The history of early republican Rome was marked by a long series of social and political struggles between the patrician elite and the plebeians (often called the ‘Conflict of the Orders’). Its results helped Rome achieve the internal integration needed to conquer and rule the Mediterranean world. Despite its fundamental significance, this process is difficult to understand because contemporaneous evidence is scarce and later literary sources present a gravely deformed picture.

In this new edition of Social Struggles in Archaic Rome, experts from both sides of the Atlantic illuminate the history of these social conflicts—examining their causes and nature; analysing a wide range of social, economic, legal, religious, military, and political aspects; and considering the reliability of the historical sources. The second edition is enhanced by addenda updating individual chapters in light of recent scholarship, a new chapter on aspects of material culture, an updated bibliography, and a new introduction.