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85-472: Since the Romans used a form of direct democracy, citizens, and not elected representatives, voted before each assembly. As such, the citizen-electors had no power, other than the power to cast a vote. Each assembly was presided over by a single Roman Magistrate, and as such, it was the presiding magistrate who made all decisions on matters of procedure and legality. Ultimately, the presiding magistrate's power over

170-547: A "Herald". Then the order of the vote had to be determined. An urn was brought in, and lots were cast to determine the sequence by which the Curiae were to vote. The electors were then told to break up the Convention ("depart to your separate groups", or discedite, quirites ). The electors assembled behind a fenced off area and voted by placing a pebble or written ballot into an appropriate jar. The baskets ( cistae ) that held

255-565: A division such that the citizen-soldiers had the responsibility of electing the consuls and praetors, and therefore, their leaders. The Roman army was based on units called centuries , which were comparable to Companies in a modern army. While Centuries in the Roman army always consisted of about one hundred soldiers, Centuries in the Centuriate Assembly usually did not. This was because the property qualifications for membership in

340-557: A law ( lex curiata de imperio or "Curiate law on imperium") that gave them their legal command ( imperium ) authority. In practice, however, they received this authority from the Centuriate assembly (which formally elected them), and as such, this functioned as nothing more than a reminder of Rome's regal heritage. Even after it lost its powers, the Curiate Assembly continued to be presided over by Consuls and Praetors, and

425-409: A majority of centuries voted in the same way on a given measure, the voting ended, and the matter was decided. Only the Centuriate Assembly could declare war or elect the highest-ranking Roman magistrates : consuls , praetors and censors . In addition, the Centuriate Assembly served as the highest court of appeal in certain judicial cases (in particular, cases involving perduellio ), and ratified

510-467: A mechanism through which electors could appeal decisions of the presiding magistrate. There were also religious officials (known as Augurs ) either in attendance or on-call, who would be available to help interpret any signs from the Gods (omens), since the Romans believed that their gods let their approval or disapproval with proposed actions be known. In addition, a preliminary search for omens ( auspices )

595-412: A mechanism through which electors could appeal decisions of the presiding magistrate. There were also religious officials (known as Augurs ) either in attendance or on-call, who would be available to help interpret any signs from the gods (omens), since the Romans believed that the gods let their approval or disapproval with proposed actions be known. In addition, a preliminary search for omens ( auspices )

680-416: A plebeian. Although this law was occasionally violated by the election of two patrician consuls, Sextius himself was elected consul for 366, and Licinius in 364. At last, the plebeian tribunes had broken the patrician monopoly on the highest magistracies of the state. Following their victory in 367, the tribunes remained an important check on the power of the senate and the annual magistrates. In 287 BC,

765-449: A political speech. Private citizens who did not hold political office could only speak before a Convention, and not before an Assembly or a Council. Conventions were simply meetings, and no legal or legislative decisions could be made in them. Voters always assembled first into Conventions to hear debates and conduct other business before voting, and then into Assemblies or Councils to vote. A notice always had to be given several days before

850-431: A red leather ribbon into a cylinder, and while out of the city, with a blade on the side, projecting from the bundle. While the voters in this assembly wore white undecorated togas and were unarmed, they were still metaphorically soldiers, and as such they could not meet inside of the physical boundary of the city of Rome (the pomerium ). Because of this, as well as the large size of the assembly (as many as 373 centuries),

935-617: A separate property requirement: The first classes consisted of soldiers with heavy armor (see Triarii and Principes ), the lower classes had successively less armor (see Hastati and Velites ), and the soldiers of the fifth class had nothing more than slings and stones. Each of the five property classes were divided equally between centuries of younger soldiers and centuries of older soldiers. The first class of enlisted soldiers consisted of eighty centuries, classes two through four consisted of twenty centuries each, and class five consisted of thirty centuries. The unarmed soldiers were divided into

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1020-402: A similar three market-day interval to pass between the proposal of a law and the vote on that law. During criminal trials, the assembly's presiding magistrate had to give a notice ( diem dicere ) to the accused person on the first day of the investigation ( anquisito ). At the end of each day, the magistrate had to give another notice to the accused person ( diem prodicere ), which informed him of

1105-409: A similar three market-day interval to pass between the proposal of a statute and the vote on that statute. During criminal trials, the assembly's presiding magistrate had to give a notice ( diem dicere ) to the accused person on the first day of the investigation ( anquisito ). At the end of each day, the magistrate had to give another notice to the accused person ( diem prodicere ), which informed him of

