Chapter 3: The Gracchi Brothers and the Popular Will

This is where the fun begins! We meet our first two power players in the Death of the Roman Republic.  Tiberius and Gaius Gracchus enter the Republic’s politics, and they aren’t playing the political game the way it had always been played.  They were not great generals who went to war to win fame and acclaim, but populists.  Tiberius began the Populares faction of Roman politics, and was opposed by the traditional, established, Optimates.  The Popularis and the Optimate ideologies would clash, and thousands of Romans were going to be killed for it.

Our essential question to keep in mind throughout the episode: Who are the Populares, who are the Optimates, and how do they seek to gain power and auctoritas?

Outro Music: “Into Uncertainty’’ from Jay Man - OurMusicBox.  Thumbnail made with Bannersnack.

Death of the Roman Republic (DOTRR) is an educational podcast, and any clips from other media is used to transform and elevate its educational content, using modern media to help people relate to a 2000 year old story. (Speaking as a not-Fair Use expert), DOTRR seeks to use Fair Use, in transforming media clips used for educational purposes, and in that Death of the Roman Republic will never make a profit (no advertisements, Patreon, etc.).  

*2024 update - Google Podcasts is apparently shutting down, I am attempting to upload to podcast to Spotify.  Fingers crossed this works, I nonetheless have an always will do this for fun, and do not seek to make any profit, and use media to elevate education (without outdated memes and references) through transformative means.