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Denarius

Denarius

, c. AD 73 Vespasian, c. 161 Marcus Aurelius, c. 194 Septimius Severus;
Second row: c. 199 Caracalla, c. 200 Julia Domna, c. 219 Elagabalus, c. 236 Maximinus Thrax]] The Roman currency system included the denarius (plural: denarii), a small silver coin, as the most common coin in circulation. It is difficult to give even comparative values for money from before the 20th century, due to vastly different economies. Classical historians regularly say that in the late Roman Republic and early Roman Empire the daily wage for a laborer was one denarius. The denarius was first struck in 211 BC during the Roman Republic, valued at 10 asses, giving the denarius its name which translates to "containing ten". In 118 BC it was re-tariffed at 16 asses, to reflect the decrease in size of the as. The denarius continued to be the main coin of the empire until it was replaced by the antoninianus in the middle of the 3rd century. The fineness of the silver content varied with political and economic circumstances. Even after the denarius was no longer regularly issued, it continued to be used as an accounting device and the name was applied to later Roman coins in a way that is not understood. The lasting legacy of the denarius can be seen in the use of "d" as the abbreviation for the old French denier and the British penny prior to 1971. The denarius also survives in the common Arabic name for a currency unit, the dinar دينار, used from pre-Islamic times, and still used in several modern Arabic-speaking nations. The Spanish word dinero (money) is also derived from Latin "denarius".[http://buscon.rae.es/draeI/SrvltGUIBusUsual?LEMA=dinero] The gold aureus seems to have been a "currency of account", a denomination not commonly seen in daily transactions due to its high value. Numismatists think that the aureus was used to pay bonuses to the legions at the accession of new emperors. It was valued at 25 denarii. 1 gold aureus = 2 gold quinarii = 25 silver denarii = 50 silver quinarii =100 bronze sestertii = 200 bronze dupondii = 400 copper asses = 800 copper semisses = 1600 copper quadrans See also: Roman currency, sestertius, dupondius, as, solidus and drachma.

External links

Category:Numismatics Category:Ancient Roman currency simple:Denarius

Vespasian

Caesar Vespasianus Augustus (November 17, 9 – June 23, 79), originally known as Titus Flavius Vespasianus and best known as Vespasian, was the emperor of Rome from 69 to 79. He was founder of the Flavian dynasty and ascended the throne in the end of the Year of the four emperors.

Family and early career

He was born in the Sabine country near Reate. His father, Titus Flavius Sabinus, was an equestrian who worked as a customs official in Asia and a money-lender on a small scale in Aventicum, where Vespasian lived for some time; his mother, Vespasia Polla, was the sister of a Senator. After prompting from his mother, Vespasian followed his older brother, also called Titus Flavius Sabinus, into public life. He served in the army as a military tribune in Thrace in 36, and the following year was elected quaestor, serving in Crete and Cyrene. He rose through the ranks of Roman public office, being elected aedile at the second attempt in 39 and praetor at the first attempt in 40, taking the opportunity to ingratiate himself with the Emperor Caligula. In the meantime he had married Flavia Domitilla, the daughter of an equestrian from Ferentium, and they had two sons, Titus Flavius Vespasianus (b. 41) and Titus Flavius Domitianus (b. 51), and a daughter, Domitilla (b. 39). Flavia died before Vespasian became emperor; therafter his mistress, Caenis, was his wife in all but name until she died in 74. Upon the accession of Claudius as emperor in 41, Vespasian was appointed legate of the Legio II Augusta, stationed in Germania, thanks to the influence of the Imperial freedman Narcissus.

Invasion of Britannia

In 43, Vespasian and the II Augusta participated in the Roman invasion of Britain, and he distinguished himself under the overall command of Aulus Plautius. After participating in crucial early battles on the rivers Medway and Thames, he was sent to reduce the southwest, penetrating to the borders of modern Somerset. He fought thirty battles, captured twenty oppida (towns, or more probably hillforts, one of them being Maiden Castle in Dorset), subdued two powerful nations and reduced Vectis (the Isle of Wight), earning a triumph on his return to Rome.

Continued political career

Vespasian was elected consul for the last two months of 51, after which he withdrew from public life. He came out of retirement in 63 when he was sent as governor to Africa, where, according to Tacitus (ii.97), his rule was "infamous and odious"; according to Suetonius (Vesp. 4), "upright and, highly honourable". On one occasion he was pelted with turnips. At this time he found himself in financial difficulties and was forced to mortgage his estates to his brother. To revive his fortunes he turned to the mule trade and gained the nickname mulio (mule-driver). Returning from Africa, Vespasian toured Greece in Nero's retinue, but lost Imperial favour after paying insufficient attention to the Emperor's recitals on the lyre, and found himself in the political wilderness.

Great Jewish Revolt

lyre to celebrate the victory in the Jewish Rebellion. The legend on the reverse says: IVDAEA CAPTA, Judea captured.]] However, in 66, Vespasian was appointed to conduct the war in Iudaea, which was threatening unrest throughout the East. A revolt there had killed the previous governor and routed Licinius Mucianus, the governor of Syria, when he tried to restore order. Vespasian was dispatched with two legions to add to the one already there. His elder son, Titus, served under him. During this time he became the patron of Flavius Josephus, a Jewish resistance leader turned Roman agent who would go on to write his people's history in Greek.

The Year of Four Emperors

After the death of Nero in 68, Rome saw a succession of short-lived emperors and a year of civil wars. Galba was murdered by Otho, who was defeated by Vitellius. Otho's supporters, looking for another candidate to support, settled on Vespasian. According to Suetonius, a prophecy ubiquitous in the Eastern provinces claimed that from Iudaea would come the future rulers of the world. Vespasian eventually believed that this prophecy applied to him, and found a number of omens, oracles, and portents that reinforced this belief. He also found encouragement in Mucianus, the governor of Syria; and although a strict disciplinarian and reformer of abuses, Vespasian's soldiers were thoroughly devoted to him. All eyes in the East were now upon him; Mucianus and the Syrian legions were eager to support him; and while he was at Caesarea, he was proclaimed emperor (July 1, 69), first by the army in Egypt, and then by his troops in Iudaea (July 11). Nevertheless, Vitellius, the occupant of the throne, had on his side the veteran legions of Gaul and the Rhineland, Rome's best troops. But the feeling in Vespasian's favour quickly gathered strength, and the armies of Moesia, Pannonia, and Illyricum soon declared for him, and made him in fact master of half of the Roman world. While Vespasian himself was in Egypt securing its grain supply, his troops entered Italy on the northeast under the leadership of M. Antonius Primus, defeated Vitellius's army (which had awaited him in Mevania) at Bedriacum (or Betriacum), sacked Cremona and advanced on Rome, which they entered after furious fighting and a frightful confusion, in which the Capitol was destroyed by fire. On receiving the tidings of his rival's defeat and death at Alexandria, the new emperor at once forwarded supplies of urgently needed grain to Rome, along with an edict or a declaration of policy, in which he gave assurance of an entire reversal of the laws of Nero, especially those relating to treason. While in Egypt he visited the Temple of Serapis, where reportedly he experienced a vision, and later was confronted by two laborers who were convinced that he possessed a divine power which could work miracles.

