The Rise and Fall of the Roman Empire
             In the year 31 BC a new power was beginning to emerge into the Mediterranean world power. This new power was the Roman Empire. This power would eventually take control of most of the surroundings around the Mediterranean Sea. The Roman Empire was one of the biggest European empires. It started out as a cluster of villages, and grew into an entire empire. All good things come to an end, as did the Roman Empire. It eventually collapsed, ending the control of the Roman Empire.
             In 509BC The Romans drove out their hated Etruscan King. This date is traditionally considered the founding of the Roman State. Rome had already grown from a cluster of villages into a small city by this time. The Romans were determined to never again be ruled by a monarch, so they set up a new government in which the officials were chosen directly by the people. It was a thing of the people or a republic as it was called. The Romans thought this would keep an individual from gaining too much power. Romans later looked back with enormous pride on early republic achievements. Rome between 509bc. And 133bc adapted its republican form of government to meet he needs that were changing. The military power to conquer the entire Mediterranean world was then developed.
             " The reign of Augustus marked the beginning of an era of peace after centuries of unremitting warfare, a peace that lasted nearly 200 years." This period of time was called Pax Romana, which ended after the death of Emperor Marcus Aurelius. Rome than began to fall into a long decline that would last more than 1,500 years. "With unexampled peace came unexampled prosperity. For the bold and the shrewd that opportunities for making money were enormous. Senators, knights and ex-slaves engaged eagerly in the engrossing pursuit, some buying and selling vast tracts of land, some trading on a huge scale within the empire i
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