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The Roman Republic Geography Long and narrow, Italy is divided east and west by the Apennine Mountains (a continuation of the Alps, the Apennine Range is continuous from northwest to southwest Italy…it forms a crescent shape). The mountains provided abundant wood and pasture land for grazing and its volcanoes ensured that the soil would be particularly fertile. In addition, Italy divides the Mediterranean in half, which is a perfect position to govern trade on that sea. Creation myths of the Romans According to the Romans themselves, Rome was founded in the year 753 BC by twin brothers Romulus and Remus. They were born of a vestal virgin and the god Mars. They were cast into the Tiber in a basket, but were found by a she-wolf, who suckled them until they were found by a kindly shepherd who raised them. The two brothers found the city of Rome, but then quarreled, whereby Remus was killed by his brother, leaving Romulus as the sole King of Rome. In the Aeneid, written during the very early years of the Empire, the poet Virgil states how Aeneus, a Trojan prince, escaped the sack of that city and fled to Italy, with accompanying adventures along the way. His son Iulius, or Julius, established a monarchy at the city of Alba Longa. His descendents were Romulus and Remus (the Julian clan also claimed Aeneas as an ancestor). In reality, we know that the area around the city of Rome was controlled by the civilization that arose to the north of Rome, the Etruscans. The Etruscans Around 800 BC or so, a group of people came from outside of Italy and settled in the central part of Italy, north of the Tiber River. We don’t know the name these peoples had for themselves, but later Roman records called them Etruscans. The best guess is that the Etruscans came from Asia Minor, but couldn’t say exactly where. They took over most of the region, which included a tribal people called the Latins, and came into contact with the Greeks to the south (remember Greek colonization) in Magna Graecia (Latin term, not Greek). The Etruscan culture was urban and cosmopolitan. They built cities, usually on hilltops and sometimes on the site of previous bronze/iron age villages. Their culture seems to be based on the city-state like the Greeks, not a unified nation that the Romans were to later build. Archaeologist have identified 12 main Etruscan city-states, which were ruled by kings. Their contact with the Greeks to the south influenced their art, and they adopted the Greek alphabet (which would be transmitted to the Romans who followed them). They were a military power and were able to establish control over much of northern Italy. The Etruscan language in non Indo-European and is largely undeciphered. Most of what we know comes from the Romans (so it suspect) and from the elaborate cities of the dead that they built. They were wealthy, enjoyed art, had gender equality, loved to party. They gave the Romans the toga, the fasces, their alphabet, some of their government institutions, and maybe even the city of Rome itself. Debate over who built Rome, the tribe called the Latins (or Latiums) or the Etruscans themselves. Evidence favors an Etruscan beginning to Rome, built on the southern edge of their territory, possibly in response to the Greek presence in the south (both were commercial trading powers and therefore rivals). By the mid-6th century, the Etruscans were definitely ruling Rome…this is recorded in the Roman records. In 509 BC however, the Romans overthrew the Etruscan king, Tarquin the Proud (over the rape of Lucretia), and then set about to completely change their system of government. This was the start of the Roman Republic. The Republic or res publica A. Concept 1. No more kings. No king or queen was allowed to enter the city of Rome. 2. No democracy. The Romans didn’t like it and didn’t believe in it. 3. Set up a system of government where is was hard for any one individual to gain control. Society was divided into two hereditary groups, the patricians and the plebeians. Today has connotations of wealth, but in Roman times could have poor patricians and wealthy plebeians. Really denoted an aristocracy…patricians had three names and plebeians only two. Hence Gaius Iulius Caesar and Marcus Antonius. Your name was very important to Romans, since it denoted your family and branch of the family that you came from. At first only patricians could hold political office in Rome. Several concepts to be aware of in Rome: auctoritas, which simply means authority. Yet authority in Rome was absolute. The paterfamilias, or head of the family, could sell, beat or even kill members of his family if he deemed it necessary. They governed who married whom, made wills, bought and sold property, controlled the family finances, etc. Your paterfamilias literally had the power of life and death over his family. This auctoritas could extend to the political arena. dignitas, or dignity, but like most terms encompassed so much more. It was your reputation, your street cred, how other people thought of you, and it enchanced your political power and persuasion. Roman men did everything to build their dignitas, and avoided anything that could harm it. The pinnacle of your dignitas was to achieve the consulship in Rome. imperium, or supreme power, both military and legal. Only a few elected officials in Rome held imperium, and those offices were marked by the fasces, or bundle of rods that denoted the amount of imperium you held. patron-client relationship…unlike Greek democracy, in which (theoretically) all male citizens were equal, the