Romulus and his brother, Remus, with the she-wolf. Romulus is credited with creating the patrician class.
Thepatricians (fromLatin:patricius) were originally a group ofruling class families inancient Rome. The distinction was highly significant in theRoman Kingdom and the earlyRepublic, but its relevance waned after theConflict of the Orders (494 BC to 287 BC). By the time of the late Republic andEmpire, membership in the patriciate was of only nominal significance. The social structure of ancient Rome revolved around the distinction between the patricians and theplebeians. The status of patricians gave them more political power than the plebeians, but the relationship between the groups eventually caused theConflict of the Orders. This time period resulted in changing of the social structure of ancient Rome.
According toLivy, the first hundred men appointed senators byRomulus were referred to as "fathers" (Latinpatres), and the descendants of those men became the patrician class. This account is also described byCicero.[1] The appointment of these one hundred men into theSenate gave them a noble status.[1] That status is what separated the patricians from the plebeians. Some accounts detail that the one hundred men were chosen because of their wisdom.[1] This would coincide with the idea that ancient Rome was founded on a merit-based ideal.[1] According to other opinions, the patricians (patricii) were those who could point to fathers, i.e., those who were members of the clans (gentes) whose members originally comprised the whole citizen body.[2]
Other noble families that came to Rome during the time of the kings were also admitted to the patriciate, including several who emigrated fromAlba Longa, after that city was destroyed byTullus Hostilius. The last-known instance of a gens being admitted to the patriciate prior to the first century BC was when theClaudii were added to the ranks of the patricians after coming to Rome in 504 BC, five years after the establishment of the Republic.[3][4][5][6]
The criteria applied by Romulus to choose certain men for this class remain contested by academics and historians, but the importance of the patrician/plebeian distinction is accounted by all as paramount to ancient Roman society. The distinction between the noble class, the patricians, and the Roman populace, the plebeians, existed from the beginning of ancient Rome.[7] This distinction became increasingly important in the society until the period of the late republic.
The patricians were given noble status when named to the Senate, giving them wider political influence than the plebeians, at least in the times of the early Republic.[8] The patricians in ancient Rome were of the same status as aristocrats inGreek society.[9] Being of the noble class meant that patricians were able to participate in government and politics, while the plebeians could not. This privilege was important in ancient Roman history and eventually caused a large divide between the two classes.
During the middle and late Republic, as this influence gradually eroded, plebeians were granted equal rights in most areas, and even greater in some. For example, only plebeians could serve as thetribune of the plebs. There were quotas for official offices. One of the two consulships was reserved for plebeians. Although being a patrician remained prestigious, it was of minimal practical importance. With the exception of some religious offices which were devoid of political power, plebeians were able to stand for all of the offices that were open to patricians. Plebeians of thesenatorial class were no less wealthy than patricians at the height of the republic. Originally patrician,Publius Clodius Pulcher willingly arranged to be adopted by a plebeian family in order to qualify to be appointed as the tribune of the plebs.
Patricians historically had more privileges and rights than plebeians. This status difference was marked at the beginning of theRepublic: patricians were better represented in theRoman assemblies, and only patricians could hold high political offices, such asdictator,consul, andcensor, and all priesthoods (such aspontifex maximus) were closed to non-patricians. There was a belief that patricians communicated better with theRoman gods, so they alone could perform the sacred rites and take theauspices.
Additionally, not only were the patricians of higher status in political offices but they also had the best land in ancient Rome.[10] Having the best land allowed the patrician class to have more opportunities, such as being able to produce better agriculture. This view had political consequences, since in the beginning of the year or before a military campaign, Roman magistrates used to consult the gods. Livy reports that the first admission of plebeians into a priestly college happened in 300 BC with the passage of theLex Ogulnia when theCollege of Augurs raised their number from four to nine. After that, plebeians were accepted into the other religious colleges. By the end of the Republic, only priesthoods with limited political importance, such as theSalii, theFlamines, and theRex Sacrorum, were filled exclusively by patricians.
While it was not illegal for a plebeian to run for political office, a plebeian would not have had the backing needed to win a seat.[11] Since society was organized in this way, the patrician class was essentially in control of ancient Rome's government.[11] In Cassius' accounts of ancient Rome, he details how important and advantaged the patrician class was over the plebeian class.[12] He indicates the status difference between patricians and plebeians by detailing the specific shoes the patricians wore. Cassius states, "For the shoes worn by the patricians in the city were ornamented with laced straps and the design of the letter, to signify that they were descended from the original hundred men that had been senators."[12] It is clear through Cassius' account that these details mattered and represented the differentiation between classes.
Few plebeian names appear in lists ofRoman magistrates during the early Republic. Two laws passed during the fourth century BC began the gradual opening of magistrates to the plebeians: theLex Licinia Sextia of 367 BC, which established the right of plebeians to hold the consulship; and theGenucian Law of 342 BC, which required that at least one of the consuls be a plebeian (although this law was frequently violated for several decades).