Vespasian as Emperor

Leaving the war in Judaea to his son Titus, he arrived at Rome in 70. He at once devoted his energies to repairing the evils caused by civil war. He restored discipline in the army, which under Vitellius had become utterly demoralized, and, with the cooperation of the Senate, put the government and the finances on a sound footing. He renewed old taxes and instituted new ones, increased the tribute of the provinces, and kept a watchful eye upon the treasury officials. By his own example of simplicity of life, he put to shame the luxury and extravagance of the Roman nobles and initiated in many respects a marked improvement in the general tone of society. As censor he reformed the Senatorial and Equestrian orders, removing unfit and unworthy members and promoting good and able men, among them Gnaeus Julius Agricola. At the same time, he made it more dependent upon the Emperor, by exercising an influence upon its composition. He altered the constitution of the Praetorian Guard, in which only Italians, formed into nine cohorts, were enrolled. In 70, a formidable rising in Gaul, headed by Gaius Julius Civilis, was suppressed by Vespasian's brother-in-law, Quintus Petillius Cerialis, and the German frontier made secure; the Jewish War was brought to a close by Titus's capture of Jerusalem, and in the following year, after the joint triumph of Vespasian and Titus, memorable as the first occasion on which a father and his son were thus associated together in the Western world, the temple of Janus was closed, and the Roman world had rest for the remaining nine years of Vespasian's reign. "The peace of Vespasian" passed into a proverb. In 78 Agricola went to Britain, and both extended and consolidated the Roman dominion in that province, pushing his way into what is now Scotland. In the following year Vespasian died, on June 23.

Views on Vespasian

The avarice with which both Tacitus and Suetonius stigmatize Vespasian seems really to have been an enlightened economy, which, in the disordered state of the Roman finances, was an absolute necessity. Vespasian could be liberal to impoverished Senators and equestrians, to cities and towns desolated by natural calamity, and especially to men of letters and rhetors, several of whom he pensioned with salaries of as much as 1,000 gold pieces a year. Quintilian is said to have been the first public teacher who enjoyed this Imperial favor. Pliny the Elder's great work, the Natural History, was written during Vespasian's reign, and dedicated to Vespasian's son Titus. Some of the philosophers who talked idly of the good old times of the Republic, and thus indirectly encouraged conspiracy, provoked him into reviving the obsolete penal laws against this profession, but only one, Helvidius Priscus, was put to death, and he had affronted the Emperor by studied insults. "I will not kill a dog that barks at me," were words honestly expressing the temper of Vespasian. Vespasian was indeed noted for mildness and a healthy sense of justice. For example, he helped his late adversary Vitellius' daughter find a suitable husband and even provided her with the dowry. Much money was spent on public works and the restoration and beautifying of Rome: a new forum, the splendid Temple of Peace, the public baths and the vast Colosseum. To the last, Vespasian was a plain, blunt soldier, with a demonstrated strength of character and ability, and with a steady purpose to establish good order and secure the prosperity and welfare of his subjects. In his habits he was punctual and regular, transacting his business early in the morning, and enjoying a siesta in the afternoon. He did not quite have the distinguished bearing looked for in an emperor. He was free in his conversation, and his humour, of which he had a good deal, was apt to take the form of rather coarse jokes. He could jest even in his last moments. "Alas, I think I'm turning into a God," he whispered to those around him. There is something very characteristic in the exclamation he is said to have uttered in his last illness, "An emperor ought to die standing."

Sources

- Suetonius, Lives of the Twelve Caesars
- Tacitus, Histories
- Dio Cassius, Roman History

External links

- [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Suetonius/12Caesars/Vespasian
- .html Life of Vespasian] (Suetonius; English translation and Latin original)
- Biography on [http://www.roman-emperors.org/vespasia.htm De Impertoribus Romanis]. This entry was based on the entry from the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica. ---- Category:9 births Category:79 deaths Category:Roman emperors Category:Ancient Jewish Roman history Category:Romans in Britain Category:Flavian Dynasty Category:Year of Four Emperors ko:베스파시아누스 ja:ウェスパシアヌス

161

Events

- March 7 - Roman emperor Antoninus Pius dies and is succeeded by co-Emperors Marcus Aurelius and Lucius Verus.
- Publication of Gaius' Institutiones

Births

- August 31 - Commodus, future Roman emperor
- Liu Bei, founder of the Shu Kingdom of China

Deaths

- March 7 - Antoninus Pius, Roman Emperor Category:161 ko:161년

194

Events

- Pescennius Niger, competitor of Septimius Severus for the Roman Empire, is defeated in three successive battles at Battle of Cyzicus, Battle of Nicaea and Battle of Issus, and killed outside Antioch by Severus' troops.
- First year of Xingping era of the Chinese Han Dynasty
- The Korean kingdom of Wiman Joseon is founded.

Births

- Trebonianus Gallus, Roman Emperor

Deaths

- Liu Yan, ruler of Yizhou, father of Liu Zhang
- Pescennius Niger, claimant to the Roman Empire
- Tao Qian, Chinese warlord Category:194 ko:194년

199

Events

- Pope Zephyrinus succeeds Pope Victor I
- Geodeung succeeds Suro as king of the Korean kingdom of Gaya. (traditional date)
- Sun Ce and Zhou Yu of the state of Wu wed the Qiao sisters.

Births

Deaths

- Gongsun Zan, Chinese warlord, killed by Yuan Shao
- Lü Bu, Chinese warlord, executed by Cao Cao
- Yuan Shu, Chinese warlord, of illness Category:199 ko:199년

Caracalla

Caracalla (April 4, 186–April 8, 217) was emperor of the Roman Empire from AD 211–217. Born in Lugdunum in the province of Gaul in 186, he was the son of the future emperor Septimius Severus and Julia Domna. His given name was Marcus Aurelius Antoninus but he was later given the nickname Caracalla, which referred to the Gallic hooded tunic he habitually wore and which he made fashionable. Severus, who had taken the imperial throne in 193, died in 211 while visiting Eboracum (York), and Caracalla was proclaimed co-emperor with his brother Publius Septimius Antoninius Geta. Caracalla had Geta assassinated and carried out a vendetta against Geta's supporters, in order to strengthen his own hold on power. When the inhabitants of Alexandria heard Caracalla's claims that he had killed Geta in self-defense, they produced a satire mocking this claim, as well as Caracalla's other pretensions. Caracalla responded to this insult savagely in 215 by slaughtering the deputation of leading citizens who had unsuspectingly assembled before the city to greet his arrival, then unleashed his troops for several days of looting and plunder of Alexandria. According to historian Cassius Dio, over 20,000 people were killed. During his reign as emperor, Caracalla raised the pay of an average legionaire to 675 denarii and lavished many benefits on the army, as instructed by his father Septimius Severus who had told him to always mind the soldiers and ignore everyone else. Cassius Dio Three things stand out from his reign: the edict of 212 (Constitutio Antoniniana) granting Roman citizenship to freemen throughout the Roman Empire in order to increase taxation; debasing the silver content in Roman coinage by 25% in order to pay the legions their bounties; and the construction of a large thermae outside Rome, the remains of which, known as the Baths of Caracalla, can still be seen. Caracalla had effectively become a military dictator, and was consequently very unpopular except with the soldiers. While travelling from Edessa to begin a war with Parthia, he was assassinated while urinating at a roadside near Harran on April 8, 217 by Martialis, one of his attendants, who was immediately killed by an archer. He was succeeded by the Praetorian Prefect of the Guard, Macrinus.

