The Roman Consular Tribunate: When Rome Shared Power with Itself

The Story of Italy: Rome, Renaissance, and the Birth of Modern Europe — Fexingo History · Jul 15, 2026 · 6m · transcript

In the early Roman Republic, a unique experiment in military command emerged: the consular tribunate. Between 444 BCE and 367 BCE, Rome sometimes elected six military tribunes with consular power instead of the standard two consuls. This episode explores why — a mix of military necessity, political compromise between patricians and plebeians, and the growing complexity of Rome's wars. We follow the ebb and flow of this institution through key figures like Lucius Quinctius Cincinnatus and the lex Licinia Sextia that finally abolished it. How did shared command work on campaign? And why…