1st century BC explained
The 1st century BC, also known as the last century BC and the last century BCE, started on the first day of 100 BC and ended on the last day of 1 BC. The AD/BC notation does not use a year zero; however, astronomical year numbering does use a zero, as well as a minus sign, so "2 BC" is equal to "year –1". 1st century AD (Anno Domini) follows.
In the course of the century, all the remaining independent lands surrounding the Mediterranean Sea were steadily brought under Roman control, being ruled either directly under governors or through puppet kings appointed by Rome. The Roman state itself was plunged into civil war several times, finally resulting in the marginalization of its 500-year-old Roman Republic, and the embodiment of total state power in a single man—the Roman emperor.
The internal turbulence that plagued Rome at this time can be seen as the death throes of the Roman Republic, as it finally gave way to the autocratic ambitions of powerful men like Sulla, Julius Caesar, Mark Antony and Octavian. Octavian's ascension to total power as the emperor Augustus is considered to mark the point in history where the Roman Republic ends and the Roman Empire begins. Some scholars refer to this event as the Roman Revolution. The birth of Jesus, the central figure of Christianity, took place around the close of this century.
In the eastern mainland, the Han dynasty began to decline and the court of China was in chaos in the latter half of this century. Trapped in a difficult situation, the Xiongnu had to begin emigration to the west or attach themselves to the Han.
Events
Siege of Uxellodunum marks the end of the Gallic Wars and the final Roman conquest of Gaul.
- Mid 1st century BC – East torana of the Great Stupa at Sanchi, is made. Early Andhra period. According to an inscription, it is sculpted by ivory carvers from the nearby town of Vidisha.
Significant people
Politics (and relatives of political figures)
- Marcus Aemilius Lepidus, Roman politician
- Agrippa, Roman statesman and general
- Ambiorix, prince of the Eburones, Gallic tribal chief
- Mark Antony, Roman general and politician
- Ariovistus, leader of the Suebi, Germanic tribal chief
- Augustus, Roman Emperor
- Brutus, Roman politician
- Burebista, king of Dacia
- Cassivellaunus, Celtic Briton tribal chief
- Catiline, attempted to overthrow Roman Republic
- Cato the Younger, Roman politician
- Cleopatra VII of Egypt, Ruler of Egypt
- Publius Clodius Pulcher, Roman politician, demagogue
- Crassus, Roman general and politician
- Herod the Great, king of Judea
- Huo Guang, Chinese politician
- Juba II, last king of Numidia
- Julia the Elder, Roman noblewoman, wife of Agrippa and Tiberius
- Julius Caesar, Roman general and statesman
- Livia, Empress of Rome, mother of Tiberius
- Lucullus, Roman general and politician
- Maecenas, Roman politician and famous philanthropist
- Gaius Marius, Roman general and statesman
- Nalankilli, king of the early Chola dynasty in South India
- Octavia the Younger, Roman noblewoman, sister of Augustus and wife of Mark Antony.
- Pompey, Roman general and politician
- Sextus Pompey, Roman general and son of Pompey
- Ptolemy XIII of Egypt, pharaoh of Egypt
- Sertorius, Roman statesman and general
- Sulla, Roman general and statesman
- Tigranes the Great, king of Armenia
- Vercingetorix, Gallic king and chieftain
- Xuan of Han, Chinese emperor
Religion
Literature, science, and philosophy
- Aemilius Macer, Roman didactic poet
- Alfenus Varus, Roman jurist
- Afranius, Roman dramatist
- Antiochus of Ascalon, Syrian Greek philosopher
- Antipater of Thessalonica, Greek poet
- Apollonius of Citium, Cypriot Greek doctor
- Asinius Pollio, Roman poet and historian
- Asclepiodotus, Greek philosopher and writer on tactics
- Athenaeus Mechanicus, Greek writer on siege weapons
- Consort Ban, Chinese poet
- Calvus, Roman poet and orator
- Catullus, Roman poet
- Cicero, Roman writer, philosopher and politician
- Cornelius Gallus, Roman poet and politician
- Cornelius Nepos, Roman biographer
- Crinagoras of Mytilene, Greek poet
- Didymus Chalcenterus, Alexandrian Greek grammarian
- Diodorus Siculus, Sicilian Greek historian
- Dionysius of Halicarnassus, Greek historian and grammarian
- Elephantis, Greek poet and medical writer
- Geminus, Rhodian Greek astronomer and mathematician
- Helvius Cinna, Roman poet
- Horace, Roman poet
- Huan Tan, Chinese poet, philosopher and politician
- Jing Fang, Chinese mathematician and music theorist
- Marcus Antistius Labeo, Roman jurist
- Livy, Roman historian
- Liu Xiang, Chinese poet and librarian
- Liu Xin, Chinese astronomer, mathematician, and librarian
- Lucretius, Roman poet and philosopher
- Meleager of Gadara, Syrian Greek poet and anthologist
- Nigidius Figulus, Roman philosopher and polymath
- Ovid, Roman poet
- Parmenion, Greek poet
- Parthenius of Nicaea, Bithynian Greek poet and grammarian
- Philodemus, Syrian Greek poet and philosopher
- Lucius Pomponius, Roman dramatist
- Pompeius Trogus, Roman historian
- Marcus Porcius Latro, Roman orator
- Posidonius, Syrian Greek philosopher, geographer, and polymath
- Propertius, Roman poet
- Rutilius Lupus, Roman rhetorician
- Publilius Syrus, Syrian/Roman poet and dramatist
- Sallust, Roman historian, politician
- Sima Qian, Chinese historian, father of Chinese historiography
- Sisenna, Roman historian
- Strabo, Pontian Greek geographer and historian
- Themison of Laodicea, Syrian Greek doctor, founder of Methodic school of medicine
- Tibullus, Roman poet
- Tryphon, Alexandrian Greek grammarian
- Valerius Antias, Roman historian
- Varro, Roman polymath
- Verrius Flaccus, Roman grammarian
- Virgil, Roman poet
- Vitruvius, Roman writer, architect and engineer
- Wang Bao, Chinese poet
- Yang Xiong, Chinese poet and philosopher
- Sangam literature, ancient Tamil literary works.
Others
Inventions, discoveries, introductions
Sovereign states
See: List of sovereign states in the 1st century BC.
Notes and References
- Web site: Roman Timeline 1st Century BC . 12 March 2018 . UNRV.
