Hail Caesar spans three continents and seven centuries to tell the saga of the Roman Empire and the men who shaped it. Its army dominated the known world and Empire extended from Persia to England, its culture forms the heart of Western Civilization. At its peak, the Roman from the Black Sea to the Atlantic Ocean, and throughout its history, its fate rested in the hands of individuals-men of genius and courage, madness and ambition. Hail Caesar would be useful for classes on Western Civilization, the Classics, Ancient History, Ancient Culture, Geography, Political Science and Civics. It is appropriate for middle school and high school.

Constantine

Constantine revitalized a fading empire and built a glittering new capital that would stand for over 1,000 years. But his strongest legacy is religious; his conversion to Christianity put an end to hundreds of years of persecution and laid the foundations for Medieval Europe. His revolutionary policies-including re-organizing the army and separating military and civil authority-places Constantine alongside Julius Caesar and Hadrian as among the important emperors in the history of Rome.

• anomaly
• anonymous
• beatitudes
• edict
• embroiled
• entourage
• intrigues
• martyr
• opportunist
• pagan
• provincial
• ransacked
• recant
• tetrarchy
• usurper
• zeal

1. Things began to go wrong in the Roman Empire in the third century. Why was the Roman Empire under siege? Who challenged Rome for supremacy? How did this affect the empire?

2. How was the Roman Empire in the time of Constantine different than the Roman Empire of the past?

3. Constantine came from a humble background-his mother was a barmaid. How did Constantine rise from such humble beginnings to be one of the most powerful men in the world?

4. Compare Constantine's Rome with Hadrian's Rome.

5. Constantine's father tried to arrange a politically advantageous marriage for his son, but Constantine refused. Why did Constantine refuse to marry the girl his father chose to be his wife?

6. Although it impossible to know the exact population of Christians in the third century, historians estimate it to be between two and ten percent. If Christians were such a numeric minority, why were they so feared? Why did Christians have so much influence, good and bad, in the Roman Empire?

7. Why did pagans find Christians to be offensive?

8. Constantine changed the course of history when he converted to Christianity. How did Constantine's conversion occur?

9. What were some of the reactions of the people of the Roman Empire to Constantine's conversion?

10. How did Constantine's conversion help determine the course of European and history and Western Civilization?

1. Research and recreate maps of the Roman Empire during Hadrian's reign and Constantine's reign. Use these maps to illustrate the differences in the Roman Empire under these two emperors.

2. Imagine that your class is in a Roman forum in the third century, and you just learned of Constantine's conversion. Debate the pros and cons of Constantine's actions for the future of the Roman Empire.

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