
They told him their ransom for him was 20 talents. Caesar scoffed at this figure and demanded the pirates ask for MORE money…..so they raised it to 50 talents.
:Not really a strictly "Roman fact" persay; but I get a lot of pondering when I tell people that the empires of Western Rome, Eastern Rome, and the Ottoman empires covers human history from the birth and crucifixion of Jesus, to the birth of Babe Ruth
-The city of Rome had a peak population density of 72,150 people per square kilometer, nearly double the population density of the most densely populated city today, Manila in the Philippines. Imagine what the Antonine Plague must have been like.
-Top charioteers were among the wealthiest Roman citizens.
-Even though there are no surviving direct accounts of Romans collecting lots of volcanic ash(that I know of), the Romans must have done so on a regular basis to make Roman concrete, which has stood the test of time.
-Many Romans thought elephants were mythical creatures until they saw Hannibal's armies at the door.
-The Romans thought beer was horribly uncivilized.
-Romans ate cannabis-cakes for dessert.
-At least some Romans like Galen were aware of alcoholism and lead poisoning.
-Using the price of gold as a gauge, the cost of getting a lion from Africa and moving it to the Colosseum was about 1.2 million US dollars(135,000 sesterces with one sesterce worth about 1/4500 pounds of gold). This does not include the cost of keeping it ready for games.
-The Colosseum would often feature naval battles and would obviously have to be flooded for the occasions.
:The Romans were incredibly superstitious and saw omens all over the place. Many of these practices found their way into modern Western weddings. My favorite is that tripping on the threshold as a woman entered her husband's house the first time was seen as a terrible omen. Thus, husbands would carry her over the threshold to avoid it which continues to be a theme today without explanation or much acknowledgment of its origin.
:After 286 AD, Rome was no longer the capital of the empire. Instead, Mediolanum (todays Milan) became capital for the WRE. It was moved again in 402 AD to Ravenna.
:Romans used human urine for oral hygiene. Due to urine's ammonia content it was used for mouthrinse and teeth whitening.
For some reason Portugal was a large exporter of this oral urine. I guess Portuguese urine was favored along the Roman populace
:There's a collection of stories about the Coliseum. Apparently they forced a rhino and elephant to fight each other. At first the rhino was winning and goring the elephant.
But then the elephant did as elephants tend to do, used his brain and handy-dandy opposable trunk, and picked up a broken spear tip and gouged out the rhino's eyes. Pretty sad.
:The city of Rome may have had a secret name, along with a secret protector deity.
One of Rome's military strategies (say, during a siege) was to try and entice a foreign city's protector god to their side, by performing rites and ceremonies in their honor or even promising to build a temple to them in Rome.
This was a matter of speculation from Varro on. Accounts are disputed and conflicting, as is scholarly opinion. But then again, rumors about a well kept secret would be.
:They didn't have toilet paper, they had sponges tied to a stick and rinsed them in vinegar. And that is where the phrase "the shit end of the stick" comes from.
:
One of the emperors who was near-sighted, had two large green emeralds ground and polished into lenses.
They improved his vision and also acted like sunglasses. No movie has ever depicted this because the public would not believe it, and...
It drew attention to his physical "flaw", and wearing glasses would have shown you have a weakness.
The field of optics would have started 1800 years sooner ifthe Roman's had not been so vain..
Also, they had glass cups in different colors, which were rare and quite expensive...
:Romans could only conduct business on certain days. And these types of days weren't always predetermined much in advance and weren't always the same each year.
Also, crimes were prosecuted privately. If someone wronged you, you would hire a lawyer yourself to prosecute them all at your cost.
Finally, Rome itself had no standing army. It relied on the wealthy elite to serve as generals and raise armies who then paid the soldiers out of their own pockets.
:The Romans put white shiny stones in some of their roads to increase visibility at night.
:
Some consider Roman charioteer Gaius Appuleius Diocles to have been the best paid athlete of all time.
He's said to have come in first place in 1,462 races and placed another 1,438 times (a total of 2,900 times) out of the 4,257 races he participated in. Sources record his total winnings as 35,863,120 sesterces over the course of his 24-year career though its unclear exactly how much would've gone to him versus his team management (he spent most of his career racing for the Reds).
Supposedly, these winnings would've been enough for an entire year's worth of Rome's grain dole, or about 1/5th the annual cost of salary for the entire Roman legion during the time period (he won most of his fortune during the reign of Hadrian, the pinnacle of Roman imperial power). It's estimated that would be the equivalent of about $15 billion in 2023.
