History of the Roman Constitution

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Ancient Rome
This article is part of the series: Politics and government of Ancient Rome
Periods
Roman Kingdom 753 BC – 509 BC Roman Republic 509 BC – 27 BC Roman Empire 27 BC – AD 476 Principate Western Empire Dominate Eastern Empire
Roman Constitution
Constitution of the Kingdom Constitution of the Republic Constitution of the Empire Constitution of the Late Empire History of the Constitution Senate Legislative Assemblies Executive Magistrates
Ordinary Magistrates
Consul Praetor Quaestor Promagistrate Aedile Tribune Censor Governor
Extraordinary Magistrates
Dictator Magister Equitum Consular tribune Rex Triumviri Decemviri
Titles and Honours
Emperor Legatus Dux Officium Praefectus Vicarius Vigintisexviri Lictor Magister Militum Imperator Princeps senatus Pontifex Maximus Augustus Caesar Tetrarch
Precedent and Law
Roman Law Imperium Mos maiorum Collegiality Roman citizenship Auctoritas Cursus honorum
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Over the years, the Roman constitution continuously evolved. By 510 BC, the Constitution of the Roman Kingdom had given way to the Constitution of the Roman Republic. By 27 BC, the Constitution of the Roman Republic had given way to the Constitution of the Roman Empire. By 300 AD, the Constitution of the Roman Empire had given way to the Constitution of the Late Roman Empire. The actual changes, however, were quite gradual. Together, these four constitutions formed four epochs in the continuous evolution of one master constitution. That master constitution survived for roughly one thousand years. As such, it has served as a principle model for modern constitutions.

Contents 1 History of the Constitution of the Roman Kingdom 1.1 The early monarchy 1.2 The late monarchy 1.3 The overthrow of the monarchy 2 History of the Constitution of the Roman Republic 2.1 The patrician era: 509 BC to 367 BC 2.1.1 The executive magistrates 2.1.2 The senate and legislative assemblies 2.2 The Conflict of the Orders: 367 BC to 287 BC 2.2.1 The new plebeian aristocracy 2.2.2 The lex Hortensia and the end of the Conflict of the Orders 2.3 The supremacy of the new nobility: 287 BC to 133 BC 2.4 From the Gracchi to Caesar: 133 BC to 49 BC 2.4.1 The Gracchi tribunates 2.4.2 The popular party and the aristocratic party 2.4.3 Pompey, Crassus, and Cicero 2.4.4 The First Triumvirate 2.4.5 The end of the First Triumvirate 2.5 The period of transition: 49 BC to 29 BC 2.5.1 Caesar's constitutional reforms 2.5.2 Caesar's assassination and the Second Triumvirate 3 History of the Constitution of the Roman Empire 3.1 Augustus' Constitutional Reforms 3.2 From Tiberius to Vespasian 3.3 From Vespasian to Nerva 3.4 From Nerva to the abolition of the Principate 4 History of the Constitution of the Late Roman Empire 5 See also 6 References 7 Notes 8 Further reading 8.1 Primary sources 8.2 Secondary source material

[edit] History of the Constitution of the Roman Kingdom

The constitution of the Roman Kingdom vested the sovereign power in the king. The king did have two rudimentary checks on his authority. These took the form of a board of elders (the senate) and a popular assembly (the Comitia Curiata).

The early Romans were organized by hereditary divisions called gens, or "clans".^[1] Until a very late date, divisions similar to the gens were common to most Indo-Europeans. Each clan was an aggregation of families under a common living male patriarch, called a patre (Latin for "father"). The simplest Indo-European political community consisted of a small number of clans. These communities, known as pagi, would aggregate together around a fortified point known as an arx.^[2] Each pagi was either purely democratic, or purely aristocratic.^[2] Long before the traditional founding of the city of Rome, a group of pagi had aggregated into a confederacy, with the city of Alba Longa constituting its common meeting place. At some point, however, the seat of this confederacy shifted from Alba Longa to Rome.^[2]

[edit] The early monarchy

The period of the kingdom can be divided into two epochs.^[3] The first epoch saw the reigns of the first four legendary kings. During this time, the political foundations of the city were laid.^[4] The city was organized into curiae, and the religious institutions were established. The senate and the comitia evolved into formal institutions.^[4]

The early Romans were divided into three ethnic groups.^[5] The families who belonged to one of these ethnic groups were the original patrician families. In an attempt to add a level of organization to the city, these patrician families would be divided into units called curiae.^[4]

Some of the clans who lived in Rome governed themselves democratically, with individual members of the clan acting as electors. The other clans governed themselves aristocratically, through a council of elders. When these clans merged to form a common community, both methods were used to govern the community. The vehicle through which the early Romans expressed their democratic impulses was known as a comitia ("committee" or "assembly"). The two principle comitia that formed were known as the Comitia Curiata and the Comitia Calata. The comitia was the embodiment of the consolidated democratic tendencies of the early clans. To better reflect the form of direct democracy that was used by some of the confederated clans, the two comitia were designed to mirror the ethnic divisions of the city. As such, the comitia were organized by curiae. The vehicle through which the early Romans expressed their aristocratic impulses was a council of town elders.^[3] This council would become the Roman senate.

This article is part of the Roman Constitution series.

