Topic Summary

The year is 44 BC. For nearly a decade, the Roman people have watched with bated breath as Julius Caesar campaigned in Gaul like a man possessed. Wielding the ordered aggression that is the Roman trademark, Caesar accumulated vast amounts of wealth and power as he sought to expand the territory of the Empire and bring glory to Rome. His success was seemingly not enough for him—Caesar now wages a war against Rome’s own people.

You have been summoned in a delicate time for the Empire. It is time to act with clear-eyed decisiveness as you seek to preserve the republican government that has been the backbone of Rome’s power for centuries. Caesar’s campaign against the Republic cannot go unaddressed; he threatens to upend the careful balance with which the government has operated. Will you allow Caesar to rule as you stave off a much greater crisis? Or will you crush him with the same righteous zeal previously seen only by the enemies of Rome?

Director’s Letter

People of the Republic,

Hello and welcome to the latest iteration of Harvard National Model United Nations!

My name is August, a sophomore studying computer science and neuroscience here at Harvard. I originally hail from Chicago, Illinois (go Bears!) and have enjoyed participating in Model UN since my junior year of high school. I’m a member of the Intercollegiate Model UN team, and have staffed our high school and college conferences, both this year and last. Beyond MUN, I’m a member of the Technology Board of the Harvard Crimson and enjoy broadcasting for the campus radio station.

I hope you all are as excited as I am to engage with a very rich time of history—a delightful concoction of assassination, political ambition, and awe-inspiring battles that seem to move mountains. I trust you will bring your oratory and rhetorical genius to bear as you witness the remaking (or unmaking!) of the Roman Empire. In this committee, more than any other, you will get out what you put in: Your ambitious striving will only help you as you seek, like seemingly everyone else in Rome, to seize power and influence. But don’t forget that the Roman Senate—not unlike a high-school cafeteria—is a delicately relational game. Don’t allow your steps to falter; your life could depend on it.

I hope your time here in Boston will be memorable, fun, and reasonably chaotic. See you soon!

Strength and honor,

August Damiani

Director, Fall of Rome: Roman Senate

Director’s Letter

Friends, brothers, countrymen,

Welcome to the 71st iteration of Harvard National Model United Nations! And welcome to the Fall of Rome.

My name is Daniel Hochberg and I am a Junior from Westchester, New York studying mathematics with a secondary in economics. I began participating in Model UN in high school, and continue to do it in college, both running conferences and competing with our Intercollegiate Model UN team.

To me, MUN is a place to learn new skills, build powerful relationships, and let your creativity run wild. The Fall of Rome will test your MUN abilities to the limit. As you navigate this unique period of history, you must work together for the collective good of Rome, the personal goals of your own character, and pursue innovative solutions to ancient problems. Teamwork and originality are paramount in any Model UN committee, and this will be no different.

I look forward to our weekend together, solving old problems, creating new ones, and above all, enjoying the time in committee. In the meantime, please feel free to reach out with any questions. See you soon!

Sincerely,

Daniel Hochberg

Director, Fall of Rome: Roman Senate