1190-437: A substantial gain from his actions. In 48 BC, the senate bestowed the tribunicia potestas (tribunician power) on the dictator Gaius Julius Caesar , who, as a patrician, was ineligible to be elected one of the tribunes. When two of the elected tribunes attempted to obstruct his actions, Caesar had them impeached, and taken before the senate, where they were deprived of their powers. Never again did Caesar face opposition from

1275-409: A voting century did not change over time, as property qualifications for membership in a military century did. Soldiers in the Roman army were classified on the basis of the amount of property that they owned, and as such, soldiers with more property outranked soldiers with less property. Since the wealthy soldiers were divided into more centuries in the early Roman army, with a greater military burden,

1360-733: The Convention ( conventio , literally "coming together") was an unofficial forum for communication. Conventions were simply forums where Romans met for specific unofficial purposes, such as, for example, to hear a political speech. Private citizens who did not hold political office could only speak before a Convention, and not before a Committee or a Council. Conventions were simply meetings, and no legal or legislative decisions could be made in one. Voters always assembled first into Conventions to hear debates and conduct other business before voting, and then into Committees or Councils to actually vote. A notice always had to be given several days before

1445-582: The Roman Forum . The tribunes were sacrosanct , meaning that any assault on their person was punishable by death. In imperial times , the powers of the tribunate were granted to the emperor as a matter of course, and the office itself lost its independence and most of its functions. Fifteen years after the expulsion of the kings and establishment of the Roman Republic, the plebeians were burdened by crushing debt. A series of clashes between

1530-686: The Roman Republic was one of the three voting assemblies in the Roman constitution . It was named the Centuriate Assembly as it originally divided Roman citizens into groups of one hundred men by classes. The centuries initially reflected military status, but were later based on the wealth of their members. The centuries gathered into the Centuriate Assembly for legislative, electoral, and judicial purposes. The majority of votes in any century decided how that century voted. Each century received one vote, regardless of how many electors each Century held. Once

1615-412: The comitia centuriata to hold the election of his successor. Cicero's contemporaries argued that without confirmation in the imperium, a magistrate could not act as a promagistrate, or without it, govern the province at his own expense and be ineligible for a triumph after a military victory. These rules would have prohibited magistrates from engaging in serious public business before confirmation, but for

1700-479: The plebeian assembly alone. However, they functioned very much like magistrates of the Roman state. They could convene the concilium plebis , which was entitled to pass legislation affecting the plebeians alone ( plebiscita ), and beginning in 493 BC to elect the plebeian tribunes and aediles. From the institution of the tribunate, any one of the tribunes of the plebs was entitled to preside over this assembly. The tribunes were entitled to propose legislation before

1785-431: The populares , it is likely that the senate, trying to increase its control over provincial governors, stressed the importance of this law, even as magistrates ignored their complaints. Acts that the Curiate Assembly voted on were mostly symbolic and usually in the affirmative. At one point, possibly as early as 218 BC, the Curiate Assembly's thirty Curiae were abolished, and replaced with thirty lictors , one from each of

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1870-459: The Assembly was to vote. For elections, at least three market-days (often more than seventeen actual days) had to pass between the announcement of the election, and the actual election. During this time period (the trinundinum ), the candidates interacted with the electorate, and no legislation could be proposed or voted upon. In 98 BC, a statute was passed (the lex Caecilia Didia ) which required

1955-602: The Servian organization, the assembly was so aristocratic that the officer class and the first class of enlisted soldiers controlled enough centuries for an outright majority. Some time between 241 and 216 BC the centuries were reapportioned. Under the old system, there were a total of 193 centuries, while under the new system, there were a total of 373 centuries. Under the new system, the thirty-five Tribes were each divided into ten centuries: five of older soldiers, and five of younger soldiers. Of each of these five centuries, one

2040-484: The action of a tribune. If a magistrate, the senate, or any other assembly disregarded the orders of a tribune, he could "interpose the sacrosanctity of his person" to prevent such action. Even a dictator (and presumably an interrex ) was not exempted from the veto power, although some sources may suggest the contrary. The tribunes could veto acts of the Roman senate. The tribune Tiberius Sempronius Gracchus imposed his veto on all government functions in 133 BC, when

