Class Struggle and the Conquest of Italy 508–264 BC

Introduction

After the expulsion of the last Etruscan king in 508 BC, the Roman Republic was born. From its very beginning, however, the new state became the arena of a fierce class struggle between the patricians (the aristocracy) and the plebeians (the common people). This conflict lasted nearly two centuries and coincided with Rome’s gradual conquest of the entire Italian peninsula.

Patricians and Plebeians

The patricians were descendants of the leading families whom Romulus had chosen to form the Senate. Great houses such as the Manlii, Valerii, Cornelii, Fabii, and Claudii supplied Rome’s generals and lawgivers for five hundred years. They controlled the best lands and held political power firmly in their hands.

The plebeians formed the bulk of Roman citizens: farmers, craftsmen, and villagers. Many were clients attached to a patrician patron; in return for land and protection they served him in peace and war. Slaves stood at the very bottom of the social ladder.

Causes of Plebeian Discontent

The plebeians suffered under harsh debt laws, the constant threat of being sold into slavery, exclusion from conquered lands, and denial of access to high offices. Early Republican law allowed a creditor to imprison, enslave, or even kill a defaulting debtor.

The Plebeian Movement and Early Gains

In 494 BC the plebeians seceded to the Sacred Mount and refused military service. The Senate was forced to grant concessions: cancellation or reduction of debts and the election of two tribunes of the plebs to protect the people’s rights.

In 451–450 BC the Twelve Tables were drawn up and displayed in the Forum. This was Rome’s first written code of law; it separated law from religion and marked the beginning of a new era in legal history.

The Licinian Laws and Gradual Plebeian Victory

In 376 BC two tribunes, Licinius and Sextius, proposed reforms that were finally accepted in 367 BC: limits on land ownership, debt relief, and the requirement that at least one consul be a plebeian.

Thereafter the plebeians steadily gained access to the dictatorship (356 BC), censorship (351 BC), praetorship (337 BC), and priesthood (300 BC). In 287 BC the Hortensian Law gave the decisions of the plebeian tribal assembly the full force of law.

The Republican Constitution

The Roman Republic was an ingenious mixture of democracy, aristocracy, and monarchical elements that Polybius considered the best government of his time.

The Assemblies

The Centuriate Assembly was organized by wealth into centuries and elected consuls while deciding on war and peace.

The Tribal Assembly was more democratic; after the Hortensian Law it became the chief legislative body.

The Senate

The Senate was the most powerful institution. Its members served for life and controlled foreign policy, finance, war, and provincial administration. In practice the Senate dominated both consuls and assemblies.

Magistrates (Executives)

- Consuls: two colleagues with equal power, commanders-in-chief and chief executives - Tribunes of the Plebs: defenders of the people with the right of veto - Censors: supervised morals, census, and public contracts - Praetors: administered justice and interpreted law - Aediles: managed the city, markets, and public games - Dictator: appointed in emergencies with absolute power for a maximum of six months or one year

Roman Law and the Republican Army

The Twelve Tables remained the foundation of Roman law for nine hundred years. Law was separated from religion and lawyers gradually replaced priests.

The Republican army was based on strict discipline and the flexible legion organized into maniples. Soldiers served ten years and received a share of booty as reward.

The Conquest of Italy

After the fall of the monarchy Rome first fought its immediate neighbours: Sabines, Latins, Volsci, and Etruscans.

In 390 BC the Gauls (Celts) invaded, sacked Rome, and besieged the Capitol. The Romans paid a thousand pounds of gold to buy them off.

The decisive phase was the long and bitter Samnite Wars. Rome suffered a humiliating defeat at the Caudine Forks (321 BC) but won a final victory at Sentinum (295 BC).

In the south, war broke out with Pyrrhus, king of Epirus. Pyrrhus won two costly victories that gave the world the term “Pyrrhic victory.” He was finally defeated at Beneventum (275 BC). Tarentum surrendered in 272 BC.

Conclusion

Between 508 and 264 BC Rome fought two great simultaneous struggles: an internal class conflict that gradually extended political rights to the plebeians, and an external conquest that brought the whole Italian peninsula under Roman control. These twin processes prepared the Republic for its next great contest — the life-and-death struggle with Carthage in the Punic Wars.