Roman Senate

Roman Assemblies

Roman Magistrates

History of the Roman Constitution

Constitution of the Roman Kingdom

Senate of the Roman Kingdom

Legislative Assemblies of the Roman Kingdom

Executive Magistrates of the Roman Kingdom

History of the Constitution of the Roman Kingdom

Constitution of the Roman Republic

Senate of the Roman Republic

Legislative Assemblies of the Roman Republic

Executive Magistrates of the Roman Republic

History of the Constitution of the Roman Republic

Constitution of the Roman Empire

Senate of the Roman Empire

Legislative Assemblies of the Roman Empire

Executive Magistrates of the Roman Empire

History of the Constitution of the Roman Empire

Constitution of the Late Roman Empire

History of the Constitution of the Late Roman Empire

The demos ("people") and the elders eventually recognized the need for a single political leader.^[3] This leader, called the rex, would be known to history as the Roman king. The demos would elect the rex, while the elders would advise the rex.^[3]

[edit] The late monarchy

The second epoch saw the reigns of the last three legendary kings. These three kings embarked on a policy of conquest. Regardless of how true these legends were, it is likely that such conquests did occur during the late monarchy. As a result of these conquests, it became necessary to determine what would be done with the conquered people.^[3] Often, individuals whose towns had been conquered remained in those towns. Their daily lives, and their system of government, would remain the same. Their towns simply lost their independence to their new Roman masters.^[6] Other such individuals, however, would come to Rome.^[6] To acquire legal and economic standing, these newcomers would adopt a condition of dependency toward either a patrician family, or toward the king (who himself was a patrician).^[6] Eventually, the individuals who were dependents of the king were released from their state of dependency. These individuals became the first plebeians.^[6] At this time, only patricians were required to serve in the army. To bring the plebeians into the army, the patricians were forced to make concessions.^[7] It is not known exactly what concessions were made. The plebeians were not, however, granted any political power.^[7] This set the stage for what history knows as the Conflict of the Orders.

To bring the plebeians back into the army, the legendary king Servius Tullius reorganized the army.^[8] He abolished the old system, whereby the army was organized on the basis of the curiae. The old organization by heredity was abolished, and replaced with one based on land ownership.^[9] As part of Tullius' reorganization of the army, two new units were created. The army would be divided into centuriae ("centuries"). Future reorganizations would be made more efficient through the use of tribus ("tribes").^[10] The centuries were to gather in a new assembly (a comitia) called the Comitia Centuriata ("Assembly of the Centuries"). At this time, however, the Comitia Centuriata had no political or legislative powers.^[11] It was simply used as a device through which the army would assemble for various purposes (such as to hear announcements).^[11]

[edit] The overthrow of the monarchy

The reign of the first four kings was distinct from that of the last three kings. The first kings were elected. Between the reigns of the final three kings, however, the monarchy became hereditary.^[12] As such, the senate became subordinated to the king. The fact that the auspicia did not revert back to the senate upon the deaths of those kings constituted a serious breach in the authority of the senate. This prevented the senate from electing a monarch of its choosing.^[12] This breach in the senate's sovereignty, rather than an intolerable tyranny, was probably what led the patricians in the senate to overthrow the last king.^[12]

[edit] History of the Constitution of the Roman Republic

The constitutional history of the Roman Republic can be divided into five phases. The first phase began with the revolution which overthrew the monarchy in 510 BC. The final phase ended with the revolution which overthrew the Roman Republic, and thus created the Roman Empire, in 27 BC. Throughout the history of the republic, the constitutional evolution was driven by the struggle between the aristocracy and the ordinary citizens.

[edit] The patrician era: 509 BC to 367 BC

According to legend, the last king was overthrown in 510 BC. While this story is nothing more than a legend which later Romans created in order to explain their past, it is likely that Rome had been ruled by a series of kings.^[13] The historical monarchy, as the legends suggest, was probably overthrown quickly.

[edit] The executive magistrates

The constitutional changes which occurred immediately after the revolution were probably not as extensive as the legends suggest. The most important constitutional change probably concerned the chief executive. Before the revolution, a king (rex) would be elected by the senators (patres or "fathers") for a life term.

Now, two praetores ("leaders") were elected by the citizens for an annual term.^[13] These magistrates would eventually be called "consuls". Each consul would check his colleague, and their limited term in office would open them up to prosecution if they abused the powers of their office. The chief executive was still vested with the same grade of imperium ("command") powers as was the old king. His political powers, when exercised conjointly with his colleague, were no different from those of the old king.^[14] In the immediate aftermath of the revolution, the senate and the assemblies were as powerless as they had been under the monarchy.

In the year 494 BC, the city was at war with two neighboring tribes.^[15] The plebeian soldiers refused to march against the enemy, and instead seceded (secessio) to the Aventine hill. The plebeians demanded the right to elect their own officials. The patricians agreed, and the plebeians returned to the battlefield.^[15] The plebeians would call these new officials "plebeian tribunes". The tribunes would have two assistants, called "plebeian aediles". In 367 BC, the tribunes C. Licinius Stolo and L. Sextius passed a law called the lex Satura.^[16] This law required the election of at least one plebeian consul each year. In 443 BC, the censorship was created^[17], and in 366 BC, the praetorship was created. Also in 366 BC, the curule aedileship was created.^[17]

[edit] The senate and legislative assemblies

During the years of the monarchy, only patricians (patres or "fathers") were admitted to the senate. The revolution so depleted the ranks of the senate, however, that a group of plebeians were drafted (conscripti) to fill the vacancies. The old senate of patricians (patres) transitioned into a senate of patricians and plebeians (patres et conscripti or "fathers and conscripted men").^[14]

Shortly after the founding of the republic, the Comitia Centuriata became the principle legislative assembly. In the Comitia Centuriata, magistrates were elected, and laws were passed. Also around this time, the plebeians assembled into an informal Plebeian Curiate Assembly. This was the original Concilium Plebis. Since they were organized on the basis of the curiae (and thus by clan), they remained dependent on their patrician patrons. In 471 BC, a law was passed due to the efforts of the tribune Volero Publilius.^[18] This law allowed the plebeians to organize by tribe, rather than by curiae. Thus, the Plebeian Curiate Assembly became the Plebeian Tribal Assembly. With this change, the plebeians became politically independent.^[18]

During the fourth century BC, a series of reforms were passed. The result of these reforms was that any law passed by the Concilium Plebis (the Plebeian Tribal Assembly) would have the full force of law. This gave the tribunes (who presided over the Concilium Plebis) a positive character for the first time. Before these laws were passed, tribunes could only interpose the sacrosanctity of their person (intercessio) to veto acts of the senate, assemblies or magistrates.

