Roman Family Structure

The time of the Republic of Rome contributed vast amounts of advancements and innovation to today’s society, even helping to lay groundwork for our constitution. The Romans presented a unique layout of government and society, revolutionarily changing how countries strived to be. The basis of their society was a system consisting of the three main parts, including the family unit, the balance check, and their branches of government. The most important part of a structure is a foundation, to the roman government and society, the family unit acted as this foundation, the unit was basic – yet effective, and three important traits gave it power: the independence of the family, the modularity, and the incredible simplicity. Included in the Roman

The father of the unit held the utmost power, including power over even the life of those within the household. He even held this power without any interference from the state. As World History states: “Rome’s strong families coupled with the patriotism and hardworking spirit of its people provided a foundation for its greatness” (Bollinger, WH 67). Indeed, the family unit supported Rome’s ability to become an empire. The independence and miniature government synthesized within a roman family allowed scaling up to magnanimous portions. From the family grew the clan and the tribe. The tribe acted as a basis for the village and eventually, a kingdom. In his article Family values in Ancient Rome, Saller tells the reader: “In primitive times, before the existence of the state, family and kinship were the organizing units of a simple society.” (Saller) From a kingdom to a republic and from republic to empire, Rome grew, all due to the scalability of the family. Even more monumental than the modularity was the unique simplicity of the roman

(Bollinger, WH 68). As Polybius writes, “Such are the parts of the administration, which are distinctly assigned to each of the three forms of government, that are united in the commonwealth of Rome. It now remains to be considered, in what manner each several forms is enabled to counteract the others, or to cooperate with them. (Polybius)” Following the pattern, the Romans ingeniously incorporated the idea of having branches of government. The branches were a powerful tool for freedom and control, with the Law of Twelve tables maintaining liberty. In Checks and Balances, Johnson puts it into context with, “Ambition must be made to counteract ambition. The interest of the man [the officeholder] must be connected to the constitutional rights of the place. (Johnson)” This system, much like ones we use today, allow for both seamless transition and balance of power. On the consul side, two men ruled instead of just one, they acted much like the pater in a family unit. The most powerful body of government was the senate, which had powers ranging from controlling the government’s finances, passed laws, and supervised the foreign