Many of the ancient patrician gentes whose members appear in the founding legends of Rome disappeared as Rome acquired its empire, and new plebeian families rose to prominence. A number of patrician families such as the Horatii, Lucretii, Verginii and Menenii rarely appear in positions of importance during the later republic. Many old families had patrician and plebeian branches, of which the patrician lines frequently faded into obscurity, and were eclipsed by their plebeian namesakes.
The decline accelerated toward the end of the Republic, principally because of the civil wars, from theSocial War to the proscriptions of theTriumvirs, which took a heavy toll on them. As a result, several illustrious patrician houses were on the verge of extinction during the first century BC, sometimes only surviving through adoptions, such as:
The distinction between patricians andplebeians in ancient Rome was based purely on birth. Although modern writers often portray patricians as rich and powerful families who managed to secure power over the less-fortunate plebeian families, plebeians and patricians among the senatorial class were equally wealthy. As civil rights for plebeians increased during the middle and lateRoman Republic, many plebeian families had attained wealth and power while some traditionally patrician families had fallen into poverty and obscurity. However, no amount of wealth could change one's class.[13]
A marriage between a patrician and a plebeian was the only way to legally integrate the two classes. However, when theTwelve Tables were written down, the marriage between the two classes was prohibited.[14] This was repealed in 445 BC with theLex Canuleia.[15] If a marriage was to occur between a patrician and a plebeian, the children of that marriage would then be given patrician status. This law was created to prevent the classes from mixing. In ancient Rome women did not have power in the household. However, according to Mathisen, having a recognized marriage, so not illegally marrying into the other class, was important.[14] Having a legally recognized marriage ensured that the children born from the marriage were given Roman citizenship and any property they might inherit.[14]
Eventually, the plebeians became unsatisfied with being the lower class and not having the same rights and privileges as the patricians.[16] This time in Roman history is called theConflict of the Orders, which took place between 500 and 287 BC.[16] Due to the patricians having the political status, the plebeian class had no representation in the government to advocate for their interests.[16] By not having anyone advocating for their interests, this also meant that the plebeians did not always know the laws by which they had to abide.[16] Since the patricians were of high social status, they did not want to lose this status; they were not in agreement with changing the structure of society by giving plebeians more status.[16] Eventually, the plebeian class created their own governing body, theCouncil of the Plebs.[16]
Another advancement that came from the Conflict of the Orders was the Twelve Tables. At this time in ancient Rome, the monarchy had been overthrown.[17] The plebeians wanted to know the laws, which resulted in the written form of laws: the Twelve Tables.[16] Even once these laws were written down, and the new Centuriate Assembly was created, the patrician class remained in power. The assembly separated citizens into classes, however, the top two classes,Equites and Patricians, controlled the majority of the vote.[16] This meant, that while the plebeians were able to vote, if the patrician classes voted together, they could control the vote.[16] Ancient Rome, according to Ralph Mathisen, author ofAncient Roman Civilization: History and Sources, made political reforms, such as the introduction of the Council of the Plebs and the tribunes of the plebs. These two political bodies were created to give the plebeians a voice. After the Conflict of the Orders, according to Mathisen, Plebeians were able to rise in politics and become members of the Senate, which previously had been exclusively for patricians.[16]
A series of laws diminished the distinction between the two classes, includingLex Canuleia (445 BC; which allowed the marriage—ius connubii—between patricians andplebeians),Leges Liciniae Sextiae (367 BC; which made restrictions on possession of public lands—ager publicus—and also made sure that one of the consuls was plebeian),Lex Ogulnia (300 BC; plebeians received access to priest posts), andLex Hortensia (287 BC; verdicts of plebeian assemblies—plebiscita—now bind all people). Gradually, by the late Republic, most distinctions between patricians and plebeians had faded away.[18]
Among the patricians, certain families were known as thegentes maiores, the greatest or perhaps the most noble houses. The other patrician families were called thegentes minores. Whether this distinction had any legal significance is not known, but it has been suggested that theprinceps senatus, or Speaker of the Senate, was traditionally chosen from thegentes maiores.
