The Roman Republic

The Roman Republic After Tarquin the Proud was expelled from Rome, the people formed a new government called a Republic The Roman Republic lasted for almost 500 years, from 509 BC to 27 BC Republic = Res Publica = “Public Matter” or “People’s Thing” To the people of that time, a Republic was a Representative Government meaning you elected people to represent you… In their mind, this was different from the Greek idea of Democracy.

Republican Government The main idea was that no one should become too powerful There should be separation of powers into different branches of government… in order to have checks and balances But that didn’t mean all people were equal !!

Consuls Played the role of kings They ran the government and army and were in charge of the auspices (augury) But their power was limited in 3 ways There were always two consuls Each had veto power over the other They held office for only one year In times of crisis, a DICTATOR was appointed for a six month term In early years, they were models of good leadership and civic virtue

Lucius Junius Brutus Brutus was the first consul of the Republic. He was so dedicated to Rome that he sentenced his own sons to death for participating in a plan to bring Tarquin back as king. He gave the order for their execution and stood by as their heads were chopped off. What politicians would do that today?

Lucius Quinctius Cincinnatus Cincinnatus was a patrician and political figure of the Roman Republic – he was consul in 460 BC and Dictator in 458 and 439 BC He is famous for how he dealt with being dictator. He was appointed dictator two – first to lead a war against neighboring Italian tribes (the Aequians and Sabines) and the second to put down a conspiracy by someone trying to become king. Each time, he finished the job in days, and then gave up his position and returned to his farm. He never used the opportunity to enrich himself or hold onto power any longer than needed.

Senate Ex-consuls and other patrician (nobles) – represented only about 12 families They held their positions for life They proposed laws but couldn’t actually pass them They were in charge of the treasury (money) and foreign policy (wars) There were 300 Senators in total

Assembly Made up of all citizens* – direct democracy They approved or rejected laws, but couldn’t propose laws They elected the Consuls… But couldn’t be Consul unless they were Patricians (that changed later on) In theory, the Assemblies had ultimate power; in practice, they were weak Remember – women and slaves were NOT citizens

Mixed Government Consuls (Monarchy) Senate (Oligarchy) Assemblies The government of the republic was like a combination of monarchy, oligarchy (aristocracy), and democracy all rolled into one It worked fine in the early years but there were always struggles between the different groups, especially the patricians and plebeians. Assemblies (Democracy)

Conflict of the Orders Patricians were about 5% of the population, but they had most of the political power Only they could be senators and consuls They decided on the laws and since the laws were not written down they could change them at will But Plebeians had to pay taxes and serve in the army In normal times, there was nothing the plebs could do But in war time, when soldiers were needed, they could make more demands In 494 BC, the Plebeians left the city, refused to work or join the military, and threatened to set up their own city => panic ensued The patricians gave in an allowed the plebeians to elect 10 officials called Tribunes to represent plebeian interests The Tribunes could veto any law of the Senate that they thought was unfair to Plebeians They also created a Council of Plebs; the Council could pass laws effecting the plebs but not the patricians Over the next 200 years, there were constant struggles – and the plebs gained more rights little by little They got the patricians to write down the laws in something called the Twelve Tables and post them in the city They got laws passed that said Plebs could now marry Patricians They also changed the rules so that one Consul had to be a Pleb, and so plebs could join the Senate Finally, the Council of Plebs got the right to pass laws for everyone, not just plebs