Answer:
Explanation:
"Controlling the High Ground
Its first settlers built the city of Rome atop seven different hills, according to Eduplace, a resource for history teachers. Building the city on high ground forced any attacking army to fight its way uphill, giving the defending forces a major advantage. The Romans understood this advantage and built fortresses on top of several of the hills. For example, Muses' Realm reports that Capitoline Hill was the seat of Rome's government and its largest fortress. Rome's naturally defenses made the city almost immune to attack, a feature that allowed the city to grow and ultimately dominate its neighbors.
Rich Farmland
Aside from its strategic military placement, Rome was also ideally positioned for agriculture. As the city grew on the seven hilltops, agriculture grew at the base of the hills. Soil on the Italian Peninsula is rich as a result of heavy deposits of volcanic ash, according to Hofstra University. The soil and the mild climate helped the Romans grow surplus olives and grain. Reliable food production allowed the population to grow, and the trade in olives and olive oil helped the Roman economy expand.
Limited Sea Power
Although the Romans were renowned for their military might on land, the early republic was a very limited sea power. According to Heritage History, during the First Punic War, the republic had virtually no naval forces. To facilitate their invasion of Carthage, the Romans had to build 150 ships from scratch. One reason for the Romans' lack of naval power was the lack of viable ports. The city of Rome is set far back from the ocean, and few other Roman cities offered easier access to ocean. Due to this quirk of geography, the Romans concentrated on building up their land-based forces.
All Roads Lead to Rome
Rome's geography forced the Romans to rely on overland transportation much more than other empires. The absence of ports and small number of major rivers lead the Romans to build a massive network of roads. At the height of the empire, the network included more than 80,000 kilometers of roadways, according to Hofstra University. The transportation system made the city of Rome the critical trade hub for the entire Mediterranean for centuries. Roman roads were of such high quality that many still exist today."
