Italian at Heart

In the year 20 BC, Augustus, the first emperor of ancient Rome, placed a gilded monument called the Millarium Aureum, or Golden Milestone, in the Roman Forum. This monument marked the starting point for all roads across the vast Roman empire. All distances within the Roman Empire were measured relative to it.

The Romans were master builders and engineers, constructing a network of roads stretching from Spain to Syria, and deep into northern Europe and North Africa. No other ancient civilization built such an extensive and unified overland road system. The network spanned nearly 190,000 miles (300,000 km) across three continents.

Did all roads lead to Rome?

The adage “All roads lead to Rome” comes from Rome’s ancient highway system and was first recorded as a proverb in the Middle Ages.

However, this adage is not entirely accurate. While Rome is centrally located for Mediterranean shipping, it was not particularly central in the Roman road system. The most central road on the Italian peninsula runs along the opposite Adratic coastline, bypassing Rome entirely.

Or did they lead to Constantinople?

In the early fourth century AD, the Emperor Constantine moved the capital of the Roman empire to Constantinople. This new capital was strategically located along the Bosporus Strait where Europe and Asia meet. This location was much more central for overland travel across the empire.

Although Constantinople would be a better fit for the well-known maxim, Rome is forever fixed in our minds. After all, the proverb was just a way of saying tha Rome, the heart of the Roman Empire, was the world’s capital at that time.

Rome Endures

Rome has endured across the centuries. People have lived there continuously for over 3,000 years, but the area was settled over 14,000 years ago.

The Roman Empire left behind a massive legacy. Its laws, infrastructure, language, and culture have left their mark on the modern world, and they still shape it today.

• Roads and bridges: Rome’s engineering was so durable that sections of their ancient roadways still exist. And thousands of modern highways trace the exact routes laid out by Roman builders.
• Aquaducts and concrete: The Romans invented a recipe for concrete that was so durable that some of their structures still stand today. They also engineered complex aqueducts to bring clean water into cities.
• Legal systems: Many of the Roman written legal codes, including the concept of”innocent until proven guilty” form the basis of our modern Western legal systems.
• Republics: The concept of a republic–in which power rests with the people and their elected representatives rather than a monarch–inspired modern governments like the United States and European democracies.
• The Latin alphabet: Latin language, the language of the Roman Empire, evolved into the modern Romance languages, including Italian, Spanish, French, Portuguese, and Romanian. It also provided English with thousands of vocabulary words and scientific names.
• Christianity: The Roman empire helped to spread Christianity across Europe after it became the official state religion under the reign of Emperor Theodosius.
• City foundations: Many major modern European cities, including London, Paris, and Vienna were founded by the Roman Empire.

The classical Roman Empire shaped Western civilisation and modern Italy, and Rome was its beating heart.

Although not all Roman roads led to Rome, the city was the soul of the classical Roman Empire. It was the beating heart of the empire which shaped Western civilization and modern Italy.

Rome endures, remaining at the heart of Italian life. This is partly because it’s the nation’s capital and largest city with a population of over 2.7 million people. It’s the country’s political and administrative core.

However, Rome also symbolizes the country’s cultural and historical heart. Its historic center holds an vast number of the world’s architectural and artistic treasures.

In the Roman Empire, all roads led to Rome, at least figuratively speaking. In many ways, they still do for the Italian society. For many Italians, Rome remains the heart of Italian culture, and for us here at Italian-at-Heart, too! Viva Roma!

Image credits: Via Appia by piola666 via Canva / View of Rome is mine.