The Patrician and Plebeian Classes of Rome The leanness that afflicts us, the object of our misery, is an inventory to particularize their abundance; our sufferance is a gain to them. – Let us revenge with our pikes ere we become rakes. Coriolanus Act 1, scene 1 William Shakespeare 1607 - 08 Introduction The origin of division between the two classes of citizen in ancient Rome is a matter for speculation. The Romans themselves believed that the two distinct classes dates back to Romulus, the mythical founder of Rome, who chose the patricians to form the first senate (University of South Florida USF, n.d., p.2). What are the distinctions of the patricians and the plebeians, and how did they lead to secession? In this essay I will discuss some of the differences between the patricians and plebeians and will explore some of the reasons for the plebeians to revolt. The battle between the classes is known as the struggle of orders, was it a successful struggle? Body First of all, we will look at some of the differences of the patricians and the plebeians. Ancient Romans could differentiate the class of a citizen easily from the clothes they wore. Patrician senators distinguish themselves from plebeians by wearing a purple stripe on their clothing, latus clavus (Oxford Reference, n.d.). Other forms of dress were also used to identify a patrician including a special boot known as calceus. Plebeians on the other hand were dressed in short tunics of wool (Christ, 1984,