Compare and contrast the republican forms of government of R

Comparing and contrasting the republican forms of government of Rome and the United States.

Republican forms of Rome

Continued

What is a republic? A republic is a type of government in which citizens can vote to elect their leaders. In Rome, only free-born male citizens had the right to vote.

By: Katherine Shipp

Latin II

Mr. Kouba

November 11, 2013

The Tribunes- "were elected representatives that protected the Plebeians from mistreatment. The Tribunes attended meetings of the consuls or Senate in an attempt to bring justice to the Pleabians. They could veto any laws that they felt were unfair or unresonable. If an adequate amount of Tribunes objected to the law, it was not pursued."

The Assembly- "was made up of the Plebians, or the commoners, of Rome. Although it had little power, once a year the Assembly could vote for the two senators that would serve as Consuls. The Assembly usually met in a public area where they could vote on certain laws, which would then be passed on to the Senate for another vote. The Senate could either pass or overrule their vote. The Assembly also had the power to declare whether Rome was at war or at peace."

The Consuls- "were composed of two Senators that were elected by the Assembly. They served for a one year term. The Consuls were the highest position in the Roman Republic. They also controlled the army. The Consuls elected the Senators, ran the government, and were judges. The Consuls could elect a dictator in an emergency."

The Roman Senate- "was composed of 600 members who could serve for life, who controlled all finances, foreign affairs and state administration. To qualify you had to have been elected in prior years to the job of Quaestor whose job was financial administration either in Rome or in the provinces. Since the Senate was so powerful Rome had an office called the Censors who were elected directly by the people. These individuals had the job of appointing qualified Senators and also could investigate Senators for corruption. If they were to find a corrupt Senator they had the power to expel that individual."

The Twelve Tables- "were created in 451 BC, after the plebeians advocated for their creation. Although the plebeians were represented in Roman government, the patricians held the power to create and change laws to their satisfaction, often leaving the plebeians with little rights. The Twelve Tables, written on twelve tablets, were hung in the Forum and were the first form of Roman law. They ensured that all free citizens, regardless of social class, had the right to protection under the law."

(http://romangov.weebly.com/bibliography.html.)

The Birth of the Republic- During the sixth century B.C.E., Roman kings began to rule as tyrants (a ruler of cruel and oppressive character) so in 509 BC the Roman people rebelled against Tarquin the Proud who was the worst of these dictators, and that monarchy ended and in its place, the Romans created the Republic.

"The Roman Republic was constructed in order to resolve a conflict between the two major social classes in ancient Rome: The Patricians, who were comprised originally of the roman aristocrats and later came to include prosperous merchants and traders; and the Plebeians, the majority, who had citizenship but lacked wealth. In theory, Rome was a Democracy in which every citizen had the right to vote. In reality, the Republic was heavily influenced by an oligarchy in which different factions feuded for power and used their wealth to influence the outcomes of elections." (http://romangov.weebly.com/bibliography.html.)

The Plebians were the middle to lower class citizens who made up the majority of Rome's population. The Plebians were merchants, peasents, artisans, and farmers who couldn't hold military, religious or political power.

The Patricians were upper-class, wealthy Romans that could hold political, religious or military office. The Patricians made up a small part of the Roman population, however, they held much of the power and control.

Republican forms of the United States

Works cited

United states- Republic is a form of government in which affairs of state are a public matter, not the private concern of the rulers, in which public offices are elected rather than privately accommodated.

Comparing the United States and Rome

In many ways, the Roman Republic was very similar to the way the United States government is today. The U.S. government was based off the Roman government.

In the U.S. historical tradition, the belief in republicanism shaped the U.S. Revolution and Constitution. The Founding Fathers of The United States borrowed some of the elements of government from Rome.

The U.S. has three clear divisions of power: Executive branch, Legislative branch, and the Judicial branch.

-Mackay, Christopher S. Roman World, The Republic. United Kingdom: The Press Syndicate of the University of Cambridge, 2003. Print.

-Burgan, Michael. Empire of Ancient Rome. New York: Library of Congress, 2005. Print.

-Ushistory.org. Ancient Civilizations Online Textbook. The Roman Republic. 2013. Web. Sunday November, 9

2013.

-Farlex. The free Dictionary. p.n. 2013. Web. Sunday, November 9, 2013.

- Ancient Rome Government. Web. 2013. http://romangov.weebly.com/bibliography.html.

Differences

Similarities

• The Twelve Tables was similar to the Bill of Rights.
• Both the current U.S government and the Roman Republic government have main power divisions that make the decisions.
• Both have an Executive branch, a Judicial branch and a Legislative branch.
• Both have a form of supreme executive.
• In both forms of Republic the wealthy tend to control the government.

• Unlike the American Republic government, in the Roman Republic the Senate would usually have more power over the Executive branch and there was very little independence among the branches of government.
• The United States distributes its power relatively evenly. Because each state government as well as Congress has both a Senate and a House of Representatives. Having two houses of representation helps promote the interests of the people in way that Romans did not.
• The American Republic is a lot more evolved and refined than the Romans' version.
• In Rome only wealthy males could vote but in the U.S all citizens above the age of 18 can vote.
• Rome had two consuls (the highest elected office of the Roman Republic) where as the U.S. has one president.
• In the U.S. federal judges are appointed and in Roman Republic judges were elected.