Download Roman Republican Government

ROMAN REPUBLICAN
LAW & LEGISLATION
SPQR
Senatus Populusque Romanus
Senate and the People of Rome
TWO DIVISIONS OF THE RR
Produced Food &
Supplied Labour and
Military
Patricians
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Wealthy land owners
Nobles of the ruling class
Could vote
Paid taxes
Served in the army
Could serve in government
Couldn’t marry a Plebeian
Plebeians
• Majority of population
• Artisans, shopkeepers, small
farm owners
• Could vote
• Paid taxes
• Served in the army
• Couldn’t serve in government
• Couldn’t marry a Patrician
HIERARCHY OF THE RR
Consuls (2
Patricians)
Senate (300
Patricians)
Comitia
Centuriata
(soldiers)
Comitia Tributa
(Patricians)
Concilium
Plebis
(Plebeians)
CONSULS
 2 men elected by Senate to run government and command the
army
 Short-term to avoid abuse of power
 Had the right to veto decisions (“I forbid” in Latin)
 “Chief Magistrates of the State”
SENATE
 ~300 wealthy Patricians
 Elected for life (social prestige)
 Advise consuls
 Deal with other countries
 Propose laws
 Controlled budget
 Approved public works
ASSEMBLY
 Rest of the population
 Citizen soldiers – acted as the voting
assembly
• First step towards a democracy
 Approved/rejected laws
 Decided on war
 Could NOT suggest laws
COMITIA CENTURIATA
 One branch of the Assembly
 Made up of soldiers
 Segregated into electoral classes based on wealth
• Blocs were called “centuries”
• 1 vote per century
 Annually elected Senior Magistrates
 Passed laws
COMITIA TRIBUTA
 One branch of the Assembly
 All the people in the city with the right to vote who belonged to
tribes
• 1 vote per tribe
 Wealthy Patricians
 Could pass laws on behalf of all people, including the aristocrats
CONCILIUM PLEBIS
 Plebeian Council – only Plebeians
 Tribune – official of this assembly
• Power of veto – can veto anything from
Comitia Centuriata, Comitia Tributa,
Concilium Plebis, or the Senate
• Exercise veto in the case that the rights of
the Plebeians are threatened
• Negotiate with consuls & senate
 Veto power of Tribunes helped to abolish:
• Ban on marriages between Patricians and
Plebeians
• Enslavement of citizens for debt
PLEBEIAN’S STRUGGLE
 Plebeian Struggle for Equal Rights – Twelve Tables
• Laws were in favour of Patrician interests
• Plebeians wanted it written down
• Compromise: basic legal procedures and punishments
 367 BCE – one consulship reserved for Plebeians
 287 BCE – Plebeians recognized as a constitutional body
OTHER POSITIONS
 Praetor – in charge of law courts (below the Consuls)
 Quaestor – treasurer
 Censor – supervisor of public morals & state contracts
• Elected by Comitia Centuriata to revise lists of citizens (census)
 Dictator – appointed by consuls for specified period in times of
crisis/war (above the Consuls)
SCENARIO
 As members of the Roman Republic, your job is to ensure that the rich are
kept happy while still saving Rome from self-destruction. With each new
conquest the Roman Empire attains, they acquire slaves. These slaves are
assigned jobs in the factories and on the farms working for significantly less
compensation than any free Roman can. These conquered slaves are increasing
in number while putting free citizens (labourers and small farmers) out of
work. The poor Romans are starving to death and cannot afford to even join
the military, for the cost of armour is too much. What decision are you going
to make to address this problem?