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Wars with the Samnites not very far to the south of Rome led the Romans to seek hegemony over Central Italy and part of the south. Victory over an attempt to invade Italy by a Greek king led to conquest of the rest of the south. Concerns about Gallic threats led to expansion in the north. War with Carthage (in Tunisia) led to control to the western Mediterranean. War with the king of Macedon in Greece was waged out of worries about his alliance with Carthage. This then led to Rome being drawn into Greece as an arbitrators for dispute between Greek states and more wars. Rome then decided to take over. Troubles with kings in Turkey led to expansion in that area and this was followed by conquest of Syria, Lebanon and Palestine. The conquest of Gaul was linked to worries about attacks on Roman territories in the south cast of France. Egypt was conquered as a result of Cleopatra's involvement with with Antony a Roman ruler who got caught in a civil war which he lost and led her to loose her kingdom to the winner of the war. At one point it became as natural for Roman rulers to seek war and conquest.
There are not simple reason for Rome's conquests. it was a process that unfolded over time and the driving forces changed with changing circumstances. In short, there are no simple explanations.
Wiki User
∙ 11y ago
Wiki User
∙ 10y agoFirst of all a clarification. Countries in the modern sense of the word (nation-states) did not exist in antiquity. There were three main types of state formations: kingdoms and empires, territories of ethnic groups named after the group. or city-states. The ethnic areas could be county-like or regional in size. They could be non-unified areas which were collections of city states or where each tribe had its own state or unified as federations of tribes. The size of city-states varied from district-type (a town and its surrounding countryside and villages) to region-wide territories which included subject towns.
Rome's expansion was very gradual and occurred over some 450 years. Its reasons varied from time to time.
The earlier expansion of Rome, During the Roman Republic, mainly was the result of wars. Rome gained control of the mountains of central and southern Italy by defeating the Samnites of southern Italy and their allies in the three Samnite Wars and having then to make military alliances with them. She took over the Greek city states of the heel and toe of Italy as a result of defeating an attempt to invade Italy by a Greek king (Pyrrhus). By winning the three Punic Wars against Carthage, Rome seized her territories: Sicily, Sardinia and Corsica (1st war), southern Spain (war) and Tunisia and western Lydia (3rd war). The Romans conquered northern Italy because its Gaul inhabitants attacked them. She fought wars with the Illyrians of the eastern coast the Adriatic Sea and turned them into client states because they engaged in piracy.
Rome fought a war against Macedon, the largest and dominant state in mainland Greece because it wanted to take over some areas of Illyria which were Roman-control. She then got drawn into further Greek wars to support her Greek allies in wars between Greek states. As a result of this she decided to annex mainland Greece. In western Turkey the kings of Pergamon and the king of Bithynia bequeathed their kingdom to Rome and two states in central Turkey (Galatia and Cappadocia) became Roman allies because the Romans had defeated their previous master in one in a war against them. She fought three Mithridatic Wars in Eastern Turkey because the kingdoms of Pontus and Armenia were trying to expand at the expense of their two mentioned allies. After her final victory Rome turned Pontus and Armenia into client states. She also annexed Syria because the kingdom there was decaying and there was civil war. Rome wanted stability in the area.
Julius Caesar conquered Gaul because he sought the prestige which would come with it and money for war booty to pay off his debt.
The emperor Augustus annexed some client states: Galatia (Turkey) because its king had fought against Augustus rivals in the Roman civil wars; Moesia because they were under attack and he wanted to bolster their defence; Pannonia because of a rebellion, and Judea because of misrule by its king. He also conquered the Alpine region (Rhaetia) because he wanted to strengthen the defence of Italy from attacks from across the Alps.
It is most likely that the invasion of Britain was aimed at bolstering the weak political position of a new emperor, Claudius. He annexed the client state of Thrace because of a Rebellion. Some historians think that Claudius annexed some Roman client states (Mauretania, Lycia and Noricum) because he needed more tax revenue. The emperor Trajan conquered Dacia because the Dacians were carrying out raids into the Roman Empire.
Wiki User
∙ 15y agoThe Romans wanted to conquer so many lands because the other lands had things that they wanted The Romans wanted to conquer so many lands because the other lands had things that they wanted
Wiki User
∙ 12y agoTo expand the Roman Empire
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What 3 countries were part of the first crusade?
Holy Roman Empire, England, and The Byzantine Empire
What replaced the holy roman empire?
The Holy Roman Empire was dissolved by Napoleon, and became just a large number of small countries. In the years after the Napoleonic Wars ended, these countries came together in a confederacy called the Zollverein, or German Customs Union. This might be the best organization to call the replacement of the Holy Roman Empire.
What four European countries were never apart of the roman empire?
The were were more than four European countries which were never part of the Roman Empire. They were: Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Poland, Latvia, Estonia, Lithuania, Belarus, Ukraine, Russia, Ireland and Iceland. Most of the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Moldova were not part of the Roman Empire, which only included slithers of these areas. Most of Germany was not part of the Roman Empire, which covered only the south. Hungary east of the River Danube was not part of the Roman Empire either.
Why did Justinian wanted his empire to be like the roman empire?
Justinian was a Roman emperor and his empire was the Roman empire.Justinian was a Roman emperor and his empire was the Roman empire.Justinian was a Roman emperor and his empire was the Roman empire.Justinian was a Roman emperor and his empire was the Roman empire.Justinian was a Roman emperor and his empire was the Roman empire.Justinian was a Roman emperor and his empire was the Roman empire.Justinian was a Roman emperor and his empire was the Roman empire.Justinian was a Roman emperor and his empire was the Roman empire.Justinian was a Roman emperor and his empire was the Roman empire.
Why were some Romans happy to be conquered by the Huns?
The Huns did not conquer the Roman Empire. They raided the eastern part of the empire three times, tried to invade Gaul but were repelled, and tried to invade to Italy, but had to give up because of a famine in Italy and because the Roman army attacked their homeland. It was said that some Gallo-Romans did not mind the conquests by the Germanic peoples because they were unhappy with the Roman state's oppressive taxation regime.
Which countries did the Roman Empire invade?
Rome was a city-state. The rest was its empire, so the countries which Rome invaded were those which it incorporated into its empire in Western Europe and around the Mediterranean Sea.
Why didn't the Huns invade the eastern Roman Empire?
Because they'd be bum raped by the western Roman Empire
What countries did the Roman empire spit into?
It was spit into western Roman Empire and eastern Roman Empire.
What were the Roman names for the countries in the Roman Empire?
No
Why did the roman army invade so many countries?
cause they did
What country did Italy invade in order to regain the new roman Empire?
Greece
What unusual animals did Carthage use to invade the Roman Empire?
They used elephants
How did roman empire conquer countries?
By Fighting for the empire in harsh Battles.
Why did the Roman empire invade people?
They were initially nomadic and moved in from Eurasia to take over land.
Which of the following countries did the Roman empire NOT trade with?
List the following countries.
Who led the Huns on invasions in the eastern half of the rome empire?
It was Attila. He did not actually invade Rome. He carried out three raids on the eastern part of the Roman Empire. He tried to invade Gaul, in the western part of the Roman Empire, but was defeated in a big battle. Finally he invaded Italy, also in the western part of the empire, but had to give the invasion up.
Why did Romans invade Britain and why did they leave their own countries?
To create an Empire with its centre being at Rome.