Mythical king of Britain

Geoffrey of Monmouth lists Caracalla, named Bassianus in the Historia Regum Britanniae, as one of the kings of Britain following the death of Geta. This is partially true as Geta was well liked in the west when he was killed, and Caracalla probably exerted his power over the Britons harshly. In this account, Caracalla is listed as a half-brother of Geta through a Briton mother. This claim is highly criticized by historians. The text goes on to say that a general named Carausius was given ships to defend the British coastline and instead he rose up and defeated Caracalla; although it never states that Caracalla was killed in this battle, it does say that Caracalla fled from it. After this, Roman rule weakened considerably in Britain until it was fully restored by the Caesar Constantius Chlorus.

External links

- [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Historia_Augusta/Caracalla
- .html Life of Caracalla] (Historia Augusta at LacusCurtius: Latin text and English translation) ---- Category:Roman emperors Category:Roman emperors murdered by the Praetorian Guard Category:Severan Dynasty Category:Romans in Britain Category:British traditional history Category:186 births Category:217 deaths ko:카라칼라 ja:カラカラ

200

Events

- Jewish Eretz Yisraeli scholar Judah ha-Nasi compiles tracts of the Mishnah, beginning the creation of Talmudic law.
- Chinese warlord Cao Cao defeats Yuan Shao in the Battle of Guandu.
- The Classic age of Maya civilization begins.
- Sun Quan founds the Kingdom of Wu.

Births

- Diophantus, Greek mathematician
- Marcus Claudius Tacitus, Roman Emperor
- Valerian I, Roman Emperor

Deaths

- Sun Ce, elder brother of the founder of Wu Kingdom, Sun Quan Category:200 ko:200년

219

Events

- Legio III Gallica and IV Scythica are disbanded by Roman Emperor Elagabalus after their leaders, Verus and Gellius Maximus, rebel.
- Liu Bei declares himself King of Han Zhong
- Guan Yu, great general of Shu surrounded and defeated at Mai Castle

Births

Deaths

- Guan Yu, celebrated general of Liu Bei
- Guan Ping, son of Guan Yu
- Liu Zhang, former ruler of Yizhou
- Lü Meng, general of Sun Quan, planned Guan Yu's capture
- Xiahou Yuan, general and relative of Cao Cao
- Huang Zhong, veteran general of Lord Liu Bei
- Verus, Roman usurper, senator and commander of Legio III Gallica in Syria. Category:219 ko:219년

236

Events

- Pope Fabian succeeds Pope Anterus

Births

Deaths

- Pope Anterus
- Hippolytus, Christian author
- Zhang Zhao, Chinese official Category:236 ko:236년

Ancient Rome

Ancient Rome was a civilization that existed in Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East between 753 BC and its downfall in AD 476. For several centuries, the Romans controlled the whole of Western Europe, as well as the entire area surrounding the Mediterranean Sea and some of the area surrounding the Black Sea. Black Sea]]

History

Monarchy

Black Sea The city of Rome grew from settlements on and around the Palatine Hill, approximately eighteen miles from the Tyrrhenian Sea on the river Tiber. At this location the Tiber has an island where the river can be forded. Because of the river and the ford, Rome was at a crossroads of traffic and trade. In Roman legend, Rome was founded on 21 April 753 BC, by Romulus who, along with his brother Remus was suckled by a she-wolf. Romulus killed Remus in a quarrel over where their new city should be located. Romulus, whose name is said to have inspired Rome's name, was the first of seven Kings of Rome, the last of whom, Tarquin the Proud, was deposed in 510 BC or 509 BC when the Roman Republic was established. The mythical or semi-mythical kings are (in chronological order): Romulus, Numa Pompilius (Good King Numa), Tullus Hostilius, Ancus Marcius, Tarquinius Priscus, Servius Tullius, and Tarquinius Superbus (Tarquin the Proud).

Republic

Tarquinius Superbus The Roman Republic was established around 509 BC, according to later writers such as Titus Livius (Livy), when the king was driven out, and a system based on annually elected magistrates was established in the monarchy's place. The most important were the two consuls, who between them exercised executive authority, but had to contend with the Senate, which grew in size and power with the establishment of the Republic. The magistracies were originally restricted to patricians but were later opened to plebeians. The Romans gradually subdued the other peoples on the Italian peninsula, mostly related Italic tribes (of Indo-European stock) such as the Samnites and Sabines, but also the Etruscans. The last threat to Roman hegemony in Italy came when Tarentum, a major Greek colony, enlisted the aid of Pyrrhus of Epirus in 282 BC. The Romans secured their conquests by founding Roman colonies in strategic places. In the second half of the 3rd century BC, Rome clashed with Carthage in the first two Punic wars. These wars resulted in Rome's first overseas conquests, of Sicily and Iberia, and the rise of Rome as a significant imperial power. After defeating Macedon and the Seleucids in the 2nd century BC, the Romans became the undisputed masters of the Mediterranean. Internal strife now became the greatest threat to the Republic. The Senate, jealous of its own power, repeatedly blocked important land reforms. An unintended consequence of Gaius Marius's military reforms was that soldiers often had more loyalty to their commander than to the city, and a powerful general, such as Marius or his rival Lucius Cornelius Sulla, could hold the city and Senate to ransom. In the mid-1st century BC three men, Julius Caesar, Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus, and Marcus Licinius Crassus, formed a secret pact (the First Triumvirate) to control the Republic. After the conquest of Gaul a stand-off between Caesar and the Senate led to civil war, with Pompey leading the Senate's forces. Caesar emerged victorious and was made dictator for life. After Caesar's assassination a Second Triumvirate, consisting of Caesar's designated heir Octavian and his former supporters Mark Antony and Marcus Aemilius Lepidus, took power, but its members soon descended into a struggle for dominance. Lepidus was exiled to Circeii after attempting to coerce the highest position in the government through empty threats against Rome. When Octavian defeated Antony and queen Cleopatra of Egypt at the Battle of Actium in 31 BC he became the undisputed master of Rome. He assumed almost absolute power while retaining the pretence of Republican form of government. His designated successor, Tiberius, took power without bloodshed.

