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Podcast Transcript
When we look back at history, we tend to focus on the great things, like great leaders and great battles.
In fact, the ingredients for an empire's success were often mundane: stable laws, an incorruptible civil service, or, in the case of vast empires, a road system.
Roads were one of the secrets of Rome's success and proved useful over the centuries, even after the empire fell.
Learn more about Roman roads and how they connected their vast empire together in this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily.
The Romans were not what I would call a technologically advanced civilization. Throughout Rome's various iterations over its nearly 2,000 years, there have been few technological advancements or inventions.
Several agricultural innovations emerged, especially in the plow. Often thought to be Roman, the aqueduct was actually developed by the Etruscans and Greeks.
That being said, the Romans were excellent engineers. If there was one technology they did well, at least by ancient standards, it was architecture. Two thousand years after their construction, their buildings are still scattered across Europe, the Middle East and North Africa.
The Roman Baths were a massive building with advanced water management and a massive hot water heating system. The Baths of Diocletan and the Baths of Caracalla can still be seen in Rome today.
Amphitheatres, such as the Colosseum in Rome, and the well-preserved theater in Orange, France, are still available to visit.
All the temples and buildings attract tourists today and are clear symbols of Rome.
However, they were not necessarily the most important things the Romans built.
This distinction belongs to the Roman roads. Roads are not sexy, but they are vital.
When I first started this podcast, I did an episode outlining Roman roads. In this episode I want to explain in more depth how the Romans built their roads.
Before I begin, I should start with the old saying: “All roads lead to Rome.”
That's not entirely true, but it doesn't say much either. It actually originated from a French poem in the Middle Ages.
Technically, not all roads in the Roman Empire led to Rome, as they could not cross the Bosporus. It was not until 1973 that a bridge was built across the Bosporus.
However, all Roman roads were essentially connected on either side of the Bosporus. This means you can travel from modern-day Portugal to Turkey, from Turkey all the way around the Mediterranean to Algeria, and possibly even as far as the Atlantic coast of Morocco.
So what made Roman roads so special and how and why were they built?
It all starts with measurement.
Since roads were designed to move troops and goods as quickly as possible between two points, the Romans tended to make their roads as straight as possible.
Modern highways often go around obstacles because it's cheaper and faster than driving through or over them. While there are some exceptions, building a gradual curve in the road is more efficient in terms of time and money than trying to go straight.
The Romans did not share this philosophy. They usually dig tunnels, cut roads, or build bridges instead of going around something.
If they have to go around something, they will often make sharp turns in the road to get back to the straight line as quickly as possible.
Because they were traveling at walking speed, or at best the speed of a galloping horse, they could get away with it.
The main investigative tool they use is called groma. Groma is designed to create straight lines and right angles.
It consists of a straight pole driven into the ground with a horizontal arm at the top. The horizontal arm ends in a cross with four arms, almost looking like a mobile hanging from a child's bed.
Each of the four arms has a weighted plum bomb that attacks with a rope.
surveyor, in Latin Agrobacteriumuse groma to ensure that roads stay straight over long distances. Another group, called Gromaticwill be along the Agrobacterium Draw the outline of the road.
Once the route is determined, the next step is to start digging. Most of the labor in building Roman roads was usually done by Roman legions. It's a way to keep them occupied when they're not actively participating in the campaign, and they're well structured as well.
This is the difference between Roman roads and simple roads.
First, they would plow the fields to loosen the soil, and then a team (usually again legionnaires) would begin clearing away the soil. They will dig down several feet until they reach bedrock or at least hard soil.
This excavated road is called nestmeaning “ditch” in Latin.
What happens next depends on where the road is being built and what materials are available locally.
They would then fill in the trench starting with the big chunks at the bottom. This base is mainly made of stone and broken bricks and it is called statue. The thickness of this layer is 25 to 60 centimeters or about 10 to 24 inches.
Larger gravel is placed on top of the larger gravel, which when mixed creates a very coarse concrete. this is called Rudus. It is approximately 20 centimeters or 8 inches thick.
On top is a layer of fine aggregate concrete consisting of sand and gravel. This is approximately 30 centimeters or 12 inches. this is called nuclear.
The concrete was Roman concrete, made from a special type of volcanic ash called volcanic ash.
