Roman Politics

Political Structure

At first, the Romans had been ruled by Etruscans, hence they distrusted kingship, and devised a different form of government. Early Rome was divided into two main groups: the plebeians and patricians. The plebs were the lower-class, consisting of farmers, merchants. craftspeople, etc. The patricians were the upper-class. They were wealthy land owners who were Rome's ruling class and were the ones elected to government positions. 

The chief executive officers of the Roman republic were consuls and praetors. Two consuls were elected each year to run the government and lead the army into battle. A praetor was an official of the Roman Republic that was in charge of enforcing civil law. As Rome expanded, another praetor was added to judge where a person was a citizen or non-citizen. 

The Roman Senate consisted of 300 patricians who served for life. At first, the senate merely advised the elected officials. By the 3rd century BC, however, the Senate's advise became force of law. 

In addition to the Senate, the Roman Republic had multiple people's assemblies. The most important was the centuriate assembly which elected the chief officials such as the consuls and praetors, and passed law. Assemblies were organized by classes based on wealth, hence the wealthiest citizens had majority of the vote. The council of plebs was a council for plebeians only which originated due to the struggle of orders between the opposing social classes. 

The Struggle of Orders

There were often numerous disputes between the plebeians and patricians. To the plebeians' despair, the children of patricians and plebs were forbidden to marry. This angered the plebs, as they believed they deserved both equal and social equality with the patricians, after all, the plebeians were the ones who served in the army that protected the Roman Republic. 

The conflict between the two opposing classes, dubbed the struggle of orders, dragged on for hundreds of years. Ultimately, it led to success for the plebs. The council of plebs was established in 471 BC. New officials known as the tribunes of plebs were given the power to protect the plebeians. In the 4th century BC, plebeians were permitted to marry patricians and become consuls. In 287 BC, the council of plebs received the right to pass laws for all Roman citizens. Nevertheless, the Roman Republic never became a democracy. 

The Twelve Tables

Rome's 1st code of law was the 12 tables which was first adopted in 450 BC. This code was a product of a simplistic farming society and later proved inadequate for Roman needs. Nevertheless, from the twelve tables, the Romans developed a more sophisticated system of Roman Law which only applied to Roman citizens.