Who is gaius gracchus

A member of his brother's land commission, he supported the plans of Marcus Fulvius Flaccus in bc, then went to Sardinia as quaestor. Returning before his commander in , he was accused before the censors but acquitted, and elected tribune for and again for , when he was joined by Flaccus, by then consularis an ex-consul and triumphalis celebrator of a triumph, i. After laws meant to avenge his brother and secure himself against a similar fate, he embarked on a programme of reform, aided by friendly colleagues.

Finally, in , he proposed to offer citizenship to Latins and Latin status to Italian allies, both to protect them from the excesses of Roman magistrates and to make them subject to his brother's agrarian law. The law was opposed by Gaius Fannius, whom he had supported for the consulship, and by Livius Drusus 1 , who outbid him with an unrealistic colonial programme.

It was defeated, and Gracchus was not re-elected. In , with his legislation under attack, Gracchus, supported by Flaccus, resorted to armed insurrection. Subjects: Classical studies. View all related items in Oxford Reference ». All Rights Reserved. Under the terms of the licence agreement, an individual user may print out a PDF of a single entry from a reference work in OR for personal use for details see Privacy Policy and Legal Notice.

Oxford Reference. Publications Pages Publications Pages. Recently viewed 0 Save Search. Your current browser may not support copying via this button. Subscriber sign in You could not be signed in, please check and try again. Gaius enacted a law that provided for the construction of state granaries, and a regular sale of grain to the citizens, as well as feeding the hungry and homeless with state-owned grain.

Gaius also founded colonies in Italy and Carthage and instituted more humane laws surrounding military conscription. Despite some support, like his brother, Gaius was a controversial figure. After one of Gaius's political opponents was killed, the Senate passed a decree that made it possible to execute anyone identified as an enemy of the state without trial. Faced with the probability of execution, Gaius committed suicide by falling on the sword of an enslaved person.

After Gaius's death, thousands of his supporters were arrested and summarily executed. Beginning with the Gracchi brothers' troubles to the end of the Roman Republic , personalities dominated Roman politics; major battles were not with foreign powers, but internal civil ones. Violence became a common political tool. Many historians argue that the period of the decline of the Roman Republic began with the Gracchi meeting their bloody ends, and ended with the assassination of Julius Caesar in 44 BCE.

That assassination was followed by the rise of the first Roman emperor , Augustus Caesar. Based on the existing record, its difficult to know the motivations of the Gracchi: they were members of the nobility and nothing they did dismantled the social structure in Rome.

There is no doubt that the upshot of the Gracchi brothers' socialist reforms included increased violence in the Roman Senate and ongoing and increasing oppression of the poor.

Were they demagogues willing to incite the masses in a bid to increase their own power, as U. President John Adams thought, or heroes of the middle classes, as portrayed in American textbooks in the 19th century?

Whichever they were, as American historian Edward McInnis points out, 19th century textbook narratives of the Gracchi supported American populist movements of the day, giving people a way to talk and think about economic exploitation and possible solutions. Actively scan device characteristics for identification. Use precise geolocation data. Select personalised content. Create a personalised content profile.

Measure ad performance. Select basic ads. Create a personalised ads profile. Select personalised ads. Apply market research to generate audience insights. Measure content performance. Develop and improve products. List of Partners vendors.

Share Flipboard Email. Ancient History and Latin Expert. Gill is a Latinist, writer, and teacher of ancient history and Latin. Updated August 01,