As Rome became independent from the Etruscan ruling, its government walked away from having a monarch and transformed into a Republic as a way to avoid the tyranny that many times comes with an absolute autocrat. Rigorous precautions were taken from the start in order to keep the power balanced. Moreover, the structure of the government was meant to be resilient to bad judgment. The structure of the Roman Republic with its government and law provided for a more just system.
The principle of the Roman government was to function for the people, hence classifying them as a republic (Res Publica or the Thing or Matter of the People). Before the commencement of the Republic, Rome was ruled by a line of Etruscan kings called Tarquins. The last Tarquin was described by Roman historian Livy as being harsh towards the Romans, as he promoted hard labor. He decreed the construction of the Great Sewer and the seats of the Circus, which were not the primary cause for the dread of the Roman people; the workers were also responsible for their typical military duties (Livy, 98). After the Tarquin monarchy , the Roman people had an everlasting fear of ever being subjected to a monarchy again. In order to maintain a balanced legislature, the government was split up into three branches: magistrates , the Senate and popular assemblies .
The magistrates are what the American government would consider the executive branch. They were the leaders of the political and military aspects of government and were led by the consuls. In most cases, the magistrates were only able to hold office for one year, this way they did not have enough time to accumulate power and ultimately overthrow the government or leave a significant impression on the Republic ...
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...bserve that this is quite similar in nature to the obligation a policeman has these days in the US when having to disclose someone’s right prior being detained. It is a check and balance construct that tries to keep the system just.
In 509 BC, the Tarquin line of kings was drawn from power and Rome began its stand as a Republic. The changes in the government and society of Rome were immense and were for the improvement of the city and its people. This aspiring new Republic did not flourish overnight into the perfect society; with the birth of the Republic came many new problems. Yet, it would be hard to imagine our modern society which we deem as democratic and just, not resting on the pillars and foundations that the Roman Republic gave us of their ideas on government branches with a system of checks and balances as well as the code of law created by the Romans.
How was it possible that under the dictatorship and after the deification of Julius Caesar the Roman republic fell, when it had been structurally sound for four centuries before? When the republic was established around the end of the 6th century B.C.E., the Romans made clear that they wished to avoid all semblance of the monarchy that had ruled for two centuries before. T.J. Cornell, The Beginnings of Rome: Italy and Rome from the Bronze Age to the Punic Wars (c. 1000-264 BC), London and New York: Routledge, 1995; p. 215) The rule of the Republic was to be split into powers of the senate and consuls, a system that worked for over four centuries. The republic would face problems with the rise of the first triumvirate in 60 B.C.E., involving Julius Caesar, Crassus and Pompey.
A republic is a form of government where the people elected by a popular vote someone to represents in law making. The Romans used to had a republic government that fall. On one hand, this republic fall because the elected official were corrupt because under Roman law you could pay someone to vote for you. So rich people could actually buy their way into the senate and the senate made the laws and people could bribe senators to make the
The Roman Republic was an extraordinary civilization with an exceptionally complex political system that still impact governments today. The Roman Republic comprised of three sections. The most astounding being the Consul that was made up of two male individuals who are chosen every year. Furthermore, there was the Senate made up of elder statesmen that exhorted the Consul and lastly there was the Assemblies where people voted by groups on issues. A couple of their strengths of the political system was its citizen association, in spite of the fact that plebeians really didn't have much power. Another strength of the political system was that it was administered and in view of well spelt out laws to maintain a strategic distance from cases of dictatorship.
The first branch, representing the Monarchical Branch of the Republic were the consuls. The consuls were two main leaders that had complete civil and military authority in the Republic. They carried on the former tradition of kings and queens from the past, except they were more fair and just. But, each consul only held that position for one year.
Michael Crawford also documents the Roman Empires political structures. He writes how it went through the transition from a monarchy, early in the empires existence, to a Republic where the people had more say over the countries actions. He discusses the political scheme of Rome and how ''Senators'' were chosen and served the empire. Crawford states how the governing class of Rome seemed to question and change its idea of what the government should be on a regular basis. ''The prevailing ideology of the Roman governing class was one which facilitated change, including in the end, the abolition of the Roman government itself''(Crawford 1). This quotation suggests to the reader the ever-changing ideas of the Roman people and how they viewed their governing body.
The nature of government and political culture in ancient Roman society was similarly complicated as our our political infrastructure in modern day Western civilization. In addition, it had its own unique characteristics rendering it a mechanism of social ideal; one where the population was provided for, and at the same time ruled by an upper lass in the electorate.
The government of the Roman Republic was complex. Each position in government had a specific function. The Roman government was led by two consuls, or leaders. This was the highest position of the political government, holding a large amount of power. There were two consuls selected in order to keep a balance of power. They both served a year term and had the option to veto each other if they did not agree on something. This position also gave them the power to establish laws, collect taxes, and make military based decisions. The Roman Senate consisted of patricians, who were hierarchy because of their ancestors. Therefore, they were basically born into the position. Their job was to guide the consuls and deliver the messages or rules that
The government of Ancient Rome, the Roman Republic, has influenced American government. The Roman Republic influenced the laws, republican form of government, branches of government, and balance of power. However, the Republic was different from American government. For instance, the Romans had two leaders as consuls of the empire. What was taken from Rome to America, was the idea of a ruling senate that controlled what laws were passed. Consuls had supreme power in both civil and military matters. In the city of Rome, the consuls were the head of the Roman government. They would be the head of the senate and the assemblies. The republic was a large democratic system structured under the rule that no one could hold too much power. Also, people's assemblies were elected by the people to represent the lower classes of Rome. The military was controlled by elected officials. Their terms only lasted for one year! However, it was not a perfect democracy. The Romans did not have a sense of human rights. The city held m...
