Ancient+Rome+and+Cicero

__ Ancient Rome and Cicero __ Who Was Cicero? Cicero was a famous Roman Statesman during the era of Ancient Rome and was the leader of the Roman Republic. He believed in Public Life; the idea that citizens and leaders were willing to make sacrifices for the common good. However Cicero’s ideas often fell on deaf ears seeing as Rome’s selfish empire eventually ended their freedom.

__ Our Government __ Cicero said, “In a Kingdom, only the king has many rights. Kings can be just, but rule by one person can easily become tyranny.” He believed power should be by the people-the basic idea of democracy. Many of these ideas were transferred right into the Declaration of Independence. The idea in the Declaration that, "Whenever any form of government becomes destructive to these ends, it is the right of the people to abolish it, and to institute new government..." was definately derived from many of Cicero's beliefs.



The government of Ancient Rome before the Declaration of Independence was the Roman Republic that established a complex system of offices that let common people have a voice but also had checks on people's power. This Roman Republic government was described as "a mixed constitution because it had elements of monarchical power, aristocracy and the rule of the common people." __Our Government __ This is like our government now because we took some ideas that they had by letting the common people have voice but not granting too much power to one person. This may have even contributed to the separation of the branches of government we now have.
 * Government before Declaration: **


 * Cicero Government Inspired Quotes **

“Freedom is a man's natural power of doing what he pleases, so far as he is not prevented by force or law.” -This is basically the definition of Democracy, so Cicero was ahead of his time.

“Freedom is a possession of inestimable value.” -Cicero understood that freedom is hard to attain, but once we have it, it will be the most valuable part of our lives.

Created By: Clancy Mask, Jennie Halverson, Shelly Bieser, Amber Wilson Citations: "Marcus Tullius Cicero (Roman statesman, scholar, and writer) -- Britannica Online Encyclopedia." //Encyclopedia - Britannica Online Encyclopedia//. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Sept. 2011. [].

"Cicero - Ancient Rome for Kids ." //Ancient Rome for Kids//. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Sept. 2011. <http://rome.mrdonn.org/cicero