Alexandros Oranje

Ah cool, are you basing this on the writings of people like Tacitus? I was just reading some there... where else should I look? Suetonius?

Does anyone know how many men were in the Praetorian guard?

Thanks very much for your help. I will see if I can get a hold of these books to help me further. I will basically tackle this question as you both have suggested. Suicidal factors would be the intrinsic aspects of what defined the Republic. The Senate and its policies drawn to protect it, for example. Outside factors would be, in the end, Caesar. For me, this question is whether Ceasar's involvement was to such an extent that without him the Republic would have survived for a significant amount longer. Further to this one could also maybe explore why those that "saved" the Republic were not able to sustain it into the Augustan period.

I guess I was thinking there might be a difference between suicide and being at fault for your death. The former requires some form of positive action, whereas the latter would involve aspects of the republic itself (for example policy) that in the end meant inevitable downfall. I guess I am reading into it too much!

I don't really like asking for help on essays or any other university work on this, but I don't want any research done or the answers. I'm just looking to understand the question!... It's a resit summer essay as I failed the first time round, so I can't go to my tutor for help as he is away at the moment... Basically, the question is this: Did the Roman Republic commit suicide or was it murder? I don't know what angle to take this from. Which would be considered suicidal forces and which outside factors that can be counted as murder? From my knowledge of the end of the Republican period it was a Civil War, so in a way one could argue that it was suicide. However, can Caesar be considered an outside factor and thus the one who did commit the murder? Is the question asking whether inside or outside forces caused the downfall? Policy that was structured to fall, or people that wanted it to die? Basically I just want to understand this flippin question in the most logical way... I can't really afford to answer the wrong question! Thanks a lot for your help. Sorry if this is annoying, moderators delete if not appropriate. I'll probably be calling tomorrow and seeing if someone from the department can clarify the question.