Prove Your Ancient Knowledge With This Roman Empire Quiz

Constructed in the first century CE, the Tower of Hercules is the world’s oldest existing lighthouse. Nestled along the coast of Spain, the lighthouse is thought to be modeled after the Lighthouse of Alexandria. A late 18th-century restoration helped preserve the central core of the lighthouse for visitors to enjoy to this day.

Afflicted with physical ailments and illnesses his entire life, Claudius seemed unlikely to ever become emperor. That is, until the Praetorian Guard assassinated Emperor Caligula and installed Claudius in his place. Although the guards likely saw him as manipulatable, Claudius proved to be an effective ruler and even succeeded where Julius Caesar had failed by conquering Britain in 43 CE.

The first recorded evidence of the fork comes from the Byzantine Empire in the 11th century — though at the time, the utensil had only two tines. Curiously, the fork was first viewed with skepticism, as it resembled a devil’s pitchfork and could imply a person's vanity in not using their fingers to eat.

After a series of political assassinations, Gordian III — the grandson and nephew of previous emperors of the same name — became the youngest Roman ruler in history at the age of 13. Sadly, Gordian III’s rule did not last long, as he was murdered by his own troops six years later and was succeeded by Philip the Arabian.

Justinian II became known as “the slit-nosed” after his nose was cut off by Leontios, who usurped Justinian II and took the throne in 695 CE. Justinian II was exiled to a port city in Crimea, where he replaced his nose with a gold replica. He took back the throne in 705 CE and carried out a rule marked by personal revenge and ineffectual military campaigns against the empire’s enemies.

The end of the Byzantine Empire — and by extension, the last vestiges of the Roman Empire — was marked by the fall of Constantinople to the Ottoman Turks in the 15th century. Led by Sultan Mehmed II, the Ottoman army sieged the city and looted its remains on May 29, 1453. The event also marked the beginning of a period of great expansion for the Ottoman Empire.

Theodora became empress of the Byzantine Empire in 525 CE when she married Emperor Justinian I. During her reign, she enacted laws to protect sex workers, expand the rights of divorced women, and prevent married women from being killed for adultery. She also built safe houses for sex workers and persecuted religious sects.

The rule of Augustus is often portrayed as one of pomp and splendor. The rule of his stepson Tiberius was the opposite. Unlike Augustus, Tiberius showed little interest in being emperor and was actually third in the line of succession. But after the death of Augustus’ two grandsons, Tiberius found himself in the uncomfortable position of heir apparent. Once he became emperor in 14 CE, his rule was marred by crackdowns, purges, and tyranny.

The Byzantine Empire was founded upon the ancient Greek colony of Byzantium. The colony was located on the European side of a strait linking the Black Sea to the Mediterranean in modern-day Turkey, and thus served as an ideal location for trade between Europe and Asia. Greek replaced Latin as the dominant language, and the Greek Orthodox Church became the religious authority of the empire.

Greek Fire was a formidable weapon of warfare made from a secret formula of highly flammable liquid. It was used in catapulted incendiary bombs and sprayed like a flame launcher at ships and fortresses. Greek Fire was the most devastating weapon in Christendom for over seven centuries. The formula was kept secret from the world, and its composition still remains a mystery.

In 27 BCE, Emperor Augustus established the Praetorian Guard as his personal cohort. Eventually concentrated in fortified barracks outside the city, the guard gained immense political power in subsequent decades and played a major role in various assassination plots and coups throughout the five-century history of the Roman Empire.

Hagia Sophia, also called the Church of the Holy Wisdom, was built in Constantinople in the sixth century CE under the direction of Emperor Justinian I and his wife Theodora. Its architectural splendor is marked by an enormous 105-foot dome and beautiful mosaics. It was the center church of Greek Orthodoxy, where new emperors were crowned. After the empire’s fall, the church was converted into a mosque.

Although Rome was the heart of one of the most powerful empires the world has ever seen, the city wasn’t immune from attack. In 390 BCE, during the time of the Roman Republic, the city fell to the Gauls. Around 800 years later, in 410 CE, the city fell to the Visigoths. The city fell once more four decades later, this time to the Vandals. The Franks, however, never sacked the capital.

In 325 CE, Emperor Constantine gathered bishops from across the empire to form the Council of Nicaea. Its main purpose was to establish a Christian biblical canon and settle controversy with a religious sect that claimed Jesus Christ wasn’t a divine being. The council condemned the sect as heretics and declared a version of Christianity that viewed Christ of equal divinity with God as the official religion of the empire.

In 31 BCE, the forces under command of Octavius (later known as Augustus) defeated the forces of Mark Antony and Cleopatra off the coast of western Greece in a clash known as the Battle of Actium. Although Anthony and Cleopatra survived the ordeal, the two died in Egypt a year later. With his main opponents out of the way, Augustus was free to create an empire as he saw fit.

One of Rome’s greatest poets, Virgil wrote his most famous work, the “Aeneid,” between 29 BCE and 19 BCE. In the epic poem, Virgil directly connects the reign of Augustus to the story of Aeneas, a member of Trojan royalty forced to flee Troy following the events in Homer’s “Iliad.” The poem was once seen as mere propaganda for the new Roman Empire, but today’s scholars suggest that Virgil hides moments of critique that complicate the poem’s message.

After the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 CE, the Roman Empire continued on for another thousand years in the east, as the Byzantine Empire — aka the Eastern Roman Empire, or Byzantium. The empire’s capital shifted from Rome to the city of Constantinople (now Istanbul in modern-day Turkey), which was named after Constantine I, the first Byzantine emperor.

Pax Romana, which is Latin for “Roman Peace,” describes a roughly two-century period of relative peace and prosperity. The era stretched from the reign of Caesar Augustus (27 BCE to 14 CE) to the death of Marcus Aurelius (180 CE), the last Roman ruler from the group known as the Five Good Emperors. After Aurelius’ death, his son Commodus was the sole emperor. His reign was riddled with incompetence, and his assassination in 192 CE sparked a civil war.

At Rome’s territorial height in 117 BCE, the empire covered around 2 million square miles and stretched across three continents: Europe, Asia, and Africa. Although France, Tunisia (formerly Carthage), and Egypt all fell under Rome’s rule, Ireland never became a part of the empire. Romans referred to the Emerald Isle as “Hibernia,” meaning “land of winter” in Latin.

Augustus Caesar led Rome’s transformation from democracy to empire following the assassination of his great-uncle, Julius Caesar. Augustus was not only the first emperor but he also had the longest reign — a whopping 41 years. Born Octavius, Augustus was renamed by the Senate and reigned during an era of prosperity.