Download Veni, Vidi, Imperavi: The foundations of Roman Government

Veni, Vidi, Imperavi: The
foundations of Roman
Government
Written and Directed by Mr Drake
Foundations
Before Rome was an Empire, it was merely
a city; a city ruled by a foreign King. After
getting fed up with their tyrannical rule,
the Romans fired ‘the stab heard round
the world,’ and threw off their oppressors.
Foundations
The Romans were stuck! How were they to
govern themselves? Having decided that
Kings were right out, they needed to come
up with a system of rule that depended on
more than one person
They looked to Greece to find inspiration
Greek Inspiration
In Greece they found three forms of
government to choose from
 Monarchy, which is a rule by one person
(In Greek mono=one and archein=to rule)
 Oligarchy, which is rule by an elite few
(olig meaning few in Greek)
 Democracy, which is rule by the people
(demos=people, kratos=strength)
Modifying What they Saw
However, none of these would work.
Instead the Romans took the best features
of all governments and made their own
Democracy
From Democracy they took the idea of
public offices voted on by the people.
However, they split their citizens into two
groups:
 Patricians- Rich property owners who
could hold high office
 Plebeians- Lower class who could vote in
elections but not hold high office
Democratic Offices
There were several different offices
 The Consul: Convened and presided over the
Senate. Led the Legions (Army) in times of war
 Praetors: Served as judges. Acted as Consul in
their absence
 Quaestor: Supervised the actual city and grain
supply
 Tribunes: The voice of the Plebs
 Aediles: Ran the treasury
Oligarchy/Aristocracy
The Senate comprised the Oligarchy part of
the Roman system.
 The Senate ratified treaties and assigned
military command. Even though it was
technically supposed to be an advisory
body, its control over finances and foreign
affairs made it the most important body in
Rome
A Touch of Monarchy
The final governmental idea the Romans
stole from the Greeks was a small bit of
monarchy. Even though the Romans were
distrustful of Kings, they recognized that
there needed to be strong central power.
This was held by the Consuls. Also, in
times of crisis a Dictator could be
appointed, who would rule as a King for
six months
The Republic
The Romans combined these three systems
of Government into their own unique
Republic. A republic is a government run
by elected officials.
As the Romans took from the Greeks, do
you see any ideas that our framers may
have taken from the Romans?
Resources:

The Corsus Honorum:
http://www.vroma.org/~bmcmanus/roma
ngvt.html