Livy on the Early Roman Republic
Livy was a historian and philosopher who wrote lived during the time of the first Roman
emperor, Augustus. He set out to write a history of Roman civilization from its beginning up to the
time he lived. His writing is one of the most important primary sources we have on Rome before it
became and empire, the Roman Republic.
The Beginning of the Republic
[2.1] I will write a history of Rome. How Rome ran its government. How Rome went to war. How
Rome elected magistrates and the effectiveness of its laws over all of its citizens. The tyranny of the
last king made the freedom Rome created all the better. The kings treated the people so badly that
they should not even count as having started civilization in the city of Rome. Freedom for Romans
came from the fact that Consuls could only serve one year. This kept the Consuls from getting too
powerful. The first Consuls kept the symbols of power that the old kings had, such as the fasces.
The old king Tarquin had killed many senators, so one of Consul Brutus’ first jobs was to fill the
empty seats in the senate. He did this by promoting people of the “equestrian” rank to that of
Senator. They were called “conscripti” where the old Senators kept their title of “patres”. This
allowed the patricians and plebeians to work nicely together.
[2.2] Brutus then paid special attention to the religion of Rome. Certain religious ceremonies had
been conducted by the king in the past. Because Brutus was worried that Romans might lose some
freedoms if he continued performing religious ceremonies, he created a new title for the head of
religion in Rome, the Pontifex Maximus.
Conflict Between the Plebeians and the Patricians
[4.1] The tribunes made a suggestion to the Senate that one consul be selected from the plebeians.
The patricians disagreed with this because they thought it would put power into the hands of people
who would be incompetent.
War with the City of Veii and the Sacking of Rome by the Gauls
[5.1] There was peace throughout the Mediterranean Sea, except for the war that was occurring
between Veii and Rome. The fighting was so viscious that one of these cities was going to be
completely destroyed.
[5.37] During the war, the Gauls learned that their embassy had been treated disrespectfully. Men
who had damaged their embassy had been rewarded by the Senate. There were messages from
Clusium that they were travelling south towards Rome. The speed that they travelled had the people
of Rome very scared. The Romans drafted everyday citizens into the army, who were not prepared
to fight because they were not soldiers. The Roman army and the Gauls met at a place near Rome
where the Alia river joins the Tiber river.
[5.38] Bennus the chieftain of the Gauls, attacked the Roman army where they were weak. He
thought his greater numbers would give him an easy victory. Luck and strategy were both on the
side of the Gauls. Most of the Roman army reached Veii safely after being beaten by the Gauls at
the Alia river. Some of the men from the Roman army fled back to Rome but locked themselves in
the Citadel and left the gates to the city undefended.
[5.41] The Gauls had a good night’s rest after the battle and entered Rome through the Colline gate
without any violence occurring. They came to the Forum, the temples, and the Citadel. A Gaul had
been standing in the street stroking his beard and Papirius hit him on the head with his ivory staff.
The Gauls killed him first and then killed the magistrates and everyone else who wasn’t in the Citadel.
They looted and burned the houses next.
[5.48] Hunger began to affect both the Gauls and the Romans, and diseases started to break out
amongst the Gauls. Their camp was near swamps that were full of malaria. They started to die off
like sheep.
[5.49] Camillus was able to defeat the Gauls outside the city and save Rome from being taken over
by them.
Rome and Carthage in the Second Punic War
[21.1] The war I am about to discuss was the most important war that Rome has ever fought. This
was the war with the Carthaginians, who were led by their general Hannibal. No two nations have
ever fought a bigger war, with more men and conquered more land than Rome and Carthage. They
were fully prepared, using all of the resources of their nation, and they knew the tactics of their
enemy because they had already fought the first Punic War. Early in this Second Punic War, things
went badly for Rome, but they eventually were victorious over the Carthaginians. As strong as both
countries were, their hatred for each other was even stronger. The Romans were furious because
the Carthaginians attacked them. The Carthaginians felt the Romans were brutal tyrants. Hamilcar
was the person who made this war happen. Hamilcar made his son, Hannibal, swear his hatred for
Rome. Hamilcar was furious that Rome had taken Sicily and Sardinia in the First Punic War and he
wanted them back.
Vocabulary List
Plebeians:
Plebeians were the common people of Rome. Some of them owned land but generally if you
weren’t a slave, you were a plebeian.
Patricians:
These were the wealthy Romans who came from families that had supposedly founded the
Republic. They were constantly disagreeing and arguing with the plebeians because they had very
different needs.
Consul:
Two Consuls were elected for one year terms. They had the authority to rule Rome according
to the laws made by the Senate.
Equestrian Class:
Romans who were wealthy and owned land provided their own weapons and armor when they
fought for the army. Usually this meant also providing a horse and people of this class were called
Equestrians.
Conscripti:
Were people chosen to be in the Senate by the Consuls.
Tarquin:
The last Etruscan king of the Romans who was considered to be a brutal Tyrant.
Fasces:
A symbol of Roman power that was a bundle of sticks wrapped around an axe.
Magistrates:
Roman governors who controlled smaller areas of the republic.
Tyranny:
When a government only rules to help itself and not for the good of the people.
Tyrant:
Someone who rules to only help themselves and not the people.
Senate:
The group elected by the people to make laws for Rome.
Senator:
A member of the Senate.
Tribune:
These were elected officials who could veto decisions made by magistrates. They were in
place to keep people from abusing their power.
Veii:
A city near Rome that was conquered by the Romans around 396 BC.
Gaul:
What is today modern day France. In 346 BC, this area had very little civilization and were
considered barbarians by the Romans. A group of Gauls sacked Rome in 346 BC, but they did not
succeed in capturing the city.
Carthage:
A city in North Africa that competed with Rome for power in the Mediterranean.
Citadel:
A castle like structure in the middle of Rome used for defending the city in case of invasion.
Sicily:
An island south of the Italian peninsula that was desired by both Carthage and Rome. The
two civilizations fought over Sicily more than once.
Sardinia:
An island west of the Italian peninsula that was also fought over by the Romans and
Carthaginians.
Hamilcar:
A Carthaginian general and the father of Hannibal. Fought in wars against the Romans.
Hannibal:
Considered by many to be the best general to have ever lived, Hannibal marched across the
mountains of Spain (the Pyranees) and the mountains north of Rome (the Alps) in order to invade
Roman territory in 218 BC.