Roman Republic
Roman Republic Roma | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 509 BC–27 BC | |||||||||
 Roman provinces on the eve of the assassination of Julius Caesar, 44 BC | |||||||||
| Capital | Rome | ||||||||
| Common languages | Latin (official) Etruscan, Greek, Osco-Umbrian, Venetic, Ligurian, Rhaetian, Nuragic, Sicel, Hebrew, Aramaic, Syriac, Punic, Berber, Illyrian, Iberian, Lusitanian, Celtiberian, Gaulish, Gallaecian, Aquitanian (unofficial, but commonly spoken) | ||||||||
| Religion | Roman polytheism | ||||||||
| Government | Constitutional republic | ||||||||
| Consuls | |||||||||
• 509–508 BC | Lucius Junius Brutus, Lucius Tarquinius Collatinus (first) | ||||||||
• 27 BC | Octavian, Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa (last) | ||||||||
| Legislature | Legislative Assemblies Roman Senate | ||||||||
| Historical era | Classical antiquity | ||||||||
• Overthrow of Tarquinius Superbus | 509 BC | ||||||||
• Dissolution of the Latin League | 338 BC[2] | ||||||||
• Caesar proclaimed dictator | 47 BC | ||||||||
| 2 September 31 BC | |||||||||
| 16 January 27 BC | |||||||||
| |||||||||
| Today part of | |||||||||
![Denarius of Brutus, 54 BC, showing the first Roman consul, Lucius Junius Brutus, surrounded by two lictors and preceded by an accensus.[1] of Rome](/wiki/File:Q._Servilius_Caepio_(M._Junius)_Brutus,_denarius,_54_BC,_RRC_433-1_reverse.jpg)
The Roman Republic was a phase in history of the Ancient Roman civilization. According to legend, the city of Rome was founded by Romulus in c. 750 BC. It was a kingdom until 510 BC, when the last King, Lucius Tarquinius Superbus was overthrown. This began the Roman Republic.
The Roman Republic was a civilization ahead of its time and very advanced. The Roman people elected Consuls, who ruled for about a year. Many of the ideas of the Roman Republic are still used today.
The Republic got most of its wealth from trading and taxation. The Republic had few enemies but it was constantly battling the Gauls, who were conquered by Caesar later. The Punic Wars against Carthage were fought all over the Mediterranean coasts, mainly because of Sicily and trade disputes. The third enemy being the Germanic tribes or simply barbarians (uncivilized people).
The Republic suffered many disasters including Spartacus (the leader of a slave revolt) Spartacus defeated one consul's army before being captured, the Republic suffered at the hands of Hannibal, who after crossing the Alps defeated the Roman Army at Cannae and many other battles which saw Rome with a great fear of being destroyed by Hannibal.
The end of the Republic is still a matter of dispute; different scholars will give different dates for it. Usually, the dates of the start of the First Triumvirate or the Second Triumvirate are given. (The Triumvirates were groups of three men who had much power)
The end of the Republic is often said to be when Gaius Julius Caesar was appointed as dictator (single ruler) by the Roman Senate. This happened after a series of civil wars that lasted from about 49 BC to the year 44 BC.
Some people say the Republic ended with the naval Battle of Actium between Marcus Antonius and Octavian. They both had been in the Second Triumvirate. It was fought on 2 September 31 BC. Octavian won. Later on, he was proclaimed Roman Emperor. The end date could also be when Octavian was given the title of the first Augustus by the Senate. This was on 16 January 27 BC.
These are modern views though. In the view of the early emperors, the Res Publica (Republic, literally "Thing of the People") still existed. It was simply "under their protection". They promised that some day that the Republic would restored to its original form. This never happened, and so scholars divide the Roman Empire and the Roman Republic as two different, distinct periods of the history of Rome.
References[change | change source]
- ↑ Crawford, Roman Republican Coinage, pp. 455, 456.
- ↑ "Latin League". Encyclopaedia Britannica.
- ↑ Taagepera, Rein (1979). "Size and Duration of Empires: Growth–Decline Curves, 600 BC to 600 AD". Social Science History. 3 (3/4): 115–138 [125]. doi:10.2307/1170959. JSTOR 1170959.
