Democratic Evolution In Ancient Greece And Roman Republic (Essay Sample)

Creating Democracy- Ancient Greece and Rome
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Creating Democracy- Ancient Greece and Rome
Many states have a democratic system of government. It is a system of government that allows members of an institution to contribute in the decision-making process equally. Democratic governments either involve all members in state affairs or only use the legible members of a state known as representatives. This paper examines the origin of democracy in ancient Greece and Rome.
Democracy in Ancient Greece
Modern democracy originated from ancient Greece during the classical era. The ancient Greece is characterized by city states that embraced a form of government similar to democracy. However, the well-documented form of democracy in Ancient Greece is the Athenian democracy that emerged around 550 B.C. (Saxonhouse, 2005). Athens was a well-molded democracy and more stable compared to other city states that embraced democratic structures of governance. The Athenian democracy in ancient Greece is known to have originated during the reign of Herodotus in around 440 B.C. However, the Athenian democracy did not allow each in the state to participate in democracy. It was only male citizens older than 18 years who had the privilege. Therefore, the majority of the people were not allowed to take part in state affairs, especially the decision-making process since they were non-citizens. For instance, the citizens comprised of 20 percent of the population (Robinson, 2011). On the other hand, women were considered non-citizens and did not have a right to vote or participate in the political process. This is the same case with slaves and foreigners who were also non-citizens with no right to vote. In this case, democracy in Athens only existed for few people who were initially Athenians (Raaflaub, Ober, & Wallace, 2007). The Democratic system of government in Athens spread to several city-states spread across the Mediterranean and survived for around two centuries. The rise of Athenian aristocracy and conventional wars disrupted the democratic system of governance in ancient Greece from around 431 B.C. onward. Moreover, democratic regimes in the old Greece ended during the reign of King Phillip II who conquered the Athenians and embraced autocracy. The democratic system that originated in ancient Greece has some differences and similarities with the type democracy practiced across the globe (Raaflaub, Ober, & Wallace, 2007). For instance, both systems have restrictions on citizenship. However, the current democratic structures allow women to participate in state affairs. Additionally, in ancient Greece, if one failed to attend assembly meetings or participate, he will suffer punishment. On contrast, in current democratic structures individuals can choose to participate or not (Morstein-Marx, 2004). Nonetheless, the aspect of democracy is a significant contribution of the ancient Greece that has reformed practices of governance.
Democracy in Ancient Rome
Although ancient Rome used its feared army to conquer other states, it was democratic when it comes to its citizens. The Roman democracy was established through its republic form of government that allowed for citizen participation (Saxonhouse, 2005). Their model of governance was copied by many states and continues to impact on modern states. For example, the three- branch government of the United States (US) is partly based on this model. The rise of democratic structures of governance in ancient Rome began around 509 B. C. E. At this time; the Romans overthrew Etruscan rulers who had ruled them for hundreds of years (Møller & Skaaning, 2012). At this period, the Romans were free and adopted a republic system of governance that allowed its citizens to participate in the affairs of the state actively. The Roman democratic regime of government also promoted the element of citizenship. The aspect of a “citizen” was also developed during the Roman Republic than allowed males -15 years and above and those who originated from the native tribes of Rome to become citizens. However, citizenship in ancient Rome varied widely, for example, a full citizen could carry out commerce, vote, and marry freeborn citizens. On the other hand, some did not have voting rights or hold a public office. The Romans also had a senate that its history goes back to the history of ancient Rome (Møller & Skaaning, 2012). The Senate was created to advise the Kings an element that changed when the Roman Republic was created. The Senate emerged as a strong body of government as it declared the consuls- very powerful chief executives. The Roman Republic w...