Rise And Fall Of Roman Republic Essay

The Rise and Fall of the Roman Republic The Roman Republic was created in response to the king’s son committing a heinous act against a social elite, named Lucretia. Many citizens of Rome hoped that the development of a republic would prevent the abuse of power by one sole leader and prompt those in leadership roles to share their political power. Initially, these advances in the political system proved to have a multitude of benefits such as reducing social strife, representing each social class in politics, and expanding economic production and trade. However, during this period, the Romans were constantly engaging in wars to further expand their civilization. As a result, Rome became the most powerful state on the peninsula. Rome remained

This prompted Pompey to reach out to his political rivals, Caesar and Crassus. In 60 B.C.E., all three of the men negotiated heavily and formed an unofficial arrangement called the First Triumvirate. In this agreement, Pompey was reinforced as patron, Caesar got consulship and Crassus received financial breaks for the Roman tax collectors. To cement their political agreement, Caesar had his daughter, Julia, marry Pompey in 59 B.C.E although she was already engaged to another man. This marital arrangement ensured that as long as Julia lived, Pompey would not break his alliance with her father. Unfortunately, this bond shattered in 54 B.C.E when Julia died during childbirth. Her death led to rivalry between the two men and violence in the streets of Rome. Ultimately, the violence became so unbearable that the First Triumvirate was

As a result, another Civil War ensued. In 49 B.C.E., Caesar led his army against Rome. Since Caesar had ample support in his attack against Rome, Pompey and most senators decided to flee to Greece. However, this did not stop Caesar from defeating Pompey and the Senate at the battle of Pharsalus in central Greece in 48 B.C.E. After his swift victory, he then invaded Egypt and restored Cleopatra to the throne. However, he officially won the civil war in 45 B.C.E . Caesar believed that only a sole ruler could end the violence among the faction so he became a dictator after his victory. During his reign, he canceled moderate debt, put a cap on the number of people eligible for subsidized grain, and granted citizenship to non-Romans. Furthermore, he rebuilt Corinth and Carthage and made them commercial centers, created additional libraries, and made colonies for the veterans that aided him in war. Despite the positive improvements Caesar made during his dictatorship, numerous optimates despised him including his close friend, Brutus. In fact, Brutus took Caesar’s life on March 15, 44 B.C.E. with the help of fellow