Roman Senate

The Roman Senate was an assembly of leading citizens whose authority and influence shaped government from the Republic through the Empire.

Senatus consultum: A formal resolution of the Roman Senate, usually expressed as advice to a magistrate. These resolutions let senators shape policy through advice that magistrates usually followed.
Roman Kingdom: The period of Roman history traditionally dated from the city’s founding to the establishment of the Republic. Roman tradition traced the Senate’s beginnings to the monarchy.
Cato the Younger: A Roman senator known for his defense of republican political traditions against Julius Caesar. His resistance made senatorial opposition to Caesar a defining political force.
Roman popular assemblies: Bodies of Roman citizens that voted on laws, elections, and certain judicial matters. Their formal votes contrasted with the Senate’s deliberation and elite influence.
Cursus honorum: The customary sequence of public offices pursued by ambitious Roman politicians. Holding magistracies commonly qualified men for entry into the Senate.
Roman Republic: The Roman state governed without kings from 509 to 27 BCE, though its institutions and political balance changed over time. The Senate became a central governing institution during the Republic.
Cicero: A Roman statesman, lawyer, and writer who served as consul and Senate leader in the late Republic. His speeches and letters document senatorial politics and its ideals.
Roman consul: One of the two chief annually elected magistrates of the Roman Republic. Consuls held executive command, while senators usually advised and negotiated.
Roman magistrate: An elected official who exercised public duties and authority in ancient Rome. Magistrates convened the Senate and formally carried out many of its decisions.
Sulla: A Roman general and dictator who reshaped the Republic’s institutions in the first century BCE. His reforms enlarged the Senate and strengthened its jurisdiction.

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