:Augustus married Livia whilst she was pregnant from another man. That man, Tiberius Claudius Nero, the biological father of the future emperor Tiberius, officiated that same wedding.
Augustus also banished his daughter and grand daughter, both named Julia, for adultery. It is claimed that he referred to them (along with Agrippa Postumus) as his "ulcers". And because of their actions he refused to let them be buried in the family mausoleum
:Patricide was considered one of the worst crimes a Roman could commit, if not the worst.
Obviously the Romans had many forms of execution available to them but for patricide they had a specific method.
The condemned would be walked to the nearest river or lake while blindfolded because he was considered not deserving of light. Then they would rat pack him with sticks and kicks and whatever else they had on hand to beat his ass. After that, he would be put in a large sack with a monkey, snake and a dog and thrown into the river to be torn to shreds by the panicking animals and then drowned.
:46 BC was the longest year in history. Yes, you read that right. The Roman calendar year did not match the Solar year, so a leap or intercalary month was inserted every couple of years.
Due to the chaos of the late republic this was neglected for a number of years, and the seasons began to shift. Caesar fixed this by inserting 3 intercalary months to the year 46, which caused the year to have 445 days. But wait…it gets better. The onus for Caesar to fix the calendar in 46 BC is said to be the planned institution of the solar based Julian Calendar in 45 BC.
However, due to inclusive counting (adding a leap day every 3 years, not every 4)the calendar went off track very quickly, and had to be subsequently adjusted by Augustus around 9 BC. The Augustan realignment (skipping 3 leap days) did not fully fix the problem and the calendar would have to be adjusted again under Pope Gregory XIII. An interesting aside, an almost identical version of the Julian calendar was proposed by Ptolemy II, yet Egypt retained their traditional pharaonic calendar until the Julian calendar was instituted by Augustus after Actium.
:In 390 BCE the Gauls besieged Rome and attempted a sneak attack. The watchdogs were supposed to bark, but failed to; instead some sacred geese started making enough noise to wake the consul, Marcus Manlius Capitolinus, who then was able to repel the Gauls from the Capitoline Hill.
Because the dogs failed to bark, every single year dogs were ritually crucified and carried around on crosses while geese were carried on satin pillows.
:Roman wine would be mostly unpalatable to our modern tastes. While the production wasn't all that different than today, the Roman's liked to cut the wine with sea water and sweetened it with lead salts, plus it was stored in amphora lined with pitch imparting a tar flavor.
One of the most famous wines, Falernum, was like a Madeira and aged for 30 years or longer. The best vintage from 121 BC was served in 60 BC at a banquet honoring one of Caesar's conquests.
:Early roman religion, before the contact with Etruscans and Greeks, was very primitive.
Human sacrifices are attested by the archeological record.
They worshipped natural entities, particularly animals like eagles and, of course, wolves.
They wore wolf skins up above the head, with a military/religious significance. The standard bearers in the legion kept wearing skins for centuries.
An ancient, weird festival (Lupercalia) lasted for centuries as well. Priests wearing goat skins and sporting a primitive look, covered in mud, grease and blood, ran around the city whipping random people, especially the women.
:Romans put little round brass disks over the heads of statues to keep birds from roosting on the heads and pooping on them.
I am convinced, though I have no proof, that these round disks are where the convention of painting halos over the heads of saints came from. Am I wrong? Maybe. But I'm staying with my theory until someone shows me otherwise.
:Romans discovered a waterproof concrete made with "pozzolana" sand (from Pozzuoli). Waterproof as in, it magically dried under water and became hard as a rock. Without that, they couldn't have mantained the huge net of aqueducts they're famous for, and probably couldn't build the lasting empire we know.
:The famous or infamous gladiators of Ancient Rome usually did not fight to the death (Sine Missione). The matches were likely planned beforehand and even had judges on the sands of the arena, almost like a modern day boxing match.
Anyway the practice was discontinued due to the rise of Christendom in the empire. Along with the gruesome executions of criminals and the like by gladiators. Which would be one of the few times blood was actually spilled in the arena.
:There were no stalls on Roman Bathrooms. Everyone was just sitting there staring at each other as they did their business and then cleaned themselves with community sponges. For this reason alone, I would never want to, even temporarily "live" in ancient Rome (unless it was for a shorter period than when I need to poo).
