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Since the beginning of the ancient Greek civilization, mankind has entered the age of the city-state. These are unimaginable times. There, the inhabitants of a city, can work together, live together,Or even die together.
The great man of this era was Pericles, an AthenianHe was the most prominent statesman and philosopher of Athens, known as the "soul of ancient Greek Athens". He reached his zenith in Athens during the reign of Pericles and was seen as a representative of Greek culture.
However, Pericles himself was a slave owner. He was a slave, but later became the first slave owner to be freed in ancient RomeIn the ancient world, slavery has been one of the dominant forms of society. But in the time of the ancient Roman city-states, slavery took a different form.
Before the 5th century BC,The "commune" or "city republic" of Rome, which is a social organization built between urban and rural residents. According to Roman law, all political, military, economic, and social affairs of the Roman state were jointly handled by the Senate and the consuls. Under this system, the republic was divided into two classes, citizens and commoners
Citizens were masters in Roman societyto enjoy full political rights and obligationsand at the same time the master of the country. In a "republican" state, citizens occupy land and enjoy various political, personal and property rights, and they can participate in military activities, political activities, court trials, etc. They are also free to elect, recall, or remove officials if they wish.
Commoners were peasants and craftsmen in "republican" countries, who engaged in handicrafts and commercial activities in the cities. They own their own land,It also enjoys certain political privileges and economic benefits.
The Senate was the supreme authority of the Roman state and the administrative body of the Roman Republic, and it consisted of the Senate, the consuls, and the various hierarchiesHeaded by the Protector.
In the "republican" state,The Roman state did not have a king, the king was only a nominal head of state, and the commoners did not have such rights. In the late Republic and the Early Empire,The republican form of government has evolved into one of the four basic forms of government, including the aristocracy, the aristocracy, and the oligarchy.
The socio-economic structure of the Roman Republic period was a traditional economic structure based on agriculture and supplemented by handicrafts. Due to the geographical location of the Roman state, it is "surrounded by mountains on three sides"."One side facing the sea" superior natural conditions,In addition, the implementation of crop rotation and intensive cultivation in agricultural production and other technical measures;
It was the first in the ancient world to develop an intensive agricultural economic system. InIn this system, agriculture is its pillar industry and the main economy**.
On this basis, the Romans gradually established an agrarian economic community of yeoman farmers, family farms. This type of family farm is based on the family as the unit of productionIt is composed of several basic elements, such as family members as laborers, owners of means of production, consumers of labor products, and organizers of production
In this sense, the family farm was the most basic and important form of economic organization that the Romans had established on the basis of land. At the same time, it was an indispensable part of civil society, the form of social organization of Roman citizens and slaves.
During the period of the Roman city-state, the economy was dominated by agriculture, supplemented by handicrafts, commerce and ** were developed, and production technology was greatly improvedCities arose and grew rapidlyAll this laid a solid foundation for the social form of the Roman "republican" state and the private economy.
The period from the 5th century BC to the middle of the 3rd century BC was the period of transformation of the Roman state from a "republic" to an "imperial system", and the "Roman republic" state was not yet fully formed during this periodDuring this period, the most important feature of the Roman state was the establishment of a highly centralized and centralized system.
The Citizens' Assembly was the highest authority and the highest legislative body of the Roman state, and the most important organ of state power and legislature during the Roman Republic.
The political organization of Rome was a kind of civic commune. Before the city of Rome was founded, there were many small cities such as Sephardi, Cora, etc. These cities were all members of the Roman Citizens' Commune, but due to the limitations of the political system of the time, they could not become independent political entities.
With the improvement and development of the Roman political system, a two-level political system with elected consuls as the center and the aristocracy as the core gradually formed within the civic communes. Among the common people, a ** political system centered on the tribune was produced:
Citizens' Assembly, Tribune, Senate,The Citizens' Assembly was the supreme authority of the CommuneIt discusses and decides on major national affairs, and has legislative, executive and supervisory powers;
The tribune was elected by the members of the commune for a term of three yearsIt is a tool to safeguard the interests of the aristocracy；The Senate is the highest state executive and holds the highest judicial power. These were formed when the system of civic communes was established.
But with the expansion of Roman citizenship and the need for the development of the slave economyCitizenship rights are restricted. After the 2nd century BC, Rome moved from an aristocratic society to a plebeian society. The plebeians, united by economic interests, became the two main forces in the political life of Rome.
By the 1st century BCE, there were already ten political groups in the city of Rome, but they were all loose alliances of improvised patchwork with no clear purpose or charter. They were all made up of people who had property, power, or were used by the nobility for personal gain.
For example, the Senate represented aristocratic interests; The tribune was the product of a struggle and compromise between the interests of the commoners and the aristocracy; Citizens' assemblies represent the interests of the common people.
These groups do not have any common purpose and charterand there is no power to jointly manage public affairs; There is no internal check-and-hold mechanism; Therefore, when they united against the nobility, a civil war broke out.
After the middle of the 1st century BC, due to the political reforms and adjustments carried out by Rome, citizenship was gradually expanded and developed. According to the law, citizenship was not limited to freedmen living in the city of Rome.
Anyone with citizenship is eligible to participate in the administration of the State, such as the Citizens' Assembly, the Tribune, the Senate and the People's Assembly, which allows citizens to consult among themselves on important issues, debates and voting.
