The Biggest Problems In Simon Baker's Ancient Rome

There are many similarities between the Roman Republic senate and the United State senate. We can begin with both the Roman Senate and U.S. Senate. Members of opposing parties’ debate in chamber. They both have a two party system. For the Roman republic the parties were Popular and Senatorial parties. The United States parties are the Republican and Democratic parties. Both use filibustering to delay legislative action. There is no time limit placed on filibustering. Roman votes couldn’t be taken without a quorum of minimum number of members to conduct business. This is also true in the U.S. Senate. The U.S. requires a majority of members present to conduct business. The Roman Senate had the power to pass laws, appoint ambassadors,

138 BC, is considered very significant to Roman history and has left a notable legacy behind after his death in 78 BC. Sulla was famous as he left the legacy of the reforms of the Constitutions of the Rome Republic, laws specifically targeted towards the cursus honorum. In these reforms, Sulla aimed to reduce the level of political power the plebeian tribunes had in society, and remove the existing democracy, also believing in adding power to the Roman senate. Despite these reforms lasting many years after his death, eventually revoked by Pompey and Crassus, Caesar still destroyed the reforms in later years, meaning that his legacy in regards to his constitutional reforms were short lived. He also stands out in history, having served as consul twice, and achieving a dictatorship in Rome, alongside many military successes, including his involvement in the Social War. Sulla also saw the potential in Pompey, who would become a military and political leader in the later Roman republic, and offered him many military missions. The legacy of Sulla lived on in him, as Pompey aimed to enforce the existing law reforms Sulla had made to the constitution of the Roman Republic, stating 'If Sulla could, why can't I?', according to Cicero. Despite Sulla's reforms not lasting long, he still had a large impact on the fall on the Roman Republic and the rise of the Roman

Rome after the Punic wars was quite different that Rome before the engagements with Carthage. Polybius once said, “There are only two sources from which any benefit can be derived; our own misfortunes and those that have happened to other men.” Nowhere is this more true that when speaking of Rome after Carthage. Before The Punic Wars Rome was relatively small when compared to the nearby rival of Carthage. Rome started expanding with its eyes first set on Sicily unfortunately it was loyal to Carthage. This first clash seemed an inevitable failure for Rome, however they triumphed. This set the stage for future expansion, Rome’s thirst for trade goods was quite healthy after all they had to maintain their population

Julius Caesar was a very good leader, he did so much for Ancient Rome. He was one of the greatest leaders of all time There were so many things that happened after the death of him that changed Rome, he was part of the first Triumvirate, and changed the Roman Government. These are the reasons why he was the greatest of Rome.

Roman citizens had come to consideration that they, indeed, did have a poor government. The Roman government gave an unjust life to people based on their social rank (Document E). This led to the citizens not appreciating the government as well as the Empire. Most of the emperors in Rome were assassinated so it gives the citizens the intention that if you did not like the emperor you can just kill them (Document A).This tells the reader that it was hard to govern Rome because they constantly kept replacing emperors.Considering that Rome did not have a stable ruling system, citizens of Rome began to doubt and not depend on their government.

Prior to the idea of people being “citizens” of a nation, people were subjects, with no rights and forced to serve under the iron fist of their ruler. The idea of people having rights and responsibilities to their country originated in Athens, Greece circa 500 B.C. (Background Essay). Rome, however, far surpassed the Greeks in their social contract theory of citizenship (Background Essay) for the following reasons: 1) More people were considered citizens i.e. females and sons of freed slaves; 2) According to Claudius, Emperor of Rome, said in a speech, “Romulus was so wise

Tiberius and Gaius Gracchus, better known as the ‘Gracchi Brothers’ were a pair of tribunes descending from the plebs from the 2nd century BCE who sought to introduce land reforms and other legislations that aligned with their populist views/ideas. It can be said that the career of the two brothers was marked by murder, riots and outright manipulation of the power they were granted which completely altered the state of Roman politics- aiding in the breakdown of the Roman Republic. The legislation they sought to pass essentially redistributed major aristocratic land ownership among the commoners such as the urban poor and veterans. After achieving little success during the early stages of the reforms, both were assassinated by enemy parties.

Julius Caesar was a Powerful Roman politician and general, who served as a god to the Romans. He played a key role in the events that led to the downfall of the Roman Republic and the rise of the Roman empire. His reign from 49 B.C to 44 B.C illustrated his dominance in controlling a commanding army and ruling a nation. Many historians have different opinions on Caesar's command. Some saw him as a leader for the people, whereas others saw him as a man searching for power and power alone. This paper will show you how Julius Caesar became the man he was and the pros and cons of his leadership.

