Download Essay: Is the United States of the 21st Century faced with t

Essay: Is the United States of the 21st Century faced with the same dilemma and problems that the Ro
man Republic faced as it transformed due its strength, into an empire? Discuss your Stance based upo
n knowledge and backed by historical research.
The Roman Republic was established in 509 B.C., afte
r Roman nobles overthrew the king. The new government kept many features of the earlier system, incl
uding the Senate and citizen assemblies. Two elected officials called consuls headed the government.
The consuls shared power, but either consul could veto the actions of the other. A consul served fo
r only a year. The Senate was the most powerful government body of the Roman Republic. The Senate co
nducted foreign policy, passed decrees, and handled the government's finances. Senators, unlike cons
uls, served for life. At first, all senators were patricians. Patricians were members of Rome's olde
st and richest families. Patricians controlled not only the Senate but also the assembly that electe
d the consuls and other important officials. All the rest of Rome's citizens, who were called plebei
ans, had little political influence. To obtain political rights, plebeians formed their own assembly
, the Concilium Plebis, and elected leaders called tribunes. Largely through the work of the tribune
s, plebeians gradually gained the same political rights as the patricians. In time, a new and larger
assembly, the Comitia Tributa, developed. It represented both patricians and plebeians, but plebeia
ns largely controlled the assembly. Expansion overseas made Rome a mighty kingdom during the 200's a
nd 100's B.C. Rome came into conflict first with Carthage, a sea power and trading center on the coa
st of northern Africa. Rome and Carthage fought for mastery of the Mediterranean Sea in three strugg
les called the Punic Wars. In the First Punic War (264-241 B.C.), Rome conquered Sicily, an island o
ff the tip of Italy, and made it the first Roman province. Rome also seized two other Mediterranean
islands--Sardinia and Corsica. In the Second Punic War (218-201 B.C.), the brilliant Carthaginian ge
neral Hannibal Barca led his army over the Alps into Italy. He won several key battles, but Roman ma
npower and endurance eventually wore him down. Under Publius Cornelius Scipio's leadership, the Roma
n forces defeated Hannibal in 202 B.C. In the Third Punic War (149-146 B.C.), Rome destroyed Carthag
e. These victories brought the Mediterranean coasts of Spain and Africa under Roman control. After t
he Second Punic War, Rome began to expand in the east. At first, Rome acted to protect its allies al
ong Italy's east coast from pirate raids. However, it soon became involved in conflicts between Gree
ce and Macedonia. Macedonia, which lay north of Greece, had conquered the Greeks in 338 B.C. Rome po
sed as the liberator of the Greeks. Nevertheless, by the 140's B.C., it had taken control of Greece
and Macedonia. In 133 B.C., King Attalus III of Pergamum, a Roman ally, died and left his kingdom (n
ow part of Turkey) to Rome. Two reasons help explain Rome's remarkable expansion overseas. First, Ro
me built an alliance of cities in Italy that supplied the army with enormous manpower. Second, pride
in their military power and government institutions gave the Romans great confidence in their super
iority and in the justness of their cause. Although the Romans had triumphed overseas, they faced gr
owing discontent at home. Wealthy Romans profited from the tax revenues, slaves, and looted property
that poured into Rome from defeated lands. But unemployment rose as plantations worked by slaves dr
ove out the small farmers, and the gap between rich and poor widened. In 133 and 123 B.C., two Roman
tribunes tried to help the poor. Tiberius Gracchus and his brother, Gaius Gracchus, promoted a prog
ram to distribute state-owned land to the poor. However, the majority of the Senate opposed them, an
d both brothers were assassinated. Conflicts among leaders caused upheaval in the Roman Republic dur
ing its last 100 years. Revolts by Rome's Italian allies, a war in Asia, and unrest at home weakened
the republic. In 82 B.C., the Roman general Lucius Sulla became dictator. Sulla restored stability
to the government and strengthened the Senate by bringing in new leaders. Sulla retired in 79 B.C.,
but he had given Rome a taste of one-man rule. In the 60's B.C., Rome again began to expand overseas
