The period of Roman domination in Greece conventionally extends from 146 av. J. - C. after the setting with bag of Corinthe by Lucius Mummius Achaicus until the rebuilding of Byzance by Constantin I {{er}} and its proclamation as a second capital of the Roman Empire in 330 a. J. - C.

Installation of the Romans in Greece

The decline of the Greek military power led the Romains to conquer the country starting from -187. On the other hand, the Greek culture was going to conquer the Roman life. Although the Roman occupation begins with convention in -146, the Roman presence started as of the III E. Certains States Greek required an alliance with Rome. The first were the cities of the Adriatique to fight against the pirates Illyrie NS. Then in -212, the Étoliens request an alliance with Rome against Antigonides. The Roman intervention in Illyrie (in -228 and -219) and in Macedonia (214-205), although limited, especially benefitted Rome to increase the number of Greek cities in a system of customers which was clean for him. The resumption of an expansion policy on behalf of the Macedonia mark the beginning of the second war of Macedonia and victory of the Romans over the Macedonians with Cynoscéphales in -197. Macedonia becomes a Roman Protectorat then, but Titus Quinctius Flamininus guarantees the independence of Greece in -196, at the time of the Isthmian Jeux of Corinth, which delivers Greece to internal quarrels.

The weakening of Macedonia supported the projects of Antiochos III which wanted to invade Greece. In -192, it unloads in Greece but hardly receives support if it is not that of the Ligue étolienne. It is beaten in -191 in Thermopyles, passes by again in Asia or it is crushed in -190 with Magnésie by L. Scipion the Asian one (brother of Scipion the African).

The Third war of Macedonia sees the victory of Paul Emile over Persée of Macedonia to Pydna in -168, putting thus fine at the dynasty Antigonides. Macedonia is also divided into 4 districts or mérides whose chief towns were Amphipolis, Thessalonique, Pella and Pélagonia.

After the victory of Pydna, the Romans accentuate their presence in Greece and make there defend their interests. But this interventionism is badly perceived by the populations which revolt in Macedonia (-148) and in the Peloponnese (-146). These risings are completed by the bag of Corinthe in - 146 and the fact that the peninsula becomes Roman Protectorat then, to which the islands of the Aegean Sea were added in 133 av JC. Athens and other cities revolted in -88 but were crushed by the general Sylla. The Roman civil war devastated the country even more, until Auguste organizes the peninsula as a province of Achaïe in 27.

The remainder of the city-states ended gradually up paying homage to Rome, loser in fact their autonomy. The Romans left the local government to the Greeks, without trying to abolish the local political practices. Thus the agora of Athens continued to be the center of the political life and civic.

The edict of Caracalla in 212 of our era, extended the citizenship out of Italy to all the free men of the whole of the Roman Empire, raising the provincial populations with an equal statute of that of Rome. The already integrated companies, such as Greece, were more favorable to this decree, than the more remote, too poor provinces or feeling too foreign such as the Brittany, the Palestine or the Egypt. The decree of Caracalla did not start the process which would lead to the transfer of the capacity of Italy towards the East and Greece, but rather accelerated it, throwing the foundations of Greece major power in Europe and the Mediterranean during the Moyen-âge.

Influence of Greece on the Empire

Greece was the key Eastern province of the Roman Empire, since the Roman culture has, in fact, for a long time be gréco-Roman. The Greek language was used as Lingua franca in the east and in Italy, and much of Greek intellectuals such as Claude Galien would have carried out many of their work in Rome. Several emperors made build new buildings in the Greek cities, particularly on the Agora of Athens, where Agrippeai of Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa, the library of Pantaneus and the Tour of the Winds inter alia was built. The life in Greece continued under the Roman Empire about like front. The Roman culture was largely inspired by that of the Greeks. The epopees of Homère inspired the Énéide of Virgile, and of the authors such as Sénèque the Young person wrote by using a Greek style. The noble Romans who considered the Greeks late and of no importance were the principal political opponents of Roman heroes, such as Scipion the African, who studied philosophy and regarded the culture and Greek science as examples to be followed. In the same way, much of Roman Emperors tended to being philhellene. The emperor Néron visited Greece in 66 and took part in the Olympic Games in spite of prohibition for the not-Greeks to take part. He gained there obviously a victory in each discipline and in 67 he proclaimed the freedom of the Greeks to the Isthmian Jeux of Corinth, just 200 years after Flamininus made in the same way. Hadrian was also admiror of the Greeks. Before becoming emperor it was Archonte éponyme of Athens. It also made build the arch which bears its name, and had a Greek lover: Antinous At this same period, Greece, just like most of the Roman Empire of the East is subject to the influence of the Christianisme. The apostle Paul preached in Corinthe and Athens, and Greece quickly became one of the most christianized areas Empire.

Worsen Roman late

During the second and third century, Greece is divided into provinces of which those of the Achaïe, the Macedonia and the Mésie. During the reign of Dioclétien at the end of the 3rd century, the Messiah was organized in diocese and was directed by Galère. Under Constantin I {{er}}, Greece belonged to the prefectures of Macedonia and Thrace. Théodose Ier divided the prefecture of Macedonia into provinces of Crete, Achaïe, Thessalie, old woman Epire, Epire News and Macedonia. The islands of Egée formed the province of Insulae in the prefecture of Asiana. Always under the reign of Théodose, Greece due to face the invasions of the Hérules, Visigoths, of the Goths and the Vandals. Stilicon, regent for Arcadius, evacuated the Thessalie when the Visigoths invaded this area at the end of IVe century. Eutropius, Chambellan of Arcadius authorized Alaric to enter to Greece, which plundered Athens, Corinthe and the Peloponnese. Stilicon finally pushed back it towards 397 and Alaric was made Magister militum in Illyrie. Finally, Alaric and the goths migrated towards Italy, plundered Rome in 410 and established the empire Visigoth in Ibérie and in the south of the France, which will last until in 711 and the arrival of the Arab . Although Greece continued to belong to the oriental party of the Roman empire, the country is never completely gave of the Roman occupation, intervened almost 500 years earlier. It had become poor and under populated. The center of attraction of the Greeks from now on had moved towards the east, with Constantinople and in Anatolia since the reign of Constantin. Athens, Sparte and the other cities was ignored and much their statues and other works of art were moved in Constantinople. Nevertheless, the country remained like one of the greatest centers of Christendom at the end of the Roman Empire and the beginning of the Byzantine period.