HISTORY OF ROME. 





FROM THE ABOLITION OF THE DECF.MVIRATE 

 TO THE DEFEAT OF THE SAMNITES, AND THE 

 SUBJUGATION OF ALL THE 'ITALIANS' (449- 

 265 B.C.). 



I. Internal History. The leading political 

 features of this period are the equalisation 

 of the two orders, and the growth of the 

 new aristocracy of capitalists. After the aboli- 

 tion of the decemvirate, it would seem judg- 

 ing from the course of events that the whole 

 of the plebeian aristocracy, senators and capi- 

 talists (from motives of selfish aggrandisement), 

 combined with the 'masses' of their order to 

 make a series of grand attacks on the privileges 

 of the old Roman noblesse. The struggle lasted 

 for i oo years; and ended, as it could only end, 

 by the removal of all the social and political dis- 

 abilities under which the plebeians had laboured 



though the stratagems and artifices to which 

 the old aristocracy had recourse, proved the 

 reluctance with which they succumbed to fate. 

 First in 445 B.C. only four years after the fall 

 of the decemvirs was carried, the Lex Camileia, 

 by which it was enacted that marriage between a 

 patrician and plebeian should be legally valid. 

 At the same time, a compromise was effected 

 with respect to the consulship. Instead of two 

 patrician consuls, it was agreed that the supreme 

 power should be intrusted to new officers termed 

 ' Military Tribunes with Consular Power,' who 

 might be chosen equally from the patricians or 

 plebeians. Ten years later (435 B.C.), the patri- 

 cians tried to render the new office of less con- 

 sequence by the transference of several of the 

 functions hitherto exercised by consuls to two 

 special patrician officers named Censors. In 

 421 B.C. the quasstorship was thrown open to the 

 plebeians; in 368 B.C. the mastership of the 

 horse; in 356 B.C. the dictatorship; in 351 B.C. 

 the censorship; in 337 B.C. the prastorship; and 

 in 300 B.C. the pontifical and augurial colleges. 

 These victories were not all won without the 

 shedding of blood. How great was the exaspera- 

 tion of the patricians may be estimated from the 

 story of Spurius Maelius, the rich plebeian, who 

 was murdered simply because in a season of 

 famine he sold corn at a very low price to the 

 poor. 



The only effect, it is to be observed, of these 

 political changes was to increase the power of the 

 rich plebeians ; and consequently, the social dis- 

 tress continued to shew itself as before. Efforts 

 were repeatedly made by individuals to remedy the 

 evil, but without success. Such were the attempts 

 of the tribunes Spurius Maecilius and Spurius 

 Metilius (417 B.C.) to revive the agrarian law of 

 Spurius Cassius; and of the noble and patriotic 

 patrician, Marcus Manlius, who, though he had 

 saved the Capitol during the terrible Gallic siege, 

 was hurled from the Tarpeian Rock (384 B.C.), on 

 the customary charge, as groundless in his case as 

 it was base, of aspiring to the monarchy ; but at 

 length (367 B.C.), after a furious struggle of eleven 

 years, the famous Licinian Rogations were carried, 

 by means of which it was hoped that an end had 

 been put to the disastrous dissensions of the 

 orders. 



That these laws operated beneficially on the 

 class in whose interest they were passed, namely, 



the plebeian-farmers or middle-class of the Roman 

 state, is unquestionable. The 'general coffers' 

 were also filled by the revenue drawn directly 

 or indirectly from the subjugated lands, so that 

 a tributum (a forced loan) seldom required to 

 be enforced at home, and the numerous colonies 

 which Rome now began- to send forth to secure 

 her new acquisitions, consisted entirely of the 

 poorer plebeians, who always received a por- 

 tion of the land in the district where they were 

 settled. The long struggle between the two 

 orders was thus virtually at an end ; but the date 

 usually assigned to the termination of the strife is 

 286 B.C. when the Lex Hortensia was passed 

 which confirmed the Publilian Laws of 339 B.C. 

 and definitely gave to the Plebiscita passed at the 

 Comitia of the Tribes, the full power of laws 

 binding on the whole nation. Gradually, how- 

 ever, by steps which we have not room to trace, 

 the importance of the popular assemblies declined, 

 and that of the senate rose. The senate, it will 

 be remembered, originally possessed no adminis- 

 trative power at all, but now it commenced a 

 series of vast usurpations, of which the best 

 defence is that they excited no opposition among 

 the community. Every matter of general import- 

 ance war, peace, alliances, the founding of 

 colonies, the assignation of lands, building, the 

 whole system of finance came under its super- 

 vision and authority. Nor, on the whole, did it 

 prove itself the unworthy arbiter of a nation's 

 destinies. It was not a self-elected oligarchy, but 

 was rather composed of the ablest representatives 

 of both orders. 



2. External History. We have said that the 

 military successes of Rome during this period ot 

 internal strife were great ; but we can only briefly 

 allude to them. The irruption of the Gauls into 

 sub-Apennine Italy (391 B.C.), though accom- 

 panied by frightful devastations, was barren of 

 results, and did not materially affect the progress 

 of Roman conquest. No doubt the battle on the 

 Allia, and the capture and burning of Rome (390 

 B.C.), were great disasters, but the injury was 

 temporary. The vigilance of Manlius saved the 

 Capitol, and the heroism of Camillus revived the 

 courage and spirit of the citizens. Again and 

 again in the course of the 4th c. B.C. the Gallic 

 hordes repeated their incursions into Central 

 Italy, but never again returned victorious. In 

 367 B.C. Camillus defeated them at Alba ; in 360 

 B.C. they were routed at the Colline Gate ; in 358 

 B.C. by the dictator, G. Sulpicius Peticus ; and in 

 350 B.C. by Lucius Furius Camillus. Meanwhile, 

 aided by their allies, the Latins and the Herni- 

 cans, the Romans carried on the long and des- 

 perate struggle with the yEquians, Volscians, and 

 Etruscans. Finally, but not till after they had 

 sustained repeated defeats, the Romans tri- 

 umphed. The causes that led to the decline of 

 the Etruscan power, which, at the close of the 

 regal period in Rome, and during the infancy of 

 the republic, had been enormous, both by sea and 

 land, cannot be considered at length here. Suf- 

 fice it to say, that the terrible irruption of the 

 Gallic barbarians into Etruria, and the victories of 

 the Samnites in Campania, where also the Etrus- 

 cans- had established themselves, as well as the 

 miserable jealousies of the different cities, com- 

 bined to paralyse the power of this people, and 

 paved the way for the final triumph of Rome. 



