Ancient Rome
Crime and Punishment
Introduction
During the period of the Ancient Romans many crimes had been done such as
murders (most famous assassination was Julius Caesar’s). Many different
punishments happened during this period of time. Punishments were horrible and
were cruel. These were two things that were linked up together and were one of the
worst things that happened during the Ancient Roman time period.
A Very Famous Crime
Julius Caesar's Assassination:
Julius Caesar was assassinated on March 15 44BC by a few senators who tricked him
to think that they wanted him to read a petition. They stabbed him 23 times in the
chest. His last word where “Etoi Brutus” which means “And you Brutus”. The
senators were able to hide their weapons so easily because they hid them in their
long tunics. They said they murdered him because he became too powerful.
Punishment
Everyone in Ancient Rome had to obey the strict Roman Laws. People who
committed crimes were punished painfully or by death to try to make other people
to not break the law. The poor usually received the worst punishments, and were
done in public. The rich on the other hand were treated a little better but still badly.
Slave Punishment
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In Ancient Rome, slaves were treated as if they were a piece of trash. It was
very unfair because the slaves were considered as if they were an item you
can buy and sell.
The main punishment for slaves would be to get a few slashes from their
master. The amount of slashes would normally range from 3-8.
A punishment for slaves was to carry a plank of heavy wood around their
necks the whole day. This meant that the slaves would still have to continue
their work as they carried along the plank or wood.
Another punishment was for a slave to go to a workhouse and turn a mill and
grind corn. This was done for hours a day and they would not be aloud to
have any breaks.
Death Punishments
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Some common ways to die if you were in trouble would be to; either be put
on a large fork with the points going into your head.
Some other main punishments are the following:
Beheading is when you would be` forced to put your head on a chopping
block and a person would stand next to you and cut your head off with a
sharp blade.
Being burned by death means when you are alive and you are forced to go on
a plat -form and be burned alive.
If any person had sung or composed another person’s song, he could be
clubbed to death if he caused any insult.
Strange Roman Laws
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A dreadfully deformed child shall be would killed by being left out in nature
to be eaten.
If a father sold his son three times, the son shall be free from his father.
The woman should not tear their face or wail on the account of a funeral.
No person shall hold meetings at night in the city.
A child born after ten months since the father’s death will not be admitted
into a legal inheritance
A dead man shall not be burned or buried within the city.
If its your tree, its your fruit even if it falls on another man’s land.
If you need a witness for court and he would not show up you can go once
every three days and shout in front of his house.
Government
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People were divided into different classes. There were patricians, plebeians
and slaves.
Patricians were wealthy citizens of Rome. They usually lived in grand houses
and had slaves to do their work for them.
Plebeians were not wealthy but they were citizens of Rome. They were
usually craftsmen or tradesmen and they worked for a living.
Slaves had no money, no right, no freedom and were not citizens of Rome.
Patricians and plebeians met in the assembly and voted for consuls, tribunes
and magistrates. Women and slaves were not allowed in the assembly and
could not vote.
Consuls : the citizens of Rome for two consuls. They were elected to serve for
one year. It was the consuls job to govern Rome. They had to both agree on
the same decisions. After they had served their year they were replaced.
They were not allowed to be consuls again for ten years.
Magistrates: the citizens of Rome voted for a number of magistrates. It was
the magistrates job to keep law and order and also to manage Rome's
financial affairs.
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When magistrates retired they became senators and attended the senate.
Tribunes: the citizens of Rome voted for tribunes. It was the tribunes job to
make sure that the people were treated fairly.
A List of References
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www.roman-colosseum.info/roman-life/roman-punishment.htm
http:// rome.mrdonn.org/12tables.html
Your Travel Guide to Ancient Rome By Rita J Markel (Book)
The Usborne Internet-Linked Encyclopedia of the Roman World By: Fiona
Chandler, Sam Taplin and Jane Bingham (Book)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Julius_Caesar
http://historyonthenet.com/Romans/government.htm