:The Romans had an appetite for gold. In Spain they blew up a mountain (or hill most likely) to mine it. They would first dig a tunnel to the middle of the mine, there they would carve a large room. Then they released a fast quantity of water into the tunnel real fast, probably some sort of pre made pond or lake.
Because of the rushing water in the tunnel the air couldn't escape and is pushed forward, being compressed in the large room in the middle of the mountain, where it would get really hot and blows up the mountain. Then all they had to do is "hose" it down the slush boxes.
:The first recorded work of science fiction was a parody of a traveller's journal. (It was written in greek, but under the roman empire, so this counts for me)
At the time, a very popular form of litterature was journals describing travels (often made up but presented as true). For example, someone going to a land beyond Persia, finding fantastical beasts, some magic city...
Well, an author, Lucian of Samosata wrote "Vera Historia" (A True Story) where he describe his travel by ship, taken by a tempest.. landing on the moon, and his then partaking in what can only be described as a space battle between the nation of the moon and the sun, some being alien (insectoid IIRC)
And other travel. The story ends in a cliffhanger where he promises a follow up, without giving it, I believe.
:An organization called the Society of the Cincinnati (made up of descents of the Officer Corp of the Continental Army) was named in honor of George Washington who was seen as the American Cincinnatus. The city of Cincinnati OH, was named after the Society.
The legacy of the Roman Republic was a huge influence on early Americans. Ancient Rome still exerts influence on us 2400 years later.
:In 60CE the Romans set out to conquer the Druidic island of Anglesey. A mass of druids including many women came to the shore to resist them. Long story short the Druids acted so fuckin' weird in front of the Romans that many refused to leave the boats to fight them, at first anyway. According to Tacitus, the Legionnaires had to be "urged by their general's appeals and mutual encouragements not to quail before a troop of frenzied women, they bore the standards onwards, smote down all resistance, and wrapped the foe in the flames of his own brands." Antiquity was wild.
:Trivia is a Latin word!
It combines "tri-" and "via" meaning "three roads".
In ancient Rome, the term "trivia" referred to the three-way intersections where people would gather to socialize and exchange information. Over time, the word evolved to refer to common or insignificant bits of information, which is how we use it today when talking about trivial facts or details.
Romans invented the word for interesting facts!
:The farthest point the Romans physically controlled was territory on the Farasan Islands in the Southern Red Sea close to the border of modern day Yemen, NOT Scotland. Presumably the reason was to better monitor the international trade routes from Asia to Egypt, the exact same reason so many countries today have military forces stationed in the Red Sea.
:Trajan's bridge was built over the Danube river by Appollorus of Damascus. The bridge was about 1200 meters long, nearly a mile. It was believe to have been the longest arch type bridge in the world for about 1000 years. It consisted of 20 pillars, 12 of which are still visible today! Currently two pillars on either side of the river are above water and easily visible, the remaining are submerged under the water. Despite being so massive, and so sturdy that parts of it are still standing, it was constructed in only 2 years. The bridge was later destroyed on purpose to prevent barbarians from crossing the Danube into Roman territory.
:vestal virgins would be put to death if they ever lost their virginity, as it was believed that their virginity would protect rome from harm. however since no one was allowed to act violently against them, since they were religious leaders, they would instead be starved to death in an underground room. this happened most famously to a vestal virgin called Cornelia, who lost her virginity
:The poor part of republican Rome ("Suburra") often burned with fires. Tired of that, the early emperors built a 10 mt high stone wall to stop the fires right behind the forums area, that lasts to this day.
It was crossed with a single street towards the center of the city. In time, imperial forums were built around this street, leaving only a fairly narrow passage. Later, the second-to-last imperial forum was built right upon it (forum of Nerva), long and narrow. Coming from the city to downtown, people had to walk through this forum, which was later dubbed "foro transitorio" (passage forum).
The path survived until early 20th century, still being used through 1,500 years of decay of the forums area. It became a modern street, until it was dismantled with the excavations of the forums of Nerva and Augustus.
:First century Rome (and its provinces) had a pretty thriving foreskin market. Romans did not like the sight of the glans of a penis. Jews, who were circumcised for ritual reasons, could have a tough time in commerce or other daily activities, since these arrangements often happened in gymnasia, where men worked out in the nude. Jews (and others who were circumcised) could go through a painful and mostly unsuccessful foreskin restoration process (this involved repeatedly and forcefully tugging what foreskin may have been left behind after the circumcision) or, and of more success, purchase something akin to a "cock cosy," which would hide the glans.
