- 1st century BC
The 1st century BC started the first day of
100 BC and ended the last day of1 BC . It is considered part of the Classicalera ,epoch , orhistorical period . An alternative name for this century is the last century BC. The AD/BC notation does not use ayear zero ; however,astronomical year numbering does use a minus sign, so '2 BC' is equal to 'year -1'.In the course of the century all the remaining independent lands surrounding the Mediterranean 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 republic, and the embodiment of total state power in a single man — the emperor. The internal turbulence that plagued Rome at this time can be seen as the last death throes of the Roman Republic, as it finally gave way to the autocratic ambitions of powerful men like
Julius Caesar ,Mark Antony andOctavian . Octavian's ascension to total power as the emperorAugustus is considered to mark the point in history where theRoman Republic ends and theRoman Empire begins. Some scholars refer to this event as theRoman Revolution . It is generally concluded that the birth ofJesus , the central figure ofChristianity took place at the close of this century.Events
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92 BC Lucullus invades Armenia, setting off the centuries longRoman-Persian Wars .
*81 BC Sulla is appointed dictator of the Roman state, and brings about major reforms.
*73 BC A slave rebellion lead by the escaped gladiatorSpartacus leads to theThird Servile War .
*63 BC Pompey capturesJerusalem , and establishes Roman annexation ofJudea as a client kingdom. King Judah Aristobulus II removed from power, while his brother John Hyrcanus II becomes king under Romansuzerainty .
*57 BC Silla is founded in southeastern Korea (traditional date according to "Samguk Sagi ", a 12th century AD historical document).
*53 BC TheParthia ns defeat the Romans under Crassus in theBattle of Carrhae
*49 BC January 10 :Julius Caesar crossed theRubicon river, precipitating war withRome
*44 BC Julius Caesar murdered
*37 BC Goguryeo is founded in southernManchuria (traditional date according to "Samguk Sagi")
*31 BC Roman Civil War :Battle of Actium — Off the western coast ofGreece , forces of Octavian defeat troops underMark Antony and Cleopatra.
*27 BC The Roman Senate votes Octavian the title ofAugustus . Augustus eventually assumes all authority formerly held by the Roman senate becoming the first emperor. The Roman state is henceforth known as theRoman Empire , and the period from 27 BC to AD305 as thePrincipate .
*18 BC Baekje is founded in midwesternKorea (traditional date according to "Samguk Sagi")
* c. 6 to4 BC Birth of Jesus of Nazareth (seeChronology of Jesus' birth and death ,Anno Domini , andCommon Era for further details)ignificant people
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Burebista , greatest king of Dacia
*Catiline , attempted to overthrow Roman Republic
*Caesar Augustus ,Roman emperor
*Cicero , Roman politician and writer
*Cleopatra VII of Egypt , Egyptian ruler
*Herod the Great
*Hillel the Elder , Jewish rabbi
*Horace , Roman poet
* Jesus of Nazareth, central figure of Christianity
*Jing Fang , Chinese mathematician and music theorist
*Julius Caesar , Roman politician
*Livy , Roman historian
*Lucretius , Roman philosopher
* Marcus Antonius, Roman politician
*Marcus Junius Brutus , Caesar's adopted son, supposedly killed him
*Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa , Roman statesman and general
*Marcus Vitruvius Pollio Roman writer,architect andengineer
*Sextus Pompeius , Roman general
*Ptolemy XIII of Egypt , drowned in Nile
*Ovid , Roman poet
*Virgil , Roman poet
*Spartacus , gladiator
*Sima Qian , Chinese historian, father ofChinese historiography
*Tigranes the Great , king of ArmeniaInventions, discoveries, introductions
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Sunspots , first recorded by Chinese
* TheAntikythera mechanism is made
* The firstdome was built by the Romans
*Glass blowing is invented in Roman Syria
*The Chinese "Ji Jiu Pian" dictionary published in40 BC during theHan Dynasty is the earliest known reference to thehydraulic -poweredtrip hammer device.Decades and years
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