2125-405: The ancient world. If the tribune decided to act, he would impose his ius intercessionis ("right of intercession"). Although a tribune could veto any action of the magistrates, senate, or other assemblies, he had to be physically present in order to do so. Because the sacrosanctity of the tribunes depended on the oath of the plebeians to defend them, their powers were limited to the boundaries of

2210-471: The assembly often met on the Field of Mars (Latin: Campus Martius ), which was a large field located right outside of the city wall. The president of the Centuriate Assembly was usually a Consul (although sometimes a Praetor). Only Consuls (the highest-ranking of all Roman Magistrates) could preside over the Centuriate Assembly during elections because the higher-ranking Consuls were always elected together with

2295-417: The assembly was nearly absolute. The only check on that power came in the form of vetoes handed down by other magistrates, and decisions made by presiding magistrates could also be vetoed by higher-ranking magistrates. In addition, after 493 BC, any decision made by a presiding magistrate, including one concerning the Curiate Assembly, could be vetoed by a magistrate known as a plebeian tribune (aka. tribune of

2380-408: The assembly was to actually vote. For elections, at least three market-days (often more than seventeen actual days) had to pass between the announcement of the election, and the actual election. During this time period (the trinundinum ), the candidates interacted with the electorate, and no legislation could be proposed or voted upon. In 98 BC, a law was passed (the lex Caecilia Didia ) which required

2465-477: The assembly. By the third century BC, the tribunes also had the right to call the senate to order, and lay proposals before it. Ius intercessionis , also called intercessio, the power of the tribunes to intercede on behalf of the plebeians and veto the actions of the magistrates, was unique in Roman history. Because they were not technically magistrates, and thus possessed no maior potestas , they relied on their sacrosanctity to obstruct actions unfavourable to

2550-482: The auspices correctly; the consuls were forced to resign and new elections were organised. On the day of the vote, the electors first assembled into their Conventions for debate and campaigning. In the Conventions, the electors were not sorted into their respective centuries. Speeches from private citizens were only heard if the issue to be voted upon was a legislative or judicial matter, and even then, only if

2635-497: The citizen received permission from the presiding magistrate. If the purpose of the ultimate vote was for an election, no speeches from private citizens were heard, and instead, the candidates for office used the convention to campaign. During the convention, the bill to be voted upon was read to the assembly by an officer known as a "Herald". A tribune of the plebs could use his veto against pending legislation up until this point, but not after. The electors were then told to break up

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2720-496: The city of Rome. A tribune traveling abroad could not rely on his authority to intervene on behalf of the plebeians. For this reason, the activities of the tribunes were normally confined to the city itself, and a one-mile radius beyond. In 471 BC the Lex Publilia transferred the election of the tribunes from comitia curiata to the comitia tributa , thus removing the influence of the patricians on their election. In 462,

2805-468: The college was increased to ten in 457 BC, and remained at this number throughout Roman history. They were assisted by two aediles plebis , or plebeian aediles. Only plebeians were eligible for these offices, although there were at least two exceptions. Although sometimes referred to as plebeian magistrates, the tribunes of the people, like the plebeian aediles , who were created at the same time, were technically not magistrates, as they were elected by

2890-491: The convention ("depart to your separate groups", or discedite, quirites ), and assemble into their formal century. The electors assembled behind a fenced off area and voted by placing a pebble or written ballot into an appropriate jar. The baskets ( cistae ) that held the votes were watched by specific officers (the custodes ), who then counted the ballots, and reported the results to the presiding magistrate. The majority of votes in any century decided how that century voted. If

2975-519: The emperor through a special lex de imperio . Plebeian tribune Tribune of the plebs , tribune of the people or plebeian tribune ( Latin : tribunus plebis ) was the first office of the Roman state that was open to the plebeians , and was, throughout the history of the Republic, the most important check on the power of the Roman Senate and magistrates . These tribunes had

3060-475: The enactment of statutes. Acts of an Assembly applied to all Roman citizens. The second type of gathering was the Council ( concilium ), which was a forum where a specific class of citizen met. In contrast, the Convention ( conventio , literally "coming together") was an unofficial forum for communication. Conventions were simply forums where Romans met for specific unofficial purposes, such as, for example, to hear

3145-411: The fact they were widely ignored and legislation often included provisions stating that in the lack of a curiate law, they "be magistrates in as legal a sense as those who are elected according to the strictest forms of law". By 212 BC, the lack of such a law granting imperium to the propraetor of Spain, Lucius Marcius, was no issue for the senate, which refrained from declaring the election illegal. During