:Flamen dialis, high priest of Jupiter -- forbidden to touch metal, ride a horse, or see a corpse. There were many more regulations as well as a ridiculous pointy rod hat worn at all times. Highly restricted life, and you held the sacred bond of life and death between the people and the god. Ceasar was appointed as flamen dialis when young but managed the unprecedented event of no longer being so while still maintaining his seat in the order of the priesthood, and no one else was able to be appointed. He then had the liberty to pursue his ambitions. The rest is history, lol.
:In 175 CE the Roman general Gaius Avidius Cassius declared himself emperor after hearing false reports that Marcus Aurelius had died. He was a great-great-great-great-great-great grandson of the emperor Augustus through his mother's side. On his father's side he was a descendant of several prominent client kings from the eastern part of the empire. (Herod the Great, Kings of Commagene, Armenia, Cappadocia and so on). This play a major role for Cassius in gaining the support of the eastern provinces. Unfortunately for Cassius he failed to gain widespread support and his rebellion failed after 3 months.
:Roman general Publius Claudius before the battle of Drepana in the First Punic War, is attested in frustration of chickens refusing to feed – chickens feeding was a sign that it is time to start the battle – stated: "if they will not eat then they will drink," and threw them into the water. The battle would result in Roman defeat (Val. Max. 1.4.3; Cic. De Nat. 3.7)
.....
:The Middle Ages started with the fall of the Roman Empire and ended at the fall of the Roman Empire
:Founder of Rome: Romulus First Emperor: Augustus Last Emperor: Romulus Augustus
Founder of Eastern Rome/Byzantium: Constantine Last Eastern Roman/Byzantine Emperor: Constantine XI
:The battle of lake trasimene in 217BC is still to this day the largest military ambush in human history. Hannibal was truly Rome greatest foe And similarly, the Battle of Cape Ecnomus in 256 BC during the First Punic War was, and still is, one of if not the largest naval battle in history
:The colosseum was used for mock naval battle during its inauguration
Then they built a dedicated arena for those
:In 117 ad, you could go from Nothern England, to the Persian gulf without crossing any frontieer. All of the Mediterranean coasts wer controlled by the same entity too. If you think about in a modern world, that makes it more impressive.
:You had to wait around 1500 years to have, in Europe at least, cities of the scale of Rome at its apogee (1-2 millions inhabitants), during the industrial revolution
:"Mile" is the word for one thousand in latin. A mile represents one thousand full strides of a man. So for example, every time your right foot touches the ground. 5280 feet. What about taller or shorter men, doesn't that make the unit useless? Nope. When troops march in formation their stride averages out. The Romans could very accurately predict the distance of a mile. Knowing exactly how far away your troops are, reinforcements, supplies, etc is a huge tactical advantage.
: Roman military medical standards arguably weren't met by modern armies until WW1
It was mainly due to sanitation and the ability to organise a chain of medical support that kept soldiers healthier and looked after them better when they were sick or injured.
So, as far as it can be observed, the rates of sickness and dying from disease were lower in Roman camps than in the Crimean War, for example. And there are examples of Roman soldiers surviving major injuries - eg traumatic head injuries - more regularly than 18th/19th century soldiers.
Obviously it's subjective and not directly comparable as war, health and disease were so different. But it broadly can be said that soldiers didn't survive illnesses and wounds with anything like the frequency in the 6th-19th centuries as they did in the 1st-5th
:They had a treatment for cataracts.
:
The industrial capacity of Rome, especially during its golden age, is hinted at in pollution deposits in polar ice that scientists can date.
It ebbs and flows with the empire's fortunes and it's estimated by some that Europe didnt see those levels of industrialization again until as late as the Industrial Revolution itself.
:Right of life and death (ius vitae necisque). Roman father can kill his children legally without age or status restriction.
:There's a massive artificial hill in Rome called "Monte Testaccio" which is the result of the Romans dumping hundreds of thousands of used oil jars over the centuries as they could not reuse them due to the residue. The hill is still accessible today and it's literally a huge pile of thousands of layers of terracotta.
:Caligula made it legal for slaves to prosecute their masters. He was murdered shortly after
:Women weren't given unique names the way men were. They were known by the female version of the nomen, or family name (eg Iulius > Iulia), and if there were multiple daughters in a family they were just numbered, as in Iulia Prima, Iulia Secunda, and Iulia Tertia. This tradition died out in the imperial period, however.
:Graffiti was a commonly used and popular political tool. If the Roman people were unhappy with something they would paint it on walls of buildings and it was just an accepted normal thing.
