Founding and geography
The mythical founder of Rome, who killed his brother to become the first king.
Who is Romulus?
The wealthy, elite landowning class who held most of the political power in the early Republic.
Who were the Patricians?
100: The two chief executives of the Republic, elected each year to lead the government and army.
What was the Senate?
The official the plebeians gained the right to elect, who could veto laws unfair to them.
What is the Tribune of the Plebs?
The core idea of the Roman Republic where citizens elect leaders to make decisions for them, just like in Canada.
What is a Representative Democracy?
This river provided Rome with fresh water and a vital route for trade.
What is the Tiber River?
The commoners—farmers, artisans, and soldiers—who made up the majority of Rome's population.
Who were the Plebeians (or Plebs)?
The power to reject a decision or proposal, used by consuls against each other and by Tribunes for the plebs.
what is veto?
Rome's first written code of law, created so the laws couldn't be secretly changed by patrician judges.
What were the Twelve Tables?
The principle, established by the Twelve Tables, that all citizens must follow the same public rules.
What is equality under the law?
Italy is a classic example of this geographical feature, which is land almost entirely surrounded by water.
What is a peninsula?
A legal member of a state with certain rights and responsibilities, a status both Patricians and Plebeians held
What is a citizen
Unlike consuls, Senators held their positions for this length of time.
What is a life term?
These two brothers were murdered for proposing land reforms to help the poor.
Who were the Gracchus Brothers (Tiberius and Gaius)?
A system where different parts of the government have powers that can limit the others, like the consuls' veto.
what is checks and balances? What's division of powers? Three branches
According to their founding myth, the twins Romulus and Remus were sons of this Roman god of war.
Who is the god of war Mars?
This group had no rights, were not considered citizens, and formed a major part of the Roman labor force.
Who were the enslaved people (slaves)?
This was the Romans' brilliant idea to prevent a tyrant: not giving all power to one person, but doing this instead.
What is splitting/sharing the power between different groups (or checks and balances)?
The death of the Gracchus brothers revealed this deep flaw in the Republic: that powerful men could ignore the rules and use this instead of debate. This is what was used to reject their laws
What is violence?
The concept that citizens have a responsibility to participate in their government.
What is civic duty?
The seven of these, on which Rome was built, made the city much easier to defend from attacks.
What are hills (The Seven Hills)?
The main reason the Plebeians went on strike was that they fought in the army and grew the food, but lacked this.
What is political power (or a say in the government)?
The plebeians' major protest tactic, where they marched out of the city to demand rights.
What was the First Secession of the Plebs?
The plebeians' major protest tactic, where they marched out of the city to demand rights.
What is a the first Secession of the Plebs?
The central public square where the Twelve Tables were displayed, used for government business and meetings.
What is the forum?