No list of the gentes maiores has been discovered, and even their number is unknown. It has been suggested that the Aemilii, Claudii, Cornelii, Fabii, Manlii, and Valerii were amongst them. TheDictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology suggests that the gentes maiores consisted of families that settled at Rome in the time ofRomulus, or at least before the destruction ofAlba Longa. The noble Alban families that settled in Rome in the time ofTullus Hostilius then formed the nucleus of the gentes minores. These included the Julii, Tulii, Servilii, Quinctii, Geganii, Curtii, and Cloelii.[4][22]
However,Harper's Dictionary of Classical Antiquities suggests that the Alban families were also included among the gentes maiores, and that the gentes minores consisted of the families admitted to the patriciate under theTarquins and in the early years of theRepublic. In any case, the distinction cannot have been based entirely on priority, because the Claudii did not arrive at Rome until after the expulsion of the kings.[4][19][23][24]
Patrician status still carried a degree of prestige at the time of the earlyRoman Empire, and Roman emperors routinely elevated their supporters to the patrician casteen masse. This prestige gradually declined further, and by the end of theCrisis of the Third Century patrician status, as it had been known in the Republic, ceased to have meaning in everyday life. The emperorConstantine the Great (r. 306–337) reintroduced the term as the empire's seniorhonorific title, not tied to any specific administrative position, and from the first limited to a very small number of holders.[25][26] The historianZosimus states that in Constantine's time, the holders of the title ranked even above thepraetorian prefects.[27]
The eastern emperorZeno (r. 474–491) granted it toOdoacer to legitimize the latter's rule in Italy after his overthrow of the rebelliousmagister militumOrestes and his sonRomulus Augustulus in 476. In the Eastern Empire,Theodosius II (r. 408–450) barredeunuchs from holding it, although this restriction had been overturned by the sixth century. UnderJustinian I (r. 527–565), the title proliferated and was consequently somewhat devalued, as the emperor opened it to all those aboveillustris rank, i.e. the majority of theSenate.[28]
In the eighth century, in theEastern Roman Empire, the title was further lowered in the court order of precedence, coming after themagistros and theanthypatos. However it remained one of the highest in the imperial hierarchy until the eleventh century, being awarded to the most importantstrategoi (provincial governors and generals, allies) of the Empire.[25] In the court hierarchy, the eunuchpatrikioi enjoyed higher precedence, coming before even theanthypatoi-Latn.[29] The title was also granted to important allied foreign rulers, as the earlyBulgarian rulerKubrat, whose ring A was inscribed in Greek XOBPATOY and ring C was inscribed XOBPATOY ПATPIKIOY,[30] indicating the dignity ofPatrikios (Patrician) that he had achieved in the Byzantine world.[31]
According to the late ninth-centuryKletorologion, the insignia of the dignity wereivory inscribed tablets.[32] During the eleventh century, the dignity ofpatrikios followed the fate of other titles: extensively awarded, it lost in status, and disappeared during theKomnenian period in the early twelfth century.[25] The title ofprōtopatrikios (πρωτοπατρίκιος, "first patrician") is also evidenced in the East from 367 to 711, possibly referring to the senior-most holder of the office and leader of the patrician order (taxis).[25][33] The feminine variantpatrikia (πατρικία) denoted the spouses ofpatrikioi; it is not to be confused with the title ofzostē patrikia ("girdedpatrikia"), which was a unique dignity conferred on the ladies-in-waiting of the empress.[25]
^Botsford, George Willis (1906). "The Social Composition of the Primitive Roman Populus".Political Science Quarterly.21 (3):498–526.doi:10.2307/2140599.ISSN0032-3195.JSTOR2140599.
^Botsford, George Willis (1906). "The Social Composition of the Primitive Roman Populus".Political Science Quarterly.21 (3):498–526.doi:10.2307/2140599.ISSN0032-3195.JSTOR2140599.
^Mathisen, Ralph W. (2019).Ancient Roman civilization : history and sources, 753 BCE to 640 CE. Oxford University Press.ISBN978-0-19-084960-3.OCLC1137838429.
^Mathisen, Ralph W. (2019).Ancient Roman civilization: history and sources, 753 BCE to 640 CE. Oxford University Press.ISBN978-0-19-084960-3.OCLC1137838429.
^abMathisen, Ralph W. (2019).Ancient Roman civilization: history and sources, 753 BCE to 640 CE. Oxford University Press.ISBN978-0-19-084960-3.OCLC1137838429.
^Mathisen, Ralph W. (2019).Ancient Roman civilization : history and sources, 753 BCE to 640 CE. Oxford University Press.ISBN978-0-19-084960-3.OCLC1137838429.
^abcMathisen, Ralph W. (2019).Ancient Roman civilization : history and sources, 753 BCE to 640 CE. Oxford University Press.ISBN978-0-19-084960-3.OCLC1137838429.
^Steinberg, Michael (1982). "The Twelve Tables and Their Origins: An Eighteenth-Century Debate".Journal of the History of Ideas.43 (3):379–396.doi:10.2307/2709429.ISSN0022-5037.JSTOR2709429.
^Tellegen-Couperus, O. E. (1993).A short history of Roman law. Psychology Press.
^Mathisen, Ralph W. (2019).Ancient Roman civilization : history and sources, 753 BCE to 640 CE. Oxford University Press.ISBN978-0-19-084960-3.OCLC1137838429.
^Greenidge, Abel Hendy Jones,Roman Public Life (London: MacMillan, 1901), page 12.
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