The top one is the last layer and is called Top of back. This layer consists of closely fitting paving stones called pavement.
Roads are more than just these layers. First, the top layer is raised slightly so that the middle of the road is the highest point. This is to drain water and prevent water from accumulating on the road.
There are drainage ditches on the roadside, and the drainage ditches are also usually made of stones. The stones are vertical, creating a barrier that helps channel water. It functions as a modern street curb.
There are usually gravel paths on both sides of the road for pedestrians.
The width of a Roman road varied depending on location and the amount of traffic it had to support. Some roads amount to a single lane, while others can accommodate multiple carriages side by side.
If a road went through marshland, they would often build a causeway over it. Causeways were built either by piling up large masses of rock or using upright wooden logs, depending on the location.
For every Roman mile, or five thousand Roman feet, there was a landmark. Milestones usually marked the distance to and from the next destination, but some were found to have the emperor's name only at the moment of their construction.
There are broadly two types of non-military travel along the route. they are called quick spell and Agnari. Cursus Rapidi is a courier service, while agnarie is a freight service.
The type of vehicle you see on the road may be a two-wheeled chariot, a two-wheeled carriage in rural areas, or a four-wheeled Laeda.
Laeda, For quick transport, there might be eight horses, but the weight would be limited to around 750 pounds or 340 kilograms.
Most freight travels about 15 miles or 24 kilometers per day.
One of the most important uses of roads is to send messages. At that time the speed at which messages could be sent was limited to the speed of a horse or ship.
Official state couriers would travel on horseback and use rest houses known as “rest houses”. mansion. Riders would go from rest house to rest house and change horses.
These messengers were the Roman equivalent of the pony express. By changing horses frequently, a courier could cover 75 miles or 120 kilometers per day.
According to legend, Emperor Tiberius once traveled 215 miles in one day to reach his injured brother Drusus. If you rode for 24 hours straight without taking a break, it would be possible to average only 9 miles per hour.
By the second century, the empire had approximately 80,000 kilometers or 50,000 miles of paved Roman roads. To put this into perspective, the United States only has about 47,000 miles of interstate highways.
In addition to paved roads, there are 400,000 kilometers or 250,000 miles of unpaved roads.
The design of city streets is very similar to the roads across the Empire, but there are some differences. City streets are often filled with filth and water.
If you've ever visited the ruins of Pompeii, you'll notice that they erected stones in the middle of the streets. This allows people to cross without actually stepping into the street.
So what’s the point of this highly complex and expensive road system?
The road system was what tied such a large empire together.
Roads helped integrate different regions into the Roman state by enhancing mobility, trade, and communication. This integration was crucial to maintaining control over the empire's vast territories.
Roads contributed significantly to Rome's economic prosperity by facilitating trade and exploiting resources more efficiently.
The convenient transportation brought by roads helped spread Roman culture, language and law, and promoted the Romanization process of conquered peoples.
However, the most important reason for building roads was military. These roads are often called “military road” or military roads, during the Republic because they allowed the rapid and efficient movement of armies, which was vital for the expansion and defense of Roman territory.
A regiment could travel about 20 miles per day on the road. This allowed the Roman army to be mobilized wherever needed within the empire when needed.
Surprisingly, we have a pretty good idea of the empire's road layout thanks to a single source, viz. whiteboard. Also known as the Puttinger Table, it is an illustrated road map of the Roman world that dates from the 4th or 5th century but survives only in medieval copies made around the 13th century.
All the time, effort and money put into the construction paid off. While roads do require some maintenance, they are very durable. Unlike Roman temples and amphitheaters that became artifacts and museum pieces, these roads remained in use for centuries long after Rome was gone.
It can be said that until the 19th century, Roman roads were the best designed roads in the world. Some roads originally built by the Romans were used as major routes before the advent of automobiles.
Even today, some places, such as Via Flamina in the Italian peninsula and the Fosse Way in the UK, are still used for walking and cycling.
Although materials have changed, modern road building still uses many of the techniques developed in Rome. Modern roads use a layering technique where the road is slightly raised to manage water.
Roads were not only one of Rome's greatest innovations, but were largely responsible for Rome's success. They enabled the empire to meet military challenges, send messages quickly, and contribute to its economic prosperity.
They are so well built that they are one of the few things still used for their original purpose nearly 2,000 years after they were built.
