Download The Roman Republic

The Roman Republic
EQ: How did the Romans govern
themselves in the Republic?
Activating
• Think back to when we talked about
Greece.
– What is a republic?
– Is it a fair type of government? Why or why
not?
Republic- a government where
citizens choose representatives to
vote for them
The Republic Begins
The Roman Republic begins in the year 509
BCE when the Romans overthrew the
kings that ruled them.
The Republic Begins
• There were two classes of people in the
Republic: patricians and plebeians.
• Patricians are wealthy landowners and were the
most important people. They were also the
members of the Roman army.
• Plebeians were small landowners, farmers, and
merchants. They were much less important.
Citizenship
• Both patricians and plebeians were
considered citizens in Rome. But only
men!!
• Women and slaves were NOT citizens.
• Citizen- someone allowed to participate in
government decisions and is protected by
the government
Government Structure
• For a long time, only patricians were
allowed to vote in the Senate.
• The plebeians didn’t like this and often
refused to work and bring in food for the
patricians. Eventually, the patricians
allowed plebeians to have a bigger say in
their government.
Think about it:
Would you rather be a patrician or a
plebian? Why?
Government Structure
• The Republic government was led by two
Consuls.
• The Consuls issued laws and orders. One
Consul could veto (cancel) the other
Consul’s orders. Their most important job
was controlling the army.
Government Structure
• Another part of the government was the
Senate.
• The Senate was a group of patricians who
made sure that the Consul’s laws were
carried out.
• They also gave the Consuls advice.