The Citizens' Assembly is the supreme authorityIts functions and powers include deciding on major state affairs, formulating laws and formulating budgetsBut it was also a loose conglomerate that could not restrain the aristocracy.
The Senate is the supreme authority of the Citizens' Assembly and the permanent administrative body, and it consists of two consuls: one is the chief consul; the other is a member of the Senate; The rest of the citizens participated in the Senate as foils.
Members of the Senate are generally appointed tribunesServed by a general or other person in a high-ranking official position, but sometimes it can also be held by a person elected by the civilian population.
The consul is the supreme administrator of the state and the commander-in-chief of the armed forces; In the early days of the Roman Republic, consuls had only military command and administrative powers; But in the late Roman RepublicDue to foreign invasions and the increasingly acute class contradictions in Rome, the consuls gradually gained the final say in the affairs of the state.
There were also a number of subsidiary bodies in the organizational structure of the Roman Republic. These bodies are not formed by the Citizens' Assembly or the Tribune and exercise executive powerRather, it was appointed, delegated, and exercised executive power by the Senate or nobility.
The main function of these subsidiary bodies was to uphold Roman citizenshipsupervising citizens' assemblies and enforcing senate resolutions, etc.; The Senate, as the supreme authority and the permanent executive body, exercises legislative, judicial and executive powers.
From the middle of the 5th century BC, Roman slavery was greatly developed. During this period, slavery developed rapidly. The development of slavery in Rome went hand in hand with the development of the slave-owning class.
The first is that there was a change in the ** and composition of Roman slaves. Formerly Roman slaves came from various Italian cities, and as the country became more prosperous, slavery expanded outward, and by the late 5th century BCSlaves have spread all over the countryTowns and cities also began to use some of the freedmen as slaves.
The second is that there has been a change in the way slaves were exploited by the slave-owning class. In the early 5th century BCE, slave owners controlled and enslaved slaves mainly by granting land, rewarding property, and granting official positions.
In the late 5th century, slaves were controlled and enslaved by distributing grain, food stamps and other goods or money; After the 6th century, due to the increase in the number of freedmen among the urban dwellers and the restrictions imposed on industry and commerce by state policyIt led to tighter state control and enslavement of freemen and other peoples.
By the end of the 7th century, more than 50 percent of Roman citizens were freedmen, and more than 80 percent of freedmen were slaves. After the proportion of freedmen increasedSlavery also developed further
Again, it was the development of Roman slavery that led to a change in the economic form of Roman slavery. Until the late 5th century BC, the Romans relied mainly on agricultural production for their necessities; After the end of the 4th century BC, with the development of social productive forces and the prosperity of the country, agricultural production has become the main production sector.
However, during the Roman Republic, it was still only a form of agricultural economy that was a side business, mainly agricultural, and industrial and commercial. At this time, agriculture was still a side hustle for a few freemen; Due to the control and supervision measures taken by the state over agricultural production,Therefore, agricultural production was mainly done by slave labor; Industry and commerce were mainly run by freemen.
This results in two different types of economies:One is a slave economy based on slave labor; The other is a wage labor economy based on the labor of free people.
From the 4th century BC to the middle of the 3rd century BC, Roman slavery developed relatively slowlyA more stable and mature period. During this period, the State still adopted some restrictive measures in the field of agriculture, so that agricultural production remained basically the same as before.
At this time, the Romans were mainly engaged in productive activities such as farming, animal husbandry, and fishing; In terms of handicrafts, there are a large number of artisans and handicraft workshops in the city; In terms of business, the market is still very underdeveloped.
After the middle of the 4th century, Roman slavery reached a new stage. There was a major change in the economic pattern of slavery in RomeFirst of all, there was a fundamental change in the wage labor economy that emerged with the development of Roman slavery and the wage labor economy, which was mainly composed of free people.
In the process of the development of Roman slavery, it gradually formed a slave owner-ledFreemen are the main body, the relationship of interdependence, mutual restraint and common development between slaves and slave owners.
This relationship became the most basic and important foundation for the development of slavery in Rome；The second is the formation and development of the commodity economy and the capitalist mode of production as a result of the mass increase of commerce and freemenDuring the development of Roman slavery, from the end of the 4th century BC to the middle of the 3rd century BC, there was a contradictory relationship between slaves and slave owners.
Slave owners for the exploitation of free peopleThe number of slaves must be constantly increased; And the freedmen continued to increase the number of slaves for their own benefit.
In this paradoxical relationship,Both sides demanded a reasonable solutionTherefore, the economic form of slavery brought about by the formation and development of the commodity economy and the capitalist mode of production caused by the massive increase of commerce and freemen during this period became the focus of the struggle and conflict between the two sides.
In general,Slavery in Rome developed more slowlyHowever, the speed of development of slavery is closely related to the form of slavery, and with the deepening of social contradictions during the Roman Republic, the number of citizens increased, and the number of slaves also increased.
At the same time, the labor capacity of slaves was also developed, and in the process of slave labor, slave owners not only brutally exploited and oppressed themIt also does not provide corresponding medical and educational services.
With the increase in the number of slaves and the deepening of social contradictions, a series of measures to abolish slavery began to appear in RomeBut all this was considered in the center of the interests of the aristocracy.
From this we can see thatRoman slavery did not arise and exist in the process of development to satisfy the interests of the aristocratic class, it was a choice made by the Romans for their own interests.