:At one time the Roman treasury was so full of gold they stopped taxes because they couldn't store any more.
:The Roman Empire didn't end until 1453, with the fall of Byzantium to the Turks. The fleeing of Byzantines to the west is thought to be the main catalyst of the Renaissance, since they re-introduced classical Roman and Greek culture back into Italy.
:
Latin/Roman and Greek never completely died in the west even in the really Dark Ages(Justinian vs Goth wars until Caroligian Renaissance. And then Viking and Magyar invasions period in 9th and 10th century)
There were 3 Renaissances before the "official" one: Caroligian(mostly latin culture), Ottonian (Latin mostly but also Greek. Otto III was the son a greek/byzantine noble woman), and the 12th century Renaissance(which actually could be said that started in the late 11th century. In this last Renaissance Greek culture was more strong. Thank to Toledo being taken from the Muslims, several Greek authors were translated from Arab to Latin).
Aristotle became to be studied a lot more, and these are the times of Tomas Aquinas which quoted Aristotle a lot and based a lot of his work on the great philosopher. He was part of the Scholasticism movement which started in the 12th century and lasted in Europe until probably the 18th century. This movement basically used Aristotle categories.
And the Italian Renaissance started before the Fall of Constantinople. Petrarch and a group of humanists lived and did their work before the fall. Also the fleeing of Greek intelectuals started several decades before the fall of Constantinople.
:All the baths, at least in Bath, England, were lined in lead, so all the Romans who thought they were having a nice relaxing dip in the hot tub were exposing themselves to lead poisoning.
:After the Emperor Galba was murdered by the Praetorian guard, a slave bought his severed head for 100 gold pieces. He then took the head and threw it at the house of his former master who had been executed there on orders by Galba.
:Julius Caesar and his advisors made the calendar that we use today, with minor adjustments by Pope Gregory. It's called the Gregorian calendar nowadays but Caesar really contributed more.
Kinda of a naughty fact but I read somewhere that Romans referred to "doggy style" as the lioness position.
:They thought "soap" was kinda gross and only used it for textiles and other industry! For cleaning themselves they used olive oil, lotions and perfumes then just scraped it all off with a bronze or wooden stick called a Strigil
:Roman soldiers used to write crude messages on rocks before catapulting them to their enemies, like "X is bald" or "X has a small penis". Guess humans never really changed all that much lol
:Romans used to bring sacred chickens to battle with them and would "consult" the chickens before battle to see if they should proceed.
:
The stability, peace and infrastructure of Rome played a crucial role in the spreading of Christianity. Although early Christians did not enjoy being persecuted at times (like when Nero decided to burn Christians after the great fire), the apostles understood that the road system and interconnectedness created by the Roman empire, as well as the relative peace established by Augustus in the first century, were huge benefits in helping to spread their new religion.
If Jesus had existed in a more fractured, broken world that was constantly at war, we likely would have never known about him.
:The Roman road network through the Alps was denser than that of today.
:The Rostra, the platform in Rome where people would give speeches, has the Rams of enemy Warships from the Latin Wars built into it. (Rostrum = a warships ram)
:Per Plutarch's "Parallel Lives," in 75 BCE a mid twenties Caesar was kidnapped by a small band of Cicilian pirates.
They told him their ransom for him was 20 talents. Caesar scoffed at this figure and demanded the pirates ask for MORE money…..so they raised it to 50 talents.
:Not really a strictly "Roman fact" persay; but I get a lot of pondering when I tell people that the empires of Western Rome, Eastern Rome, and the Ottoman empires covers human history from the birth and crucifixion of Jesus, to the birth of Babe Ruth
-The city of Rome had a peak population density of 72,150 people per square kilometer, nearly double the population density of the most densely populated city today, Manila in the Philippines. Imagine what the Antonine Plague must have been like.
-Top charioteers were among the wealthiest Roman citizens.
-Even though there are no surviving direct accounts of Romans collecting lots of volcanic ash(that I know of), the Romans must have done so on a regular basis to make Roman concrete, which has stood the test of time.
-Many Romans thought elephants were mythical creatures until they saw Hannibal's armies at the door.
-The Romans thought beer was horribly uncivilized.
-Romans ate cannabis-cakes for dessert.
-At least some Romans like Galen were aware of alcoholism and lead poisoning.
-Using the price of gold as a gauge, the cost of getting a lion from Africa and moving it to the Colosseum was about 1.2 million US dollars(135,000 sesterces with one sesterce worth about 1/4500 pounds of gold). This does not include the cost of keeping it ready for games.
