Crime and Punishment in Ancient Rome

• The Roman Empire spans from roughly 700BC - 476AD.
• At its height, under Emperor Trajan in 117AD, Rome ruled more than 45 million people in countries across Europe, North Africa and Asia.
• Its army was the most powerful in the world. As it conquered more countries, the city of Rome grew from a town into an enormous capital.

• With over one million people living there, Rome was a dirty and dangerous place, with a maze of side-streets and slums.

• There were many of the same crimes as today, such as murder and theft.

• The Roman Empire had many slaves, as well as citizens who were free men and women. They were often treated differently if they broke the law.

• The Roman system of law and punishment is the basis of many laws that we still use today.

• Wearing purple was against the law unless you were super rich!

• There was no police force in Roman times but they did have a group called the Vigiles.

• There were about 7000 Vigiles, who dealt with criminals like thieves and enslaved people who ran away. They also acted as the fire brigade and put out fires!

• If the Vigiles couldn't deal with some crimes, such as riots (angry groups of people), then they would call in Roman guards to help.

• If there was ever a risk to the Emperor, his special protectors, the Praetorian Guard, would be called in.

• The Roman God of Justice was called Justitia and she holds the scales of justice.

• The Romans designed their punishments to discourage potential criminals.
• How you were punished depended on who you were and your position in Roman society.
• Whipping and fines were the most common punishments.
• Wooden shoes were sometimes placed on the feet of prisoners, making escape difficult.
• An enslaved person could be forced to carry a piece of wood around their neck that stated their crime.
• For very serious crimes you could be killed by crucifixion, thrown from a cliff, into a river or even buried alive. Crucifixion was saved for serious crimes such as revolts against the empire.
• Over time Roman punishments became more and more violent.

Watch this BBC Teach video about life for children in Roman Britain.

Can you write down 3 things that you notice are different about your life and their lives back then.

What to look out for:

• Clothes they wear
• Education
• Jobs that people did
• Any other interesting things that you can spot