Capite censi
Encyclopedia
Capite censi were literally, in Latin, "those counted by head" in the ancient Roman
census
. Also known as "the head count", the term was used to refer to the lowest class of citizens, people not of the nobility
or middle class
es, owning little or no property. Initially capite censi was synonymous with proletarii, meaning those citizens whose property was too small to be rated for the census. Later though, the proletarii were distinguished from the capite censi as having "appreciable property" to the value of 11,000 ass
es or less. In contrast, the capite censi are assumed to have not owned any property of significance.
Gaius Marius
, as part of the Marian Reforms
of 105 BC, allowed these non-land-owning Romans to enlist in the Roman legions. For the first time, men no longer had to own property to fight for Rome
. Because these men had no property, they became the clients of their generals and veterans looked to them for land or monies after demobilization. Since the reforms did not include a permanent demobilization method divorced from army commanders, soldiers became closely linked to their generals for the process of rewarding them for service on demobilization. The lack of a permanent demobilization process run by the government in Marius' military reform would help facilitate the demise of the Roman Republic.
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
census
Census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
. Also known as "the head count", the term was used to refer to the lowest class of citizens, people not of the nobility
Nobility
Nobility is a social class which possesses more acknowledged privileges or eminence than members of most other classes in a society, membership therein typically being hereditary. The privileges associated with nobility may constitute substantial advantages over or relative to non-nobles, or may be...
or middle class
Middle class
The middle class is any class of people in the middle of a societal hierarchy. In Weberian socio-economic terms, the middle class is the broad group of people in contemporary society who fall socio-economically between the working class and upper class....
es, owning little or no property. Initially capite censi was synonymous with proletarii, meaning those citizens whose property was too small to be rated for the census. Later though, the proletarii were distinguished from the capite censi as having "appreciable property" to the value of 11,000 ass
As (coin)
The , also assarius was a bronze, and later copper, coin used during the Roman Republic and Roman Empire.- Republican era coinage :...
es or less. In contrast, the capite censi are assumed to have not owned any property of significance.
Gaius Marius
Gaius Marius
Gaius Marius was a Roman general and statesman. He was elected consul an unprecedented seven times during his career. He was also noted for his dramatic reforms of Roman armies, authorizing recruitment of landless citizens, eliminating the manipular military formations, and reorganizing the...
, as part of the Marian Reforms
Marian reforms
The Marian reforms of 107 BC were a group of military reforms initiated by Gaius Marius, a statesman and general of the Roman republic.- Roman army before the Marian reforms :...
of 105 BC, allowed these non-land-owning Romans to enlist in the Roman legions. For the first time, men no longer had to own property to fight for Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
. Because these men had no property, they became the clients of their generals and veterans looked to them for land or monies after demobilization. Since the reforms did not include a permanent demobilization method divorced from army commanders, soldiers became closely linked to their generals for the process of rewarding them for service on demobilization. The lack of a permanent demobilization process run by the government in Marius' military reform would help facilitate the demise of the Roman Republic.