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(c.1290-1751) Sacrum Imperium Romanum
Holy Roman Empire
(105-c.1290) Senatus Populusque Romanus
Senate and People of Rome
Timeline: A Democracy of Rome
Preceded by 105 — 1751 Succeeded by
Second Roman Republic Flag of SPQR Flag of Roman Commonwealth Roman Commonwealth
Flag Coat of Arms
Flag (105-c.1290) Flag (c.1290-1751)
Motto
Rome Invicta (Latin)
("Unconquered Rome")
Anthem "Cara Patria"
Capital Rome
Largest city Londonium (until secession in 1741), Constantinopolis
Other cities Nova Eboracum, Ephesus, Berlin, Vancouver, Bostonium, Alexandria
Language
  official
 
Latin
  others Greek
Religion
  main
 
Renaissant Romanism Christianity (since c. 1290)
  others Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Islam, Judaism
Ethnic Group Caucasian, Hispanics, Blacks, Asians, Mixed
Government Principate (de jure constitutional monarchy, de facto autocratic elective monarchy) (150-273)

Dominate (absolute despotic monarchy) (273 - c. 313)
Coregency (de facto separate monarchies in East and West) (c. 313 - 631) Unitary absolute monarchy (631 - c. 759)
Decentralized absolute monarchy (c. 759 - c. 1290)
Unitary semi-constitutional monarchy (c. 1290 - 1720)
Federative semi-constitutional monarchy (1720 - 1735)
Absolute monarchy (1735 - 1751)

  Legislature Senate
House of Nationalities
Area 41,342,416 km²
Population 391,842,126 (est. 1750) 

The Second Roman Empire, officially the Senate and People of Rome and since 1290, the Holy Roman Empire or Great Roman Empire, was the Roman state established following the enthronement of Hadrian and the subsequent Dissolution of the Second Republic in 105. Lasted for more than the sixteen centuries and associated with the Pax Romana, the Empire was the longest uninterrupted empire in the world. It was later replaced by the Roman Commonwealth, a democratic parliamentary republic founded in 1751 after the Republican Revolution. During the Empire's existence, Roma expanded its reach across North America, North Africa, Southern, and Western Europe and became a global hegemony.

Flag of Second Roman Empire

History[]

The Roman-Dacian War and the fall of the Second Republic[]

The First Roman–Dacian War took place from 101 to 102. The Kingdom of Dacia, under King Decebalus, had become a threat to the Second Republic and defeated several of Rome's armies during Domitian's term as Supreme Consul (81-96). His successor, Trajan was set on ridding this threat to Rome's power and in 101 set out determined to defeat Dacia. After a year of heavy fighting, King Decebalus of Dacia was victorious over Rome in the Battle of Tapae and occupied the Roman territory of Transylvania.

Supreme Consul Trajan was held responsible for this bitter defeat by the Senate and failed a vote of confidence in March 103 introduced by senator Hadrian, Trajan's nephew. A group of pro-autocracy senators successfully promoted Hadrian to the rank of Consul, and then Dictator in 103. In 105, after Hadrian's victory in the Second Roman-Dacian War, he was designated as the Emperor of Rome, effectively ending the Second Republic.

The Second Empire and the East-West division []

The post-Republican period of Rome officially began. The first two centuries of the Empire saw a period of unprecedented stability and prosperity known as the Pax Romana ("Roman Peace"). Rome reached its greatest territorial expanse during the reign of Hadrian (103–137). A period of increasing trouble and decline began with the reign of Commodus (177–192). In the 3rd century the Empire underwent a crisis that threatened its existence, as the Gallic Empire and Palmyrene Empire broke away from the Roman state, and a series of short-lived emperors, often from the legions, led the empire. The empire was reunified under Aurelian (r. 270–275). Under Aurelian's rule, the Roman Assemblies were declared as "enemies of the state" and therefore abolished. The Senate became a rubber-stamp legislative body and merely served as an imperial advisory body. This effectively ended the Principate era, in which the Emperor preserved the illusion of the formal continuance, in some aspects, of the Roman Republic.