. The Roman general Pompey conquered eastern Asia Minor, Syria, and Judea. He returned to Rome a pop
ular hero, but the Senate refused to recognize his victories. As a result, Pompey and two other Roma
n leaders--Julius Caesar and Marcus Crassus--formed a three-man political alliance called the First
Triumvirate in 60 B.C. Crassus died in warfare in 53 B.C. Other Roman leaders then tried to split th
e two surviving members of the Triumvirate. From 58 to 51 B.C., Caesar conquered Gaul, thereby addin
g the huge territory west of the Rhine River to the Roman world. Pompey and the Senate feared Caesar
's power and ambition, and they ordered him to give up his command. But Caesar marched his troops ac
ross the Rubicon, a stream that separated Italy from Gaul, and invaded Italy in 49 B.C. In the civil
war that followed, Caesar defeated Pompey and his followers. By 45 B.C., Caesar had become sole rul
er of the Roman world. A group of aristocrats who hoped to revive the Roman Republic assassinated hi
m in 44 B.C. Civil war again broke out after Caesar's death. In 43 B.C., Caesar's adopted son and he
ir, Octavian, formed the Second Triumvirate with two army officers, Mark Antony and Marcus Lepidus.
Octavian and Antony defeated Caesar's enemies and soon pushed Lepidus aside. Octavian and Antony the
n fought each other for control of Rome. Antony sought the support of Cleopatra, queen of Egypt, and
they fell in love. In 31 B.C., Octavian defeated the forces of Antony and Cleopatra in the Battle o
f Actium off the west coast of Greece. The next year, the Romans conquered Egypt and made it a Roman
province. After the defeat of Antony, Octavian was the unchallenged leader of the Roman world. In 2
7 B.C., he became the first Roman emperor and took the name Augustus, meaning exalted. In spite of h
is power, Augustus avoided the title of emperor. He preferred to be called princeps, meaning first c
itizen. Nearly 20 years of civil war had destroyed the republic. Only a strong central authority see
med able to govern the empire. This where the Roman Republic ended and the Roman Empire began. The r
eign of Augustus marked the beginning of a long period of stability, which became known as the Pax R
omana (Roman Peace). The Pax Romana lasted about 200 years. Augustus reestablished orderly governmen
t and the rule of law. The Senate, consuls, and tribunes still functioned, but Augustus had supreme
power. He commanded the army, controlled the provinces, and filled the Senate with his supporters. T
he United States of the 21st Century faces struggles that can be compared in some ways to the strugg
les that the Roman Republic faced. Overall though, the United States is not in the same position as
the Roman Republic was when it transformed into an empire. The Roman Republic had been weakened by y
ears of civil war. The change of government from a republic to an empire was almost necessary for th
e survival of Rome. After the many conflicts due to civil wars, the Republic was nearly destroyed an
d the situation in Rome was chaotic. A change to an empire was really the only solution to the probl
ems. As stated earlier, only a strong central authority seemed able to govern the empire. Another th
ing to keep in mind is how much society has changed since the Roman Republic. Many of the conflicts
that occurred toward the end of the Roman Empire would never occur within the modern society of the
United States. For example, If a leader from another country were to assassinate President George Bu
sh, they would not take control over our government. Also, in order to avenge his brother's death, y
ou would not find Jeb Bush raising an army and attacking the enemy. The reason for this is simple; t
he United States of the 21st Century is not nearly as archaic and barbaric as the Roman Republic was
. Although some of our situations may be compared to those Roman Republic faces during its change to
an empire, overall our problems are different in nature. The United States will remain a strong dem
ocracy and will not follow the same path as Rome...One that led to disaster and downfall. essay unit
ed states century faced with same dilemma problems that roman republic faced transformed strength in
to empire discuss your stance based upon knowledge backed historical research roman republic establi
shed after roman nobles overthrew king government kept many features earlier system including senate
citizen assemblies elected officials called consuls headed governmentEssay, essays, termpaper, term
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