Century Comitia

Layout reconstruction of the Field of Mars as of 300 BC e.

Centuriate comitia ( lat.Comitia centuriata ) - one of the types of public assembly in ancient Rome , consisting of patricians and plebeians , capable of carrying weapons. The meeting was distributed on the basis of property qualification . According to legend, they were established by the penultimate Roman king Servius Tullius . By function, they replaced chicken comitia . Before casting a vote, the participants of one century conferred among themselves. Each century had one vote in comitia, so the total number of votes was equal to the number of centuries . However, most of the centuries belonged to the first class (large landowners), and the advantage often belonged to him. There were a total of 193 centuries, the voting was stopped if the first 97 centuries were voted by a single opinion.

Since the centuriate comitia were a collection of warriors, then, by law, they could not gather in the city of Rome and gathered outside the sacred border of the city ( Pomeria ), on the Field of Mars . During the meeting, a red combat banner fluttered at the Capitol . Only higher magistrates with an empire ^[1] could create centuriate comitia: consuls , praetors , dictators , interreks . Before the law, Hortense 287 BC. e . most laws passed through centuriate comitia. After this date tribute commissions were also given this right. Nevertheless, even then, the powers of the centuriate comitia remained very broad. They declared war and made peace. In the centuries, all the higher magistrates were chosen. Also, before the law, Lucius Apuley de Saturnin (Lex Appuleia de majestate) was the main body for treason.