ROME. 



the Sabines from the Romans, who became the mod powerful 

 of their enemies. Tullius reigned thirty-three years. 



Ancus Martius, the fourth king of Rome, grandfon to 

 Numa, inherited his virtues, to which he joined the talents 

 of a warrior. He greatly increafed the population of 

 Rome, by naturalizing the conquered Itates ; and he built 

 the port of Oftia, at the mouth of the Tiber. His reign con- 

 tinued twenty-four years. See AncUS. 



The fifth king of Rome, Tarquinius Prifcits, a citizen 

 of Corinth, noted for his great liberality and vad wealth, 

 was vi&orious in his wars, and he adorned the city with 

 works of utility and magnificence. Such were the Cincus, 

 the Capitol, and the Cloac;e, thofe immenfe common 

 fewers which led to the belief that Rome had bgpn built on 

 the ruins of an ancient city of much greater magnitude. 

 This king was affaflinated in the 38th year of his reign ; and 

 was fuccecded by 



Servius Tullius, his fon-in-law, who very much improved 

 the city with ufeful edifices, and by extending its bound- 

 aries. He alfo made fome new arrangements in the divifion 

 of the citizens ; of which we (hall have occafion to fay 

 more under the biographical article Servk's Tullius. This 

 king was adaH'mated, after a reign of forty-four years, by 

 his own daughter Tullia, who had married Tarquinius, the 

 grandfon of Prifcus, and who thus paved the way for her 

 huuSand to afcend the vacant throne. 



The government of this Tarquin was fyflematieally 

 tyrannical, and from his haughtinefs he obtained the furname 

 of Proud. By his ill conduct he at length roufed the ven- 

 geance of the people againll him, and they not only ex- 

 pelled the tyrant, but at one blow aboliflied the regal govern- 

 ment at Rome. See Takqi;init;n. 



The regal form of government fubfifted 244 years, during 

 which there were only feven kings, of whom two died 

 violent deaths, and one was depofed. Thefe circumdances 

 throw a confiderablc degree of doubt on the authenticity of 

 the Roman hiilory, as the reigns of monarchs who die in 

 the common courfe of nature cannot be averaged fo high 

 as thirty years, whereas, notwithltutiding the violent deaths 

 and deposition of three of the kings, the average length of 

 their reigns is more than thirty-four years each. Befides, it 

 is admitted that for the firft five centuries after the building of 

 Rome, there were no hidorians, and, according to Livy, 

 almoll all the ancient records were dedroyed when Rome 

 was taken by the Gauls. 



At the period of the abolition of the regal government, 

 the territory of the Romans was extremely limited. The 

 chief life which they made of their victories was to natu- 

 ralize the inhabitants of fome of the conquered dates, and 

 fo increafe their population ; thus their itrength being always 

 fuperior to their enterprises', they laid a folid foundation of 

 their empiri . 



Confular Slate of Rome. — When the regal government was 

 aboliflied, it was agreed to commit the fupreme authority 

 to two magiftrates, who fliould be annually elected by the 

 people from the Patrician order. To thefe officers they 

 gave the title of confuls, a name, as it has been faid, that 

 was intended to defignate the counfellors of the republic, 

 rather than its fovcreigns, though, iq point of fact, their 

 authority differed fcarcely in any thmg from that of kin . 

 They had the fupreme administration 01 juftice, the difpofal 

 of the public money, the power ol convoking the fenate 

 and alfembling the people, ratlin ' the armies, and the rij lit 

 of making peace and war. Their authority was, how- 

 ever, limited to a year. The full conful were Brutus and 

 Collatinus, the hufband of that Lucretia whole death had 

 occaiioncd the revolution which deilroyed the regal power. 



Tarquin was, at this time, in Etruria, where he got two of 

 the mod powerful cities, Veii and Tarquinii, to efpoufe his 

 caufe. He had alfo numerous and powerful partizans at 

 Rome, and a plot was contrived to open the gates to admit 

 him. The confpiracy was difcovered, and Brutus had the 

 mortification to find his two fons in the number of con- 

 fpirators. He felt it his duty to forget the- affedion of 

 the parent, and to confider their cafes as conful ; he ac- 

 cordingly condemned them to be beheaded in his prefence. 

 This aft of fevere judice druck fuch terror into the Romans, 

 that fcarcely any perfon ventured to oppofe the conful ; and 

 the efforts that were made to bring back monarchy, proved 

 unfuccefsful. To fecure themfelves againd the aflaults of 

 every invader, the Romans formed an alliance with the 

 Carthaginians, which fubfided 250 years. All precau- 

 tions, however, that were ufed for the prcfervation of the 

 tranquillity of the date, could not guard the people againd 

 the oppreflion of the nobility. The former foon found that 

 they had only changed their maiters, and embraced the 

 mere fhadow of liberty. They made heavy complaints ; 

 thefe were followed by ads of rebellion, which occurred 

 about the year B.C. 49S. Peace was redored by the crea- 

 tion of a dictator, a magidrate who was elected for the 

 period of fix months, and who was inverted with abfolute 

 and unlimited authority. Lartius, nominated to this office, 

 armed the lictors with axes, fummoned the whole people to 

 the public ademblies, and calling over the names, enrolled 

 all fuch as he judged mod fit for the fervice of his country, 

 inflicting, without hefitation, capital punifhment upon thofe 

 who dared to refill the order. 



The fpirit of the people, though checked for a time, was 

 not fubdued ; they again complained, remondrated, and even 

 rebelled ; and Rome, for feme years, was the fcenc of anarchy 

 and fedition. At length the fenate, alarmed by the idea of 

 a general revolt, abated their former rigour, in fome mca- 

 fure eafed the burdens of the people, and fecured their 

 future intereds by the creation of five new magillrates, 

 called tribunes, who were to be elected annually by the 

 people, whofe perfons were to be facred, whole bulincfs it 

 was to defend the oppreded, to pardon odences, to arraign 

 the enemies of the people ; and, when they judged it ne- 

 ceifary, to dop, by their fiat, the whole machine of govern- 

 ment. 



The tribunes demanded, and obtained, two other ma- 

 giftrates to aflid them, who were named Edilea, from t he- 

 charge of the public buildings of the city being committed 

 to them. From this era, which was about 493 years before 

 the birth of Chritt, the commencement of the popular con- 

 llitution of the Roman republic may be dated. 



The power of the tribunes foon rofe to an unexpected 

 height, and proved the fource of perpetual diflentions in 

 Rome. The nobles and patricians had dill in view an 

 aridocratical form of government, while the tribunes aimed 

 at nothing (hort of a complete democracy, ho[Hng thereby 

 to increafe their own power and influence. The tribunes 

 prevailed, and Coriolanus, a patrician of inflexible virtue, 

 was, in the year 491 B.C., banifhed. Encouraged by the 

 fuccefs of the tribunes, Spurius Qaffius Vifeellinus, an .1111- 

 bitious patrician, afpired to the fupreme power. To ac- 

 complifh his purpofc, he flattered the people by propoling 

 the Agrarian law, which caviled tip moil violent commo- 

 tions in the date, llisamlnli. the end, pimilhed 

 with death, and from this time perpetual contentions and 

 difcords fubfided between the tribunes ,uul patricians. The 

 number of the former was increafed to ten, and thi 1 1 

 procured the right of electing them in an all. n u .J 

 by the tribes. From this period the fupreme authority in 



the 



