Significance
Though the Senate was theoretically answerable to the Roman people (populus), it was unusual for the people to pass such laws contrary to the wishes of the Senate.
The laws set down by Sulla during his dictatorship had been intended to strengthen the Senate and take power away from the plebeians. The passing of the Lex Gabinia, followed by the Lex Manilia, proved that Sulla's intended new constitution, designed to stop any one man from gaining immense power, was not working; in fact, it produced men who followed Sulla's example rather than his precepts. The passing of the Lex Gabinia was a key development in the collapse of the Senate as the ruling power in Rome. The Senate proved unable to halt the concentration of power into the hands of the popular tribunes like Clodius and successful generals like Julius Caesar, who led his forces in the Civil War which was a key factor in the collapse of the Roman Republic.
Read more about this topic: Lex Gabinia
Famous quotes containing the word significance:
“To grasp the full significance of life is the actor’s duty, to interpret it is his problem, and to express it his dedication.”
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“It is necessary not to be Christian to appreciate the beauty and significance of the life of Christ.”
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“Of what significance the light of day, if it is not the reflection of an inward dawn?—to what purpose is the veil of night withdrawn, if the morning reveals nothing to the soul? It is merely garish and glaring.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)