Roman society Flashcards
Criteria to be a senator:
1,000,000 sesterces Born into senatorial class or elevated to that class by the emperor
Criteria to be an equestrian:
400,000 sesterces
Roles for senators: consuls
2 elected every year
Most important officials after the emperor
Roles for senators: praetors
12 elected every year
Responsible for legal system
and imperial administration
Roles for senators: other than praetor/consul
Commanding a legion
Governing a province
Holding an important priesthood
Supervising public services in Rome
Privileges for senators:
Reserved seating at public games
Broad purple stripe on toga
Roles for equestrians:
Often successful businessmen
Jobs in civil service eg managing financial affairs
Governing a small province
Privileges for equestrians:
Narrow purple stripe on toga
Gold ring
Privileges for citizens:
Protection of the law
Free entry to public games
Free or subsidised entry to baths
Free corn for poorer citizens
How did citizenship differ for men and women?
Men were full citizens
Women were regarded as minors: they could not vote and had no say in the political system
How did people become slaves?
Born a slave Prisoner of war Kidnapping Criminals Exposure
Typical jobs for a domestic slave:
Tutor for children Cooking Weaving Shopping Cleaning Personal attendant Helping with accounts Doorkeeper
All slaves were equally badly off: true or false?
False: a well-educated (expensive) slave with a kind master/mistress could live a reasonably comfortable life
Typical jobs for an industrial slave:
Mines
Factories eg bricks for building work
State-run farms
Galleys
Typical jobs for a publicly owned slave:
Depended on skills:
maintenance of public buildings - baths, temples, roads etc
construction of public buildings
scribes for civil service
What rights did a slave have?
None - they were legally classified as property
They had no legal or political rights
They couldn’t marry
They couldn’t own property
Evidence from a slave was only accepted if obtained under torture
If a master was killed by his slave, all of his slaves were put to death
How could a slave gain his freedom?
Buy himself (money earned from bribes, running errands)
Be set free by his master (for good work, often in a will)
Slave-girls were often freed so their ex-master could marry them
For what selfish reasons might a master free a slave?
If a slave could no longer work (illness, old age) it was cheaper to free him
What rights did a freedman have?
Allowed to wear a pileus to symbolise his freedom
Classified as Roman citizens
What restrictions were imposed on freedmen?
They couldn’t run for public office (with one exception)
They couldn’t become equestrians or senators even if they had enough money
What was an Augustalis?
A public official connected with preserving the honour of the emperor
Usually elected from the ranks of freedmen
What were the benefits of being an Augustalis?
Status:
they were the 2nd highest ranking officials
they had the right to display the symbols of a magistrate, including a purple bordered toga
What duties was an Augustalis expected to perform?
Pay for buildings to be repaired
Pay for statues to be erected
Pay for games
Perform religious duties