3230-436: The final five centuries: four of these centuries were composed of artisans and musicians (such as trumpeters and horn blowers), while the fifth century (the proletarii ) consisted of people with little or no property. During a vote, all of the centuries of one class had to vote before the centuries of the next lower class could vote. The seven classes voted in a specific order: The first enlisted class voted first, followed by

3315-539: The following year, and the abuses of their authority became clear to the people, the decemvirate was abolished and the tribunate restored, together with the annual magistrates. Among the laws codified by the decemvirs was one forbidding intermarriage between the patricians and the plebeians; the Twelve Tables of Roman law also codified that the consulate itself was closed to the plebeians. Worse still, in 448, two patricians were co-opted to fill vacant positions in

3400-477: The granting of this authority was a means of designating a favoured member of the imperial court as the emperor's intended successor. Agrippa , Drusus the Younger , Tiberius , Titus , Trajan , and Marcus Aurelius each received the tribunician power in this way. With the regular assumption of the tribunician power by the emperors and their heirs, the ancient authority of the tribunes dwindled away. Although

3485-422: The issue to be voted upon was a legislative or judicial matter, and even then, only if the citizen received permission from the presiding magistrate. If the purpose of the ultimate vote was for an election, no speeches from private citizens were heard, and instead, the candidates for office used the Convention to campaign. During the Convention, the bill to be voted upon was read to the assembly by an officer known as

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3570-399: The late Republic, by 54, the consul Appius Claudius insisted that he held imperium, due to statute passed by Sulla granting imperium to promagistrates until their return to the city without mention of the curiate grant of imperium, and also that he held the authority to call the Assembly to elect new magistrates. However, in the late Republic, with increasing conflict between the optimates and

3655-403: The law's supporters of their impetus, the senate agreed to increase the number of tribunes to ten, provided that none of the tribunes from the preceding years should be re-elected. However, the new tribunes continued to press for the adoption of Terentillus' law, until in 454 the senate agreed to appoint three commissioners to study Greek laws and institutions, and on their return help to resolve

3740-590: The lower-ranking Praetors. Consuls and Praetors were usually elected in July, and took office in January. Two Consuls, and at least six Praetors, were elected each year for an annual term that began in January and ended in December. In contrast, two Censors were elected every five years on average. Once every five years, after the new Consuls for the year took office, they presided over the Centuriate Assembly as it elected

3825-592: The miscellaneous class (mostly unarmed adjuncts). The officer class was grouped into eighteen centuries, six of which (the sex suffragia ) were composed exclusively of Patricians . The enlisted class was grouped into 170 centuries. Most enlisted individuals (those aged seventeen to forty-six) were grouped into eighty-five centuries of "junior soldiers" ( iuniores or "young men"). The relatively limited number of enlisted soldiers who were aged forty-six to sixty were grouped into eighty-five centuries of "senior soldiers" ( seniores or "old men"). The result of this arrangement

3910-465: The office of tribune endured throughout imperial times , its independence and most of its practical functions were lost. Together with the aedileship, it remained a step in the political career of many plebeians who aspired to sit in the senate, at least until the third century. There is evidence that the tribunate continued to exist as late as the fifth century AD. Centuriate Assembly The Centuriate Assembly ( Latin : comitia centuriata ) of

3995-481: The office was further impaired when, in 59 BC, the patrician Publius Clodius Pulcher , who aspired to hold the tribunician power, had himself adopted by a plebeian youth, and renounced his patrician status, in order to be elected tribune for the following year. Although considered outrageous at the time, Clodius' scheme was allowed to proceed, and he embarked on a program of legislation designed to outlaw his political opponents and confiscate their property, while realizing

4080-425: The officer class (with the six patrician equestrian centuries voting first among them), then the second enlisted class, then the third enlisted class, then the fourth enlisted class, then the fifth enlisted class, and then finally the unarmed centuries. When a measure received a simple majority of the vote, the voting ended, and as such, many lower ranking centuries rarely if ever had a chance to actually vote. Under

4165-599: The old Servian organization to this assembly. This reform was one in a slate of constitutional reforms enacted by Sulla as a consequence of the recent Civil War between his supporters and those of the former Consul Gaius Marius . His reforms were intended to reassert aristocratic control over the constitution, and thus prevent the emergence of another Marius. Sulla died in 78 BC, and in 70 BC, the Consuls Pompey Magnus and Marcus Licinius Crassus repealed Sulla's constitutional reforms, including his restoration of

