Comic in Ancient Rome - what's this? Functions and authority

The People's Assembly was an important institution of power in ancient Rome. In the course of the development of its statehood, they took different forms. They were called comitia. Such meetings took the primary state decisions concerning domestic and foreign policy. In addition, the commissions were a place where the passions were seething between the various classes that were fighting with one another.

The concept of comitia

According to the lexical meaning of the word, the committees in ancient Rome are people's congregations. State laws said that the so-called those activities that were given a legal status. That is, they were opposed to spontaneous gatherings of the population.

The commissions in Ancient Rome are meetings organized by the magistrate in order to put on the vote some socially important question. In this sense, this ancient phenomenon is very similar to the Slavic veche. However, this definition does not cover all types of comitia (there were three in all). The authorities could also organize a people's congress in order to simply announce one or another of their decisions.

The appearance of comitia

Tracing the history of ancient statehood, it can be determined that the committees in Ancient Rome - is primarily an institution that emerged under the tribal system. This feature is extremely important, as it explains the powers and structure of the meeting. The first came the curated comitia, the name of which came from the word "curia". All the Romans shared these administrative parts from the earliest times. The basis of such a ranking was belonging to one or another genus.

Until the VI century BC. E. The curial committees were the only ones in Rome. The established order was changed by Tsar Servius Tullius. Before his reform, the right to vote in the comitia belonged only to patricians - representatives of the most prominent and influential cities of the city. It was connected with traditions. In Latin, the word "people" meant a set of people with citizenship - that is, almost always influential patricians.

The First People's Assembly

The commissions to which members of the curia were invited could be convened only by the ruler of ancient Rome. If he was absent in the capital, and the authorities needed to know the opinion of the patricians, this function passed to the prefect. In addition to representatives of noble families, in the then Rome there was another important class. They were clients - free citizens who voluntarily passed under the patronage of their patron, thus, depending on him. These inhabitants of the city did not have the right to vote in the commissions, but they could attend them as spectators.

People's congregations of the tsarist period possessed an important function of electing a new ruler. When the monarch died, an interrex was elected - an emergency magistracy. This was done with the help of lots among the most distinguished citizens. Interrex, in turn, convened a comic in ancient Rome. This delegation of authority was to occur no later than five days after the death of the king. Finally, the people's congress determined who was destined to become the next ruler.

Kuriatnye elections

The very first committees in Rome collected votes only from the curia, and not personally from the citizens. Each gender had to decide its own choice after an internal discussion. The curia had one voice (there were 30 curiae in Rome). The news of the convocation of the comitia was carried around the city by heralds or lictors - state officials executing important orders of the magistrate. Since there was no regulation that could at least somehow determine the course of the general vote, the classic lot was used. With the help of him, the line on which the curiae spoke was coordinated.

It is important to emphasize that the then comitia did not have the right to propose any kind of own initiative. They could only accept or reject offers of power. In the conduct of the people, according to this system, there was a decision to elect kings and magistrates, to enact new laws, to declare peace or war, and also to execute the death penalty for the citizens of Rome. In the case of the definition of a new ruler, candidates were selected by interrex. Curia in the same way chose the priests (flamins). That is, the commissions are also an instrument for regulating the religious life of Roman society.

Voting of Centuries

Tsar Servius Tullius decided to get rid of the previous legislative order. He abandoned the curated ones and created new - centuriate - comissions, the main unit in which were the centurions - military units in the Roman army. For the first time the right to vote was given to the plebeians - ordinary citizens of that ancient society. They were equated with the patricians. In order to vote, the man had to meet two requirements. First, only those who knew how to handle weapons could become an elector. Secondly, immigrants from the plebs should have, according to their welfare, correspond to the limits set by a special property qualification.

Thus, the centurial comitia, founded by Servius Tullius in the sixth century BC. E., Were able to unite the scattered parts of the ancient Roman society and smooth the contradictions between them. In total in the capital at different times there were almost 200 centurions. Each military unit voted in turn. When more than half of centurions were collected in one "camp," the question was withdrawn from voting and a corresponding decision was made.

Functions of centurial comitia

Since centurial comitia are primarily meetings on military grounds, they were convened in a special area where army exercises and gymnastics exercises were conducted. It was the famous Mars Field. A sign of the convocation of the meeting was the military red banner flying on the Capitol. The centuriate comitia were an extremely important organ. It was they who took most of the Roman laws. This people's meeting agreed on whether to declare peace and war to its neighbors. In addition, it examined the cases of citizens accused of high treason.

Until 287 BC. E. Most of the decisions in Rome were made by the centurial comitia. The credentials of this institution were curtailed after the law of Quintus Hortense. This dictator decided to oppress the rights of the plebeians, who, among other things, also were evicted to a separate Roman hill Yanicul. At the same time, new tribute committees were established.

New commissions

From 287 BC. E. The most important role in the life of Ancient Rome was played by tribute comissions, which were convened on a territorial basis. The already mentioned Servius Tullius divided his capital into thirty districts. They were called tribes, and later the corresponding commissions also began to be called.

Throughout its existence, this institution of people's power has experienced several of its reincarnations. Initially, the competence of tribute committees was limited to local issues (collection of taxes and conscription to the army). Gradually, together with the increasing influence of the ever-growing plebs, they received new powers. In the end, the centurial comitia remained only as an organ necessary for diplomatic interaction with neighboring countries. Tribute meetings, however, got their own agenda.

Powers of tribute comitia

The new people's congress received the function of electing lower magistrates. These bodies, in turn, were to protect the plebs according to all then existing Roman laws. Assemblies appointed numerous civil servants - quaestors, aediles and military tribunes. These rights were selected from the consuls, who had to share their power with the plebs.

At a late stage of their development, the commissions began to influence lawmaking. They could send the resolution to the Senate, which he was obliged to consider in due time. Most often such requirements were taken into account when making important government decisions. After the law of Hortensia the tribute commissions finally obtained independent legislative power.

When in the I century BC. E. Roman citizenship began to spread to all free residents of Italy, the institution of the people's congregation began to die. He finally disappeared under Emperor Augustus.