Rome: Some Background

Chronology:

• Kings in Rome: 753-510BCE
• Republic: 510 until the second half of the first century BCE
• Three possible dates for the end of the Republic
• Julius Caesar appointed perpetual dictator in 44 BCE
• Octavian wins the battle of Actium in 31 BCE
• the Senate proclaims Octavian "Augustus" in 27 BCE
• Empire: 2nd half of 1st century BCE through the fifth century CE

Government of republican Rome

• Two most important assemblies:
• Senate
• Plebeian assembly
• Offices
• Basic principles of office:
• Collegial
• Annual
  
• Cursus Honorum
• 10 years of military service was the official beginning
  
• Quaestor: various support roles for generals, governors, financial record keeping
  
• Aedile; a public works position
  
• Praetor: judges
  
• Consul: chair of Senate, supreme judge, general
• Censor; great honor, kept various rolls, financial duties
  

• Elected
• Mixture of military and administrative
• Minimum ages and times between each
  

• Additional offices
• Governor: after being consul: autocratic rule over a province
  
• Dictator: emergency absolute powers
  
• tribunes: sacrosanct, veto right,
  

Territory of Roman Republic

FROM: http://www.wwnorton.com/college/history/ralph/ralimage/map9rome.jpg

• Initially one of many Italian cities
• 4th century: Latin wars: conquered Italy
• When Rome conquered, it gave the conquered limited citizenship, rights, and obligations.
• 3rd century BCE:
• Punic wars: Rome became dominant power in Western Mediterranean
  
•  First Punic War: 264 to 241 BC
• Second Punic War: 218 to 202 BC
• Third Punic War 149 BC to 146 BC
• Macedonian Wars and Seleucid War: Rome became dominant power in Eastern Mediterranean
  
• First Macedonian war (215 to 202 BC)
• Second Macedonian war (200 to 196 BC)
  
• Third Macedonian War (172 to 168 BC)
  
• Fourth Macedonian War (150 to 148 BC)
• Seleucid War (192 to 188 BC)
• 2nd century BCE: various conquests
  
• 1st century BCE: Caesar conquered Gaul
  

People of Roman Republic

• Patricians: aristocrats
• Knights (Equites): rich, but not aristocrats
• Plebs: the people

• Citizenship
• Levels
• Various levels of rights were granted to various people
• The "Latin Right" is the best known: granted to the inhabitants of Italy
• Used as a tool: Romanization
  

• Slaves
• Became citizens when freed
• Women
• Could not hold office
• Could not vote
• Entirely subject to Paterfamilias

Problems of the Republic

• 107 BCE Marius reformed army, leading to a standing army as loyal to its general as to Rome
• After Marius, a succession of generals distorted the power structure to the point where Caesar was able to be appointed perpetual dictator: Marius, Sulla, Pompey, Caesar
• From the time of the murder of the Gracchi in 133BCE, mobs, armed gangs, and murder were common in politics.
• For instance, Sulla marched on Rome, reign of terror, dictator
  
• What had been a land economy originally became a money economy: changed power possibilities and structure
  
• With the acquisition of empire, the stakes grew higher and higher
• Senate did not rise to the occasion
• Rome governed as a city-state: provinces governed (for limited terms) as private fiefdoms.

Our authors:

• Polybius (203 - 120 BCE)
• Work: Histories or Rise of Rome
• thought of history as cause and effect
• careful research
• "Heir to Thucydides"
  
• Life
• 166BCE: was taken as hostage to Rome and kept there for 17 years
• had been champion of Achaean League maintaining neutrality vis a vis the Romans
  
• tutor of Scipio Aemilianus, who was adopted grandson of the general Scipio Africanus
• returned to Greece to help ease the transition to Roman rule (146 BCE)
• Spent later years writing his work
• Cicero (106 BCE-43BCE)
• A novus homo
• Great orator (lawyer)
• 70 prosecuted Verres, governor of Sicily
• Champion of the Republic
• Consul in 63BCE
• Put down Catilinarian conspiracy to overthrow the republic
• Last years
• Fled Rome after Caesar invaded in 49BCE
  
• Rivalry with Antony after Caesar assassinated
• Championed Octavian and delivered his Philippics against Antony
• Killed by Antony's men: hands and head displayed in Forum.
• Political Ideas
• He was a novus homo.
• Envisioned Rome ideally as run by impartial individuals who reached consensus as senators
• Concordia Ordinum: saw that the root of many problems were class-based, but overestimated willingness of the rich and powerful to enact reforms.
  
• Brought philosophy to Rome
• Works we will read:
• de Re Publica.
• de Officiis.
  
• Seneca