The Republic in Crisis

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The Republic in Crisis
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I. After the Punic Wars

• During the Punic War the Roman Armies also
  engaged in war to the east.

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I. After the Punic Wars

• Between 230-210 BCE Rome brought the entire
  eastern Adriatic coast under its rule.

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I. After the Punic Wars

• They also defeated King Phillip V of Macedonia.
• They also had control of Asia Minor, Syria and
  Egypt.

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I. After the Punic Wars

• By 130 BCE the Romans had complete control of the
  Mediterranean from Spain to Asia Minor.

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I. After the Punic Wars

• The Romans used the word mare nostrum to describe
  the Mediterranean.
• Mare nostrum means our sea.

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I. After the Punic Wars

• Now that Rome was a larger empire it created
  considerable difficulties.

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I. After the Punic Wars

• Romes political structure was set up to run a
  small city-state not a large empire.
• Political problems led to social and economical
  problems.

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II. Exploiting the Provinces

• Soldiers were farmers, laborers, and merchants
  when they were not at war.

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II. Exploiting the Provinces

• As they returned from battle, they discovered the
  government had sold their property or claimed it
  as part of not paying its taxes.

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II. Exploiting the Provinces

• Rome organized its non-Italian territories into
  provinces that had to pay tribute to Rome and
  recognize its authority.

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II. Exploiting the Provinces

• The Senate-appointed governors, called
  pro-consuls, to run the provinces.

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II. Exploiting the Provinces

• These pro-consuls would often accept bribes and
  even steal from money from the provinces as they
  collected taxes.

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II. Exploiting the Provinces

• This lead to extortion, which would become an
  accepted way for the rich to become richer.

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II. Exploiting the Provinces

• Soon the provinces rebelled and forced Rome to
  send troops and spend money to keep these
  provinces in line.

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III. Crowding the Cities

• Many farms were being bought by the aristocracy
  and slaves were brought in to do the work and
  would eventually put many farmers out of work.

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III. Crowding the Cities

• As the poor began to fill the cities they
  realized that in the city slaves were doing many
  of the jobs there as well.

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III. Crowding the Cities

• Angry and feeling hopeless, these poor began to
  look for any leader who would promise cheaper
  food and more amusements or games.

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III. Crowding the Cities

• As these things happened in Rome, a new class
  began to emerge called the equites, or knights.

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III. Crowding the Cities

• Originally these equites were wealthy enough to
  ride horses in battle but not noble enough to be
  patricians.

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III. Crowding the Cities

• The new equites saw more value in wealth than in
  nobility or character and soon most Romans
  adopted similar values.

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III. Crowding the Cities

• Once again it would be the non-wealthy, the
  plebeians, who would need change to occur in Rome.

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III. Crowding the Cities

• Not until a tribune named Tiberius Gracchus comes
  along the poor stayed poor while the rich became
  richer.