Several signal events from the 4th to 6th centuries mark the period of transition during which the authority in Rome lost its grip on the Eastern Greek part. This was exacerbated by Diocletian, the first Emperor of Eastern origin, who set up an additional imperial court in the Greek East in 286. Under Theodosius I (r. 379–395), Eastern Orthodox Christianity became the official religion in the Eastern while Roman Catholic remained the state religion of the Western part. In the reign of Heraclius (r. 610–641), Duke Licinius, the de facto ruler of the Eastern empire self-proclaimed to be the Emperor of the so-called Eastern Roman Empire in 625 and invaded the Western Roman province of Belgica. This prompted the Eastern Civil War that ended in 653 when Licinius was assassinated in 628 (presumably by Heraclius himself) and Emperor Heraclius managed to directly control the Eastern part in 631 after crushing the rebellion and the remnants of Eastern army loyal to Licinius. To prevent the Eastern part from continuing revolting against the central government in the West, the Eastern Senate was re-established in 632. Some influential Consuls assumed de facto control over the Eastern part since the late 8th century while still paying tribute and pledging allegiance to the Emperor in Rome. Roma was never reunified until the 12th century.

The borders of the empire fluctuated through cycles of decline and recovery. During the reign of Justinian I (r. 527–565), the empire reached its greatest extent. The Roman–Sasanian War of 602–628 exhausted the empire's resources, and during the Early Muslim conquests of the 7th century, lost its richest provinces, Egypt and Syria, to the Arab caliphate. During the Macedonian dynasty (10th–11th centuries), the empire expanded again and experienced the two-century long Macedonian Renaissance, defeating the Seljuk Turks in the Battle of Manzikert of 1071. The empire recovered during the Komnenian restoration and by the end of the 11th century, Constantinople was the largest and wealthiest European city.

Theodore the Great and the East-West Rapprochement Era []

Despite still referring to as a unified Empire, the Roman state since the 3rd century has gradually divided politically, culturally, and economically into two separate parts: Western Latin and Eastern Greek. During Emperor Theodore's reign, seeing the vulnerability of the Empire in light of the imminent threat from the rise of Asian and Muslim empires, the Emperor has issued multiple decrees to unify the country in a process known as The Great Restoration during the late 13th century. Latin was once again designated as the official language throughout the Empire while Greek was reduced into a recognizing language. The Renaissant Rapprochement, a movement led by Emperor Theodore that enabled the East-West rapprochement of the Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Church, was highly successful. The new unified religion, named as Renaissant Roman Christianity, was designated as the state's official religion while the state exercised a religious tolerance policy. The Empire was gradually re-unified culturally in a process known as the East-West Rapprochement. This strong sense of national unity helped the Empire survived the attacks of the Mongols and the Ottomans and maintained its status as an imperial hegemony in the region until the 18th century.

The seed of democracy still propelled within the new Roman Empire, especially after Emperor Theodore's rule. Theodore's attempt to abolish the Eastern Senate to unify the nation was met with anger in the Eastern part. As a compromise, the Senate, rather than serving as a mere advisory body like the pre-Reapprochement Era, since circa 1290, was tasked with a considerably more prominent check on the monarch to assist with the Rapprochement. In an unprecedented move, Emperor Theodore also ruled that elections at local levels were held again since 1294 to mitigate the secession tension of the Eastern part of the Empire. This period marks the beginning of the semi-constitutional monarchy of Rome.175

The New World and the failed Revolutionary War of the Roman American Colony []

With the discovery of the New World by Christopherus Columbus and Amerigo Vespucci in 1491, the Roman Empire colonized the continent of North America. The Trio War was raised against the Scandinavian Empire and the Russian Empire, resulting in the division of the Americas in the Berlin Conference of 1601 after the defeat of Russia in the Battle of Quebec. Roma exercised a peaceful assimilation policy towards the native population of North America, who was largely decimated by diseases. In Roman-controlled parts of America, surviving Native Americans were assimilated into Roman culture and harmoniously integrated with European colonizers. African slaves were transported from the African provinces of Roma to America to fill in the demand for the new colonies.