Romans believed that some people were inherently better than others. Hence the patron-client relationship. This relationship joins the rich and the poor together for their common interest. The patron (usually rich and/or powerful) looked after the interests of their clients (food, jobs, pay taxes, etc), while the clients used their vote and influence and sometimes sheer numbers to advance the political agenda of their patrons (sometimes this is your only job). Show up in the morning to learn the agenda of the day, would walk with their patron thru town, to the Forum, attend Senate meetings with them. A Roman male was rarely alone. Government All Roman citizens had to do ten years of military service. At sixteen, most boys reported to the Campus Martius just outside of Rome for their induction into the military. After their ten years of military service, you were eligible to run for the various magistracies in the government. The name for the ladder that you climbed to the top position in government, the consulship, is called the cursus honorum. It took popularity, money, and a family name to have a political career in Rome, yet it was considered mandatory for almost all well-born Roman males to partake in this career path. Cursus Honorum: Quaestor (originally 2, eventually expanded to 40), minimum age 31, elected by the Tribal Assembly Quaestors were the finance officials of Rome, they recorded the expenses of the government, distributed war gains, funded military campaigns, and acted as treasury officials to the provinces; they were also quartermasters for the legions Aediles (originally 2, then expanded to 6), minimum age 36, elected by the Tribal Assembly Aediles were the public works officials, they maintained the streets, buildings, temples, etc. of Rome, they were also responsible for traffic regulation, the grain and water supply for Rome, oversaw the markets, ensured the weights and measures were correct and arranged the public festivals and games an Aedile was entitled to 2 lictors Praetor ( 2 main, 6 subordinate), minimum age 39, elected by the Centuriate Assembly Praetors were the chief judicial officials of Rome, they presided over the court system and depending on the praetor, had jurisdiction over civil, foreign or military cases, the Praetor Urbanus could not legally leave Rome for more than 10 days in a row, after their term as praetor, they were usually given a province to govern as propraetor a Praetor had imperium and was entitled to 6 lictors Consul (always 2), minimum age 42, elected by the Centuriate Assembly the Consulship was the highest position in the Cursus Honorum and they were the head of the government, each consul had veto (I forbid) power over the other consul, consuls presided over the assemblies (they took turns alternating months) and could convene the assemblies if they wish, they had the power of arrest (but not capital punishment), they were the commanders-in-chief of the army, they put into effect the laws passed by the assembly and they made foreign policy a Consul had imperium and was entitled to 12 lictors, when away from Rome he had full imperium (but could be prosecuted for misdeeds after his consulship was over) the above were elected for one year and were eligible for the Senate after term is over Other Magistrage Positions: Dictator In times of emergency, the Senate could suspend the ordinary government and pass a senatus consultum. A dictator would be appointed for six months, and he held full imperium,both military and civil during his tenure. He could make any decree and change any law during those six months without approval or passage by the assemblies or any magistrate. The only magistrate not affected by a dictator was the Tribune of the Plebes. The Dictator of course held full imperium and was entitled to 24 lictors Tribune of the Plebes (originally one, then 10) Only Plebeians could be a tribune, and had the right to veto any law or decision made by an assembly or magistrate, tribunes were also sacrosanct, which meant that you could not harm a tribune, this is what gave the tribunes their power Censors (2), elected every 5 years, but only held office for 18 months, elected by the Centuriate Assembly Conducted the census for voting rights and tax rolls, only ex-consuls could be censors, could disenfranchise citizens, also enforced “morality”, listed Senators, considered the highest honor in Rome even though you had no imperium Roman Assemblies: Curiate Assembly The Curiate Assembly was a leftover from Etruscan times. It was the oldest assembly and mostly ceremonial. Only Patricians could be a member of the Curiate Assembly and they were elected for life. Centuriate Assembly The Centuriate Assembly elected magistrates with imperium (consuls and praetors) and censors. Membership was based on wealth, that is, your ability to furnish a century, or a group of 100 armed men. This assembly was dominated by Patricians and wealthy landowners. Laws passed by the Centuriate Assembly were called “leges”, in the singular “lex” i.e. Lex Brunet, plagiarism will be punishable by playing in traffic on the West Loop. Tribal Assembly The Tribal Assembly consisted of all the citizens of Rome. It also had a sub-assembly, the Plebeian Assembly and the terms are sometimes interchangable. They were organized on the basis of location, that is, where you live. They elected tribunes, praetors and aediles. While Patricians were part of the Tribal Assembly, only Plebeians were part of the Plebeian Assembly. There were 35 tribes, 4 urban and 31 rural. Laws of the Plebeian Assembly were known as plebecites. Senate The