The+Popular+Faction

**Who Were the Populares? **

The popular faction was a group of aristocratic Patricians in the late Roman Republic who relied on the people to gain political power. The Populares sought popular support against the dominant oligarchy run by the Optimates, in either the interest of the citizens or in the interest to further their own political power. They supported popular measures such as land-reform to earn the support of the Plebeians. To pass laws, they usually used the assemblies of the people rather than the Senate. They claimed to want to extend voting rights, relieve poverty and gain popular support for agrarian, colonial, or grain laws. They generally favored the limitation of slavery, since slavery took jobs away from poor free citizens. Popularist politics reached a peak under the dictatorship of Julius Caesar, who had relied on the support of the people in his rise to power. After the creation of the Second Triumvirate, the Populares ceased to exist in politics. They were often associated with butting heads with the Optimates Faction, and eventually their fighting led to the Caesarean Civil War, which brought about the fall of the Republic.

**Notable Members of the Popular Faction** In addition to Gaius Julius Caesar, many famous politicians were part of the Populares. This included Tiberius and Gaius Gracchus, Gaius Marius, Lucius Cornelius Cinna, Publius Clodius Pulcher, and Marcus Licinius Crassus and Pompey (but only during the First Triumvirate). **Laws Caesar Passed In the Name of the Populares ** During his dictatorship, Caesar Passed a law that required the public release of all debates and procedures of the senate. He also developed a land bill which was supposed to go unopposed in the Senate. Caesar brought tax proposals that would benefit Crassus' equestrian business before the people's assembly and passed them through without opposition because the citizens of rome loved him.  __Works Cited__  "Optimates and Populares (Roman Politics) -- Britannica Online Encyclopedia." //Encyclopedia - Britannica Online Encyclopedia//. Web. 03 May 2011. <[]>. Web. <[|www.heritage-history.com/www/heritage.php?Dir=wars&FileName=wars_sullacivil.php]>. "First Triumvirate." //UNRV History - Roman Empire//. Web. 03 May 2011. <[]>. "Background for Populares." //VROMA :: Home//. Web. 03 May 2011. <<span style="color: #9b18f3; font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: 10pt;">[|http://www.vroma.org/~bmcmanus/populares.html] >.