Tiberius Gracchus was a tribune who lived in Rome in the early-mid 1st century BC. Frank Herbert, an American author commented that “The stakes in conflict do not change. Battle determines who will control the wealth or its equivalent”. The actions of Tiberius Gracchus do support the statement by Herbert as the direct challenge to the authority of the Senate he made provoked the Senate to act in an extreme way to maintain power. Tiberius Gracchus was motivated by the people and his position to introduce the reforms and by doing this he threatens the peace in the Roman society.

The Roman Republic did not fall simply from one cause, rather many external pressures that brought on political instability and destruction. There were multiple pressures that lead to the downfall of Rome including ambitious generals, changing politics, client armies, and a desolate Senate desperate to remain prominent. Many significant people of the time, who wrote letters and speeches on ancient Rome, help to build detailed recollections of the political warfare that took place between 78-31BC.

Julius Caesar was a politician, general, and dictator. He once said, “It is easier to find men who will volunteer to die than to find those who are willing to endure pain with patience.” He was an incredible speaker of the time and was very well liked by most citizens. He brought a lot of change to Rome and was a very strong leader.

The Gracchi brothers, Tiberius and Gaius, had intentions of making Rome the best it could be, which contradicted the visions of the Senators. The two brothers grew up during a tough time in the Roman Empire, but they took it upon themselves to make a difference. “The Empire went through tremendous growth, through both acquisition of land, slaves, and various citizen classes.” This drastic growth ultimately led to a fall in the Roman political system. Tiberius, the older brother, founded the idea of the agrarian laws, which was later continued by his younger brother, Gaius, after his death. As a result of the agrarian laws, the two brothers were able to take control of the Empire, causing the Senate to fear their intentions and their potential. The Gracchi Brothers used their power and authority to take advantage of the vulnerable Roman government. They often let their selfish nature take control of the power they had, impacting Rome negatively. Gaius made it his goal to get back at the Senate for the death of his brother by replacing them with the Equites. The Gracchi brothers are the first tribunes to take advantage of their power.

With his distaste for dealing with the senate and extreme paranoia. It was here Tacitus references Tiberius mental state “Though three years had lapsed since the destruction of Sejanus, neither time, in treaties, nor sated gratification which have a soothing affect on others softened Tiberius or kept him from punishing doubtful or forgotten offenses as most flagrant and recent crimes”. Tacitus attributes Sejanus’ actions as part of the emperor’s mental state, but he seems to believe that Tiberius himself has caused this condition when he states “Although I have followed most historians in attributing the cause of his retirement to the arts of Sejanus, still, as he passed six consecutive years in the same solitude after that minister’s destruction, I am often in doubt whether it is not to be more truly ascribed to himself, and his wish to hide by the place of his retreat the cruelty and licentiousness which he betrayed by his actions. Some thought that in his old age he was ashamed of his personal appearance. He had indeed a tall, singularly slender and stooping figure, a bald head, a face full of eruptions, and covered here and there with

This suggests Tiberius was purposefully trying to avoid connecting himself with divine worship and that he was acutely aware of the pitfalls of accepting such worship. Furthermore, one can see that Tiberius avoided worship as it would have unbalanced his public appearance were he to endorse his own worship. Interestingly, this is a case of an emperor stopping religious worship from being directed towards himself as a safeguard against his political enemies who would seek to use such worship as the basis for criticising his reign. In contrast, Caligula wanted to be worshipped as a living god in the provinces and in Rome. If Dio is to be believed, then this may have contributed to the growing ire against Caligula which eventually led to his assassination as it was improper to worship a man as if he were a living god. Suetonius also tells tales of Caligula wishing to be a god when he says that the heads of many deities’ statues were removed and his own were fitted in their place. This may simply be the exaggeration of Suetonius, a biographer, trying to make the character of Caligula seem more unhinged than perhaps he actually

The General Assembly and Senate established a sense of importance in Rome. The General Assembly was made up of Plebeians, and the Senate consists of Patricians. The terms General Assembly and Senate are two of many terms still used in the US Government today. The Romans were led by a king who was approved by the senate and a vote of the people, which is also displayed in the US Government. This is displayed in our presidential elections. Romans believed in equal voting, and equal access to the government for all, which is also shown in our Democratic Government.