The Gracchi brothers Tiberius and Gaius were tragic figures in Roman History. They were genuine reformers who made the fatal flaw of going against the smothering Roman Senate. Both were able to climb to the tribune position however, both fell shortly after to the tyrants above. One might ask, were they cursed due to the fate that bestowed them both? Or were they blessed with the gift of courage to try and make a difference? According to Dictonary.com, courage is: “the quality of mind or spirit that enables a person to face difficulty, danger, pain, etc., without fear.” The Gracchi brothers exemplify courage with their revolutionary Roman reform attempts during the time of the republic.
The Roman Senate and constitution was built upon the notion of ancestry. One was to do things just as the past Romans did. There was little respect for free thinkers who wished to start their own path in Roman history. Romans were filled with so much pride for their past and founding that they simply never wanted to deviate. This principle was known as mos maiorum, the unwritten code from which the ancient Romans derived their social norms (slides). However, there were people that wanted change, some Romans believed in reform and spreading the power amongst all levels, not just the senate. These people were soon labeled the populares. The populares were aristocratic leaders in the late Roman Republic who relied on places other than the head of the senate, such as the tribunes to acquire political power. The populares addressed the problems of the plebs, particularly subsidizing a grain, and in general favored limiting slavery, since slavery took jobs from poor free citizens. They also gained political support by attempts to expa...
... middle of paper ...
... Social War, and eventually the end of the Republic, which came when Caesar fighting for the populares defeated Pompey fighting for the optimates and senate in the battle of Pharsalus.
The legacy of the Gracchi brothers was one of social mayhem. Their short time spent in office was used attempting to level the playing field for all social classes. They sought to bring down the ultimate power which the senate held and put it in the hands of the citizens. Their violent deaths would be the first of many more riots and executions while the senate struggled with dwindling power. Thanks to the Gracchi brothers ambitious new faces and families were now given motivation and ways to exploit a teetering government. With the fast rise and fall of the Gracchi, the stage was set for the rise of Marius, Sulla, Pompey and eventually the last dictator, Julius Caesar.
From ages past, the actions of conquerors, kings and tyrants had brought the Roman Republic to a stance that opposed any idea of a singular leader, of a single man that held total power over the entirety of the state. Their rejection of the various ruthless Etruscan rulers that had previously dictated them brought the Republic to existence in 509 BC , and as a republic their prominence throughout the provinces of the world exponentially expanded. Throughout these years, the traditions of the Romans changed to varying degrees, most noticeably as a result of the cultural influence that its subject nations had upon the republic, as well as the ever-changing nature of Roman society in relation to then-current events. However, it was not until the rise of Augustus, the first of a long line of succeeding emperors, that many core aspects of the Republic were greatly changed. These were collectively known as the “Augustan Reforms”, and consisted of largely a variety of revisions to the social, religious, political, legal and administrative aspects of the republic’s infrastructure. Through Augustus, who revelled in the old traditional ways of the past, the immoral, unrestraint society that Rome was gradually falling to being was converted to a society where infidelities and corruption was harshly looked upon and judged. The Roman historian Suetonius states, “He corrected many ill practices, which, to the detriment of the public, had either survived the licentious habits of the late civil wars, or else originated in the long peace” . Through Augustus and his reforms, the Republic was transformed into an Empire, and through this transformation, Rome experienced one of its greatest and stabl...
The roman republic constitution was a set of guidelines and principles passed down through precedent, the roman republic instead of creating a democracy such as that the Athenians created, a monarchy which was previously being used by previous roman rulers and an aristocracy which Sparta used, the Constitution combined elements of all three of these governments to create a combined government known as “Senatus populusque que romanus” (S.P.Q.R) this meant “the senate and the roman people”. The Roman magistrates were elected officials during the period of the Roman kingdom, the ‘king’ (although the Romans preferred not to be called a king and instead a rex) of Rome was the principal executive magistrate, his power was absolute similar to that of a tsar
...would stand for a few years after Caesar’s death, praises would not stop and the Republic would soon fall seventeen years later to the man that inherited Caesar’s name and fortune.
The Roman Republic was a political system which was stamped and swayed, but it was not by parties and programmes which we are so familiar with which is a modern and parliamentary variety. And it was not swayed even by the powerful opposition between Senate and People, Optimates and Populares, nobiles and novi homines. The main locomotive force of politics was the strife for power, wealth and glory. (ref: Syme, Ronald 1960 The Roman Revolution, Oxford University Press) [1]
Although the Gracchi were motivated by a genuine concern for the welfare of Rome, ultimately their actions (and the events surrounding these) contributed to the decline of the Replublic.