-The Colosseum would often feature naval battles and would obviously have to be flooded for the occasions.
:The Romans were incredibly superstitious and saw omens all over the place. Many of these practices found their way into modern Western weddings. My favorite is that tripping on the threshold as a woman entered her husband's house the first time was seen as a terrible omen. Thus, husbands would carry her over the threshold to avoid it which continues to be a theme today without explanation or much acknowledgment of its origin.
:After 286 AD, Rome was no longer the capital of the empire. Instead, Mediolanum (todays Milan) became capital for the WRE. It was moved again in 402 AD to Ravenna.
:Romans used human urine for oral hygiene. Due to urine's ammonia content it was used for mouthrinse and teeth whitening.
For some reason Portugal was a large exporter of this oral urine. I guess Portuguese urine was favored along the Roman populace
:There's a collection of stories about the Coliseum. Apparently they forced a rhino and elephant to fight each other. At first the rhino was winning and goring the elephant.
But then the elephant did as elephants tend to do, used his brain and handy-dandy opposable trunk, and picked up a broken spear tip and gouged out the rhino's eyes. Pretty sad.
:The city of Rome may have had a secret name, along with a secret protector deity.
One of Rome's military strategies (say, during a siege) was to try and entice a foreign city's protector god to their side, by performing rites and ceremonies in their honor or even promising to build a temple to them in Rome.
This was a matter of speculation from Varro on. Accounts are disputed and conflicting, as is scholarly opinion. But then again, rumors about a well kept secret would be.
:They didn't have toilet paper, they had sponges tied to a stick and rinsed them in vinegar. And that is where the phrase "the shit end of the stick" comes from.
:
One of the emperors who was near-sighted, had two large green emeralds ground and polished into lenses.
They improved his vision and also acted like sunglasses. No movie has ever depicted this because the public would not believe it, and...
It drew attention to his physical "flaw", and wearing glasses would have shown you have a weakness.
The field of optics would have started 1800 years sooner ifthe Roman's had not been so vain..
Also, they had glass cups in different colors, which were rare and quite expensive...
:Romans could only conduct business on certain days. And these types of days weren't always predetermined much in advance and weren't always the same each year.
Also, crimes were prosecuted privately. If someone wronged you, you would hire a lawyer yourself to prosecute them all at your cost.
Finally, Rome itself had no standing army. It relied on the wealthy elite to serve as generals and raise armies who then paid the soldiers out of their own pockets.
:The Romans put white shiny stones in some of their roads to increase visibility at night.
:
Some consider Roman charioteer Gaius Appuleius Diocles to have been the best paid athlete of all time.
He's said to have come in first place in 1,462 races and placed another 1,438 times (a total of 2,900 times) out of the 4,257 races he participated in. Sources record his total winnings as 35,863,120 sesterces over the course of his 24-year career though its unclear exactly how much would've gone to him versus his team management (he spent most of his career racing for the Reds).
Supposedly, these winnings would've been enough for an entire year's worth of Rome's grain dole, or about 1/5th the annual cost of salary for the entire Roman legion during the time period (he won most of his fortune during the reign of Hadrian, the pinnacle of Roman imperial power). It's estimated that would be the equivalent of about $15 billion in 2023.
:Augustus married Livia whilst she was pregnant from another man. That man, Tiberius Claudius Nero, the biological father of the future emperor Tiberius, officiated that same wedding.
Augustus also banished his daughter and grand daughter, both named Julia, for adultery. It is claimed that he referred to them (along with Agrippa Postumus) as his "ulcers". And because of their actions he refused to let them be buried in the family mausoleum
:Patricide was considered one of the worst crimes a Roman could commit, if not the worst.
Obviously the Romans had many forms of execution available to them but for patricide they had a specific method.
The condemned would be walked to the nearest river or lake while blindfolded because he was considered not deserving of light. Then they would rat pack him with sticks and kicks and whatever else they had on hand to beat his ass. After that, he would be put in a large sack with a monkey, snake and a dog and thrown into the river to be torn to shreds by the panicking animals and then drowned.
:46 BC was the longest year in history. Yes, you read that right. The Roman calendar year did not match the Solar year, so a leap or intercalary month was inserted every couple of years.
Due to the chaos of the late republic this was neglected for a number of years, and the seasons began to shift. Caesar fixed this by inserting 3 intercalary months to the year 46, which caused the year to have 445 days. But wait…it gets better. The onus for Caesar to fix the calendar in 46 BC is said to be the planned institution of the solar based Julian Calendar in 45 BC.
