Western Civilization

hills and the valleys in between, the Servian Wall was

built to surround the city in the fourth centuryB.C.E.

The Etruscans had an impact on Roman civilization

in numerous ways, both large and small. The Romans

adopted Etruscan dress—the toga and short cloak. The

insignia of the Etruscan kings became the insignia of

Roman magistrates. The Romans were also indebted to

the Etruscans for the alphabet. The Latin alphabet was

a modification of the Etruscan one derived from the

Greeks.

The Roman Republic

(ca. 509–264B.C.E.)

Q FOCUSQUESTION: What were the major political

institutions of the Roman republic, and what policies

and institutions help explain the Romans’ success in

conquering Italy?

The transition from a monarchy to a republican

government was not easy. Rome felt threatened by

enemies from every direction and, in the process of

meeting these threats, embarked on a course of mili-

tary expansion that led to the conquest of the entire

Italian peninsula. During this period of expansion in

Italy, the Roman republic developed political institu-

tions that were in many ways determined by the social

divisions that existed within the community.

The Roman State

In politics and law, as in conquest, the Romans took

a practical approach and fashioned political institu-

tions in response to problems as they arose. Hence,

it is important to remember that the political insti-

tutions we will discuss evolved over a period of

centuries.

POLITICAL INSTITUTIONS The chief executive officers of

the Roman republic were theconsuls(KAHN-sulls) and

praetors(PREE-turs). Two consuls, chosen annually,

administered the government and led the Roman army

into battle. They possessedimperium(im-PEE-ree-um),

“the right to command.” The office of the praetor was

created in 366B.C.E. The praetor also possessed impe-

rium; he could govern Rome when the consuls were

away from the city and could also lead armies. His pri-

mary function, however, was the execution of justice.

He was in charge of the civil law as it applied to Roman

citizens. In 242 B.C.E., reflecting Rome’s growth,

another praetor was added to judge cases in which one

or both parties were noncitizens.

As Rome expanded into the Mediterranean, addi-

tional praetors were established to govern the newly

conquered provinces (two in 227B.C.E.,twomorein197

B.C.E.). But as the number of provinces continued to

grow, the Romans devised a new system in which ex-

consuls and ex-praetors who had served their one-year

terms were given the titles ofproconsulandpropraetor

and sent out as provincial governors, demonstrating

once again the Romans’ practical solution to an immedi-

ate problem. It was reasonable to assume that officials

with governmental experience would make good provin-

cial administrators, although this was not always true in

practice because of the opportunities for financial cor-

ruption in the provinces.

The Roman state also had administrative officials

with specialized duties.Quaestors(QUES-turs)were

assigned to assist the consuls and praetors in the

administration of financial affairs.Aediles(EE-dylz)

supervised the public games and watched over the

city’s grain supply, a major task for a rapidly growing

urban community that relied on imported grain to

feed its population.

The Romansenate, or council of elders, held an

especially important position in the Roman republic.

This select group of about three hundred men, who

served for life, was not a legislative body and could

only advise the magistrates. Its advice was not taken

lightly, however, and by the third centuryB.C.E., it had

virtually the force of law. No doubt the prestige of the

senate’s members furthered this development. But it

also helped that the senate met continuously, whereas

the chief magistrates changed annually and the popular

assemblies operated slowly and met only periodically.

The Roman republic possessed a number of popular

assemblies. The most important was thecenturiate

assembly, essentially the Roman army functioning in

its political role. Organized by classes based on wealth,

it was structured in such a way that the wealthiest citi-

zens always had a majority. The centuriate assembly

elected the chief magistrates and passed laws. Another

assembly, the council of the plebs, came into being in

471 B.C.E. as a result of the struggle of the orders (see

the next section).

The government of the Roman republic, then, con-

sisted of three major elements. Two consuls and later

other elected officials served as magistrates and ran the

state. An assembly of adult males (the centuriate as-

sembly), controlled by the wealthiest citizens, elected

these officials, while the senate, a small group of large

98 Chapter 5 The Roman Republic

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