[edit] The Conflict of the Orders: 367 BC to 287 BC

In the decades following the passage of the Licinio-Sextian laws of 367 BC (which required the election of at least one plebeian consul each year), a series of laws would be passed which would grant plebeians political equality with patricians.^[19] The patrician era would come to a complete end in 287 BC, with the passage of the Hortensian law.^[19]

After the plebeian aedileship had been created, the patricians created the curule aedileship.^[20] At first the curule aedileship was only open to patricians, but the office was eventually opened to plebeians. After the consulship had been opened to the plebeians, the plebeians acquired a de facto right to hold both the dictatorship and the censorship (since only former consuls could hold either office). In 337 BC, the first plebeian praetor was elected.^[21] In 342 BC, two significant laws were passed. One of these two laws made it illegal to hold more than one office at any given point in time. The other law required an interval of ten years to pass before any magistrate could seek reelection to any office.^[22] As a result of these two laws, the military situation quickly became unmanageable. During this time period, Rome was expanding within Italy, and beginning to take steps beyond Italy. As such, it became necessary for military commanders to hold office for several years at a time. This problem was resolved with the creation of the pro-magisterial offices. When an individual's term in office ended, his imperium would be extended.^[23] This constitutional device was not in harmony with the underlying genius of the Roman constitution. Its frequent usage would eventually pave the way for the empire.

During these years, the tribunes and the senators grew increasingly close.^[23] The senate realized the need to use plebeian officials to accomplish desired goals.^[23] To win over the tribunes, the senators gave the tribunes a great deal of power. Ultimately, the tribunes began to feel obligated to the senate. As the tribunes and the senators grew closer, plebeian senators were often able to secure the tribunate for members of their own families.^[24] In time, the tribunate would become a stepping stone to higher office.^[24]

[edit] The new plebeian aristocracy

Around the middle of the fourth century BC, the Concilium Plebis enacted the plebiscitum Ovinium.^[25] During the early republic, the consuls would appoint new senators. The Ovinian law, however, gave this power to the censors. It also required the censor to appoint any newly-elected magistrate to the senate.^[25] By this point, plebeians were already holding a significant number of magisterial offices. Thus, the number of plebeian senators probably increased quickly.^[26] It was, in all likelihood, simply a matter of time before the plebeians would come to dominate the senate.

Under the new system, magistrates would be awarded with automatic membership in the senate. However, it remained difficult even for a plebeian to enter the senate, if he wasn't from a political family.^[26] Ultimately, a new patricio-plebeian aristocracy (nobilitas) emerged.^[26] The new patricio-plebeian nobility replaced the old patrician nobility. It was the dominance of the long-standing patrician nobility which ultimately forced the plebeians to wage their long struggle for political power. The new nobility, however, was fundamentally different from the old nobility.^[27] The old nobility existed through the force of law, because only patricians were allowed to stand for high office. The old nobility was overthrown after those laws were changed. Now, however, the new nobility existed due to the organization of society. As such, only a revolution could overthrow this new nobility.^[27]

[edit] The lex Hortensia and the end of the Conflict of the Orders

By 287 BC, the economic condition of the average plebeian had become poor. The problem appears to have centered around wide-spread indebtedness.^[28] The plebeians demanded relief. The senators, most of whom belonged to the creditor class, refused to abide by the demands of the plebeians. The result was the final plebeian secession. The plebeians seceded to the Janiculum hill. To end the secession, a dictator named Quintus Hortensius was appointed. Hortensius passed a law called the lex Hortensia, which ended the requirement that an auctoritas patrum ("authority of the patrician senators") be passed before any bill could be considered by either the Concilium Plebis or the Comitia Tributa.^[28]

The lex Hortensia also reaffirmed the principle that any act of the Concilium Plebis (Plebeian Council) would have the full force of law. However, the lex Hortensia was not the first law to require that an act of the Concilium Plebis have the full force of law.^[29] The Concilium Plebis may have acquired this power as early 449 BC, during a modification to the original Valerian law.^[29] The ultimate significance of this law was in the fact that it robbed the patricians of their final weapon over the plebeians. The result was that the ultimate control over the state fell, not onto the shoulders of the democracy, but onto the shoulders of the new patricio-plebeian nobility.^[30]

The plebeians had finally achieved political equality with the patricians.^[27] However, the plight of the average plebeian had not changed. Now, a small number of plebeian families had achieved the same standing that the old aristocratic patrician families had always had. As such, these new plebeian aristocrats became as uninterested in the plight of the average plebeian as the old patrician aristocrats had always been.^[27]

[edit] The supremacy of the new nobility: 287 BC to 133 BC

The great accomplishment of the lex Hortensia was in that it deprived the patricians of their last weapon over the plebeians. Therefore, the new patricio-plebeian aristocracy replaced the old patrician aristocracy. Thus, the last great political question of the earlier era had been resolved. As such, no important political changes would occur between 287 BC and 133 BC.^[31] This entire era was dominated by foreign wars. These wars eliminated the need to address the flaws in the current political system, since the patriotism of the plebeians suppressed their desire for further reforms.

When the lex Hortensia was enacted into law, Rome theoretically became a democracy. In reality, however, Rome remained an oligarchy. The critical laws were still enacted by the senate.^[32] In effect, democracy was satisfied with the possession of power, but did not care to use it. The senate was supreme during this era because the era was dominated by questions of foreign policy.^[33]

During this era, the magistrates submitted themselves to the senate.^[34] Since most senators were former magistrates, the senate became bound together by a strong sense of collegiality. In addition, the presiding consuls would always be chosen from senate. As such, it was unlikely that a consul would stand against his fellow senators. The Ovinian law, which required that all newly-elected magistrates be given senate membership, further enhanced both the competence and the prestige of the senate.