However, due to inclusive counting (adding a leap day every 3 years, not every 4)the calendar went off track very quickly, and had to be subsequently adjusted by Augustus around 9 BC. The Augustan realignment (skipping 3 leap days) did not fully fix the problem and the calendar would have to be adjusted again under Pope Gregory XIII. An interesting aside, an almost identical version of the Julian calendar was proposed by Ptolemy II, yet Egypt retained their traditional pharaonic calendar until the Julian calendar was instituted by Augustus after Actium.
:In 390 BCE the Gauls besieged Rome and attempted a sneak attack. The watchdogs were supposed to bark, but failed to; instead some sacred geese started making enough noise to wake the consul, Marcus Manlius Capitolinus, who then was able to repel the Gauls from the Capitoline Hill.
Because the dogs failed to bark, every single year dogs were ritually crucified and carried around on crosses while geese were carried on satin pillows.
:Roman wine would be mostly unpalatable to our modern tastes. While the production wasn't all that different than today, the Roman's liked to cut the wine with sea water and sweetened it with lead salts, plus it was stored in amphora lined with pitch imparting a tar flavor.
One of the most famous wines, Falernum, was like a Madeira and aged for 30 years or longer. The best vintage from 121 BC was served in 60 BC at a banquet honoring one of Caesar's conquests.
:Early roman religion, before the contact with Etruscans and Greeks, was very primitive.
Human sacrifices are attested by the archeological record.
They worshipped natural entities, particularly animals like eagles and, of course, wolves.
They wore wolf skins up above the head, with a military/religious significance. The standard bearers in the legion kept wearing skins for centuries.
An ancient, weird festival (Lupercalia) lasted for centuries as well. Priests wearing goat skins and sporting a primitive look, covered in mud, grease and blood, ran around the city whipping random people, especially the women.
:Romans put little round brass disks over the heads of statues to keep birds from roosting on the heads and pooping on them.
I am convinced, though I have no proof, that these round disks are where the convention of painting halos over the heads of saints came from. Am I wrong? Maybe. But I'm staying with my theory until someone shows me otherwise.
:Romans discovered a waterproof concrete made with "pozzolana" sand (from Pozzuoli). Waterproof as in, it magically dried under water and became hard as a rock. Without that, they couldn't have mantained the huge net of aqueducts they're famous for, and probably couldn't build the lasting empire we know.
:The famous or infamous gladiators of Ancient Rome usually did not fight to the death (Sine Missione). The matches were likely planned beforehand and even had judges on the sands of the arena, almost like a modern day boxing match.
Anyway the practice was discontinued due to the rise of Christendom in the empire. Along with the gruesome executions of criminals and the like by gladiators. Which would be one of the few times blood was actually spilled in the arena.
:There were no stalls on Roman Bathrooms. Everyone was just sitting there staring at each other as they did their business and then cleaned themselves with community sponges. For this reason alone, I would never want to, even temporarily "live" in ancient Rome (unless it was for a shorter period than when I need to poo).
:The Romans had an appetite for gold. In Spain they blew up a mountain (or hill most likely) to mine it. They would first dig a tunnel to the middle of the mine, there they would carve a large room. Then they released a fast quantity of water into the tunnel real fast, probably some sort of pre made pond or lake.
Because of the rushing water in the tunnel the air couldn't escape and is pushed forward, being compressed in the large room in the middle of the mountain, where it would get really hot and blows up the mountain. Then all they had to do is "hose" it down the slush boxes.
:The first recorded work of science fiction was a parody of a traveller's journal. (It was written in greek, but under the roman empire, so this counts for me)
At the time, a very popular form of litterature was journals describing travels (often made up but presented as true). For example, someone going to a land beyond Persia, finding fantastical beasts, some magic city...
Well, an author, Lucian of Samosata wrote "Vera Historia" (A True Story) where he describe his travel by ship, taken by a tempest.. landing on the moon, and his then partaking in what can only be described as a space battle between the nation of the moon and the sun, some being alien (insectoid IIRC)
And other travel. The story ends in a cliffhanger where he promises a follow up, without giving it, I believe.
:An organization called the Society of the Cincinnati (made up of descents of the Officer Corp of the Continental Army) was named in honor of George Washington who was seen as the American Cincinnatus. The city of Cincinnati OH, was named after the Society.
The legacy of the Roman Republic was a huge influence on early Americans. Ancient Rome still exerts influence on us 2400 years later.
