Why did the Romans trade?

Answer 1

The Romans promoted trade in their empire. They favoured private enterprise and encouraged production for the market. They taxation regime was mild and was not a constraint of business. They built infrastructure which facilitated communication and trade and agricultural production: roads, bridges, ports, dams for flood control and irrigation and irrigation canals. They also built aqueducts to bring fresh water from the sources on the mountains to the towns.

The Romans developed thriving trading networks which reached every corner of the empire and beyond. There was also trade with the Arabs, Persia, India, China, Ethiopia Germany and Poland. The equites (equestrians, cavalrymen) was a Roman class of bankers, moneylenders, merchants and investors in shipping.

The city of Rome grew into the largest city in the world and acted as a hub for trade. It imported massive amounts of grain to feel its large population. Half of this came from Egypt. Tunisia, Sicily and Sardinia were also major producers. Large quantities of olive oil were also imported. Much of this came from Spain. Large amount of wine came from Italy, Gaul, Spain, Greece and Turkey. Marble, porphyry and granite were imported for construction from Italy, Greece, Turkey and Egypt. Gold was imported from Spain and Romania, silver from Spain, tine and led from Britain. Egypt and Turkey exported cotton and linen. Silk was imported from China and spices and other luxury good from India.

Answer 2

The Romans traded for the same reasons as everyone else in the world and throughout history trade: to exchange goods and to make money out of this. Trade thrived because the Romans had a large empire which developed throughout the empire and beyond (Arabia, Persia, India, China, Ethiopia, Germany and Poland). The empire acted as a common economic area for the many ethnicities which lived in it and the Roman currency provided a common currency. The conquered peoples of the empire benefitted from the prosperity brought by thriving trade. Trade almost collapsed in the third century A.D. because of many raids into the empire by peoples who lived near it, many civil wars and the negative effect of the devaluation of the Roman coins. Later, trade recovered, but not to the previous levels.

Answer 3

Roman trade was so successful because the integration of the Roman provinces into the vast Roman Empire and the two hundred years of relative political stability in the empire (the Pax Romana) encouraged the development of extensive trade networks where the many areas of the empire traded with each other. Being under a uniform (imperial) administrative system and the use of the Roman currency throughout the empire was also helpful. The empire acted as a large trading union.

The Romans also actively encouraged the development of trade. The clearest example of this was Egypt, where the Romans encouraged the development of private enterprise to promote an increase in commercial production of agricultural goods and manufactures and built irrigation and communication canals. The Romans built extensive infrastructure to facilitate trade. The road network of the empire totalled 400,000 kilometres (250,000 miles). A survey of Roman bridges found 931 bridges around the area of empire. The number of aqueducts was 864. New ports were built and some of the existing ports were enlarged.

The most important commodity was grain which was needed to feed Rome's enormous population. Egypt supplied half of this. Other major producers were Tunisia, Sicily and Sardinia.

Spain exported gold, silver and other metals, olive oil, timber and horses. Gaul exported glass, wine and wool. Britannia exported metals and wool. Turkey and Syria exported timber, wool, olive oil, wine and horses. Greece exported manufactures. Egypt exported cotton, linen, papyrus, ivory, gemstones, ebony, ostrich feathers, leopard skins, lions, leopards and elephants.

Roman trade also reached Arabia, which exported incense and spices, Persia, which acted as an intermediary for the trade with China and India, China, which exported silk, and India which exported spices, herbs, sesame oil, sugar, limes, peaches, ebony, pearls and wild animals (tigers, rhinos, elephants, and snakes which were used for circus-type animal acts) and Ethiopia, which exported ebony and Ivory.

Answer 4

Secure borders and government which encouraged improved living standards promoted prosperity and the exchange of goods.

Answer 5

Imperial control led to peace and security, under which production and trade grew with increasing prosperity.