After Tarquinius Superbus was thrown out of Rome in 509 BC, a king was not welcome. Now the Romans had to create a new form of government. That form of government is known as a republic, which means "public good." In a republic, people elect representatives to make decisions for them. The United States of America has a republic.
The ancient Roman republic had three branches of government. In the beginning, the legislative branch was the Senate, a group made up of 300 citizens from Rome's patrician class, the oldest and wealthiest families of Rome. It was the patricians, tired of obeying the king, who revolted and threw out Tarquinius Superbus. The Senate was the most powerful branch of the Roman republic, and senators held the position for life. The executive branch was made up of two consuls, elected yearly. These two consuls had almost kingly powers, and each could veto, or disapprove of the other's decision. It is quite possible that the idea of two consuls came from Sparta with its two kings. Praetors were part of the judicial branch, they were elected yearly by the people of Rome, and acted as judges.
In the beginning of the Roman republic, all officials came from the patrician, or wealthy class, this led to the plebeians, Rome's poor and middle class feeling left out. Who would care for the concerns of the plebeians? In 494 BC, an event occurred known as the "Struggle of the Orders." Most of the Roman army was made up of soldiers who came from the lower, plebeian class. The plebeians complained that they were serving as soldiers, but had very little say in the government. The plebeians refused to fight, and left to city to start their own settlement. It didn't take the patricians, Rome's wealthy, too long realize they needed the plebeians. Reforms in government followed. Tribunes were added to the legislative branch of government. Tribunes were elected yearly, and represented the concerns of the plebeians. In 451 BC, the plebeians pressured the senate to write down the laws of Rome, the result was the Twelve Tables, twelve stone tablets with written laws that were posted in the forum, or marketplace of Rome for all to see. Before the Twelve Tables, the patricians could change the laws at any time to their benefit. And then in 376 BC, the Licinian Law said that one consul must be elected from the plebeian class.
One of the disadvantages of a republic is that many officials are involved in decision-making. This can be troublesome when, at times, swift action is necessary. The Romans were prepared for this by granting one man total power in Rome in a time of crisis, called a dictator. The term of dictator was six-months. The dictator could make decisions on his own, without consulting the Senate. One early dictator of Rome was Cincinnatus. Cincinnatus was asked to be dictator in 458 BC, when Rome had an enemy army approaching. Cincinnatus was once a consul, but had retired to his farm in the country. Cincinnatus accepted the role of dictator, he led an army and defeated the foe, then he stepped down as dictator after only sixteen days. Cincinnatus could have gone the whole term of six months, which would have brought him great power, but Cincinnatus felt that the crisis was over, and he preferred to go back to his farming. Not all dictators of Rome would be as humble as Cincinnatus.
The Gauls, as the Romans called them, where a group of people living in what is now modern-day France. The Gauls, or Celts, were considered barbarians by the Romans because the Gauls lived in villages rather than building cities, and could not read or write. However, the Gauls were excellent craftsmen and courageous warriors. The Romans feared the Gauls. For whatever reason, in 450 BC, some of the Gauls moved across the Alps from their homeland and into Central Italy. As the Gauls moved through Etruria, the land of the Etruscans, many Etruscan cities were destroyed. In 386 BC, the Gauls attacked the city of Rome. The Romans were unable to defeat the Gauls in battle and the Gauls advanced on the city. Many Romans fled, but the senators and a few soldiers stayed on top of one of the hills of Rome. The Gauls then destroyed most of the city. The Gauls left Rome and settled permanently in the northern part of Italy, in an area called the Po River Valley. The Romans have two stories about the invasion of Rome by the Gauls. In one, the sacred geese living in a temple on top of the Capitaline Hill alerted the Romans on the hilltop about the advancing Gauls trying to sneak up the hill. In the second stories, Camillus, a Roman who had been asked to leave the city, returned with an army and drove out the Gauls. We are not sure if these stories are true, but one thing is for sure, the Romans were deeply affected by the invasion of the Gauls, and vowed that Rome would never be invaded again.