Empire

Tiberius, in AD 14, and in AD 117.]] After the reign of the first emperor, Augustus, the Empire was ruled by his relatives, the Julio-Claudian dynasty until the death of Nero in 69. The territorial expansion of the state continued and the empire remained secure despite some incompetent emperors. Their rule was followed by the Flavian dynasty. During the reign of the Five Good Emperors (AD 96-180) the Empire reached its zenith in terms of territory, economy and culture. The state was secure from both internal and external threats and the Pax Romana created prosperity. With the conquest of Dacia during the reign of Trajan the Empire saw the peak of its territorial expansion, at which point it covered 2.5 million square miles. The period between 180 and 235 was dominated by the rule of the Severan dynasty. The period saw some of the most incompetent rulers in the history of the Empire, Elagabalus being one of the most notorious ones. This and the increasing influence of the army to imperial succession were among the main reasons for a long period known as the Crisis of the 3rd Century. The crisis was ended by the competent rule of Diocletian, who in 293 divided the Empire into four parts ruled by two co-emperors, both aided by a junior emperor. This period is known as the Tetrarchy, and was the basis of the later East-West division of the Empire. The various co-rulers of the Empire competed and fought for supremacy for more than half a century. In 330 emperor Constantine I moved the capital to Byzantium. The empire was permanently divided into Eastern (Byzantine) and Western Empire in 364. The Western Empire was constantly harassed by barbarian invasions. In 410 the city of Rome itself was sacked. In 476 the Germanic chief Odoacer forced the last Roman emperor in the West, Romulus Augustus, to abdicate. Having lasted for approximately 1200 years the rule of Rome in the West came to an end. The Empire survived in the East as the Byzantine Empire.

Causes for the downfall of the Empire

:Main article: Decline of the Roman Empire The study of the Decline of the Roman Empire is a classic field of study in History. There are numerous theories as to the main cause for the decline, many of which are not mutually exclusive.
- According to a classic theory presented by Edward Gibbon in his book "The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire" (1788), Rome succumbed to barbarian invasions because of a loss of civic virtue among its citizens.
- Henri Pirenne published the "Pirenne Thesis" in the 1920s which holds that the Empire continued, in some form, up until the the Arab conquests, which disrupted trade routes, and thereby the European economy.
- A theory pioneered by Peter Brown maintains that the Empire never "fell", but transformed in a gradual process into medieval Europe.
- Historians such as Arnold J. Toynbee and James Burke argue that the Empire itself was a rotten system from its inception. The Romans had no budgetary system and relied on booty from conquered territories or on a pattern of taxation that bankrupted small-scale farmers. Financial needs continued to increase, but the means of meeting them steadily eroded.
- The historian Vegetius theorised and has recently been supported by Arther Ferrill that the Empire declined and as a result fell, due to a combination of increasing 'barbarization', as well as a surge in decadence and the following lethargy.
- Peter Turchin in War and Peace and War : The Life Cycles of Imperial Nations (2005) contends that empires, including Rome, fell because of inequalities within society resulting a lack of internal cooperation.

Legacy

Rome produced great generals, lawyers, and engineers, but no mathematicians or scientists and few artists of note. The legacy of Rome is primarily in the areas of language, law, warfare, and engineering.

Successor states

After the fall of the city of Rome and the Western Empire the state continued its existence as the Byzantine Empire, which is conventionally treated as a separate entity in history books. In addition, the Holy Roman Empire and Russia have claimed the "Roman" legacy after the fall of Constantinople (See Third Rome).

Military legacy

Before Rome, armies generally fought on the field of battle nature provided. The Romans built roads for troop movement, dug trenches, built seige engines, and introduced many other improvements in the art of war. It made them invincible, for a time. Generals today still study the Roman methods of waging war.

Linguistic legacy

One of the most enduring legacies of Rome is linguistic: Romance languages that evolved from Latin spoken in the Roman Empire are now spoken widely in Europe and Latin America, such as Portuguese, Spanish, French, Italian, Romanian, and Moldovan amongst others. Although English is a Germanic language, many English words derive from Latin roots, either directly from Roman occupation or through intermediary successor languages such as French. Latin remains the official language of the Vatican City and is studied and understood by scholars around the world. However, fluent speech in Latin is very rare in present day. This is mainly due to the differences between Latin's reliance upon inflection of words and modern Romance languages' reliance upon syntax, in addition to lack of use.

Cultural legacy

The art of Rome borrows heavily from Greece -- the Romans themselves looked to the Greeks as their artistic superiors, and stole or copied more than they created. Virgil's Aneid, by common consent the greatest Roman literary work, borrowed or plagarized from Greek epics. Thus most of our cultural legacy from Rome is Greek culture passed on. The only generally recognized original Roman contribution to our culture is comic theater, which has given us not only A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum but also the Three Stooges. Another Roman artform will be revived only if our extreme sports eventually go so far as to include battles to the death.

Legal legacy

The Roman law formed the basis of most of the legal systems of Europe and her colonies for hundreds of years and has been the direct inspiration for the Senate of the United States and other modern nations. In the Byzantine Empire, the codes of Justinian preserved the codes of Roman law and formed the basis of legal practice in Greece even after the fall of the Byzantine empire. In the West, Justinian’s codes were forgotten, but rediscovered in the 11th century. From that time, scholars began to study the ancient Roman legal texts, especially in Bologna. Many provisions of Roman law were better suited to regulate complex economic transactions than the customary rules of that time. Therefore Roman law began to be re-introduced into legal practice. By the middle of the 16th century, the Roman law dominated the legal practice in most European countries. The practical application of Roman law came to an end when national codifications were made. In the course of the 19th century, many European states either adopted the French civil code model or drafted their own codes. In some parts of Germany, Roman law continued to be applied until late 19th century.

Religion

19th century] Main articles: Roman mythology, Roman religion

Early Roman Religion

Archaic Roman "mythology", at least concerning the gods, was made up not of narratives, but rather of interlocking and complex interrelations between and among gods and humans. Gods were not personified, unlike in Ancient Greece. Romans also believed that every person, place or thing had their own genius (such as "Lares Familiares" - the family guardian spirits). Therefore the early Roman cult could be described as polydaemonism instead of polytheism. The Romans distinguished two classes of gods, the di indigetes and the de novensides or novensiles. The indigetes were the original gods of the Roman state (see List of Di Indigetes). The novensides were later divinities whose cults were introduced to the city in the historical period, usually in response to a specific crisis or need. At the head of the earliest pantheon were the triad Jupiter, Mars, and Quirinus. Their priests, or flamens, were senior to others. Later this triad was supplanted by the Capitoline Triad, Jupiter, Juno, and Minerva. During the Roman republic there was a strict system of priestly offices, of which the Pontifex maximus was the most important. Flamens took care of the cults of various gods, while augurs were trusted with taking the auspices. The rex sacrorum, or "sacrificial king" took on the religious responsibilities of the deposed kings.

Late republic and the empire

As contact with the Greeks increased, the old Roman gods became associated with Greek gods. Therefore Jupiter was perceived to be the same deity as Zeus. Mars was associated with Ares and Neptune with Poseidon. The Roman gods also assumed the attributes and myth of these Greek gods. The transference of the anthropomorphic qualities to Roman Gods, and the prevalence of Greek philosophy among well-educated Romans, brought about an increasing neglect of the old rites, and in the 1st century BC the religious importance of the old priestly offices declined rapidly, though their civic importance and political influence remained. Roman religion in the empire tended more and more to center on the imperial house, and several emperors were deified after their deaths.

Spread of Eastern Religions

Under the empire, numerous foreign cults grew popular, such as the worship of the Egyptian Isis and the Persian Mithras. Also, starting from the second century, Christianity began to spread in the Empire. Despite persecutions, Christianity steadily gained converts. It became an officially supported religion in the Roman state under Constantine I. All cults except Christianity were prohibited in AD 391 by an edict of Emperor Theodosius I.

