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Origins of Roman Government: Republican Concepts & Twelve Tables

Exploring the origins of Roman government, discussing republican concepts such as representative government, separation of powers, and the Twelve Tables of Roman law. Addressing the impact of Roman growth, leadership struggles, and concerns expressed in the Twelve Tables. Analyzing the writings of Tacitus and the importance of the Romulus myth for the Roman Republic.

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Origins of Roman Government: Republican Concepts & Twelve Tables

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  1. The Early Roman Republic509-287

  2. Timeline for Ancient Rome • Kingship: 750 to 509 BCE • Early Republic: 509-287 BCE • Twelve Tables • Middle Republic: 287-133 BCE • Late Republic: 133-27 BCE • Empire: 27 BCE – 476 CE

  3. Timeline for Early Roman Republic 509 BCE: Founding of Republic 500-300: Conquest of central Italian peninsula 450: The Twelve Tables codified after plebeians stage a general strike 387: Celts sack the city of Rome 287: The Plebeian Assembly gains rights to pass laws for all Roman citizens 264: Beginning of First Punic War

  4. Coin from Republican Rome c. 270 BCE

  5. Brutus retrieves the dagger and calls for the overthrow of monarchy

  6. Discuss Origins of Roman Government • What inspired the Romans to develop their well conceived governmental system?

  7. Possible exam question – except our final exam is different • Explain how specific elements of the political culture of the Roman republic sought to inhibit tyranny.

  8. Some republican concepts • Representative government • Separation of Powers • Rule of Law • Loyalty to the res publica or common good

  9. Table I. 4. Let the protector of a landholder be a landholder; for one of the proletariat, let anyone that cares, be protector. Table VII. 4. If a patron shall have devised any deceit against his client, let him be accursed.

  10. Table I. 1. If anyone summons a man before the magistrate, he must go. If the man summoned does not go, let the one summoning him call the bystanders to witness and then take him by force. 2. If he shirks or runs away, let the summoner lay hands on him. 3. If illness or old age is the hindrance, let the summoner provide a team. He need not provide a covered carriage with a pallet unless he chooses. Table II. 2. He whose witness has failed to appear may summon him by loud calls before his house every third day.

  11. The Oath of the Horatii – Patriotic Duty

  12. Lictors Bring Bodies of Brutus’s Sons

  13. Table IV. 1. A dreadfully deformed child shall be quickly killed. 2. If a father sell his son three times, the son shall be free from his father. 3. As a man has provided in his will in regard to his money and the care of his property, so let it be binding. If he has no heir and dies intestate, let the nearest agnate have the inheritance. If there is no agnate, let the members of his gens have the inheritance. 4. If one is mad but has no guardian, the power over him and his money shall belong to his agnates and the members of his gens. 5. A child born after ten months since the father's death will not be admitted into a legal inheritance.

  14. Rome and its Neighbors c. 500 BCE

  15. Ancient Rome

  16. The Twelve TablesRoman Law c. 450 BCE

  17. Why did Cicero extoll the Twelve Tables? What do they tell us about Roman values & society?

  18. How did Rome grow from a city-state to an empire? What impact did growth have on the republic? Is growth a defining feature of civilization? Why?

  19. Centurion

  20. Auxiliary& Legionary

  21. Equipment of Roman Legionary

  22. Legatus

  23. RomanRoads c. 200 BCE

  24. Unification of Italy450-250

  25. Samnites

  26. Legionary Cornicen

  27. Standard bearers:Signifer& Aquilifer

  28. RomanRoads c. 200 BCE

  29. The Alps

  30. Publius Cornelius Tacitus56-117 CE

  31. Discuss Tacitus • Given that Tacitus was born in the first century CE, what can his writings tell us about the political culture of early Rome?

  32. What developments did the introduction highlight as having a big influence on Rome between 300 and 100 BCE? • The invasions of the Celts and the Germans • The invasions of the Huns and the Persians • The rise of the Plebeian Assembly • The rise of a class of wealthy non-patricians, known as equites, or knights

  33. Why was the myth of Romulus an important one for the Romans during the republican period? • It encouraged them to unite under a strong leader. • It made them wary of concentrated power. • It highlighted their warrior lineage • It made them believe that Rome was founded by a benevolent ruler

  34. What sorts of concerns did the Twelve Tables express? • Concerns about legal processes • Concerns about families • Concerns about patron-client relations • Concerns about agrarian society • Concerns about theft and deceipt • Concerns about debt slavery

  35. What advantages did kings have in struggles with common people who wanted to form a republic? • They often claimed divine approval for their power • Their authority was unquestioned • Republics often allow factions and can be divided • Republics tend to deliberate and discuss plans of action

  36. How would you characterize the Twelve Tables? • Clearly organized system of laws that proceeds from the most serious crimes to the least serious crimes • Only the most serious crimes are addressed • A hodgepodge of serious crimes with lesser crimes

  37. What were the Twelve Tables? • Clans/Families that ruled over early Rome • Public rituals dedicated to the Roman Gods • A series of feasts hosted by the Roman government • The earliest written Roman laws

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