by Sally Morem

Created on: August 25, 2009

Republic is a word derived from the ancient Latin phrase "res publica," or "concerning the public."

This then novel form of government evolved in Rome amid multitudes of Mediterranean monarchies. After overthrowing their Etruscan kings in the 6th century B.C., the Romans established a number of public decision-making bodies called assemblies, including the Knights Assembly, the Assembly of the Plebes, the Tribal Assembly, and the world-famous Roman Senate. Within these assemblies, the leading men of their day competed and cooperated in order to write and pass laws binding on all citizens of Rome.

Within these and other Roman institutions grew a sense of pride in the unique status of being a Roman citizen. Traditions emerged, including a sense of what was right and proper for Romans to do. This was called the Mos Maiorum. Romans believed correct conduct guided by wise laws were what allowed Rome to become the greatest political and military power in the ancient world.

A republic meant a form of government in which all of the people have a vested interest, a government of law, a government of free institutions. These institutions operated for the betterment of society as a whole, instead of just for the few. Contrast this with government by the whim of a prince or monarch, or a small oligarchy, and you'll have a good idea of why peoples who lived under republics embraced them and sought to defend them from enemies.

The Roman Republic did have democratic elements, including elections of officials. But the Romans disdained what they considered the anarchy of direct democracy in Greek city-states. The ideal republic, by contrast, would exist to provide political stability to an often cantankerous people. It would not bend to the political wind of the day.

A number of small republics were formed in Europe after the breakup of the Roman Empire, including the Swiss cantons, Holland, and Venice. None enjoyed the power and prestige of their Roman predecessor, however.

When English colonists began settling in the American wilderness, they didn't have "founding a republic" at the top of their to-do list. They considered themselves loyal subjects of the British monarchy.

But as generations passed, and the colonists found themselves having to run their own affairs due to the vast distance between colonies and mother country, they found they had developed a taste for freedom, a taste they were not willing to give up as Great Britain

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