Upon expansion of the Roman Empire, lie trials and tribulations for the government to rule the foreign lands and keep the population in check. The Gracchi brothers grew up during a time when the Roman Empire was still under civil unrest. The Roman people were divided, lands were unevenly distributed, the government was disorderly, patriotism ceased to exist, and slave labor made it harder for citizens to uproot themselves from poverty. Tiberius, the elder brother, was the first to bring up the agrarian laws, and was followed after his death by his younger brother, Gaius Gracchus. The brothers knew of the significance of winning the side of the commoners to assert their power over the empire. By ways of the agrarian laws, and other reforms, the two brothers were able to win control of the masses, leaving the senate to fear what could happen if these two rise in power. According to Gaius Gracchus, “in a certain pamphlet, has written that as Tiberius was passing through Tuscany on his way to Numantia, and observed the dearth of inhabitants in the country, and that those who tilled its soil or tended its flocks there were imported barbarian slaves, he then first conceived the public policy which was the cause of countless ills to the two brothers.” (Plutarch, Tiberius Gracchus 8.7)
Over the span of five-hundred years, the Roman Republic grew to be the most dominant force in the early Western world. As the Republic continued to grow around the year 47 B.C it began to go through some changes with the rise of Julius Caesar and the degeneration of the first triumvirate. Caesar sought to bring Rome to an even greater glory but many in the Senate believed that he had abused his power, viewing his rule more as a dictatorship. The Senate desired that Rome continued to run as a republic. Though Rome continued to be glorified, the rule of Caesar Octavian Augustus finally converted Rome to an Empire after many years of civil war. Examining a few selections from a few ancient authors, insight is provided as to how the republic fell and what the result was because of this.
The beginning of problems for the Roman Republic began when their government started having issues. When the government started having issues, they revolved around Pompey and Caesar,
Julius Caesar (100-44 BC) was one of the most outstanding leaders in history. He was the first ruler of the Romano-Hellenic civilization and achieved his goals with great success throughout his life of 56 years. He was assassinated by the conspirators, who accused him of practicing tyranny. This essay will discuss whether it was right for the conspirators to murder Caesar and what its consequences were. The conspirators were wrong to kill Julius Caesar because he contributed to the upturn and reformation of Rome into an orderly state.
The senate was a collective of the state’s best people, by tradition chosen from the aristocracy. Their role was to advise the elected magistrates. In practice, they came to be the collective of former magistrates. Their authority lay in their advice became like orders to serving magistrates. Their authority lay in their prestige and their experience. The roman senate was basically the governing body of men in Rome. It consisted of few hundred members, all who had to have property or money.
Rome's Republican era began after the overthrow of the last Roman King Tarquin Superbus by Lucius Brutus in 509 BC(1), the Senate was ruled the by the people of Rome. The Roman Republic was governed by a largely complex constitution, which established many checks and balances, so no man could have complete control. The evolution of the constitution was heavily influenced by the struggle between the patricians and the other prominent Romans who were not from the nobility. Early in Rome’s history, the patricians controlled the republic, over time, the laws that allowed these individuals to dominate the government were repealed, and the result was the emergence of a the republic which depended on the structure of society, rather than the law, to maintain its dominance. This is similar to the creation of the American system of government. Starting with the over throw of t...
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. For years Rome was guided by great men, such as Cincinnatus and Scipio Africanus, who led the Republic through hard times, conquering such enemies as the Etruscans and the Carthaginians. Large-scale war united Roman society in its common goals. However, after Scipio’s victory at Zama in 202 BC, a new Roman world began to take shape. Roman soldiers returned home from their victory to find that they could not pay for their farms, becoming “squatters” on their own lands after having to sell them to richer men. The Senate became corrupted, and despite the Gracchi brothers’ best efforts, the rich patricians soon monopolized nearly all aspects of the Republic, from trading and “farming” to governing the people. After marching on Rome, Sulla became dictator in 82 BC. After Sulla, the First Triumvirate: Pompey, Crassus, and Caesar, owned virtually all power in Rome, yet each had his own desire to defeat the other two and become Emperor. When Crassus died in battle, Caesar had his chance. He defeated Pompey and marched on Rome, victorious. After declaring himself Dictator for Life, Caesar was assassinated, and another Civ...
Philosopher A: In the Republic, the Senate was the primary branch of the Roman government and held the majority of the political power. It controlled funds, administration and foreign policy, and had significant influence of the everyday life of the Roman people. When Augustus came to power, he kept the Senate and they retained their legal position. The Emperor’s rule was legitimized by the senate as he needed the senators experience to serve as administrators, diplomats and generals. Although technically the most authoritative individual in Rome, Augustus strived to embody Republican values. He wanted to relate and connect to all parts of society including Plebeians. Through generosity and less extravagance, Augustus achieved a connection with the common people.
Even as a young man, Julius Caesar idolized power, leadership, and politics. Early in his quest for power Caesar was a student of the great Crassus. Eventually and gradually, Caesar built his own power, and than he made an alliance with Pompey and Crassus known as the first triumvirate. Later on, Caesar ended up more powerful then the other two men and became the last man standing. Julius Caesar started to take part in many small leadership positions, which eventually led to Caesar’s establishing the trust of society and the eventual reign of Julius Caesar. Caesar’s rise as a political leader and politician was blemished with a fatal flaw in his character known as hamartia. Caesar’s hamartia was his pride, arrogance and individual quest for power, self-superiority and use of popularist tactics to further own political gains. On the one hand, it led to political and military leadership as well as to democratic and popularist tactics to advance his career as a politician and ruler of Rome. On the other hand, Caesar’s hamartia fostered many enemies for him politically, who ultimately conspired against him, thus causing his death.
The Roman government started out as a monarchy. When Lucius Brutus rebelled against the Etruscan sovereigns, the republic was born. This allowed the two social groups, the plebeians and patricians to vote on multiple leaders instead of having the leader inherit the power. The power though, was not equal. ...