This is what really created a glorious Roman empire

Although the Roman Empire had collapsed from more than 1500 years ago, the tangible and intangible heritage it left still exists today.

With the best craftsmen, architects and engineers, and the great progress in technology at that time, they built a school of civilization that existed at the same time. Let us find out, what are the key inventions that help create such a glorious era.

Water bridge

This aqueduct system uses gravity to transport water through pre-dug waterways.

The Romans seem to have a special interest in public buildings: public toilets, public baths, fountains . But these designs can very well stop at the idea level. , if the innovation of the water transmission system is not born. First appeared around 312 BC, this aqueduct system used gravity to transport water through pre-excavated waterways. Water from there is transported directly from the river and lake to the Roman center, then distributed everywhere thanks to piping and sewer systems. This water bridge system has helped the Roman Empire become less dependent on water resources along rivers and lakes.

Hundreds of bridges quickly covered the entire Roman empire, thus providing water for domestic use and agricultural systems. There are bridges that transport water at distances up to 60 miles. Many water bridges are so well designed that they still exist today.

Concrete

Appeared about 2100 years ago, this type of concrete appears in all architectural details.

Many ancient Roman architectural works still stand up to this day thanks to the presence of this construction material. Appeared about 2100 years ago, this type of concrete appears in every architectural detail, from a water bridge system to buildings, bridges, and even grandiose monuments.

Roman concrete is believed to be weaker in force than modern concrete, but it has proved to be surprisingly sustainable thanks to its main constituent being a mixture of cement mortar and limestone and volcanic ash. This unique formula proves its worth, as evidenced by the ancient Roman works still staggering despite its thousands of years of history.

Newspapers

Daily news is extremely popular in ancient Roman society.

The concept of Acta Diurna , which means 'daily news' has become extremely popular in ancient Roman society. This concept first appeared around 131 BC, and it included news related to important victories, fixture schedules as well as candidates in the tournament, and even sensational news about celebrities.

Even political information is issued in the form of Acta Senatus, however, this information is not publicly available in the public. It was not until 59 BC that Julius Caesar began to circulate these sources widely.

Social assistance

Social assistance programs have been around since about 122 BC.

The political model of the ancient Roman empire is an endless source of ideas for more advanced models later on. One of them is how to ensure the minimum needs for food, education and other needs for all their citizens. Social assistance programs have been around since about 122 BC, when Gaius Gracchus enacted the Lex Frumentaria Act, forcing the government to support the poor in buying cheap rice. Trajan continues to develop and expand this policy, by supporting both food, clothing and education for children from poor households and orphans.

Very quickly, corn, oil, wine, bread and meat were included in the list of price-controlled necessities to support disadvantaged families and individuals. This helped the Roman government win over the sentiment of the people, but it was this "overprivileged" regime that was also a cause of the collapse of the ancient Roman government.

Book of episodes

The first book pages were made of wax, but then they were replaced with parchment.

During a long period of time, documents were presented in the form of cards and scrolls. It was the Romans who were pioneers in overlapping pages and gave birth to what is considered the first book in human history. The first book pages were made of wax, but then they were replaced with parchment.

The bookbinding technique was quickly adopted by Christians, and this is also the premise for the birth of one of the famous ancient books: the Bible.

Roads and highways

Many ancient Roman roads still exist today.

While in the prosperous period, the ancient Roman empire covered its power almost to Southern Europe, with a total area of ​​nearly 1.7 million square meters. To ensure effective rule over such a large area, the Romans built the largest and most sophisticated transportation network that the human race ever witnessed. Many of those ancient Roman roads still exist today.

Ancient Roman engineers followed strict standards in design and construction. And by 200 AD, in total, they had created more than 50,000 miles (81,000 km) of roads, mainly for the conquest of the Roman army. These roads allow their armies to travel at speeds of up to 25 miles (40km) each day.

These roads are also managed in a way that is quite similar to today: landmarks and signposts provide information about the distance to some locations, and there are special armies that act as patrols. often on these routes.

Roman arch

The arch design is a typical feature of the ancient Roman architectural style.

The dome concept has been around for about 4,000 years, but it was the Romans who turned it into detail in every design. Thanks to the arch design, the gravity of the entire building will be distributed evenly along the bearing details, thereby helping the massive buildings like the Colosseum do not fall down on their own enormous weight.

Ancient Roman engineers improved this dome design by turning them into segmented dome designs, and applying them to countless bearing details. As a result, the bearing section will be extended and help the design such as bridges, bridges or water bridges become more stable. Along with the column design, arch design has become a typical feature of ancient Roman architectural style.

Julian calendar

Julian calendar is based on how the solar calendar is calculated.

The calendar type that we still use is actually derived from an ancient Roman calendar, with a lifespan of 2,000 years. From the beginning, the Romans applied the calendar of the Greeks based on the moon phases, but because of the misfortune of even numbers, they changed the way of calculating the calendar to ensure that each month had number of odd days. This calculation lasted until 46 AD, when Julius Caesar and astronomer Sosigenes published the Julian calendar, based on the solar orbit.

Caesar lasted 1 year from 355 days to 365 days and 12 months. This seems to be the perfect calendar, but it still has a difference of 11 minutes every year. Until 1582, the Gregorian calendar was born, correcting these deviations and becoming the most popular calendar to this day.

Law 12 tables

Rule 12 clearly states the laws of property, religion and marriage.

Rule 12 is the foundation of the early democratic democracy of ancient Rome. Officially applied in 450 AD, the 12th law states clearly the laws on property, religion and marriage, and lists penalties for all types of crimes, from theft to practice. heresy magic.

When the Roman Empire collapsed, these laws still maintained a strong influence on other institutions. Along with English law and Sharia law, ancient Roman laws were the basic element that constituted the civil law of most European countries as well as the United States.