PSE ROME

• “There were at this time two parties in the State, that of Sulla, which was all-powerful, and that of Marius, which was cowed and divided and very feeble. It was Caesar's object to strengthen and gain over the party of Marius ....” - Plutarch, life of Caesar
• "The Republic, as I knew it, no longer exists; ambition and avarice are the only forces that govern our politics now." - Cicero
• "The institutions of our ancestors were overthrown, and the path was paved for perpetual civil wars." - Livy
• “Of the land which the Romans gained by conquest from their neighbours, part they sold publicly, and turned the remainder into common [...] But when the wealthy men began to offer larger rents, and drive the poorer people out, it was enacted by law that no person whatsoever should enjoy more than five hundred acres of ground.” - Plutarch, Tiberius Gracchus
• “The state had few mechanisms to control men who wanted to break out of the carefully regulated system of 'power sharing' that characterised traditional Republican politics. (men such as Caesar) ... were sometimes given vast power to deal with the military threats facing Rome from overseas - and then proved unwilling to lay down that power when they returned to civilian life. There seemed to be no solution for curbing them apart from violence.” - Mary Beard
• “When looking for omens of the Roman Republic’s impending collapse, warnings signs can be clearly seen in its last generation. Between 88 and 49 BC, Rome had experienced a brutal civil war, a spell of bloody proscriptions and cruel executions, a spate of mob violence and growing levels of domestic unrest. However, the most important development in this period was the rise of Caesar and his ascendancy from a populist reformer to the most powerful man in the senate.” - Jonathan Bell
• "Sulla’s military coup provided the impetus for the destruction of the Roman Republic." - Donald L. Wasson
• “...we must look further into the past to see the start of its deterioration. The role of the Gracchi brothers provided the first sparks of revolution that would continue to burn over the next century.” - Jonathan Bell
•  “Tiberius's career crystallised many of the main issues that were to underlie the revolutionary politics of the next hundred years.” - Mary Beard
• “The mere possession of slaves brought them great profit through the number of their children, which increased because they were absolved from service in the wars. Thus the powerful citizens became immensely wealthy and the slave class all over the country multiplied, while the Italian race decreased in numbers and vigour, held down as they were by poverty, taxes, and military service.” - Appian, on the wealth gap
• “Of the land which the Romans gained by conquest from their neighbours, part they sold publicly, and turned the remainder into common [...] But when the wealthy men began to offer larger rents, and drive the poorer people out, it was enacted by law that no person whatsoever should enjoy more than five hundred acres of ground.” - Plutarch, Tiberius Gracchus
• "The goods of the proscribed were confiscated and sold at auction, often at a fraction of their value, leading to the enrichment of Sulla's followers and the economic destruction of many noble families." - Plutarch
• "The rich grew richer through the spoils of war and the misery of others, while the poor were driven deeper into poverty and despair." - Sallust
• “Sulla now devoted himself entirely to the work of butchery. The city was filled with murder and there was no counting the executions or setting a limit to them, many people were killed because of purely personal ill feeling; they had no connection with Sulla in any way...” - Plutarch
• "The ambition of Marius and the cruelty of Sulla corrupted the morals of the state... and set an example for others to seize power by any means." - Sallust
• “Sylla hereupon exasperating his soldiers, who were about thirty-five thousand full-armed men, led them towards Rome.” - Plutarch
• “On the expedition he carefully disciplined and trained his army whilst they were on their way, giving them practice in long marches, and running of every sort, and compelling every man to carry his own baggage and prepare his own victuals; insomuch that thenceforward laborious soldiers, who did their work silently without grumbling, had the name of "Marius's mules." - Plutarch
• “The Republic is lost; the city is filled with the fear of death, and trust between men is shattered.” -Cicero