4250-629: The original Patrician clans. Since the Curiae had always been organized on the basis of the Roman family, it retained jurisdiction over clan matters even after the fall of the Roman Republic in 27 BC. Under the presidency of the Pontifex Maximus , it witnessed wills and ratified adoptions, inaugurated certain priests, and transferred citizens from Patrician class to Plebeian class (or vice versa). In 59 BC, it transferred Publius Clodius Pulcher from Patrician status to Plebeian status so that he could run for Plebeian Tribune. In 44 BC, it ratified

4335-551: The people and the ruling patricians in 495 and 494 BC brought the plebeians to the brink of revolt, and there was talk of assassinating the consuls. Instead, on the advice of Lucius Sicinius Vellutus , the plebeians seceded en masse to the Mons Sacer (the Sacred Mount), a hill outside of Rome. The senate dispatched Agrippa Menenius Lanatus , a former consul who was well liked by the plebeians, as an envoy. Menenius

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4420-423: The people returned to the city. The first tribuni plebis were Lucius Albinius Paterculus and Gaius Licinius , appointed for the year 493 BC. Soon afterward, the tribunes themselves appointed Sicinius and two others as their colleagues. The ancient sources indicate the tribunes may have originally been two or five in number. If the former, the college of tribunes was expanded to five in 470 BC. Either way,

4505-418: The people"). Once invoked, this right required one of the tribunes to assess the situation, and determine the lawfulness of the magistrate's action. Any action taken in defiance of this right was illegal on its face. In effect, this gave the tribunes of the people unprecedented power to protect individuals from the arbitrary exercise of state power, and afforded Roman citizens a degree of liberty unequalled in

4590-437: The place of consuls prevented any plebeians from assuming the highest offices of state until the year 400, when four of the six military tribunes were plebeians. Plebeian military tribunes served in 399, 396, 383, and 379, but in all other years between 444 and 376 BC, every consul or military tribune with consular powers was a patrician. Beginning in 376, Gaius Licinius Calvus Stolo and Lucius Sextius Lateranus , tribunes of

4675-446: The plebeians, and to protect them from the power of the consuls. No member of the senatorial class would be eligible for this office (in practice, this meant that only plebeians were eligible for the tribunate), and the tribunes should be sacrosanct; any person who laid hands on one of the tribunes would be outlawed, and the whole body of the plebeians entitled to kill such person without fear of penalty. The senate agreeing to these terms,

4760-439: The plebeians. Being sacrosanct, no person could harm the tribunes or interfere with their activities. To do so, or to disregard the veto of a tribune, was punishable by death, and the tribunes could order the death of persons who violated their sacrosanctity. This could be used as a protection when a tribune needed to arrest someone. This sacrosanctity also made the tribunes independent of all magistrates; no magistrate could veto

4845-429: The plebs). In the Roman system of direct democracy , primary types of gatherings were used to vote on legislative, electoral, and judicial matters. The first was the Assembly ( comitia , literally "going together" or "meeting place"). The Curiate Assembly was a comitia . Assemblies represented all citizens , even if they excluded the plebs like the Curiate Assembly did, and were used for official purposes, such as for

4930-474: The plebs, used the veto power to prevent the election of any annual magistrates. Continuing in office each year, they frustrated the patricians, who, despite electing patrician military tribunes from 371 to 367, finally conceded the consulship, agreeing to the Licinian Rogations . Under this law, military tribunes with consular power were abolished, and one of the consuls elected each year was to be

5015-503: The power to convene and preside over the Concilium Plebis (people's assembly); to summon the senate; to propose legislation; and to intervene on behalf of plebeians in legal matters; but the most significant power was to veto the actions of the consuls and other magistrates, thus protecting the interests of the plebeians as a class. The tribunes of the plebs were typically found seated on special benches set up for them in

5100-482: The presiding magistrate's power over the assembly was nearly absolute. The only check on that power came in the form of vetoes handed down by other magistrates. Any decision made by a presiding magistrate could be vetoed by a tribune of the plebs , or by a higher-ranked magistrate (for example, a consul could veto a praetor). In the Roman system of direct democracy , two primary types of assembly were used to vote on legislative, electoral, and judicial matters. The first

