It seems as if nothing could stop the eventual fall of the Roman republic— too many individuals working for different goals one way or another chipped away at the system until it was able to be overcome, and then fundamentally altered. However, there are a few key moments that, had they happened differently, could possibly have staved off the evolution of Rome from a republic into an Empire for a little while longer. By the proverbial “for want of a nail” logic, a historical moment that would have saved the republic is if Scipio Aemelianus had somehow failed miserably at leading his troops against the Carthaginians.
Perhaps it is a fairly obvious claim to make. Nevertheless, had the Roman people broke the rules to vote Aemelianus in as consul in 147 for his popular appeal, and he failed in his battle against Carthage to an embarrassing degree, the Roman voting public would likely be discouraged from gambling on any seemingly “unqualified” politician again anytime soon. Rome had been a republic with a cursus honorum basically since the fall of Tarquinius Superbus in 510 BC (BHR 24). Aemeliuanus, being the first to break a nearly 300 year tradition, would likely in this case have become an…show more content… During a war against an external enemy, it is undoubtedly more difficult to turn inwards for conflict, and Roman citizens at the time like Sallust seemed to know this. The author is explicitly speaking about the splitting of the community into parties, which in his time, are tangibly pulling apart the
