All throughout Italy, there are vast hills and mountain sources that protect the land. The greatest is on the northern border of Italy, where the Alps separate Europe from Rome’s homeland. These mountains would be a great boundary for invaders to try to cross. During the winter, travel through the Alps was practically impossible. In other seasons, if someone tried to cross, they could be seen during their slow travel and Rome would have time to prepare. Also, these hills and mountains provided fresh water that could be brought down by aqueducts for clean drinking and bathing water.
The rest of Italy is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea, as the land is a huge peninsula jutting out into the waters. This gave Ancient Rome access to water routes to send ships out to other countries. Through the Mediterranean Sea, they could send out ship merchants to trade with other countries, expanding their resources for living. Also, Rome had developed an advanced army that sailed out to invade and conquer.
Italy itself had many resources. Two volcanos on the peninsula could provide with large amounts of copper. The volcanic soil also is rich for farming and has many minerals. The buildings were built using the volcanic stone found in the hills, known as tufa rock. The hills provided protection so not so many defense towers had to be built around cities.
The civilization of Rome might not have fallen at all if these factors alone determined their fate. Political corruption, along with a possible spread of malaria, brought the Roman Empire to its knees. However, the Empire lasted for such a long time, and it has the wonderful geography of Italy to thank for that.
WORKS CITED
Ashe, Mark. "Ancient Rome." Ancient Rome- Geography. Ithaca High School, n.d. Web. 30 Sept. 2012. .
Milani-Santarpia, Giovanni. "Ancient Rome Geography." MariaMilani.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Sept. 2012. .
"Rome." Encyclopædia Britannica from Encyclopaedia Britannica Ready Reference 2004 CD-ROM. Copyright © 1994-2003 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. October 1, 2012.
Cited: Ashe, Mark. "Ancient Rome." Ancient Rome- Geography. Ithaca High School, n.d. Web. 30 Sept. 2012. . Milani-Santarpia, Giovanni. "Ancient Rome Geography." MariaMilani.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Sept. 2012. . "Rome." Encyclopædia Britannica from Encyclopaedia Britannica Ready Reference 2004 CD-ROM. Copyright © 1994-2003 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. October 1, 2012.
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