:In 60CE the Romans set out to conquer the Druidic island of Anglesey. A mass of druids including many women came to the shore to resist them. Long story short the Druids acted so fuckin' weird in front of the Romans that many refused to leave the boats to fight them, at first anyway. According to Tacitus, the Legionnaires had to be "urged by their general's appeals and mutual encouragements not to quail before a troop of frenzied women, they bore the standards onwards, smote down all resistance, and wrapped the foe in the flames of his own brands." Antiquity was wild.
:Trivia is a Latin word!
It combines "tri-" and "via" meaning "three roads".
In ancient Rome, the term "trivia" referred to the three-way intersections where people would gather to socialize and exchange information. Over time, the word evolved to refer to common or insignificant bits of information, which is how we use it today when talking about trivial facts or details.
Romans invented the word for interesting facts!
:The farthest point the Romans physically controlled was territory on the Farasan Islands in the Southern Red Sea close to the border of modern day Yemen, NOT Scotland. Presumably the reason was to better monitor the international trade routes from Asia to Egypt, the exact same reason so many countries today have military forces stationed in the Red Sea.
:Trajan's bridge was built over the Danube river by Appollorus of Damascus. The bridge was about 1200 meters long, nearly a mile. It was believe to have been the longest arch type bridge in the world for about 1000 years. It consisted of 20 pillars, 12 of which are still visible today! Currently two pillars on either side of the river are above water and easily visible, the remaining are submerged under the water. Despite being so massive, and so sturdy that parts of it are still standing, it was constructed in only 2 years. The bridge was later destroyed on purpose to prevent barbarians from crossing the Danube into Roman territory.
:vestal virgins would be put to death if they ever lost their virginity, as it was believed that their virginity would protect rome from harm. however since no one was allowed to act violently against them, since they were religious leaders, they would instead be starved to death in an underground room. this happened most famously to a vestal virgin called Cornelia, who lost her virginity
:The poor part of republican Rome ("Suburra") often burned with fires. Tired of that, the early emperors built a 10 mt high stone wall to stop the fires right behind the forums area, that lasts to this day.
It was crossed with a single street towards the center of the city. In time, imperial forums were built around this street, leaving only a fairly narrow passage. Later, the second-to-last imperial forum was built right upon it (forum of Nerva), long and narrow. Coming from the city to downtown, people had to walk through this forum, which was later dubbed "foro transitorio" (passage forum).
The path survived until early 20th century, still being used through 1,500 years of decay of the forums area. It became a modern street, until it was dismantled with the excavations of the forums of Nerva and Augustus.
:First century Rome (and its provinces) had a pretty thriving foreskin market. Romans did not like the sight of the glans of a penis. Jews, who were circumcised for ritual reasons, could have a tough time in commerce or other daily activities, since these arrangements often happened in gymnasia, where men worked out in the nude. Jews (and others who were circumcised) could go through a painful and mostly unsuccessful foreskin restoration process (this involved repeatedly and forcefully tugging what foreskin may have been left behind after the circumcision) or, and of more success, purchase something akin to a "cock cosy," which would hide the glans.
:Flamen dialis, high priest of Jupiter -- forbidden to touch metal, ride a horse, or see a corpse. There were many more regulations as well as a ridiculous pointy rod hat worn at all times. Highly restricted life, and you held the sacred bond of life and death between the people and the god. Ceasar was appointed as flamen dialis when young but managed the unprecedented event of no longer being so while still maintaining his seat in the order of the priesthood, and no one else was able to be appointed. He then had the liberty to pursue his ambitions. The rest is history, lol.
:In 175 CE the Roman general Gaius Avidius Cassius declared himself emperor after hearing false reports that Marcus Aurelius had died. He was a great-great-great-great-great-great grandson of the emperor Augustus through his mother's side. On his father's side he was a descendant of several prominent client kings from the eastern part of the empire. (Herod the Great, Kings of Commagene, Armenia, Cappadocia and so on). This play a major role for Cassius in gaining the support of the eastern provinces. Unfortunately for Cassius he failed to gain widespread support and his rebellion failed after 3 months.
:Roman general Publius Claudius before the battle of Drepana in the First Punic War, is attested in frustration of chickens refusing to feed – chickens feeding was a sign that it is time to start the battle – stated: "if they will not eat then they will drink," and threw them into the water. The battle would result in Roman defeat (Val. Max. 1.4.3; Cic. De Nat. 3.7).