Society

Classes

The free citizens of Rome were divided into two classes: patricians and plebeians. The patricians were the dominant social class, the plebeians much more numerous. Originally, only patricians could be elected to office. Intermarrying between the classes was forbidden and the patrician title could only be inherited, not earned. During the Roman Republic, a series of struggles led to increased rights for the plebeians, who were represented by tribunes. Tribunes had veto power over acts of the Senate. However, since voting was by tribes rather than by individuals, the vote of a plebeian never counted as much as the vote of a patrician. The patrician tribes voted first, and if they were united could attain a majority vote (by tribe) in which case the plebeian vote was not counted. Late in the Republic, the distinction between patricians and plebeians became less important, due to the rise of citizens whose power depended on wealth rather than family. Crassus, at one time the richest man in Rome, became council in spite of his plebeian birth. A new ruling class, the optimates, were those families, patrician or plebeian, who had produced a consul. The conservatives, led by Cicero, decried the power of the "upstarts" and spoke with contempt of anyone not born into the patrician class. A particular target of their wrath was Pompey, who dispite his great wealth, popularity, and military victories, was mocked for his crude manners and outlandish accent. During the empire, the class division fell into disuse and was largely forgotten. In the early Republic, citizens were also divided into classes according to the armament they could afford to buy for themselves for military service. The richest class was the equestrians or knights, who could afford a war horse. There were both patrician and plebeian equestrians. Later in the Republic, fixed amounts of wealth replaced military equipment as the basis of classification. Higher classes had more political power and prestige than lower classes. This system also lost its meaning after the abolition of the Republic. In the Late Republic, and under the Principate and emperors, Roman society was stratified according to wealth. The highest class was the Senatorial class, membership of which was maintained by the Censors and had a minimum property qualification of 1'000'000 Sesterces. It is worth noting that membership of the Senatorial class did not entail membership of the Senate. Members of the Senatorial class were prohibited from engaging directly in business and trade. They were permitted to receive an income from the possession of large agricultural estates. With a few exceptions, all political posts were filled with men from the Senatorial class. The second tier were the Equites. A through back to a military class of the Early Republic, membership of the Equites later required a property qualification of 400'000 Sesterces. Equites were allowed to engage in commerce and were often extremely wealthy. Petronius satirizes the wealth of the Equites class in the Satyricon. He descibes in details a sumptuous dinner party hosted by the disagreeable Knight Trimalchio. Certain political positions were filled by Equites: most notably under Principes, the head of the Praetorian Guard.

Family

The basic units of Roman society were households and families. Household included the head of the household (paterfamilias), his wife, children, and other relatives. In the upper classes slaves and servants were also part of the household. Romans certainly did not see the family as those of the suburban West do today - their family was more far reaching in definition. The head of the household had great power over those living with him: could force marriage and divorce, sell his children into slavery and possibly even had the right to kill family members (this has been recently disputed in academic circles). This particular manifestation of familial power was called "patria potestas", literally "fathers power". One interesting point of note is that wives did not always count as family, as they could choose to continue recognising their father's family as their true family, and not necessarily adopt their husband's family. Groups of related households formed a family (gens). Families were based on blood ties (or adoption), but were also political and economic alliances. Especially during the Roman Republic some powerful families, or Gentes Maiores came to dominate political life. Ancient Roman marriage was often regarded more as a financial and political alliance than as a romantic association, especially in the upper classes. Fathers usually began seeking husbands for their daughters when they reached an age between twelve and fourteen. The husband was almost always older than the bride. While upper class girls married very young, there is evidence that lower class women often married in their late teens or early twenties.

Economy

Ancient Roman marriage, a standardized silver coin (See also Roman currency).]] The early economy was largely dependent on slave labour, and slaves constituted around 20 percent of the population. A slave’s price was dependent on their skills, and a slave trained in medicine was equivalent to 50 agricultural slaves. In the later period, hired labour became more economical than slave ownership.

Finance

Although barter was common (and often used in tax collection) the monetary system was highly developed, with brass, bronze, and precious metal coins in circulation throughout the empire and beyond (some have been discovered in India). Before the 3rd Century BC, copper was traded by weight (in unmarked lumps) across Central Italy. The original copper coins (As) had a face value of a Roman pound of copper, but weighed less (according to Mommsen early coins weighed at most 312 g, but late second century BC As contained only 19 g of copper). Hence, Roman money's utility as a unit of exchange consistently exceeded its intrinsic value as metal; after Nero began debasing the silver Denarii, Mommsen estimated its legal value at one third greater than intrinsic (it was an offence to refuse payment in Denarii).

Trade

Horses were too expensive, and other pack animals too slow, for mass trade on the roman roads, which connected military posts (rather than markets) and were rarely designed for wheels. Therefore, there was little transport of commodities between Roman regions, until the rise of Roman maritime trade in the second century BC. During that period a trading vessel took less than a month to complete a trip from Gades to Alexandria via Ostia, spanning the entire length of the Mediterranean. The agricultural free trade changed the Italian landscape, and by the first century BC vast grape and olive estates had supplanted the yeoman farmers who were unable to match the imported grain price. The volume of trade was so great that a single mound of cargo pottery vessel fragments is over forty metres high and a kilometre around.

Culture

Literature

Roman literature was from its very inception influenced heavily by Greek authors. Some of the earliest works we possess are of historical epics telling the early military history of Rome. As the republic expanded, authors began to produce poetry, comedy, history and tragedy.

Epic Poetry

Virgil represents the pinnacle of Roman epic poetry. His Aeneid was produced at the request of Maecenas and tells the story of flight of Aeneas from Troy and his settlement of the city that would become Rome. Lucretius, in his On the Nature of Things, attempted to explicate science in an epic poem. Some of his science seems remarkably modern, other ideas, especially his theory of light, are no longer accepted. Later Ovid produced his Metamorphoses, written in hexameter verse, the meter of epic, attempting a complete mythology from the creation of the earth to his own time. He unifies his subject matter through the theme of metamorphosis. It was noted in classical times that Ovid's work lacked the gravitas possessed by traditional epic poetry.

Shorter Poems

Catullus and his set of neoteric poets produced poetry following the Alexandrian model, which experimented with poetic forms challenging tradition. He was also the first Roman poet to produce love poetry, seemingly autobiographical, which depicts an affair with a woman called Lesbia. Under the Emperor Augustus, Horace continued the tradition of shorter poems, with his Odes and Epodes. Martial, writing under the Emperor Domitian, was a famed author of epigrams, poems which were often abusive and censured piblic figures.

Drama

The genre of satire was traditionally regarded as a Roman innovation and satiric plays were written by, among others, Juvenal. Some of the most popular plays of the early Republic were comedies, especially those of Terence, a freed Roman slave captured during the First Punic War.

Letters

A great deal of the literary work produced by Roman authors in the early Republic was political or satirical in nature. The rhetorical works of Cicero, in particular, were popular.

