Republic Flashcards

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1
Q

Republic Founding

A

-Begins in 509 BC with the ousting of Tarquin the Younger by Lucius Junius Brutus
-Brutus and Collatinus established a Republic
-Tarquin tried 3 times to take Rome back with the Etruscans

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2
Q

The 3 Classes

A

-Patrician (nobleborns)
-Equites (wealthy plebs, commonly merchants)
-Plebians (commoners)

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3
Q

Initial Government Structure

A

(in order of most to least powerful)
-2 consuls
-300 to 600 members of the senate + 10 Tribunes
-comitae (citizen’s assembly)

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4
Q

Consuls

A

-Most powerful and ran the government and military
-Nominated by the Senate, elected by the people
-Patricians only later changed to one patrician and one plebian
-One year terms
-Could veto one another
-Together with the Senate, could appoint a dictator in an emergency
-were in charge in alternating months (starting with who got the most votes)
-minimum age 42
-possessed imperium (the power to command armies)
-could only be elected every 10 years

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5
Q

Dictator

A

-supreme power
-6 month term
-elected in emergencies by the consuls and senate

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6
Q

Senate

A

-300-600 men
-initially patricians only (later allowed plebs)
-Served for life
-Advised the consuls
-suggested laws

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7
Q

Comitiae (people’s council)

A

-several types of assemblies, electing multiple different officials
-plebeian assemblies elected tribunes
-military assembly elected consuls
-voted yes or no on laws

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8
Q

Tribunes

A

-est after 471
-comprised of only plebs
-could veto senate
-were sacrosanct (protected by holy law)
-anyone who harmed them was put to death

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9
Q

Cursus Honorum

A

-“course of offices”
-ladder of political advancement

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10
Q

Quaestor

A

-20 at a time
-treasures
-became eligible for appointment to the senate
-either treasures for Rome or aids to provincial governors
-minimum age 30

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11
Q

Aedile

A

-4 at a time (2 must be plebs)
-not required on cursus honorum
-event planners
-in charge of food supply
-minimum age 35

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12
Q

Praetor

A

-8 at a time
-judges
-ran Rome in the absence of consuls
-could convene with senate and assemblies
-had imperium (power to command armies)
-had lictors (bodyguards)

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13
Q

Censor

A
  • 2 at a time
    -former consuls
    -elected every 5 years for 1.5 year terms
    -conducted census
    -moral authority
    -appointed or ejected senators
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14
Q

Proconsuls

A

-ex-consuls appointed as provincial governors
-generally super-corrupt

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15
Q

Roman Full Citizenship

A

-granted to free and landowning men over the age of 15
-could vote
-could marry free persons
-could buy/sell/trade goods
-hold public office

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16
Q

Roman Half Citizenship (Women)

A

-could not hold office
-could not vote
-could own property and engage in trade

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17
Q

Roman Half Citizenship (Slave/Criminals)

A

-could vote and trade
-could not hold office or marry free women

18
Q

clientia

A

-client system
-essentially employment
-clients worked for patrons interests and received money and legal protections
-clients could be inherited from fathers

19
Q

Pleb reasons for riots

A

-economic crisis in early years, leaving the poor hungry and without land
-the public land (ager publicus) was controlled by wealthy
-nexum was the only way for plebs to get out of debt (servitude that often came with terrible treatment from masters)
-plebs demanded more rights

20
Q

Post Volscian War riots

A

-Appius Claudius begins to pursue debtors, causing riots
-494 all the plebs leave the city for the Aventine Hill
-this leaves rome without a workforce

21
Q

War with Volscians

A

-group of barbarians south of Rome
-consuls pass a law stopping the imprisonment of citizens if it prevents them from military service and preventing to seizure of property that belonged to active military
-plebs settled for this and fought the Volscians

22
Q

Gaius Menenius Agrippa

A

-moderate senator sent to negotiate sent by the senate to negotiate with the plebs
-tells the plebs the story of the “body and the belly”
-plebs agree to negotiate

23
Q

Plebs Concessions

A

-formation of the plebian council
-divided plebs into 21 tribes, each with one vote
-founded the Tribunes
-was tasked with defending pleb rights
-claimed Aventine for the plebs (wealthy had Palentine)
-built a temple to Ceres for grain distribution and runaway sanctuary
-aedile created to oversee temple
-relations continued to worsen despite this

24
Q

Spurius Cassius

A

-three time consul, supported plebs
-first to propose land reform
-485 is accused of trying to become king and is killed

