1. Social Studies for 9th EBG Teacher: Mauricio Torres Crises Strike the Republic

2. As the roman territory grew, so did the problems. The rich were getting richer and many leaders feared that violence between rich and poor would erupt. Problems 3. The first leaders to address the Roman problems were the Gracchus brothers. The both served as tribunes, at different periods. Tiberius and Gaius Gracchus 4. Tiberius took office in 133 BC. He wanted to create farms for the poor peasants. He did this in order to keep the poor happy and avoid rebellions. The problem was, that the land was to be taken over from public land that was illegally taken by wealthy citizens. Therefore the poor were in favor of this measure, but the rich were not! This led to some riots in which Tiberius was killed. Tiberius Gracchus 5. Some years later, Gaius attempted the same reforms as his brother. But he also lowered the price of food for poor citizens. Once again, this angered the powerful Romans, and he was also killed. The death of both brothers gave the romans a new perspective on politics: violence could bring change! Gaius Gracchus 6. In the late 100s, the roman army was facing a grave challenge: the desperate need for recruits. Since only roman citizens could join the army and during a war soldiers were killed, they were becoming scarce in wars of expansion. Gaius Marius, a consul and brilliant commander, encouraged poor people to join the army. This way, thousands of poor and unemployed men, joined the ranks, swelling the size of the army. Due to his leadership skills, his soldiers were more loyal to him and with this support, he gained more political power. Gaius Marius 7. Following Mariuss example, Sulla became consul in 88 BC. He had served brilliantly in the army (even under Marius) and was awarded the highest honors a Roman soldier could receive. He soon came into conflict with Marius, which led to a civil war. A civil war is a conflict between citizens of the same country. Lucius Cornelius Sulla 8. Sulla Gaius Marius Civil War He was exiled from Rome and declared a public enemy. But as soon as Sulla left the city, he came back, was elected consul but died shortly after. Before that, he fought against Sulla for Rome. He is also remembered for mass killings inside Rome. While fighting in Asia, both foreign and local enemies, he returned to Rome after Cinna (the other consul) had died. Yet he still met supporters of Marius who battled him outside of Rome, defeating them. He was elected dictator, for an unlimited period of time! He persecuted many rivals and also spared some, including a young man named Julius Caesar 9. Shortly after Sulla died, another crisis arose: thousands of slaves revolted and demanded their freedom. They were lead by a former gladiator named Spartacus. The rebellious slaves were very successful at first, and actually defeated a Roman army which was sent to stop them. They took over much of southern Italy in the process. After Spartacus was killed in battle, the revolt fell apart. The Romans, executed 6,000 of the rebellious slaves as an example to other who thought about rebelling. Spartacus 10. In the late Republic, the Romans faced new problems and had different solutions for each. But from each problem, new lessons were learned, which would be remembered through history, by Romans themselves. Three different stages of change: 11. Ask Yourself Describe: How did the Gracchus bros. try to help the poor Romans? Explain: Why was violence more common after the Gracchus than before? Analyze: Why might it be a problem if a nations army is more loyal to the leaders than to the government? How did Sulla turn what he had learned from Marius against him? Evaluate: Why might have some Romans consider Spartacus a hero and other an enemy? 12. Bibliography Burstein, S. M., & Shek, R. (2012). World History (Teacher s Edition) (1st Edition ed.). (H. McDougal, Ed.) Orlando, Florida, US.: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Ellis, E. G., & Esler, A. (2009). World History. (P. Hall, Ed.) Upper Saddle River, New Jersey, US: Pearson Education INC. Images taken from www.google.com