Gods
The Romans had thousands of gods, they believed there were spirits and guardian gods for everything. The Romans believed there was a tree, rock, stream, bridge, kitchen, door (Janus), sleeping, and bath god. They named the month of January after the door god, Janus,
because he had an important job of protecting the Romans. The Romans blamed everything bad that happened to you after not worshipping the gods properly. As Rome expanded and grew, Romans came in contact with other people who worshipped gods .If they fought extremely well, the Romans figured that their gods must be pretty good so the Romans adopted their gods. The Romans loved the Greek gods so much that they adopted those gods and all the myths and legends about them. The Romans built big and fancy temples to their gods wherever they went. Everyday, the ancient Romans brought offerings of meat and other items to at least one nearby temples. The Romans honored their gods by providing festivals for them. All major gods had a festival a day (some more than one day). Festivals were paid for by wealthy Romans (to earn the gods favor). Since the Romans worshipped many gods, there were 200 major festivals each year. The Romans believed gods were able to interact with people if they chose to do so.
Temples
The Romans, like the Greeks and Etruscans before them, built many temples for their gods. One of the first temples in Rome is the Capitoline temple, which was built on Capitoline Hill. The Capitoline temple was for Jupiter, Juno and Minerva. The temple was completely destroyed and all that's left of it today are little pieces of the foundation. During the Republican period, Roman generals built hundreds of temples all over downtown Rome. Temples were mainly built to thank the gods for the generals victories in war. Some temples were built along the Via Sacra ( the sacred way). The generals would march down Via Sacra to celebrate and thank the gods for their victories. Those temples have been destroyed. In the middle of downtown Rome, there was a temple to all the gods.
The Pantheon
In the time of the Roman emperor Augustus, about 10 BC, a Roman general (Agrippa) built a temple to all of the gods. That temple was called the Pantheon. In 80 AD, in the reign of Titus, the temple burned down in a fire. Domitian built a new temple there, and that one burned down too. Around 120 AD Hadrian built a third temple there in a more modern style. This is the temple we have today.
Sources:
rome.mrdonn.org/gods.html
historyforkids.org/learn/romans/architecture/pantheon.htm
historyforkids/learn/romans/architecture/temples.htm
The Romans had thousands of gods, they believed there were spirits and guardian gods for everything. The Romans believed there was a tree, rock, stream, bridge, kitchen, door (Janus), sleeping, and bath god. They named the month of January after the door god, Janus,
because he had an important job of protecting the Romans. The Romans blamed everything bad that happened to you after not worshipping the gods properly. As Rome expanded and grew, Romans came in contact with other people who worshipped gods .If they fought extremely well, the Romans figured that their gods must be pretty good so the Romans adopted their gods. The Romans loved the Greek gods so much that they adopted those gods and all the myths and legends about them. The Romans built big and fancy temples to their gods wherever they went. Everyday, the ancient Romans brought offerings of meat and other items to at least one nearby temples. The Romans honored their gods by providing festivals for them. All major gods had a festival a day (some more than one day). Festivals were paid for by wealthy Romans (to earn the gods favor). Since the Romans worshipped many gods, there were 200 major festivals each year. The Romans believed gods were able to interact with people if they chose to do so.
Temples
The Romans, like the Greeks and Etruscans before them, built many temples for their gods. One of the first temples in Rome is the Capitoline temple, which was built on Capitoline Hill. The Capitoline temple was for Jupiter, Juno and Minerva. The temple was completely destroyed and all that's left of it today are little pieces of the foundation. During the Republican period, Roman generals built hundreds of temples all over downtown Rome. Temples were mainly built to thank the gods for the generals victories in war. Some temples were built along the Via Sacra ( the sacred way). The generals would march down Via Sacra to celebrate and thank the gods for their victories. Those temples have been destroyed. In the middle of downtown Rome, there was a temple to all the gods.
The Pantheon
In the time of the Roman emperor Augustus, about 10 BC, a Roman general (Agrippa) built a temple to all of the gods. That temple was called the Pantheon. In 80 AD, in the reign of Titus, the temple burned down in a fire. Domitian built a new temple there, and that one burned down too. Around 120 AD Hadrian built a third temple there in a more modern style. This is the temple we have today.
Sources:
rome.mrdonn.org/gods.html
historyforkids.org/learn/romans/architecture/pantheon.htm
historyforkids/learn/romans/architecture/temples.htm