5185-432: The process was not complete by nightfall, the electors were dismissed without having reached a decision, and the process had to begin again the next day. The presiding magistrate sat on a special chair (the " curule chair "), wore a purple-bordered toga , and was accompanied by bodyguards called lictors . Each lictor carried the symbol of state power, the fasces , which was a bundle of white birch rods, tied together with

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5270-538: The redesign. Now, majorities usually could not be reached until the third class of enlisted centuries had begun voting. Since the lowest ranking century in the Centuriate Assembly, the fifth unarmed century (the proletarii ), was always the last century to vote, it never had any real influence on elections, and as such, it was so poorly regarded that it was all but ignored during the Census. During his dictatorship from 82 BC until 80 BC, Lucius Cornelius Sulla restored

5355-645: The republic, many of the political powers of the Curiate Assembly were transferred to the Centuriate Assembly and the Tribal Assembly . This included the transfer of the election of tribunes to the Tribal Assembly by the Lex Publilia in 471 BC. While it then fell into disuse, it did retain some theoretical powers, most importantly, the power to ratify elections of the top-ranking Roman Magistrates (consuls and praetors ) by passing

5440-409: The results of a Census. Since the Romans used a form of direct democracy, citizens, and not elected representatives, voted before each assembly. As such, the citizen-electors had no power, other than the power to cast a vote. Each assembly was presided over by a single Roman Magistrate, and as such, it was the presiding magistrate who made all decisions on matters of procedure and legality. Ultimately,

5525-400: The senate attempted to block his agrarian reforms by imposing the veto of another tribune. Tribunes also possessed the authority to enforce the right of provocatio ad populum , a precursor of the modern right of habeas corpus . This entitled a citizen to appeal the actions of a magistrate by shouting appello tribunos! ("I call upon the tribunes") or provoco ad populum! ("I appeal to

5610-486: The senate formally recognized the plebiscita as laws with binding force. In 149 BC, men elected to the tribunate automatically entered the Senate. However, in 81 BC, the dictator Sulla , who considered the tribunate a threat to his power, deprived the tribunes of their powers to initiate legislation, and to veto acts of the senate. He also prohibited former tribunes from holding any other office, effectively preventing

5695-545: The status of the investigation. After the investigation was complete, a three market-day interval had to elapse before a final vote could be taken with respect to conviction or acquittal. Only one assembly could operate at any given point in time, and any session already underway could be dissolved if a magistrate "called away" ( avocare ) the electors. In addition to the presiding magistrate, several additional magistrates were often present to act as assistants. They were available to help resolve procedural disputes, and to provide

5780-543: The status of the investigation. After the investigation was complete, a three market-day interval had to elapse before a final vote could be taken with respect to conviction or acquittal. Only one assembly could operate at any given point in time, and any session already underway could be dissolved if a magistrate "called away" ( avocare ) the electors. In addition to the presiding magistrate, several additional magistrates were often present to act as assistants. They were available to help resolve procedural disputes, and to provide

5865-420: The strife between the orders. On the return of the envoys, the senate and the tribunes agreed to the appointment of a committee of ten men, known as the decemviri , or decemvirs, to serve for one year in place of the annual magistrates, and codify Roman law. The tribunate itself was suspended during this time. But when a second college of decemvirs appointed for the year 450 illegally continued their office into

5950-422: The tribunate, although they proved to be of moderate views, and their year of office was peaceful. To prevent future attempts by the patricians to influence the selection of tribunes, Lucius Trebonius Asper promulgated a law forbidding the tribunes to co-opt their colleagues, and requiring their election to continue until all of the seats were filled. But relations between the orders deteriorated, until in 445,

6035-416: The tribune Gaius Terentillius Arsa alleged that the consular government had become even more oppressive than the monarchy that it had replaced. He urged the passage of a law appointing five commissioners to define and limit the powers of the consuls. By threat of war and plague, the issue was postponed for five contentious years, with the same college of tribunes elected each year. In 457, hoping to deprive

6120-504: The tribunes, led by Gaius Canuleius , were able to push through a law permitting the intermarriage of patricians and plebeians, and allowing one of the consuls to be a plebeian. Rather than permit the election of a plebeian consul, the senate resolved upon the election of military tribunes with consular power , who might be elected from either order. Initially this compromise satisfied the plebeians, but in practice only patricians were elected. The regular election of military tribunes in

