Student Question
What are the three elements of the Roman constitution according to Polybius, and their powers?
Quick answer:
Polybius identifies three elements of the Roman constitution: the Consul, the Senate, and the people. The Consuls managed administration, foreign relations, and wartime authority. The Senate controlled the treasury, public infrastructure, criminal proceedings, diplomacy, and war declarations. The people's role, though less emphasized, involved participating in government through jury duty, illustrating a limited form of civic engagement within the Roman political system.
Polybius describes the Roman constitution as creating three separate, sovereign governing bodies, though he does not elaborate on how equally power was shared between them. These three bodies are the Consul, the Senate, and the people.
The Consuls handled issues of administration and hospitality with foreign officials, as well as the raising of popular meetings and holding votes on issues at hand. The Consul also had near-supreme authority in matters of war, including the power to spend as much money as it liked.
The Senate regulated the treasury in all other regards, especially in the important case of the maintenance of public infrastructure. The Senate was also responsible for criminal proceedings, conducting actual diplomatic negotiations, and declaring the wars that the Consul was responsible for fighting.
The people, according to Polybius, had one vastly important duty left, although when Polybius describes this duty it falls a little flat: the people participate in this government by serving (the Roman equivalent of) jury duty.
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