How did Rome’s Republican Government System Contribute to Rome’s Ability to Build and Empire, Conquer Their Enemies and Manage the Conquered Land?

The Greek historian Polybius believed that the key to Rome’s strength was its Republican form of government. In the ancient Greek city states, there were three forms of government: monarchy, aristocracy and democracy. Each of these were unstable and eventually devolved into their negative forms: Tyranny, oligarchy and mob rule, respectively.

The Roman Republic was a mixed constitution which consisted of elements of each of these forms, and each put a check on the others. The monarchic component was the Consuls, two of whom were elected annually, the aristocratic component was the Senate, selected from those who had served in some elected office and serving for an indefinite period, and the democratic component was the assemblies of the plebes, without whom laws could not be passed. The rights of the plebians were strengthened by the office of Tribune of the Plebes.

Polybius believed that this system rendered the Roman government far more stable than polities with a pure form of government.

I would add that the other impetus for Roman expansion was its constant state of war. The Roman social and political system actually encouraged war because that was the means of gaining wealth and prestige within the state. The highest honor that could be bestowed upon a Roman was a triumph, and in order to be allowed to have a triumph you had to defeat a foreign enemy in battle causing them at least five thousand fatalities. Since the Consuls personally led the legions, there was every incentive for a Consul to go to war to gain wealth, glory and a triumph.

Naturally, over time, these wars led to conquest and a larger and larger empire. There was the necessity to govern these conquered territories and governorships were conferred on Consuls and Praetors after their terms of office expired. They were easily exploited for wealth and thus much sought after.

Polybius wrote during the second century B.C. when the system was still working well. The system began to collapse during the first century B.C. after the Marian reforms led to a disconnection between the legions and the state. The legionaries owed their allegiance to their generals, and the generals fought among themselves leading to civil wars. This went on for decades until the ascension of Augustus put an end to the Republic altogether.

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