Sulla's Rise to Power and Transformation of the Roman Republic

This essay provides a comprehensive analysis of Lucius Cornelius Sulla's rise to power in ancient Rome. It details his military career, including his service under Gaius Marius and his victories in various wars, such as the Social War. The essay explores Sulla's motives, actions, and his role in reestablishing dictatorship in the Roman Empire. It examines the consequences of his actions, including the proscriptions and the weakening of the tribunes, and his impact on the transition from the Republic to the dictatorship of Julius Caesar. The essay references key historical events and figures, offering insights into Sulla's political strategies and his lasting legacy on Roman history. The essay emphasizes the significance of Sulla's actions in reshaping the political landscape of Rome and setting the stage for future conflicts and transformations.

Running head: ANCIENT HISTORY
ANCIENT HISTORY
Name of the Student
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Author Note

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Sulla and his rise to power
Lucius Cornelius Sulla Felix was as Roman general and a statesman. He was commonly
known as Sulla. He had been honored with the responsibility of governing the Roman republic
twice. He was responsible for the return of dictatorship in the Roman Empire. The statesman is
regarded to have been a competent general who had been awarded success in a number of wars
against various opponents both internal clashes against other fellow Romans and foreign
invaders. During the Social War that began in 91 BC, the general had been honored with a grass
crown that was regarded as the most prestigious award for the Roman militia (Lomas, 2014).
The Roman dictator, Sulla was the first general who used the Roman army to establish a
personal dictatorship in Rome. Sulla rose to power with the successful victories at the wars that
he leaded the forces for. He gained military experience while campaigning for the post of the
quaestor. He had served for the post from 107 BC to 106 BC under another Roman politician and
general, Gaius Marius during the wars against Jugurtha, the rebel of Numidia. This powerful
leader of the Romans also participated in the war against the Cimbri, a German tribe (Cowan,
2017). The general was awarded the post of the praetor in the 97 BC. He was allowed command
over the area of Cilicia, situated in the Asia Minor. He was elected for the post of the consul in
88 BC and was chosen to campaign against the Pontian king, Mithidates.
Motives of Sulla
The motives behind the actions of Sulla are not clear till date due to the loss of the written
documents from the era. History suggests that Sulla had documented his thoughts but the lack of
preservation led to the loss of those valuable insights into the influential dictator of Rome.
Attempts were made to compose biographies and some historians claim Sulla to be a religious

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mystic from certain points of view (Keaveney, 2013). Sulla had been elected the consul of the
country men by the vote of centuries, who theoretically represented the Roman army. The
soldiers of Sulla had been faithful in their duties towards him. Unlike the soldiers, the officers
positioned under Sulla excepting one had declined participating in the dictator’s first march on
Rome.
After the conclusion of the barbarian and Jugurthine wars, Sulla concentrated on the
advancement of his career in politics. He was unsuccessful in his attempts to hold the office of
the praetor in 99 BC despite his military successes. In 88 BC, Sulla had departed in order to
prepare his own army. It was during this time that Marius had himself legislated as the head of
the command in the Roman empire replacing Sulla from the position. This resulted in a condition
of unrest in the country. This enraged the Roman general Sulla. On his way back to the Roman
empire, Sulla reversed his troops, led them across the pomerium of Rome, a sacred wall
surrounding Rome and seized the city of Rome (Clement, 2016).
Roles and actions of Sulla
An efficient general, Sulla achieved a number of victories in the wars that he participated
in. He reestablished dictatorship in the Roman Empire when the altercations between the
optimates and the popularates were at the peak. He revived the office of the Dictator in the
Roman Empire after his march on Rome for the second time in 81 BC. This post had been
inactive since the Second Punic War that continued from 218-201 BC (Dodge, 2012). Sulla had
been a prolific warrior and had brought in victory for the Roman Empire in almost all his war
adventures. His political career started as a quaestor to Gaius Marius. He was successful in
capturing the Numidian king and thus bringing in victory for the Roman Empire in the
Jugurthine wars. Sulla was chosen by the Roman general Marius to assist him in the war against

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the Teutones and the Cimbri. He assured victory in this case too by defeating the barbarian tribes
in 101 BC.
On completion of the wars, Sulla concentrated on the advancement of his political career.
He was elected for the office of the praetor in the year 98 BC. He was assigned the role of the
governor in the Cicilian province in 96 BC where he aptly displayed his administrative and
capabilities. The first Social War broke out in Rome in 91 BC (Dart, 2014). During this war,
Sulla proved his worth as an able general of the Roman Empire and was awarded the Corona
Graminea or the “grass crown” the highest honor of the Roman military awards.
Consequences and significances of Sulla’s legacy
Sulla revived the dictatorship ruling in the Roman empire. He was appointed as the
dictator for law making and constitution settling by the Roman Senate around the end of 82 BC
and the beginning of 81 BC (Judge, 2012). The tenure of this office was not determined which
meant that Sulla had total control over the city of Rome as well as the Roman republic. This
ensured the end of the Republican rule of Rome under Augustus and paved the way of the
dictatorship of Julius Caesar, another prominent Roman general. On gaining total unquestioned
control over the city, Sulla went on to execute the ones whom he considered to be the enemies of
the state. The proscribed members of the state were not the enemies of the general at large. It was
often seen that the underlying reason behind the proscription had been the property owned by the
person. These properties were later either auctioned or confiscated thereby increasing the wealth
of Sulla.
Sulla robbed the tribunes of their power to initiate any legislation. He invalidated the
tribunal power to cast a veto on the acts of the Senate but let the power of the tribunes to protect

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the individual Roman Citizens remain intact (Cobban, 2016). He increased the number of
magistrates that could be elected in a year and ruled that the quaestors who got appointed would
gain a senate membership automatically. These rules helped the dictator in the increment of the
capacity of the Senate and as a result there was a considerable increase in the number of courts in
the city.

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References
Clement, M. (2016). Democracy and Protest in the Ancient World. In A People’s History
of Riots, Protest and the Law (pp. 21-47). Palgrave Macmillan UK.
Cobban, J. M. (2016). Senate and Provinces 78–49 BC. Cambridge University Press.
Cowan, R. (2017). Roman Legionary 109–58 BC: The Age of Marius, Sulla and Pompey
the Great. Bloomsbury Publishing.
Dart, C. J. (2014). The Social War, 91 to 88 BCE: A History of the Italian Insurgency
Against the Roman Republic. Ashgate Publishing, Ltd..
Dodge, T. A. (2012). Hannibal: a history of the art of war among the Carthaginians and
Romans down to the battle of Pydna, 168 BC. Tales End Press.
Judge, E. A. (2012). The failure of Augustus. Classicum, 38(1), 2.
Keaveney, A. (2013). Sulla: the last republican. Routledge.
Lomas, K. (2014). Roman Italy, 338 BC-AD 200: a sourcebook. Routledge.