The final decades of this era saw a worsening economic situation for many plebeians.^[35] The long military campaigns had forced citizens to leave their farms. Their farms would then fall into a state of disrepair. This situation was made worse during the Second Punic War, when Hannibal fought the Romans throughout Italy. The landed aristocracy began buying bankrupted farms at discounted prices. The wars had also brought to Rome a great surplus of inexpensive slave labor. The landed aristocrats were able to buy so many slaves, and so much farm land, that they soon held vast estates.^[35] The result was a rapid decline in commodity prices. As these prices fell, many farmers could no longer operate their farms at a profit.^[35] The result was the ultimate bankruptcy of countless farmers. Masses of unemployed plebeians soon began to flood into Rome, and thus into the ranks of the legislative assemblies. These plebeians were often angry with the aristocracy, which further exacerbated the class tensions. Their economic state usually led them to vote for the candidate who offered the most for them, or at least for the candidate whose games or whose bribes were the most magnificent. A new culture of dependency was emerging, which would look to any populist leader for relief.^[36]

[edit] From the Gracchi to Caesar: 133 BC to 49 BC

The prior era saw great military successes, and great economic failures. The patriotism of the plebeians had kept them from seeking any new reforms. Now, the military situation had stabilized, and fewer soldiers were needed. This, in conjunction with the new slaves that were being imported from abroad, inflamed the unemployment situation further. The flood of unemployed citizens to Rome had made the assemblies quite populist. The ultimate result was an increasingly aggressive democracy.

[edit] The Gracchi tribunates

Tiberius Gracchus was elected tribune in 133 BC. He attempted to reenact a clause of the old Licinian law, which had never been enforced. This would have limited the amount of land that any individual could own. The aristocrats, who stood to lose an enormous amount of money, were bitterly opposed to this proposal. Tiberius submitted this law to the Concilium Plebis, but the law was vetoed by a tribune named Marcus Octavius. Tiberius used the Concilium Plebis to impeach Octavian. The theory, that a representative of the people ceases to be one when he acts against the wishes of the people, was repugnant to the genius of Roman constitutional theory.^[37] If carried to its logical end, this theory would remove all constitutional restraints on the popular will, and put the state under the absolute control of a temporary popular majority.^[37] His law would be enacted, but Tiberius would be murdered when he stood for reelection to the tribunate.

Tiberius' brother Gaius was elected tribune in 123 BC. Gaius Gracchus' ultimate goal was to weaken the senate and to strengthen the democratic forces.^[38] Gaius enacted a law which put the equites ("knights", or upper-middle class citizens) on the jury courts instead of the senators. Thus, Gaius turned the most powerful class of non-senators against the senate.^[38]

In the past, the senate would eliminate political rivals either by establishing special judicial commissions or by passing a senatus consultum ultimum ("ultimate decree of the senate"). Both devices would allow the senate to bypass the ordinary due process rights that all citizens had.^[39] Gaius outlawed the judicial commissions, and declared the senatus consultum ultimum to be unconstitutional. Gaius then proposed a law which would grant citizenship rights to Rome's Italian allies. By this point, however, the selfish democracy of Rome deserted him.^[39] He stood for election to a third term in 121 BC, but was defeated and then murdered. The democracy, however, had finally realized how weak the senate had become.^[39]

[edit] The popular party and the aristocratic party

In 118 BC, the king of the north-African city of Numidia died. The king, Micipsa, was survived by his two natural sons, Adherbal and Hiempsal, and by his adopted son, Jugurtha. Micipsa divided his kingdom between these three sons. Jugurtha, however, had both a ruthless personality and an open purse. It was both Jurgurtha's open purse, as well as the venality and incapacity of the Roman senate, that bought disgrace to the Roman name and defeat to the Roman arms.^[40]

Jugurtha defeated several Roman armies. He also bribed several Roman commanders, and at least two tribunes. Ultimate, a young legate named Gaius Marius was elected consul in 107 BC over the objections of the senate. Marius was of a politically unknown family, and brought the war to a quick end. The incompetence of the senate, and the brilliance of Marius, had also been put on full display.^[41] The popular party took full advantage of this opportunity by allying itself with Marius.

Several years later, a new power had emerged in Asia. In 88 BC, a Roman army was sent to put down that power, king Mithridates of Pontus. The army, however, was defeated. One of Marius' old quaestors, Lucius Cornelius Sulla, had been elected consul for the year. Sulla was then ordered by the senate to assume command of the war against Mithridates. Marius, a member of the democratic ("populare") party, had a tribune revoke Sulla's command of the war against Mithridates. Sulla, a member of the aristocratic ("optimate") party, brought his army back to Italy and marched on Rome. Marius fled, and his supporters either fled or were murdered by Sulla. Sulla had become so angry at Marius' tribune that he passed a law that was intended to permanently weaken the tribunate.^[42] He then returned to his war against Mithridates. With Sulla gone, the populares under Marius and Lucius Cornelius Cinna soon took control of the city.

The populare record was not one to be proud of.^[42] They had first elected Marius consul before he was even twenty years old, and then reelected him several times without observing the required 10 year interval. They also transgressed democracy by advancing un-elected individuals to magisterial office, and by substituting magisterial edicts for popular legislation.^[43] Sulla soon made peace with Mithridates. In 83 BC, he returned to Rome, overcame all resistance, and captured the city again. Sulla and his supporters then slaughtered most of Marius' supporters.

Sulla, who had observed the violent results of radical populare reforms (in particular those under Marius and Cinna), was naturally conservative. This conservatism was, therefore, more reactionary than it was visionary.^[43] As such, he sought to strengthen the aristocracy, and thus the senate.^[43] Sulla retained his earlier reforms, which required senate approval before any bill could be submitted to the Concilium Plebis, and which had also restored the old Servian organization to the Comitia Centuriata.^[42] Sulla then prohibited ex-tribunes from ever holding any other office.^[44] He then reaffirmed the requirement that any individual wait for ten years before being reelected to any office. He also established definitively the cursus honorum.^[44] The cursus honorum, which required an individual to reach a certain age and level of experience before running for any particular office, had never before been codified.

