How Rome’s Geographic Location Is Advantageous to Conquest

Subject: History
Pages: 2
Words: 417
Reading time:
2 min

Roman Empire has always been considered an exemplary military state that managed to conquer the biggest part of the known civilized world and spread its influence on many distant areas controlling them by its forces. However, at the very first stages of its evolution, Rome was a small town that experienced hardships and faced multiple challenges. One of the factors that promoted the blistering development of the Empire was its unique geographic location. First of all, a group of hills and mountains that can be found on the Italian peninsula served as the natural barrier preventing enemies from invading these lands. The Alps and the Apennine Mountains became two major chains that guaranteed a high level of security to settlers who wanted to live in this region and develop their towns. It provided Rome with a unique opportunity to accumulate power and remain unconquered.

At the same time, the Tiber River served as a source of fresh water, which was critical for that period of history. Citizens did not have problems with supply and could use it for agriculture and other purposes. This factor guaranteed the abundance of various products available for people and created the basis for economic and military power. Another advantage of Rome’s location was the ability to use the Tiber to access trade routes of the Mediterranean Sea, which were critical for the further rise of the state. With the growth of its power, the given unique peculiarities of the terrain were used for conquest and expansion. For instance, using the same trade routes, Romans were able to conquer all cities and states along the Mediterranean and ensure the constant income of products needed to support the growing Empire.

Finally, the Roman conquest became possible because of the well-protected region. Using the Alps and the Apennine Mountains as strategic barriers, the Empire was able to strike its enemies, avoiding the high risk of counter-attacks because of many hardships and challenges associated with crossing these peaks. In such a way, a small town on the Italian peninsula managed to grow and transform into the capital of one of the largest empires because of the unique geographic location that included mountains and hills to struggle against enemies and the river that could be used as a source of fresh water and a route for armies to travel and conquer the closest cities and states, accumulating power and creating the basis for new expansions and raids.