Senate was the symbol of Rome, along with the entire body of citizens. The Senate was not a legislative assembly, but an advisory body. It does not propose legislation and it does not vote on legislation, but it was the only group that debated laws. It could veto laws passed by any of the legislative bodies. It also sent out ambassadors, received foreign diplomats, declared war, made peace treaties, appropriated funds for wars, armies, etc. It appointed dictators or declared martial law in times of emergencies. The Senate appointed provincial officials. The Conflict of the Orders: 494 to 287 B.C. In the early days of the Republic, it was clear that only patricians held rights in Rome. The wealthy plebes wanted more political rights, so in 494 B.C., during a time of conflict, the plebeians "seceded" from Rome. This was not an idle threat. Almost all public life in Rome shut down when the plebes left Rome (basically, they just went outside the city, but shops, marketplaces, bathhouses, etc. closed). And in a time of war, no one would fight in the army. This seccesio plebis led to the creation of the Plebeian Assembly (part of the Tribal Assembly). The Plebeian Assembly passed laws that were only binding on plebes (hence their laws were called plebiscites). In addition, ten tribunes were elected that could intercede on behalf of plebeians. Tribunes had the power of veto and were sacrosanct. No person could harm a tribune without fear of retribution from the plebes. In 451, another plebeian secession forced the government to write down the laws of Rome, which had been the province of the priesthood and secret. The Twelve Tables, as they came to be known, provided a written law code for all Romans, and is the basis for most western law codes. With the laws written down, they can be repealed or modified. The Lex Canuleia, 445 B.C. allowed marriages between patricians and plebeians. The Lex Ogulnia, 300 B.C., made it possible for plebes to hold positions in the various priesthoods. Plebeians were allowed to seek the consulship in 367 B.C. with the Lex Licinia-Sextia and the Lex Publilia, 339 B.C. said that at least one consul must be a plebe. The Conflict of the Orders ended in 287 B.C. with the Lex Hortensia, in which plebiscites were now binding on all Romans. Although the conflict was over, it meant the wealthy plebes deserted the poorer plebes and allied with the patricians. Conquest of Italy Rome was not only dealing with internal power struggles during these centuries. It was also busy subduing the Italian peninsula. At first, Rome turned its attention north and by the end of the fourth century B.C., had conquered the Etruscan civilization. Before it could continue, however, the Gauls invaded Italy from across the Alps, and in 387 B.C. burned Rome to the ground. The Gauls were only interested in looting Rome, not in settling there. After returning home, Rome again resumed its subjugation of the peninsula, this time asserting control over central Italy by 280 B.C. The only area left were the Greek city-states to the south and they were swiftly overrun. By 250 B.C., Rome controlled the Italian peninsula. Rome's policy towards others was that of assimilation and accommodation. Most areas were allowed to keep their customs, religions, and political structure. They did have to send taxes and soldiers to Rome. In addition, as veterans left the Roman army, they were given land all over Italy. This meant that Rome had military garrisons all over the peninsula. And they built roads...really superb roads. The Roman army could reach places that had revolted very quickly. For the most part however, Italians didn't want to revolt. They wanted to be part of the Roman system. And eventually, they ended up being Roman citizens. Compare this to the Greeks (thinkers) who conducted politics according to rigid principles and theories and forced people to accept Greek culture. The Romans (doers) conducted politics based on practicality. Rome ended up with an empire. The Punic Wars Carthage was a city-state settled by the Phoenicians around 800 B.C. By the third century, it was a great commercial power on the coast of N. Africa. It also controlled N. Africa, Sardinia and half of Sicily (the Greeks controlled the other half). The word Punic come from Phoenicia. The First Punic War, 264-241 B.C., arose out of a small, local conflict on Sicily that escalated into a war between two large powers. Rome quickly took control of Sicily, but found itself without a navy. It improvised however, built a navy and devised a new method of warfare (the corvus). By 241 B.C. Carthage asked for surrender terms: must pay heavy fines, must give up its navy, must give up Sicily, Sardinia and Corsica. The results of the Punic War for Rome: they learned how to conduct a naval war, they learned how to wage war on a large scale (finance, recruitment, supply overseas, build fleets, conduct domestic politics), Rome was now a Mediterranean power. A major problem for Rome, however, was that consuls were elected on a yearly basis, and that was a weakness in an extended campaign. The Second Punic War, 218 to 201 B.C., was the most important of the three wars fought with Carthage. It has given us some of the most famous military maneuvers in history along with the most studies battles in military schools. In the interval between the first and second wars, Carthage had extended its power into the Iberian (Spain/Portugal) Peninsula. The problems between Rome and Carthage arose again when Roman colonies along the Mediterranean (today the southern coast of France) met the Carthaginian colonies in Iberia.