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The Roman Republic
What is a Republic?
A republic is a state or country that
is not led by a monarch.
The people (or at least a part of its
people) have an impact on its
government.
Why did Rome become a
Republic?
 From 753 to 509BC, Rome was ruled by kings. It then became a
Republic because the people of Rome didn't like the way that
King Tarquinius had ruled: they said he was a tyrant.
 The Republic was set up to make sure that there weren't any
more tyrants in charge of Rome.
Roman Republic
 In the Republic there were three main
parts of the government:
 The Senate
 The Consuls
 The Assembly
Important Vocabulary:
 Patrician: the noble and wealthy in
Rome (aristocracy)
 Plebian: “the common people”
The Senate
 Consisted of patricians—men from wealthy
families in Rome
 The chief governmental body because they:
 Advised the consuls and the Assembly
 Controlled public finances and foreign affairs
 Assigned military commands and provinces
 Debated and passed decrees that would be
submitted to the Assemblies for final ratification
 Once one was a member of the Senate, he
stayed in for the rest of his life.
Consuls
 Two men elected by the Senate
 Had supreme power in both civil and military
matters
 Both consuls had to agree in order for anything to
happen.
 While in the city of Rome, the consuls got advice
from the Senate, and most of the time, they did
what the Senate advised.
 While abroad, each consul would command an
army. His authority abroad would be nearly
absolute.
The Assembly
 Consisted of all the free, adult men who were
Roman citizens
 Voted on laws suggested by government officials
 Patricians had more votes than the other citizens, so
power was not shared equally. Thus, patricians had
more political power.
 Declared war or peace
 Elected Tribunes
Tribunes
 Roman officials whose task it was to protect the
rights of the plebian class
 Sacrosanct: Immune from arrest or punishment
 Their sacrosanctity was enforced by a pledge,
taken by the plebeians, to kill any person who
harmed or interfered with a tribune during his term
of office.
 All of the powers of the tribune derived from their
sacrosanctity.
 Could veto the action of any elected official
 Could punish--even with death--a disobedient
official