Visual arts

Most of the first styles of Roman painting came from the Etruscan influences. The Etruscan practice of painting for political reasons continued in Rome. In the 3rd century BC as the Romans contact with Greece continued Greek art was taken as booty from wars. The Greek art became popular with the Romans. Many landscapes from Greek artists decorated many of Roman houses. Although Greek influence was popular in Roman Paintings discoveries in Pompeii showed that Romans used a wide variety of styles for thier paintings. One of first roman style was known as "Incrustation", where interior walls of houses were painted like colored marble. Another style was to paint the interiors like open landscapes with higly detailed scenes of plants, animals, and buildings. Although the Romans acquired their artistic traditions from Greece, they also played a very important role in the development of art. The Romans created an atmosphere with an appreciation of the arts that allowed for the continuation of artistic development, inspiration, and ideas. Portrait sculpture during the period depited youthful and classical porportions. Later the sculptures were a mixture of realist and idealist. During the Antonine and Severan periods deeper cuts and drilling creded more ornate hair and beards. Advancements were made in relief sculptures and usually depicted in victories of the Romans.

Education

The goal of education in Rome was to make the students effective speakers. School started on March 24^th each year. Every school day started in early morning and continued throughout the afternoon. Originally, boys were taught to read and write by their father, or by educated slaves, usually of Greek origin. Village schools were also established. Later, around 200 BC, boys and some girls were sent to schools outside the home around age 6. Basic Roman education included reading, writing, and counting, and their materials consisted of scrolls and books. At age 13, students learned about Greek and Roman literature and grammar in school. At age 16, some students went on to rhetoric school. Poorer people did not go to school, but were usually taught by their parents because school was not free.

Architecture and technology

Construction technology and engineering

Roads

rhetoric to the Southern parts of Italy remains usable even today.]] The Romans primarily built roads for military purposes. They allowed the legions to be rapidly deployed in far reaches of the realm. However, their economic importance was also significant. At its largest extent the total length of the Roman road network was 85 000 km (53 000 miles). Way stations providing refreshments were maintained by the goverment at regular intervals along the roads. A separate system of changing stations for official and private couriers was also maintained. This allowed a dispatch to travel a maximum of 800 km (500 miles) in 24 hours by using a relay of horses. The roads were constructed by digging a pit along the length of the intended course, often to bedrock. The pit was first filled with rocks, gravel or sand and then a layer of concrete. Finally they were paved with polygonal rock slabs. Bridges were constructed over waterways. The roads were resistant to floods and other environmental hazards. After the fall of the Roman empire the roads were still usable and used for more than 1000 years.

Aqueducts

bedrock is a Roman aqueduct built in ca. 19 BC. It is one of France's top tourist attractions and a World Heritage Site.]] The Romans constructed numerous aqueducts to supply water to cities and industrial sites. The city of Rome itself was supplied by eleven aqueducts with combined length of 350 km (260 miles). Most aqueducts were constructed below the surface with only small portions above ground supported by arches. The longest Roman aqueduct, 141 km (87 miles) in length, was built to supply the city of Carthage. Roman aqueducts were built to remarkably fine tolerances, and to a technological standard that was not to be equaled until modern times. Powered entirely by gravity, they transported very large amounts of water very efficiently. Sometimes, where depressions deeper than 50 m had to be crossed, inverted siphons were used to force water uphill.

Baths

The baths served hygienic, social and cultural functions. The baths contained three main facilities for bathing. After undressing in the apodyterium or changing room, Romans would proceed to the tepidarium or warm room. In the moderate dry heat of the tepidarium, some performed warm-up exercises and stretched while others oiled themselves or had slaves oil them. The tepidarium’s main purpose was to promote sweating to prepare for the next room, the caldarium or hot room. The caldarium, unlike the tepidarium, was extremely humid and hot. Temperatures in the caldarium could reach 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit). Many contained steam baths and a cold-water fountain known as the labrum. The last room was the frigidarium or cold room, which offered a cold bath for cooling off after the caldarium.

Government

Roman Kingdom

Initially Rome was ruled by elected kings. The exact nature of the King's power is uncertain. He may have held near-absolute power, or may also have been just the chief executive of the Senate and the people. At least in military matters, the King's authority (imperium) was probably absolute. He was also the head of the state religion. In addition to the authority of the King, there were three administrative assemblies. The Senate acted as an advisory body for the King. The Curiate Assembly could pass laws suggested by the King and may have provided advise on succession. The Comitia Calata was mainly an assembly of the people to witness certain acts and hear proclamations.

Roman Republic

The class struggles of the Roman Republic resulted in an unusual mixture of democracy and oligarchy. Roman laws traditionally could only be passed by a vote of the Popular assembly. Likewise candidates for public positions had to run for election by the people. The Roman Senate represented an oligarchic insitution, which acted as an advisory body and issued its desicions in Senatus Consulta. The Republic had no fixed bureaucracy and only collected war taxes. Private citizens aspiring to high office largely paid for public works. In order to prevent any citizen gaining too much power, new magistrates were elected annually and had to share power with a colleague. For example, under normal conditions the highest authority was held by two consuls. In an emergency, a temporary dictator could be appointed. During the Republic, the administrative system was revised several times to comply with new demands. In the end, it proved inefficient for controlling the vastly expanded empire. This was one of the reasons for the birth of the Roman Empire.

Roman Empire

Central government

In the early Empire the pretence of a republican form of government was maintained and the emperor was portrayed as only a "first citizen". Initially the Senate retained a degree of influence. However, the rule of the emperors became increasingly autocratic and the Senate was reduced to an advisory body appointed by the emperor. The Roman Empire did not inherit a set bureaucracy from the Republic, since the Republic did not have any permanent governmental structures apart from the Senate. The Emperor appointed assistants and advisors, but the state lacked many institutions, such as centrally planned budget. This is cited by some historians as a significant reason for the Decline of the Roman Empire.

Local government

The territory of the Empire was divided into provinces. The number of provinces increased with time as new territories were conquered, but also as provinces were divided into smaller units to discourage rebellions by powerful local rulers . Initially the provinces were divided into imperial and senatorial provinces, depending on which institution had the right to select the governor. During the Tetrarchy, the provinces of the empire were divided into 12 dioceses, each headed by a praetor vicarius. The civilian and military authority were separated, with civilian matters still administred by the governor, but with military command transferred to a dux.

Senate

The Roman Senate was an advisory body consisting of some of the most influential citizens. In the Roman Republic, it held great authority (auctoritas in Latin), but no actual legislative power (imperium). However, as the senators were individually very influential, it was difficult to accomplish anything against the collective will of the Senate. In the Roman Republic the Censors chose new members for the Senate among the most accomplished citizens. They could also remove a senator from his office if he was found morally corrupt. Later, membership in the Senate followed from the election as a quaestor. In the Roman Empire, the Emperor appointed senators, although for much of the time of the Empire, elections were still held, and the results followed. However, this veil of democracy, created by Augustus at the beginning of the transformation from Republic to Empire, was deceiving. In reality, no one disliked by the Emperor could stand. Furthermore, when there was a competitive election, the Emperor would issue his opinion on who should be elected, usually sealing the outcome.

