Liam Downey-Wall 3-17-13

Comparison of the Stability of the Roman Republic vs. Roman Empire

Julius Cesar abruptly transitioned from a republic to an empire In order to understand the comparative stability of the Republic vs. that of the Empire; we must first identify and discuss some of the characteristics of each. Only by evaluating the characteristics can we identify the more stable form of government.
The Republic style of government is characterized by the following: a senate of 300 members yielding more power per person, dictatorship for 6 months at a time and an indirect democracy. The dictator’s term of 6 months at a time was hardly enough time to learn the issues and task at hand. The short terms of office created instability in the government.
Some of the characteristics of an empire include the following: senate has 600 members, with a senate of 600 people that means less power per senator, an emperor for life, a position that is passed down from generation to generation, one ruler/monarch. This type of government gave more power to Caesar and less to the people. Due to the longer terms in office it allowed Caesar to make many more reforms, for example, redistribution of land and wealth and creation of Julian calendar. One upside to the change of empire was many reforms were made. Caesar kept the empire in the hands of his heir, so no one out side the Caesar family could rule.
The Empire form of government served the people well