The Roman Republic ultimately failed due to the lack of large-scale wars and other crises that had united the Roman populous early in the history of the Roman Republic. Roman leadership and honor were compromised. In the absence of war and crisis, Rome’s leaders failed to develop the honor and leadership necessary to maintain the Republic. The Roman Republic was founded in 509 BC after the ruling Tarquins abused their extensive power as monarchs and were overthrown. The goal of the Roman Republic was to have a strong government, governed equally by the patricians and the plebians, and to avoid another Roman Monarchy.
Over time, nations change. Different leaders rise to power, politics and policies change, wealth and land is acquired and eventually, one may be left wondering how it all changed. This series of changes is seen in the ancient Roman republic in its last century. After a lot of chaos between unpopular politicians and new laws, certain individuals stepped into the government and swayed its focus to conquest and personal gain. Civil wars and class conflicts broke out in Rome due to aristocratic senators and ambitious generals, only to be met with the end of the republic.
To many historians and analysts, Rome was easily one of the most successful civilizations that ever had come to be. The Romans were able to successfully expand throughout their time and managed to be able to hold and control vast amounts of territory at a time. Despite the shocking fall of Rome, during the Roman times there was much success to be had and one of the reasons for the success began with the Roman constitution. The Roman constitution had divided the power into three separate elements that each had their own responsibilities and all contributed to the mass amount of success the Romans had. There are many reasons that the Roman empire was so successful, but three of the main factors that lead to their success was the Consuls, the Senate, and the People. If not for this division of power, there is no telling what would have been Roman empire, or if it even had the opportunity or potential to become an empire to begin with. To the Roman’s division of power was very important, each of the three elements possessed sovereign powers and the power was regulated which would promote equality.
The Roman Republic was the time of the ancient Roman civilization. They’re government was one where the officials were elected. This republican form was started by the Roman monarchy being overthrown in 508 BC. It ended up lasting 482 years. When the republic first started, it was controlled by an aristocracy. Later on though, laws were repealed, causing the individuals of the aristocracy to not dominate the government. This caused a new aristocracy. Instead of depending on laws, it depended on the society. Similar to today, the republic had a constitution they went by. Separation of powers and checks and balances were the two main rules followed. Rome began to expand their territory, ruling the Mediterranean completely. Then they moved on and ruled North Africa, Greece, France, and the Iberian Peninsula. Regions such as Egypt became allies with Rome. According to the textbook, Prentice Hall World History, “by 133 BC, Roman power extended from Spain to Egypt.”(157) Having control over these lands brought great riches into Rome. The Romans kept conquering lands and forced the captured to slavery on big farming estates. Prentice Hall World History textbook by Ellis and Esler states that “by the last days of the republic, around a third of Italy’s people lived in slavery.” (157) The rich got richer and the poor became poorer causing angry mobs to start riots. Having a...
In 509 BCE the people of Rome created a new type of government: they called it the Roman Republic. Although many things started to be different, and the government was improving, women and slaves were not considered citizens of Rome. “They had no voice in government. Only adult free Roman men were citizens.” The people got tired of this and challenged their government.
The Republic accomplished this with a mixed constitution of monarchy, aristocracy, and democracy, in the form of the consuls, Senate, and citizen assemblies respectively. This system diffused power preventing one element of government from becoming too powerful as to undermine the rights of citizens. As Polybius describes, “it was impossible…to pronounce with certainty whether the whole system was aristocratic, democratic, or monarchical…such being the power that each part has of hampering the other or cooperating…their union is adequate to all emergencies, so it impossible to find a better political system than this.” That said critics of the Republic would identify the failings of this system to maintain balance once put into practice. Prominent among these was that the aristocracy had de-facto control over the entirety of the state; the senatorial class set the agenda for the assemblies, monopolized the consulship, and controlled much of the citizenry through patronage networks. Even in the Century Assembly the wealthy controlled over half of the voting blocs. Nonetheless, this does not invalidate the Roman solution to the free-rider problem. Equality of influence was never a privilege that Roman citizens would have expected. Equally, aristocratic hegemony was a necessity for the free rider problem to be solved;
...fficiently. While altering the individual feels more concordant with Plato’s philosophical thought, it still served to establish the qualities to which political leaders are judged today. Furthermore, Polybius, through his analysis of the Roman constitution, noted a solution to the pitfall into ochlocracy: a more intelligent populace. The Roman solution to this was somewhat simpler. Rather than altering the perceptions of the populace, it simply removed the power from their hands. It took qualities from each of the three integral types of government and created a system that is remarkably similar to our modern-day “checks and balances.” Through its constitution, Rome established a society that served as a model for all great empires. Rome had achieved the impossible by establishing such an expansive empire that it began to set precedent for all future societies.