25
Q

Gnaeus Marcius (Coriolanus)

A

-493 Coriolanus heads to defense of Corioli during the 2nd war with the Volscians
-wins by burning down some houses and tricking the volscians into thinking they already lost
-denies payment and is granted the agnomen Coriolanus
-runs for consul in Rome but ruins it with his ego
-vows to screw the plebs because of his loss

26
Q

Coriolanus Revenge

A

-steals grain shipment and jacks up price during a shortage, wont lower it unless the Tribunes are abolished
-Tribunes impeach him but he refuses to stand trial
-Resists the arrest by the Aediles
-Consuls try to smooth stuff over while the Tribunes continue to demand a trial

27
Q

Coriolanus and the Volscians

A

-goes to the Volscians and brings their armies against Rome
-plebs are okay with reversing the sentence to avoid war, but the senate stands their ground
-Coriolanus refuses peace until his mother and wife plead with him to accept peace
-he returns with his army to Volsci and is killed by an angry mob of Volscians

28
Q

Coriolanus Trial

A

-insults the plebs, causing a riot
-Coriolanus goes into hiding and everyone agrees he should stand trial
-Coriolanus stands trial but is found innocent because of lack of evidence
-Tribunes charge him with embezzlement and he is found guilty and banished

29
Q

Lucius Quinctius Cincinnatus

A

-Born 519 BC
-Patrician
-Elected consul in 460 BC
-Opposed plebian rights
-Main Rival: Gaius Terentilius, a tribune who pushed for the codification of Roman law

30
Q

Cincinnatus fall

A

-his son Caeso Quinctius runs tribunes out of forum
-was charged and fled to Etruria and sentenced to death in absentia
-Cincinnatus sold most of his property to pay the fine and retired on a small farm

31
Q

Cincinnatus 1st Dictator

A

-458 Rome at war with the Sabines and Aequi
-Consul Minucius Esquilinius and his men were trapped in the Alban Hills
-Cincinnatus made dictator
-defeats them in a pincer attack, Aequi surrender and forced to walk sub iugum (under the yolk)
-Cincinnatus resigns after 15 days

32
Q

Cincinnatus 2nd Dictator

A

-439 made dictator to stop Spurrius Maelius from becoming king
-Maelius is killed when Cincinnatus brings him to trial
-resigns after 21 days

33
Q

The Decemvir

A

-451 the plebs and senate agree to suspend the constitution for 1 year
-Consul and Tribunes are abolished for this period
-Decemvir are appointed to review and publish the laws
-Led by Appius Claudius, the decemvir refuse to step down after the 1 year

34
Q

Decemvir’s Rule

A

-never relinquish control of Rome
-forbid patrician and pleb marriage
-Sabines and Aequi declare war on Rome but the troops are unmotivated because of the decemvir, causing the war to go bad

35
Q

Verginia plan A

A

-Claudius falls in love witha pleb, Verginia
-Verginia already has a fiance, Icilius, and rejects Claudius
-Claudius tries to kidnap her, claiming she is one of his slaves but fails

36
Q

Verginia plan B

A

-Claudius lies that Verginia was stolen from his house and belongs to him
-people are angry and agree to hold a trial when her father returns from war, Verginia stays with Claudius in the meantime
-her fiance Icilius returns from war and reclaims her
-Claudius holds an unfair trial where he is the judge and he obviously rules in his favor

37
Q

Verginia Death

A

-crowd forms to protect her after the trial
-Verginius tricks Claudius into letting him talk to his daughter
-Verginius then kills Verginia to protect her

38
Q

Verginia Death aftermath

A

-riots break out
-Claudius flees
-decemvir still refuse to resign
-army returns from war and are joined by the plebs on teh Aventine Hill (known as teh Second Secession)

39
Q

Claudius Death

A

-decemvir resign and are thrown in jail
-Claudius demands a trial but kills himself before his trial comes
-his family was ashamed and refused to acknowledge his death as suicide

40
Q

Valer-Horation Laws

A

-passed by the new consuls after teh decemvir, Valerius and Horatius
-Guaranteed the sacrosanctity of the Tribunes, to be protected by the government
-Guaranteed the people’s right to appeal government decisions
-Gave legislation passed by the Plebian council the force of law

41
Q

Twelve Tables

A

-the one thing the decemvir did right, they produced Twelve Tablets explaining the laws
-only the law banning patrician and pleb marriage was repealed
-450 the laws were written on 12 bronze tablets and posted in the Forum,