Sulla retired in 79 BC, and died a year later. While he thought that he had firmly established aristocratic rule, his own career had illustrated the fatal weaknesses in the constitution. Ultimately, it was the army, and not the senate, which dictated the fortunes of the state.^[45]

[edit] Pompey, Crassus, and Cicero

In 77 BC, the senate sent one of Sulla's former lieutenants, Gnaeus Pompey Magnus, to put down an uprising in Spain. By 71 BC, Pompey returned to Rome after having completed his mission. Around the same time, another of Sulla's former lieutenants, Marcus Licinius Crassus, had just put down a slave revolt in Italy. Upon their return, Pompey and Crassus found the populare party fiercely attacking Sulla's constitution.^[46] They attempted to forge an agreement with the populare party. If both Pompey and Crassus were elected consul in 70 BC, they would dismantle the more obnoxious components of Sulla's constitution.^[47] The two were soon elected, and quickly dismantled most of Sulla's constitution.^[47]

Around 66 BC, a movement to use constitutional, or at least peaceful, means to address the plight of various classes began.^[48] After several failures, the movement's leaders decided to use any means that were necessary to accomplish their goals. The movement coalesced under an aristocrat named Lucius Sergius Catiline. Catiline wanted to enact a series of radical reforms to help the honest and the dishonest poor.^[49] The movement was based in the town of Faesulae, which was a natural hotbed of agrarian agitation.^[49] The rural malcontents were to advance on Rome,^[50] and be aided by an uprising within the city. After assassinating the consuls and most of the senators, Catiline would be free to enact his reforms.

The conspiracy was set in motion in 63 BC. The consul, Marcus Tullius Cicero, intercepted messages that Catiline had sent in an attempt to recruit more members. The result of this was that the top conspirators in Rome were executed upon the authorization of the senate, and the planned uprising was disrupted. Cicero then sent an army, which cut Catiline's forces to pieces.

The most important result of the Catilinarian conspiracy was that the populare party became discredited.^[50] The prior 70 years had witnessed a gradual erosion in senatorial powers. The violent nature of the conspiracy, in conjunction with the senate's skill in disrupting it, did a great deal to repair the senate's image.^[50]

[edit] The First Triumvirate

In 62 BC, Pompey returned victorious from Asia. The senate, elated by its successes against Catiline,^[51], refused to ratify the arrangements that Pompey had made. Pompey, in effect, became powerless. Thus, when Julius Caesar returned from his governorship in Spain in 61 BC, he found it easy to make an arrangement with Pompey.^[51] Caesar and Pompey, along with Crassus, established a private agreement, known as the First Triumvirate. Under the agreement, Pompey's arrangements would be ratified. Caesar would be elected consul in 59 BC, and then serve as governor of Gaul for five years. Crassus would be promised a future consulship.^[51]

Caesar became consul in 59 BC. His colleague, Marcus Calpurnius Bibulus, was an extreme aristocrat.^[51] Caesar submitted the laws that he had promised Pompey to the assemblies. Bibulus attempted to obstruct the enactment of these laws, and so Caesar used violent (and thus illegal) means to ensure the passage of these laws.^[51] Caesar was then given command of four legions, and promised the governorship of three provinces (Cisalpine Gaul, Transalpine Gaul, and Illyricum).

Caesar did not wish to leave the senate in the hands of such unskillful politicians as Pompey and Crassus before he had crushed the spirit of the senate and deprived it of its two most dangerous leaders, Cato and Cicero.^[52] Therefore, he sent Cato on a mission to Cyprus, which was likely to ruin his reputation.^[52] He then facilitated the election of the former patrician Clodius to the tribunate for 58 BC. Clodius was a dangerous demagogue, and a bitter opponent of Cicero.^[52]

Clodius, in preparation for the coming attack on Cicero, secured the passage of several laws.^[52] One law banned the use of the auspices as an obstructive device in the Concilium Plebis. He then enacted a law that made certain "clubs" of a "semi-political nature" (i.e. armed gangs) lawful.^[52] Clodius then passed two laws which banished Cicero, on the grounds that he had deprived several of Catiline's conspirators of their due process rights when he had them executed upon a mere decree of the senate.^[52]

[edit] The end of the First Triumvirate

Pompey and Crassus proved themselves to be as incompetent as Caesar had hoped.^[52] Clodius terrorized the city with his armed gangs. Eventually, the triumvirate was renewed. Pompey and Crassus were promised the consulship in 55 BC, and Caesar's term as governor was extended for five years. Caesar's daughter, and Pompey's wife, Julia, would then die in childbirth. This event severed the last remaining bound between Pompey and Caesar.

Beginning in the summer of 54 BC, a wave of political corruption and violence swept Rome.^[53] This chaos reached a climax in January of 52 BC, when Clodius was murdered in a gang war. In addition, the civil unrest had caused the calendar to become neglected. The calendar required annual adjustments to prevent its drift relative to any spring equinox. To correct the misalignment of the calendar, an intercalary month was inserted at the end of February of 52 BC. Pompey was elected sole consul for that month. This elevation to extraordinary power was the last straw for Caesar.^[53]

On January 1 of 49 BC, an agent of Caesar presented an ultimatum to the senate. The ultimatum was rejected, and the senate then passed a resolution which declared that if Caesar did not lay down his arms by July of that year, that he would be acting adversus rem publicam (in effect, declaring him to be an enemy of the republic).^[54] On January 7 of 49 BC, the senate passed a senatus consultum ultimum, which vested Pompey with dictatorial powers. Pompey's army, however, was composed largely of untested conscripts. Caesar then crossed the Rubicon with his veteran army, and marched towards Rome. Caesar's rapid advance forced Pompey, the consuls and the senate to abandon Rome for Greece. Caesar then entered the city unopposed.

[edit] The period of transition: 49 BC to 29 BC

The era that began when Julius Caesar crossed the Rubicon in 49 BC, and ended when Octavian returned to Rome after Actium in 29 BC, can be divided into two distinct units. The dividing line between these two units is the assassination of Caesar in March of 44 BC. However, from a constitutional standpoint, there was no clear dividing line between these two periods.^[55] The forces which had supported Pompey during the early part of the first period were allied against Antony and Octavian in 43 BC and 42 BC. The constitutional means through which Caesar held power before his assassination were used by Antony and Octavian to hold power after his assassination. The constitutional evolution of the prior century accelerated through this era at a rapid pace. By 29 BC, Rome had completed its transition from being a city-state with a network of dependencies, to being the capital of a world empire.^[55]

During his early career, Caesar had seen how chaotic and dysfunctional the Roman Republic had become. The republican machinery had broken down under the weight of imperialism. The central government had become powerless. The provinces had been transformed into independent principalities, under the absolute control of their governors. With a weak central government, political corruption had spiraled out of control. And this status quo had been maintained by a corrupt patricio-plebeian aristocracy, which saw no need to change a system which had made them all quite rich.