Military

The early Roman army was, like those of other contemporary city-states, a citizen force where the bulk of the troops fought as hoplites. The soldiers were required to supply their own arms and would return to civilian life once their service was ended. The first of the great army reformers, Camillus, reorganized the army to adopt manipular tactics and divided the infantry into three lines: hastati, principes and triarii. The middle class smallholders had traditionally been the backbone of the Roman army but, by the end of the 2nd century BC, the self-owning farmer had largely disappeared as a social class. Faced with acute manpower problems, Gaius Marius transformed the army into a fully professional force and accepted recruits from the lower classes. The last army reorganization came when Emperor Constantine I divided the army into a static defense force and a mobile field army. During the Late Empire, Rome also became increasingly dependent upon allied contingents, foederati.

External links

- [http://www.crystalinks.com/rome.html Ancient Rome info]
- [http://www.exovedate.com/ancient_timeline_one.html Ancient Roman History Timeline]
- [http://www.historylink101.com/ancient_rome.htm Ancient Rome pictures, art, and info] Link: [http://www.forumromanum.org/life/johnston_intro.html The Private Life of the Romans by Harold Whetstone Johnston]

References

Ancient sources

# "Vitae Caesarum" by Suetonius, 2nd century # "Ab urbe condita" by Titus Livius, ca. AD 5 # [http://www.uvm.edu/~rrodgers/Frontinus.html "De Aquaeductu Urbis Romae"] by Sextus Julius Frontinus (On the water management of the city of Rome, translated by R. H. Rodgers, 2003, University of Vermont) (retrieved November 22, 2005)

Pre-20th century sources

# "The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire" by Edward Gibbon, 1788

Modern sources

# "The Penguin Historical Atlas of Ancient Rome" by Chris Scarre, Penguin Books 1995 # [http://www.forumromanum.org/life/johnston_intro.html "The Private Life of the Romans"] by Harold Whetstone Johnston, 1903 (retrieved November 13, 2005) # "The Punic Wars" by Nigel Bagnall, Thomas Dunne Books 1990 # "Rooman konsulit" ("The Consuls of Rome") by Pekka Tuomisto, Karisto 2002 # "War and Peace and War : The Life Cycles of Imperial Nations" by Peter Turchin, Pearson Education/PI Press (2005) # "Cäsar" by Christian Meier, Severin und Siedler 1982 (English translation "Caesar", HarperCollins Publishers 1995) # [http://www.waterhistory.org/histories/rome/ "Waterhistory.org"], website maintained by the ([http://www.iwha.net International Water History Association]) (retrieved November 22, 2005)
- ja:古代ローマ

Currency

:For current exchange rates, see Exchange links. A currency is a unit of exchange, facilitating the transfer of goods and services. It is a form of money, where money is defined as a medium of exchange (rather than e.g. a store of value). A currency zone is a country or region in which a specific currency is the dominant medium of exchange. To facilitate trade between currency zones, there are exchange rates i.e. prices at which currencies (and the goods and services of individual currency zones) can be exchanged against each other. Currencies can be classified as either floating currencies or fixed currencies based on their exchange rate regime. In common usage, currency sometimes refers to only paper money, as in "coins and currency", but this is incorrect. Coins and paper money are both forms of currency. In most cases, each country has monopoly control over its own currency. Member countries of the European Monetary Union are a notable exception to this rule, as they have ceded control of monetary policy to the European Central Bank. In cases where a country does have control of its own currency, that control is exercised either by a Central Bank or by a Ministry of Finance. In either case, the institution that has control of monetary policy is referred to as the monetary authority. Monetary authorities have varying degrees of autonomy from the governments that create them. In the United States, the Federal Reserve operates with full independence from the government. It is important to note that a monetary authority is created and supported by its sponsoring government, so independence can be reduced or revoked by the legislative or executive authority that creates it. In almost all Western countries, the monetary authority is largely independent from the government. Several countries can use the same name, each for their own currency (e.g. Canadian dollars and US dollars), several countries can use the same currency (e.g. the euro), or a country can declare the currency of another country to be legal tender. For example, Panama and El Salvador have declared US currency to be legal tender, and from 1791-1857, Spanish silver coins were legal tender in the United States. At various times countries have either restamped foreign coins, or used currency board issuing one note of currency for each note of a foreign government held, as Ecuador currently does. Each currency typically has one fractional currency, often valued at 1/100 of the main currency: 100 cents = 1 dollar, 100 centimes = 1 franc, 100 pence = 1 pound. Units of 1/10 or 1/1000 are also common, but some currencies do not have any smaller units. Mauritania and Madagascar are the only remaining countries that do not use the decimal system; instead, the Mauritanian ouguiya is divided into 5 khoum, while the Malagasy ariary is divided into 5 iraimbilanja. However, due to inflation, both fractional units have in practice fallen into disuse. See Non-decimal currencies for other (mostly historic) currencies with non-decimal divisions.

History

Early Currency

The origin of currency is the creation of a circulating medium of exchange based on a store of value. Currency evolved from two basic innovations: the use of counters to assure that shipments arrived with the same goods that were shipped, and the use of silver ingots to represent stored value in the form of grain. Both of these developments had occurred by 2000 BC. This first stage of currency, where metals were used to represent stored value, and symbols to represent commodities, formed the basis of trade in the Fertile Crescent for over 1500 years. However, the collapse of the Near Eastern trading system pointed to a flaw: in an era where there was no place that was safe to store value, the value of a circulating medium could only be as sound as the forces that defended that store. Trade could only reach as far as the credibility of that military.

Coinage

These factors led to the shift of the store of value being the metal itself: at first silver, then both silver and gold. Metals were mined, weighed, and stamped into coins. This was to assure the individual taking the coin that he was getting a certain known weight of precious metal. Coins could be counterfeited, but they also created a new unit of account, which helped lead to banking. It was with Archimedes' principle that the next link in currency occurred: coins could now be easily tested for their fine weight of metal, and thus the value of a coin could be determined, even if it had been shaved, debased or otherwise tampered with. (See Coinage). In most major economies using coinage, copper, silver and gold formed three tiers of coins. Gold coins were used for large purchases, payment of the military and backing of state activities. Silver coins were used for large, but common, transactions, and as a unit of account for taxes, dues, contracts and fealty, while copper coins represented the coinage of common transaction. In Europe this system worked through the medieval period because there was virtually no new gold, silver or copper introduced through mining or conquest. Thus the overall ratios of the three coinages remained roughly equivalent. In China, however, the need for credit and for circulating medium led to the introduction of paper money. In Europe paper money was first introduced in Sweden 1661. Sweden was rich on copper but because of copper's low value extraordinarily big coins had to be made. It was probably more convenient to have a note stating your possession of such a coin.

The Era of Hard and Credit Money

Paper money was, in one sense, a return to the oldest form of currency: it represented a store of value backed by the credibility of the issuing authority. Drafts and checks issued privately had been in intermittent use for centuries, however, it was with the rise of global trade that paper money would find a permanent place in currency. The advantages of paper currency were numerous: it reduced transport of gold and silver, and thus lowered the risks; it made loaning gold or silver at interest easier, since the specie (gold or silver) never left the possession of the lender until someone else redeemed the note; and it allowed for a division of currency into credit and specie backed forms. It enabled the sale of stock in joint stock companies, and the redemption of those shares in paper. However, these advantages held within them disadvantages. First, since a note has no intrinsic value, there was nothing to stop issuing authorities from printing more of it than they had specie to back it with. Second, because it created money that did not exist, it was subject to Gresham's Law: people would exchange money rather than coins of the same value, and this increased the velocity of money and therefore increased inflationary pressures, a fact observed by David Hume in the 18th century. The result is that paper money would often lead to an inflationary bubble, which would then collapse when the demand for paper notes fell to zero, and people began demanding hard money. The printing of paper money was also associated with wars, and financing of wars, and therefore regarded as part of maintaining a standing army. For these reasons, paper currency was held in suspicion and hostility in Europe and America. It was also addictive, since the speculative profits of trade and capital creation were quite large. Major nations established mints to print money and mint coins, and branches of their treasury to collect taxes and hold gold and silver stock.

