![]() Collatinus allowed Brutus to have the fasces first, and Brutus was careful to guard the liberty that he had fought so hard to win. The only difference was that they were elected for a year alone, and only one of them was allowed to bear the fasces, so as not to double the people’s terror. For the consuls were as powerful as the kings, they ruled by the same oaths as the kings, and they carried the same insignia as the kings. It nurtured Rome until it was ready for liberty, which at the beginning of the republic consisted mainly in the limited term of the consuls. The rule of kings moderated this and brought tranquility. ![]() What would have happened if the hordes of shepherds who made up the plebs would have been given liberty along with their sanctuary? Without the fear of a king, they would have fought with the patres, tearing the city in two before the bonds of kinship and love of the land had united the plebs and patres into one people. In that case, liberty would have come too soon. Though Brutus won true glory by expelling Tarquin, he would have done the public a disservice had he seized power from any of Tarquin’s predecessors. Tarquin’s predecessors had all been praiseworthy rulers who expanded the city and added new homes for the population that they themselves had increased. Indeed, the insolence of the last king made this liberty even sweeter. From this point on, I shall write the history of a free Roman people, recording their deeds in peace and war, their annually elected officials, and the imperium of their laws, which thenceforth were more powerful than any one man. ![]()
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