Between his crossing of the Rubicon River in 49 BC, and his assassination in 44 BC, Caesar established a new constitution. This constitution was intended to bring order back to the empire, and strengthen the central government. When Pompey and his supporters were defeated, the first goal had been accomplished. Now, Caesar would set out to strengthen the central government. To accomplish this goal, he would need to ensure that his control over the government was undisputed.^[56] The powers which he would give himself would ultimately be used by his imperial successors.^[56] He would assume these powers by increasing his own authority, and by decreasing the authority of Rome's other political institutions.

[edit] Caesar's constitutional reforms

Caesar would hold both the dictatorship and the tribunate, but alternate between the consulship and the proconsulship.^[56] In October of 45 BC, Caesar resigned his position as sole consul. He facilitated the election of two successors for the remainder of the year. This set a precedent that Caesar's imperial successors would follow.^[57] Under the empire, consuls would serve for several months, resign, and then the emperor would facilitate the election of successors for the remainder of that consular term.

In 48 BC, Caesar was given permanent tribunician powers.^[58] This made his person sacrosanct. It also allowed him to veto the senate, and to dominate the Concilium Plebis. Since tribunes were always elected in the Concilium Plebis, he had hoped to prevent the election of tribunes who might oppose him.^[58] In 46 BC, Caesar created and held the title of praefectura morum. This title was new only in name. In effect, the functions of this office were identical to those of the censorship.^[58] Thus, he could hold censorial powers, while technically not subjecting himself to the same checks that the ordinary censors were subject to. He used this power to fill the senate with his own partisans.

Caesar then raised the membership of the senate to 900.^[57] All of these appointments were of individuals who were personally loyal to him. This robbed the senatorial aristocracy of its prestige, and made it increasingly subservient to him.^[59] While the assemblies continued to meet, he submitted all candidates to the assemblies for election, and all bills to the assemblies for enactment. Thus, the assemblies became powerless, and were thus unable to oppose him.^[59]

Near the end of his life, Caesar began to prepare for a war against the Parthian Empire. Since his absence from Rome would limit his ability to install his own consuls, he passed a law which allowed him to appoint all magistrates in 43 BC, and all consuls and tribunes in 42 BC.^[57] This, in effect, transformed the magistrates from being representatives of the people, to being representatives of the dictator.^[57] It also robbed the popular assemblies of much of their remaining influence.^[57]

[edit] Caesar's assassination and the Second Triumvirate

Caesar was assassinated in 44 BC. The motives of the conspirators were both personal, as well as political.^[60] Most of the conspirators were senators, and many of them were angry about the fact that he had deprived the senate of much of its power and prestige.^[60] There were also rumors that he would make himself king, and transfer the seat of government to Alexandria. The grievances that they held against him were vague.^[60] As such, their plan against him was vague. The fact that their motives were vague, and that they had no idea of what to do after his assassination, both were plainly obvious by the subsequent course of events.^[60]

After his assassination, Mark Antony would form an alliance with Caesar's adopted son and great-nephew, Gaius Octavian. Along with Marcus Lepidus, they would form an alliance known as the Second Triumvirate. They would hold powers that were nearly identical to the powers that Caesar had held under his constitution. As such, the senate and assemblies remained powerless, even after Caesar had been assassinated. The conspirators would be defeated at the Battle of Philippi in 42 BC. Antony would go to Egypt to seek glory in the east, while Octavian would remain in Rome. Eventually, however, Antony and Octavian would fight against each other in one last battle. Antony would be defeated in the naval Battle of Actium in 31 BC. In 30 BC, Antony would commit suicide. In 29 BC, Octavian would return to Rome, as the unchallenged master of the state.

[edit] History of the Constitution of the Roman Empire

In the years after Antony's defeat, Octavian would set out to reform the Roman constitution. The ultimate consequence of these reforms was the abolition of the republic. While it is true that Octavian sought power for himself, it is also true that the old constitution had ceased to function properly. This simple fact caused much of the turmoil of the prior century. During the reigns of future emperors, the constitution that Octavian had left behind would transition into outright monarchy.

[edit] Augustus' Constitutional Reforms

Octavian's arrival in 29 BC caused a wave of optimism to ripple throughout Italy.^[61] As soon as he arrived, he began addressing the problems that were plaguing Rome. As soon as his reforms had been implemented, Octavian's popularity reached new heights. Octavian now had the support that he needed to implement his reforms.

In 36 BC, Octavian had been vested with perpetual tribunician powers (as had Julius Caesar during his dictatorship). When Octavian deposed Antony in 32 BC, he probably resigned his position as triumvir.^[62] However, that year he was vested with powers similar to those that he had given up.

Octavian wanted to solidify his status as master of the state, but avoid the fate of his adopted father. On January 13, 27 BC, Octavian transferred control of the state back to the Senate and the People of Rome.^[62] In all likelihood, Octavian knew what the result of such a move would be. Without Octavian, Rome could again descend into chaos and civil war.

Neither the Senate nor the People of Rome were willing to accept what was, in effect, Octavian's resignation. The senate allowed Octavian to remain consul. It also allowed him to retain his tribunician powers. Under this arrangement, Octavian would now have colleagues who could veto any of his actions. He was probably concerned that his former position appeared to be too monarchical. Now, however, he appeared to be re-integrated into the constitutional apparatus. His prestige, however, removed any real risk that a colleague would attempt to obstruct him.^[63]. This arrangement, in effect, functioned as a popular ratification of his position within the state.

The senate then granted Octavian a unique grade of proconsular imperium for a period of ten years.^[64] Octavian's imperium was superior to the imperium held by the ordinary proconsuls. Thus, he had both power and authority over all proconsuls. Under the old republic, the proconsuls governed the more challenging provinces. The legions were mostly stationed in these provinces. Therefore, Octavian now controlled most of the Roman army.^[63] Octavian was also granted the title of "Augustus" by the senate.^[64] With this, he was made the master of the state by the Senate and the People of Rome. He also took the title of Princeps, or "first citizen".^[63] In this, he attempted to establish himself as the "first among equals" rather than as a king. He had taken the dictatorial powers that his adopted father had taken almost twenty years before, but had done so in the spirit of the republican constitution.

