ABSTRACT
The changes resulting from the Punic wars and Rome’s rapid expansion overseas were producing serious problems and discontent among a number of groups. Tiberius Sempronius Gracchus and his brother Gaius ushered in a century of increasingly violent political upheavals that helped eventually to destroy the Roman Republic. The struggle over Tiberius Gracchus’ land bill has often been simplistically portrayed as a struggle between Tiberius, on the one hand, and the Roman senate, on the other. Tiberius’ reforms were not based solely, or even primarily, on consideration of some abstract radical ideology. Tiberius’ initial actions must be viewed as part of the normal workings of the senatorial oligarchy. Tiberius Gracchus’ determination to pursue agrarian reform in the face of bitter opposition from many of his fellow nobles cannot be understood without reference to the personalities, careers, alliances, and animosities of individual senatorial aristocrats.
