Download Roman Times

Roman Times
2nd century B.C.
All the News Romans Need to Know
Rome, Italy
Obituaries
Tiberius and Gaius Gracchus
By Arianna Flamer
Tiberius and Gaius Gracchus,
sons of Sempronius Gracchus and
Cornelia, were Roman brothers who
attempted to reform social and
political structure to help the lower
classes, in the 2nd century B.C. The loss
of their lives will be felt by many.
The Gracchi came from a
prominent and wealthy family. Their
father, Sempronius, was a governor of
Spain and was elected twice as consul.
He is known for his outstanding
victories over the country’s enemies.
His wife, Cornelia, was the daughter of
the famous Scipio Africanus, a Roman
general who defeated Hannibal,
Rome’s archenemy. When Sempronius
died, he left Cornelia, a widow and
raising twelve children on her own.
Ptolemy, the ruler of Egypt asked to
marry her, but she refused. Only three
of the twelve children made it to
adulthood; a daughter, Sempronia,
and two sons, Tiberius and Gaius.
Cornelia with the
Tiberius and Gaius
Born between 169 and 164 B.C,
Tiberius was nine years older than his
brother Gaius. Tiberius’ demeanor
was more calm and controlled of the
two. When he gave public speeches, he
was gentle yet persuasive; Tiberius
was well spoken. Tiberius wanted
equality and rights for the common
people. He sought to do this by
establishing a policy of humanitarian
aid. His first active duty began in 147
B.C, when he served as a junior officer
in Africa for one year. Tiberius’ second
major assignment began in 137 B.C
when he was sent to Spain to serve in
battle. The Spaniards felt that they
could trust Tiberius because of his
father’s good deeds when he ruled in
133 B.C. Tiberius was elected as
tribune, which meant that he could
veto laws that he felt violated the
rights of the people. He redistributed
land among the poor and established a
commission which would carry
through a land reform bill. This bill
would limit the amount of land one
family could own. Rome was
becoming a land divided between the
rich and poor and Tiberius fought to
close this gap. Unfortunately, in 133
B.C, Tiberius, along with 300 of his
supporters were killed during a riot.
Their bodies were thrown into the
Tiber River.
Gaius Gracchus was born
between 160 and 153 B.C. At the time
of his brother’s murder, Gaius was in
his early twenties. It is said that he
was more fiery and emotional than
Tiberius. According to Plutarch, Gaius
had a servant named Lincinius, who
stood by him with a pitch pipe. If
Gaius became too abusive or too loud,
Lincinius would blow a soft note on
the pipe which would alarm Gaius to
calm down. Gaius did not immediately
involve himself in political affairs, but
he did keep an eye on the commission
on his brother’s land reform bill to see
its execution.
In 123 B.C, Gaius became
tribune and had similar goals as his
brother. Not only did he plan to enact
land reform bills, but he wanted to
change prices, the military, and he
also wanted to establish colonies.
Furthermore, he wanted to end all
injustice in the provinces. Some of his
accomplishments included giving the
equites power to put provincial
governors on trial. He evenly
distributed the amount of wheat in
Rome. He also promoted the creation
of self-governing colonies in Italy, as
well as overseas, like Carthage. Gaius
argued for a change in the laws
regarding the rights of Latins and
Italians. He wanted to offer voting
privileges to non-Roman Italians, but
this weakened his support from the
lower classes. Voting rights was an
important aspect on having political
power. In 121 B.C, riots broke out and
more than 3,000 of Gaius’ supporters
were executed. Once Gaius found
himself with no other option, he had
his slave kill him rather than being
captured.
Even though Tiberius and
Gaius Gracchus never saw the success
of their reforms, they have exposed
the faults and cracks of the Roman
constitution. This is only the
beginning of positive changes for the
social classes. They have become
heroes of Rome and will be greatly
missed.
Sources:
Ancient Romans by Rosalie F. & Charles F.
Barker III
The Romans by Kevin M. McGeough