In 23 BC, Augustus (as Octavian now called himself) again attempted to reform the constitution.^[63] To Augustus, one major weakness in his constitution was a consequence of his status as consul.^[65] While it is true that his prestige minimized the risk of obstruction at the hands of a co-consul, this risk still existed. In addition, tradition did subject the consulship to certain restrictions.^[65] Therefore, Octavian gave up his consulship, and strengthened his proconsular and tribunician powers.^[65]

Augustus' final goal was to figure out a method to ensure an orderly succession. Under Augustus' constitution, the Senate and the People of Rome held the supreme power. All of Augustus' special powers were granted for either a fixed term, or for life. Therefore, Augustus could not transfer his powers to a successor upon his death.^[66] Any successor would need to have powers that were independent of Augustus' own powers.

In 6 BC, Augustus granted tribunician powers to his stepson Tiberius.^[66] Augustus, who never thought highly of Tiberius, soon realized that he had no choice but to recognize Tiberius as his heir. In 13 AD, the point was settled beyond question. A law was passed, called the lex consularis. This law linked Augustus' power over the provinces with that of Tiberius.^[67] Now, Tiberius' legal powers were equivalent to, and independent from, those of Augustus.^[67]

[edit] From Tiberius to Vespasian

When Augustus died in 14 AD, the Principate legally ended.^[68] While Augustus granted Tiberius the legal standing that he would need in order to become Princeps, Augustus could not legally make Tiberius Princeps. When Augustus died, Tiberius assumed command of the praetorian guard, and used his proconsular imperium to force the armies to swear allegiance to him.^[68] As soon as this occurred, the senate and the magistrates acquiesced.^[68]

Under Tiberius, the power to elect magistrates was transferred from the assemblies to the senate.^[69] Now, the assemblies were only used to hear the results of magisterial elections. The assemblies did retain some theoretical legislative powers. When Tiberius died, Caligula was proclaimed emperor by the senate. Caligula transferred the electoral powers back to the assemblies. However, he quickly returned those powers to the senate.^[69] In 41, Caligula was assassinated. For two days following his assassination, the senate debated the merits of restoring the republic.^[70] Due to the demands of the army, however, Claudius was ultimately declared emperor. Claudius' antiquarian interests resulted in his attempt to revive the old censorship, and to return some degree of independence back to the senate.^[71] Ultimately, Claudius was killed, and Nero was declared emperor.

Arguably, the most significant flaw in the constitution left by Augustus concerned the matter of succession. This deadly flaw was violently exposed in the year 69.^[72] Augustus had established a standing army, where individual soldiers would serve in the same province for an extended period of time. The consequence was that the soldiers in the provinces developed a degree of loyalty to their commanders, which they did not have for the emperor. The empire was, in a sense, a union of inchoate principalities. This reality had the potential to lead to an immediate disintegration of the empire.^[72]

In 68, Ser. Sulpicius Galba was proclaimed emperor by his troops.^[73] At the time, Galba was governor of Hispania Tarraconensis. In Rome, the emperor Nero quickly lost his supporters. Then, on June 9 of 68, he committed suicide. Galba, however, did not prove to be a wise leader. For example, he antagonized the praetorian guard by not fulfilling promises which had been made to them.^[73] The governor of Lower Germany, A. Vitellius, was soon proclaimed emperor by his troops. In Rome, the praetorian guard proclaimed M. Salvius Otho emperor.^[73] In January of 69, Galba was assassinated. The senate proclaimed Otho emperor. Otho took an army to Germany, to defeat Vitellius. However, he himself was defeated by Vitellius. In April of 69, he committed suicide.^[73] Vitellius was then proclaimed emperor by the senate. Another general, Vespasian, soon defeated Vitellius. Vitellius was executed, and Vespasian was named Augustus, elected consul, and given tribunician powers.^[74]

These events showed that the armies in the provinces were the ultimate 'electoral bodies'. Now, any successful general could legitimately claim a right to the throne.^[75] It also became apparent that, while the senate would acquiesce to the installation of a new emperor, such acquiescence was simply a matter of form.

[edit] From Vespasian to Nerva

On July 1, 69, Vespasian became emperor.^[74] Vespasian appointed citizens throughout the empire to the senate.^[76] Thus, the senate lost control over its own membership. This act alone weakened the prestige, and thus the power, of the senate. It also weakened the magisterial offices.^[76] Vespasian's reforms, however, did a great deal to strengthen the empire.^[77] The honors which the emperor could now bestow upon any citizen were highly sought after. Individuals who had received such honors were proud of them, and as a consequence became more loyal to the emperor. Individuals who had not yet received such honors sought to earn them. The result was that the central government was strengthened. Several future emperors (such as Trajan, Hadrian, and Marcus Aurelius) would emerge as a consequence of these reforms.^[77]

After Vespasian had died, his son, Titus, became emperor. Titus' reign did not last long enough for him to enact many constitutional changes. His reign, however, saw a further weakening in the power of the senate.^[78] He was succeeded by his brother, Domitian, in 81. Domitian's reign marked a significant turning point on the road to monarchy.^[78] In 84, Domitian made himself censor for life. He used these powers to further subjugate the senate by controlling its membership.^[78] He also changed the law so that he could preside over capital trials against senators. Also in 84, Domitian made himself consul for ten years. The manner in which he was able to dominate his consular colleagues helped to further illustrate the powerlessness of the consulship.^[78]

Domitian, ultimately, was a tyrant with the character which always makes tyranny repulsive.^[79] This character derived, in part, from his own paranoia. His paranoia was a consequence of the fact that he had no son. Since he had no son, and thus no obvious heir, he was constantly in danger of being overthrown.^[79] Thus, the unresolved issue of succession again proved to be deadly. In September of 96, Domitian was murdered.