Legal Tender Era

With the creation of central banks, currency underwent several significant changes. During both the coinage and credit money eras the number of entities which had the ability to coin or print money was quite large. One could, literally, have "a license to print money"; many nobles had the right of coinage. Royal colonial companies, such as the Massachusetts Bay Company or the British East India Company could issue notes of credit—money backed by the promise to pay later, or exchangeable for payments owed to the company itself. This led to continual instability of the value of money. The exposure of coins to debasement and shaving, however, presented the same problem in another form: with each pair of hands a coin passed through, its value grew less. The solution which evolved beginning in the late 18th century and through the 19th century was the creation of a central monetary authority which had a virtual monopoly on issuing currency, and whose notes had to be accepted for "all debts public and private". The creation of a truly national currency, backed by the government's store of precious metals, and enforced by their military and governmental control over an area was, in its time, extremely controversial. Advocates of the old system of Free Banking repealed central banking laws, or slowed down the adoption of restrictions on local currency. (See Gold standard for a fuller discussion of the creation of a standard gold based currency). At this time both silver and gold were considered legal tender, and accepted by governments for taxes. However, the instability in the ratio between the two grew over the course of the 19th century, with the increase both in supply of these metals, particularly silver, and of trade. This is called bimetallism and the attempt to create a bimetallic standard where both gold and silver backed currency remained in circulation occupied the efforts of inflationists. Governments at this point could use currency as an instrument of policy, printing paper currency such as the United States Greenback, to pay for military expenditures. They could also set the terms at which they would redeem notes for specie, by limiting the amount of purchase, or the minimum amount that could be redeemed. By 1900, most of the industrializing nations were on some form of gold standard, with paper notes and silver coins constituting the circulating medium. Governments too followed Gresham's Law: keeping gold and silver paid, but paying out in notes.

The Paper Money Era

See the history of paper money.

Modern currencies

To find out which currency is used in a particular country, start at the countries of the world or look at the table of historical exchange rates. Nowadays ISO have introduced a system, ISO 4217, using three-letter codes to define currency (as opposed to simple names or currency signs), in order to remove the confusion that there are dozens of currencies called the dollar and many called the franc. Even the pound is used in nearly a dozen different countries, all, of course, with wildly differing values. In general, the three-letter code uses the ISO 3166-1 country code for the first two letters and the first letter of the name of the currency (D for dollar, for instance) as the third letter. The International Monetary Fund uses a variant system when referring to national currencies. :For exchange rates, see here. See Non-decimal currencies

Currency names

Currency names of the world in alphabetic order by currency name:

A-E

- Afghani - Afghanistan
- Ariary - Madagascar
- Baht - Thailand
- Balboa - Panama (U.S. dollar used for paper money)
- Birr - Ethiopia
- Bolívar - Venezuela
- Boliviano - Bolivia
- Cedi - Ghana
- Colón - Costa Rica
- Córdoba - Nicaragua
- Dalasi - The Gambia
- Denar - Macedonia
- Dinar
- Algerian dinar - Algeria
- Bahraini dinar - Bahrain
- Iraqi dinar - Iraq
- Jordanian dinar - Jordan, Palestine
- Kuwaiti dinar - Kuwait
- Libyan dinar - Libya
- Tunisian dinar - Tunisia
- Serbian dinar - Serbia
- Sudanese dinar - Sudan
- Dirham
- Moroccan dirham
- United Arab Emirates dirham
- Dobra - São Tomé and Príncipe
- Dollar
- Australian dollar - Australia, Christmas Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Heard Island and McDonald Islands, Norfolk Island, Kiribati, Nauru and Tuvalu
- Barbados dollar - Barbados
- Bahamian dollar - Bahama
- Belize dollar - Belize
- Bermuda dollar - Bermuda
- Brunei dollar - Brunei
- Canadian dollar - Canada
- Cayman Islands dollar - Cayman Islands
- East Caribbean dollar - Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Grenada, Montserrat, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
- Fijian dollar - Fiji
- Guyanese dollar - Guyana
- Hong Kong dollar - Hong Kong
- International dollar - hypothetical currency pegged 1:1 to the United States dollar
- Jamaican dollar - Jamaica
- Liberian dollar - Liberia
- Namibian dollar - Namibia
- New Zealand dollar - New Zealand, Cook Islands, Niue, Tokelau, Pitcairn Islands.
- Singapore dollar - Singapore
- Solomon Islands dollar - Solomon Islands
- Suriname dollar - Suriname
- New Taiwan dollar - Taiwan
- Trinidad and Tobago dollar - Trinidad and Tobago
- Tuvaluan dollar - Tuvalu (not an independent currency, equivalent to Australian dollar)
- United States dollar - United States of America; also used officially in several other countries: East Timor (has own centavo coins), Ecuador (has own centavo coins), El Salvador, Marshall Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Palau and Panama (has own Balboa currency)
- Zimbabwe dollar - Zimbabwe
- Dong - Vietnam
- Dram - Armenia
- Escudo - Cape Verde
- Euro - Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Portugal, Spain
- Countries that have made legal agreements with the EU to use the euro: Monaco, San Marino, Vatican City
- Territories that unilaterally use the euro: Andorra, Montenegro, Kosovo
- Currencies pegged to the euro: Cape Verdean escudo, CFA franc, CFP franc, Comorian franc, Bulgarian lev, Estonian kroon, Lithuanian litas, Bosnia and Herzegovina convertible mark

F-M

- Florin - Aruba
- Forint - Hungary
- Franc
- CFA franc - Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Côte d'Ivoire, Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Niger, Senegal, Togo
- CFP franc - New Caledonia, French Polynesia, Wallis and Futuna
- Comorian franc - Comoros
- Congolese franc - Democratic Republic of Congo (replaced in 1967, re-established in 1998)
- Burundi franc - Burundi
- Rwandan franc - Rwanda
- Djiboutian franc - Djibouti
- Guinean franc - Guinea (replaced in 1971, re-established in 1985)
- Malagasy franc - Madagascar (replaced by Ariary in 2004)
- Swiss franc - Switzerland, Liechtenstein.
- Gourde - Haiti
- Guaraní - Paraguay
- Gulden - Netherlands Antilles
- Hryvnia - Ukraine
- Kina - Papua New Guinea
- Kip - Laos
- Koruna
- Czech koruna - Czech Republic
- Slovak koruna - Slovakia
- Kroon - Estonia
- Króna
- Faroese króna (not an independent currency, equivalent to Danish krone)
- Icelandic króna
-