1.2: The Government of the Roman Republic
- Page ID
- 125631
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Standard 1.2: The Government of the Roman Republic
FOCUS QUESTION: How did the government of the Roman Republic contribute to the development of modern-day democracy?
1.2.1 INVESTIGATE: Roman Government and Roman Engineering and Public Works Projects
The government of the Roman Republic was neither strictly a monarchy (rule by one) or a direct democracy (rule by all). It had democratic features but was essentially a "fundamentally undemocratic society dominated by a select caste of wealthy aristocrats" (Brown, 2016, para. 2).
In drafting the Constitution and envisioning a democratic society for the United States, the American founders focused on the following features of the Roman Republic. Rome had a constitution. There were written laws. Disputes were settled in courts. There were separate branches of the government and most Roman male citizens had some voting power. Finally, there was the belief in the overriding principle of libertas (liberty). As historian Mary Beard (2005) noted, "All, or most, Romans would have counted themselves as upholders of libertas" (p. 129).
The first legal codes in world history came from the ancient Middle East with the Code of Ur-Nammu being the first; it predated the Code of Hammurabi, the most well-known, by three centuries. The Great Tang Code was the earliest Chinese legal code that has been recorded completely. Written in 1804, the 2,281 articles of the Napoleonic Code ensured equality, universal suffrage, property rights and religious liberty to all male citizens of France. The United States Code is a collection of this country's permanent laws, but is so large that no one can for sure how many laws there are (Library of Congress, March 13, 2013).
The government of the Roman republic had a system of checks and balances that sought to balance three forces in Roman society:
- representation and participation of the poor;
- the power and influence of the elite; and
- the need to enact swift decision making outside of representative government.
The U.S. adopted its own system of checks and balances to control the power of the legislative, executive and judicial branches (see the resourcesforhistoryteachers wiki page on The American Political System).
- Write your definition of a "Law"
- How would you define or explain "what is a law?"
- What do you think are the three most important laws in your life today? Why do you think so?
1.2.1.1 Roman Engineering and Public Works Projects
- The National Road (also known as the Cumberland Road), built between 1811 and 1837, was the first federally funded highway.
- New York State funded the building of the Erie Canal between 1817 and 1825.
- The federal government heavily subsidized the first Transcontinental Railroad.
- Between 1933 and 1939, the Public Works Administration funded more than 34,000 projects as part of the New Deal. For examples read about The Great Depression Top Five Public Works Projects of the New Deal:
- Grand Coulee Dam
- Hoover Dam
- Great Smoky Mountain National Park
- Overseas Highway from Miami to Key West
- The Lincoln Tunnel
- In 1956, President Dwight Eisenhower signed legislation creating the Interstate Highway System. Ike's Interstates at 50 from the National Archives (2006) offers more information the national highway system.
- Beginning in the 1960s, the Internet had its origins as a Department of Defense research project (The History of the Internet in a Nutshell: 1969 - 2009).
- Build a model of an aqueduct
- Watch the TeachEngineering video Construct an Aqueduct! and then build your own working model.
- Propose a modern-day public works project
- Rome built roads, aqueducts and many other structures as government-funded public works project. What new public works project should local, state, or federal government provide for your community?
These plans can be adapted and used for in-person, fully online, and blended learning formats. Note: There are some minor spacing issues due to moving the material from Nearpod to the PDF version.
- Massachusetts Grade 7
- Describe the contributions of Roman civilization to architecture, engineering, and technology (e.g., roads, bridges, arenas, baths, aqueducts, central heating, plumbing, and sanitation).
- Masschusetts Grade 8
- Describe the government of the Roman Republic and the aspects of republican principles that are evident in modern governments.
- Advanced Placement: United States Government and Politics
- Unit 1: Ideas of Democracy
Online Resources for Roman Government, Roman Society, and Roman Engineering
- Citizenship in the Roman Republic, Learning Plan, Los Angeles Unified School District
- The Pantheon interactive panorama
- Colosseum in 360 degrees using Google Earth
- Government of the Roman Republic
- Roman Republic, Stanford History Education Group
- Republic to Empire: Government in Ancient Rome, National Geographic
- Slavery and Social Classes in Ancient Rome
- PRIMARY SOURCE Activity: Tang Code's "Ten Adominations"
- Oregon NOW Model Student Dress Code
1.2.2 UNCOVER: Spartacus and Slavery in the Roman World, Toussaint L'Ouverture and Black American Slave Revolts
The institution of slavery was interwoven into all areas of Roman life.
- Slaves were status symbols for the wealthy.
Unlike the Atlantic slave trade centuries later, Roman slavery was not based on race. Roman slaves included prisoners of war, sailors captured by pirates, and enslaved individuals purchased outside Roman territory. Impoverished Roman citizens sometimes sold their children into slavery to make money. Slavery, as practiced in Rome and many other societies, contradicted the fundamental principles of freedom and liberty. It created lasting and unresolved philosophical and political problems in every democracy where it was practiced—including colonial North America and the United States before and after the Civil War.
Throughout history slaves have rebelled against those who enslaved them. The desire to be free, to have control over one’s life, is basic to being human. Spartacus was a gladiator and leader of a lengthy, though unsuccessful, slave revolt against the Roman Republic in 73 BCE.
Toussaint L'Ouverture, who has been called the Black Spartacus, was the leader of the Haitian Revolution, an uprising of African slaves on the island of Haiti that produced in 1804 the second independent republic in the western hemisphere (the United States was the first). (Learn more from the resourcesforhistoryteachers wiki page Toussaint L'Ouverture and the Haitian Revolution).
Online Resources about Slave Revolts
- Roman Society and the Question of Race is a short essay exploring race in the Roman slave system.
- Reckoning with Legacies of Slavery and Slave Trade, Slavery and Remembrance, Colonial Williamsburg
- History of Haiti: Toussaint L'Ouverture in Power: 1492-1801, Brown University Library
- AP World History Period 2.2: States and Empires
- Slaves, the Labor Force, and the Economy, Roman Empire in the First Century, PBS
- Roman Slavery, World History For Us All, UCLA
- Background Information on slavery in United States history:
1.2.3 ENGAGE: What Latin Words and Phrases Should Every Student Know?
Knowing the meaning of Latin words and phrases is essential in everyday life. One would not want to sign a contract that had the phrase caveat emptor (let the buyer beware) or fail to accept someone's mea culpa (it was my fault). The term "coronavirus" is derived from the Latin word for corona (crown-like circle of light) + virus. A coronavirus has the appearance of a solar corona when seen under an electron microscope (see Coronavirus Etymology on Wikipedia).
Latin is the language of law and government. Understanding Latin is key to understanding one's rights in political and legal systems. E Pluribus Unum is a Latin phrase meaning from "out of many, one." It was adopted as the United States' motto in 1782 and first appeared on a U.S. coin in 1795. It was intended to convey the message that the United States is one country made from many diverse peoples and places. E Pluribus Unum was replaced by "In God We Trust" as a Cold War-era statement against communism. For more, consult:
- Glossary of Latin Terms Used in Law and Government
- Dictionary of Latin Terms Used in Legal Doctrines and Rules
Online Resources about the Latin Language
- History of Latin timeline
- Coding as the New Latin? Can Code Clubs Provide a New Pathway for Low-Income Children and Help Close the Digital Divide? Connected Learning (August 3, 2020)
- Interactive map (flash-based) to see how the Romans conquered all of Western Europe and spread their language
- Letters of the Roman Alphabet and how to pronounce each letter.
- Latin Derivatives
- How Did Latin Become a Dead Language? shows its spread and its decline
- See How English Words Are Derived from Latin