Thousands of People Were Being Killed Each Day by War and Proscription in the Late Roman Republic
Jacob Scioscia History, English
4/7/12 Research Paper
Thousands of people were being killed each day by war and proscription in the late Roman Republic; this calamity occurred during the downfall of the Roman Republic. This collapse occurred for many reasons, and threw Rome into chaos, but the main reason that the republic fell was due to the unwillingness of the Roman senators to compromise, rather than the rebellious forces of the plebeians.
In the beginning of the Republic, the senators would compromise with the people because Rome had no idealized state of government. There was a power struggle for centuries, and, at one point, the plebeians left Rome in order to have their requests granted. The senators and patricians, unable to defend Rome, agreed and granted their wishes, compromising to keep the plebeians happy, because they were the backbone of Rome. Both classes needed each other; “The patricians needed the plebeians to defend Rome, and the plebeians needed the experience and guidance of the patricians.” (E. The Struggle of the Orders. Paragraph 4, Line 4) In 471, the Senate passed the Lex Publilia Voleronis de Tribunis Plebis, which stated that the plebeians were allowed to pick the tribunes rather than the patricians. In 454 BC, the senators passed the Lex Aeterna Tarpeia, which prevented a consul from placing a fine over the set limit on the plebeians. (A) In the beginning the plebeians were rebellious, however the senators soon would stop compromising with them and Rome would fall.
The senators, however, passed a law that prohibited intermarriage between plebeians and patricians, but opposition soon led to the Lex Canuleia de Conubio Patrum et Plebis which repealed the law in 445 BC, showing that the senators were more than willing to compromise. They even allowed one of the plebeians to be a consul, and when the rights of the plebeians were respected and their requests were heard, Rome saw
4/7/12 Research Paper
Thousands of people were being killed each day by war and proscription in the late Roman Republic; this calamity occurred during the downfall of the Roman Republic. This collapse occurred for many reasons, and threw Rome into chaos, but the main reason that the republic fell was due to the unwillingness of the Roman senators to compromise, rather than the rebellious forces of the plebeians.
In the beginning of the Republic, the senators would compromise with the people because Rome had no idealized state of government. There was a power struggle for centuries, and, at one point, the plebeians left Rome in order to have their requests granted. The senators and patricians, unable to defend Rome, agreed and granted their wishes, compromising to keep the plebeians happy, because they were the backbone of Rome. Both classes needed each other; “The patricians needed the plebeians to defend Rome, and the plebeians needed the experience and guidance of the patricians.” (E. The Struggle of the Orders. Paragraph 4, Line 4) In 471, the Senate passed the Lex Publilia Voleronis de Tribunis Plebis, which stated that the plebeians were allowed to pick the tribunes rather than the patricians. In 454 BC, the senators passed the Lex Aeterna Tarpeia, which prevented a consul from placing a fine over the set limit on the plebeians. (A) In the beginning the plebeians were rebellious, however the senators soon would stop compromising with them and Rome would fall.
The senators, however, passed a law that prohibited intermarriage between plebeians and patricians, but opposition soon led to the Lex Canuleia de Conubio Patrum et Plebis which repealed the law in 445 BC, showing that the senators were more than willing to compromise. They even allowed one of the plebeians to be a consul, and when the rights of the plebeians were respected and their requests were heard, Rome saw
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