Plebeian entrance to the senate?

[Vibius Tiberius Costa]

I saw this has been touched upon in a previous thread so do excuse me if it has already been said.

Basically how did a person of plebeian rank get allowed into the senate?

Can they just walk up with the correct qualifications, a few supporters and go "Can I join." Surely not.

 

vtc

[Publius Nonius Severus]

I saw this has been touched upon in a previous thread so do excuse me if it has already been said.

Basically how did a person of plebeian rank get allowed into the senate?

Can they just walk up with the correct qualifications, a few supporters and go "Can I join." Surely not.

 

vtc

 

It did vary over time, but the primary way for anyone to enter the Senate was getting voted in a higher magistracy. If you were elected as quaestor, the censors normally entered you into the senatorial census. That is not to say that you were there for life, the censors could remove you for various reasons.

 

The other way to enter the Senate was to be appointed because of your (or your family's) dignitas by the Censors or by special appointment by a Dictator or other such means.

 

For a more thorough treatment check out Smith's detailed description of the Senate:

 

Senatus (scroll down to where is says p1018 on the right to jump right to how senators were selected.

[Primus Pilus]

And just to be clear, the same concepts were true of patricians. For the most part there were only 300 - 600 senators at any given time but there were thousands of patricians.

[ASCLEPIADES]

And just to be clear, the same concepts were true of patricians. For the most part there were only 300 - 600 senators at any given time but there were thousands of patricians.

Have you any figures about the patrician numbers across the Republican History?

 

As the candidates for the Senate were only males 32 years and over, and the number of patricii gentis were always around twenty, I would have supposed that there were not so many of them, especially during their monopoly of the Senate (before CCCXXXIII AUC / 421 BC).

[Primus Pilus]

And just to be clear, the same concepts were true of patricians. For the most part there were only 300 - 600 senators at any given time but there were thousands of patricians.

Have you any figures about the patrician numbers across the Republican History?

 

As the candidates for the Senate were only males 32 years and over, and the number of patricii gentis were always around twenty, I would have supposed that there were not so many of them, especially during their monopoly of the Senate (before CCCXXXIII AUC / 421 BC).

 

You're quite right... thousands is likely a stretch, but the point here was to show that Patricians had the same the process to follow regarding admission to the senate. There have been plenty of studies regarding the composition of the early populus, the number of patrician families, etc. but I have not seen a study regarding a census of patrician individuals. I would certainly like to.

[WotWotius]

Did a high proportion of Patricians make a conscious decision not to enter the senate, and therefore adopt a life of business?

Edited September 23, 2007 by WotWotius