Early Roman policy for empire in North America was one of salutary neglect. It largely left the settlers there alone to govern themselves. After the Roma-Scandinavian War of 1691, Roma was devastated financially despite gaining new territories in North America. With the rationale that Americans should compensate the Empire for protecting the colonies, the Senate turned to the Navigation Acts to increase revenues. That provoked unrest among the Thirteen Colonies that continued into the next decade. To punish the 1713 Bostonium Tea Party, Senate's Intolerable Acts closed the port of Bostonium and suspended their colonial legislature, as Imperial Governors then did elsewhere. Twelve colonial house assemblies sent delegates to the First Continental Congress. It coordinated a systematic boycott of Roman goods, then called for a second congress. The Second Continental Congress appointed George Washington in June 1715 as its commander in chief to create a Continental Army and to oversee the Siege of Bostonium. Their July 1715 Olive Branch Petition was answered by Emperor Senopianus with a Proclamation of Rebellion. Congress then passed the Declaration of Independence in July 1716.

After evicting the Roman from Boston in 1715, Congress then sponsored an attack on Roman Quebec, but it failed. The Roman commander in chief, General Sir William Howe then launched a Roman counter-offensive, capturing Nova Eboracum (New York City). Washington retaliated with harassing attacks at Trenton and Princeton. In 1717, the Roman launched an invasion from Quebec to isolate Nova Britannia. Howe’s 1717-18 Philadelphia campaign captured the city. The Native American population acted as a strong ally of Roma throughout the Revolutionary War and played a key role in Washington's defeat at Saratoga in 1719, which prompted the Scandinavian to withdraw earlier support for American independence.

To appeal to dissatisfied European settlers, Roma established the House of Nationalities to give representation for colonizers in North America and citizens of other overseas territories of Roma.

The Republican Revolution and the Roman Commonwealth era[]

With its expanding reach across North America, North Africa, Southern, and Western Europe, the Roman Empire became a global hegemony. Centuries of Pax Romana came to an end with the family feud between Galerius and Quintillus after the sudden death of their father, Emperor Flavianus III. The Roman Empire went through a twenty-year civil war that ultimately resulted in the victory of Quintillus while draining the resources of the vast empire. Under Quintillus's rule, century-old religious tolerance policy was abolished, local elections were abandoned and both the Senate and House of Nationalities were removed. This prompted a costly war with the Provinces of Gaul and Brittania, which successfully seceded from the Empire in 1741.

The rise of democratic movements in the neighboring United Kingdom of Scandinavia and the secession of the Provinces of Gaul sparked a rise of democratic revolutions throughout the Roman Empire known as the Republican Revolution (1743–1751), a series of civil wars and political machinations between former Senators and Imperialists principally over the manner of Roma's governance.

Following the defeat in the Gaul-Brittania War, the Roman government's debt--which has been accumulated since the American Revolutionary War--was deeply exacerbated. It attempted to restore its financial status through unpopular taxation schemes, which were heavily regressive. Leading up to the Revolution, years of bad harvests worsened by deregulation of the grain industry and fifty consecutive days of below-freezing temperatures in the winter of 1748/1749 inflamed popular resentment of the privileges enjoyed by the aristocracy and the Christianity clergy of the established church.

Demands for change were formulated in terms of Enlightenment ideals on democracy and contributed to the convocation of the National Assembly in May 1749, which comprised of former Senators and representatives of the commoners. During the first year of the Revolution, members of the commoners took control; the Roman Forum was attacked in July; the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen was passed in August, and the Women's March on Alexandria forced the royal court back to Rome in October. The war ended with Parliamentarian victory at the Battle of Worcester on 3 September 1751. A central event of the first stage, in August 1750, was the trial and execution of Charles I, the first public execution of a Roman Emperor.

The outcome of the Revolution was threefold: the trial and execution of Charles I (1750); and the end of the century-old Roman absolute monarchy replaced by a parliamentary republic under the Roman Commonwealth; the end of the monopoly of the Church of Renaissant Roman Christianity on Christian worship.

Quintus Aurelius Cato, one of the main leaders of the Republican Revolution, was elected as Chancellor in 1751 by the National Assembly. He was the first democratically-elected head of state of Rome since 103.

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