[edit] From Nerva to the abolition of the Principate

Around this time, the empire was beginning to weaken. Military recruitment was becoming difficult. Inflation was becoming a problem, and the empire almost went bankrupt. The most significant constitutional development during this era was the steady drift towards monarchy. Commodus in particular illustrated the fiction that was the illusion of shared power between the emperor and the senate. The senate was becoming utterly powerless. Hadrian's bureaucratic reorganization in particular reduced the relevance of the senate, because many of the senate's functions were transferred to the new bureaucracy.

M. Cocceius Nerva became emperor after the murder of Domitian. His reign, which only lasted for two years, was too short for any major constitutional reforms to be enacted. He did, however, reverse some of the abuses that his predecessor had been responsible for. For example, he ended (during his reign at least) the practice of prosecuting individuals for disrespecting the emperor.^[80] In 97, Nerva adopted M. Ulpius Trajanus, who was serving as governor of Upper Germany at the time. When Nerva died in January of 98, Trajan succeeded him without opposition. Trajan refused to preside over capital trials against senators, and observed the precedent of freedom of speech during senate meetings. He was away from Rome for such extended periods that the senate even regained some independent legislative abilities.^[80] In addition, he showed respect for the republican magisterial offices by only holding the consulship four times during his nineteen year reign.^[80]

Hadrian succeeded Trajan as emperor. His most important constitutional alteration was his creation of a bureaucratic apparatus.^[81] This apparatus included a fixed gradation of offices, and a corresponding order of promotion. The roles of each office were clearly defined. And many of the functions that had been outsourced in the past, such as tax collection, were now to be performed by the state.^[81] Hadrian adopted Antonius Pius, and made him his heir. He died shortly after the adoption. No real changes to the constitution were made during the reign of Antonius Pius.^[82] He made Marcus Aurelius his heir in 161, and died shortly after.

The most significant constitutional development that occurred during the reign of Marcus Aurelius was the revival of the republican principle of collegiality.^[82] He made his brother, L. Aelius, his co-emperor. Marcus Aurelius ruled the western half of the empire, while his brother ruled the eastern half of the empire. In 169, Aelius died. In 176, Marcus Aurelius found a new co-emperor in his son, L. Aurelius Commodus. This arrangement would be revived more than a century later, when the emperor Diocletian established the tetrarchy. In 180, Marcus Aurelius died, and Commodus became emperor. His tyranny revived the worst memories of the later Julian emperors.^[83] He was more explicit than any of his predecessors in taking powers that he did not legally have. He was killed in 192.

No further constitutional reforms were enacted during the Principate. The only event of any significance was the continuing slide towards monarchy. Beginning in 235, with the reign of the barbarian emperor Maximinus Thrax, the empire was put through a period of severe military, civil, and economic stress. The crisis ended with the accession of Diocletian in 284, and the abolishment of the Principate.

[edit] History of the Constitution of the Late Roman Empire

When Diocletian became emperor in 284, he inherited a constitution that was no longer functioning. Thus, Diocletian instituted the most significant reforms to the constitution since Octavian's reforms. His reforms were intended to correct the errors in the previous constitution. With Diocletian’s reforms, the remaining republican illusions were shed, and the Principate was abolished. In the place of the old Principate, Diocletian established a system that modern historians have called the Dominate.

Between the death of the emperor Septimius Severus in 211, and the accession of Diocletian in 284, twenty-three emperors were installed and then killed. Almost all of these emperors owed their elevation to the force of arms. Thus, the army and the Praetorian Guard became the true power behind the throne.^[84] This dysfunction derived from the fact that there was no universally accepted mechanism to facilitate the installation of new emperors. The absence of such a mechanism legitimized the use of arms as a tool with which to install new emperors.

Diocletian resurrected the system that Marcus Aurelius had first used, and divided the empire into east and west.^[85] Each half was to be ruled by one of two co-emperors. These co-emperors were called the Augusti. He then resurrected the precedent set by Hadrian, and ensured that each emperor would name his successor early in his reign. He called that successor his Caesar.^[85] Diocletian then created a bureaucratic apparatus that was similar to the system that Hadrian had created. Each office in this system had a defined set of responsibilities, a set rank, and a set path of promotion. In this administrative system, Diocletian followed the example that had been set by Domitian, and divided the empire into small administrative units.^[86] Diocletian simply took concepts that had either been developed, or were underdeveloped, and streamlined them into a single constitution.^[85]

When Diocletian resigned, chaos ensued. However, after this chaos had subsided, most of his reforms remained in effect. This constitution survived, in one form or another, until the Roman Empire fell in 476. Diocletian's division of the empire into east and west would set the stage for ages to come. His division was a significant factor behind the ultimate division of the Christian church into western Roman Catholic and eastern Greek Orthodox. His division of the empire into prefectures and dioceses is used by the Catholic Church to this day. The empire in the east ultimately outlived the empire in the west by one thousand years. The empire in the east, which became the Byzantine Empire, would be conquered in the fifteenth century by Ottoman Turks. The resulting empire, the Ottoman Empire, survived until its dissolution less than a century ago. The post-World War 1 divisions of the Ottoman Empire resulted in the creation of modern-day nations such as Iraq and Syria.

[edit] See also

Roman Kingdom Roman Republic Roman Empire Roman Law Plebeian Council Centuria

Curia Roman consul Praetor Roman censor Quaestor Aedile

Roman Dictator Master of the Horse Senate Cursus honorum Byzantine Senate Pontifex Maximus

Princeps senatus Interrex Procurator Acta Senatus

[edit] References

• Polybius (1823). The General History of Polybius: Translated from the Greek. By Mr. Hampton. Oxford: Printed by W. Baxter. Fifth Edition, Vol 2.
• Taylor, Lily Ross (1966). Roman Voting Assemblies: From the Hannibalic War to the Dictatorship of Caesar. The University of Michigan Press (ISBN 0-472-08125-X).

[edit] Notes

[edit] Further reading

[edit] Primary sources

• Cicero's De Re Publica, Book Two
• Rome at the End of the Punic Wars: An Analysis of the Roman Government; by Polybius

[edit] Secondary source material

• Considerations on the Causes of the Greatness of the Romans and their Decline, by Montesquieu
• The Roman Constitution to the Time of Cicero
• What a Terrorist Incident in Ancient Rome Can Teach Us

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