Similarities Between Rome And Carthage
Introduction
Two cities built up great dominions that not even the test of time could erase. While their success has been attributed to a lot of things, it should be said that the governments of both Rome and Carthage played crucial roles in their success. This wasn’t much about luck as it was about finding the right balance of bureaucracy. Here I will explore if both governments were built off of the same governmental structure, or if they were made up of architectures as different as their powers.
The All-Powerful In Carthage, the most authoritative bureaucrats were annually a pair of elected magistrates known as suffetes. This office was created to replace the old monarchy and was by no means open to the entire public. One must have had great wealth and the right ancestry to be considered. They served their city through a practice of civil law, working together with the senate, and sending one Suffete with the troops during times of war while the other resided over Carthage’s government (Cartwright, 2016).
In contrast, Rome’s most powerful office was that of a censor and it had little similarity to Carthage’s suffetes. This position was very honorable and thought to be the most accomplished bureaucratic office. In order to be considered for election, one must have been a consul. If elected, they would only serve as a censor …show more content…
The quaestors did the job of the Carthaginian taxation commission and the state treasurer. They were Rome’s accountants who regulated the treasury but also their tax enforcers who ensured that all taxes and tributes were paid. The aedile overlapped with the second Carthaginian commission of religious administration in that it too governed over their city’s places of worship. However, the aedile held a lot more power as it kept charge of public records and oversaw many community affairs such as festivals, markets, roads and foodstuffs (Wasson,
Two cities built up great dominions that not even the test of time could erase. While their success has been attributed to a lot of things, it should be said that the governments of both Rome and Carthage played crucial roles in their success. This wasn’t much about luck as it was about finding the right balance of bureaucracy. Here I will explore if both governments were built off of the same governmental structure, or if they were made up of architectures as different as their powers.
The All-Powerful In Carthage, the most authoritative bureaucrats were annually a pair of elected magistrates known as suffetes. This office was created to replace the old monarchy and was by no means open to the entire public. One must have had great wealth and the right ancestry to be considered. They served their city through a practice of civil law, working together with the senate, and sending one Suffete with the troops during times of war while the other resided over Carthage’s government (Cartwright, 2016).
In contrast, Rome’s most powerful office was that of a censor and it had little similarity to Carthage’s suffetes. This position was very honorable and thought to be the most accomplished bureaucratic office. In order to be considered for election, one must have been a consul. If elected, they would only serve as a censor …show more content…
The quaestors did the job of the Carthaginian taxation commission and the state treasurer. They were Rome’s accountants who regulated the treasury but also their tax enforcers who ensured that all taxes and tributes were paid. The aedile overlapped with the second Carthaginian commission of religious administration in that it too governed over their city’s places of worship. However, the aedile held a lot more power as it kept charge of public records and oversaw many community affairs such as festivals, markets, roads and foodstuffs (Wasson,