6205-413: The tribunes; he held the tribunician power until his death in 44. In 23 BC, the senate bestowed the tribunician power on Caesar's nephew, Octavian , now styled Augustus . From this point, the tribunicia potestas became a pre-requisite for the emperors, most of whom received it from the senate upon claiming the throne, though some had already received this power during the reigns of their predecessors;

6290-480: The two Censors. The Centuriate Assembly was supposedly founded by the legendary Roman King Servius Tullius , less than a century before the founding of the Roman Republic in 509 BC. As such, the original design of the Centuriate Assembly was known as the " Servian organization ". Under this organization, the assembly was supposedly designed to mirror the Roman army during the time of the Roman Kingdom , with

6375-443: The use of the tribunate as a stepping stone to higher office. Although the tribunes retained the power to intercede on behalf of individual citizens, most of their authority was lost under Sulla's reforms. Former tribunes were once again admitted to the annual magistracies beginning in 75 BC, and the tribunician authority was fully restored by the consuls Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus and Marcus Licinius Crassus in 70. The dignity of

6460-401: The votes were watched by specific officers (the custodes ), who then counted the ballots, and reported the results to the presiding magistrate. The majority of votes in any Curia decided how that Curia voted. If the process was not complete by nightfall, the electors were dismissed without having reached a decision, and the process had to begin again the next day. Shortly after the founding of

6545-480: The wealthy soldiers were also divided into more centuries in the Centuriate Assembly. Thus, the wealthy soldiers, who were fewer in number and had more to lose, had a greater overall influence. The 193 centuries in the assembly under the Servian Organization were each divided into one of three different grades: the officer class (the cavalry or equites ), the enlisted class (infantry or pedites ) and

6630-469: The will of Julius Caesar , and with it Caesar's adoption of his nephew Gaius Octavian (the future Roman Emperor Augustus ) as his son and heir. With the rise of the empire, the sanctioning powers of the Curiate assembly fell into disuse, as the power to grant imperium , along with the vast majority of the other powers of the Curiate assembly, were transferred into the hands of the Senate or delegated to

6715-454: Was assigned to one of the five property classes. Therefore, each Tribe had two centuries (one of older soldiers and one of younger soldiers) allocated to each of the five property classes. In addition, the property requirements for each of the five classes were probably raised. In total, this resulted in 350 centuries of enlisted soldiers. The same eighteen centuries of officers, and the same five centuries of unarmed soldiers, were also included in

6800-452: Was conducted by the presiding magistrate the night before any meeting. On several known occasions, presiding magistrates used the claim of unfavorable omens as an excuse to suspend a session that was not going the way they wanted. In 162, the presiding magistrate, Tiberius Sempronius Gracchus , even cancelled the elections of the consuls Publius Cornelius Scipio Nasica Corculum and Gaius Marcius Figulus because he found he had not conducted

6885-455: Was conducted by the presiding magistrate the night before any meeting. On several known occasions, presiding magistrates used the claim of unfavorable omens as an excuse to suspend a session that was not going the way they wanted. On the day of the vote, the electors first assembled into their Conventions for debate and campaigning. In the Conventions, the electors were not sorted into their Curiae. Speeches from private citizens were only heard if

6970-438: Was subject to obstruction by Roman magistrates (especially plebeian tribunes ) and unfavorable omens (as were the other assemblies). By the time of the middle and late Republic, there was considerable debate about the need for confirmation in imperium by the Curiate assembly. For example, praetors were not permitted to undertake judicial business without confirmation in the imperium nor could consuls command troops or call

7055-464: Was that the votes of the older soldiers carried more weight than did the votes of the numerically greater younger soldiers. According to Cicero , the Consul of 63 BC, this design was intentional so that the decisions of the assembly were more in line with the will of the more experienced soldiers who arguably had more to lose. The 170 centuries of enlisted soldiers were divided into five classes, each with

7140-461: Was the committee ( comitia , literally "going together" or "meeting place"). The Centuriate Assembly was a Committee. Committees were assemblies of all citizens , and were used for official purposes, such as for the enactment of laws. Acts of a Committee applied to all of the members of that Committee. The second type of assembly was the council ( concilium ), which was a forum where specific groups of citizens met for official purposes. In contrast,

7225-446: Was well received, and told the fable of the belly and the limbs, likening the people to the limbs who chose not to support the belly, and thus starved themselves; just as the belly and the limbs, the city, he explained, could not survive without both the patricians and plebeians working in concert. The plebeians agreed to negotiate for their return to the city; and their condition was that special tribunes should be appointed to represent

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