In 133 BC the tribune Tiberius Gracchus proposed land reforms to give public land held by rich landowners to poor citizens and veterans, a measure the Senate opposed. When he sought re-election, a mob of senators and their clients beat him to death on the Capitoline Hill, the first political bloodshed in Rome for centuries. His brother Gaius met a similar fate in 121 BC. The violence set a precedent that political disputes could be resolved by force, and it began a century of unrest leading to civil war and the end of the Republic.
Before and after
- 145 BCEBirth of Sima Qian
- 141 BCEPaper
- 2nd century BCEVenus de Milo
- 139 BCEZhang Qian's mission opens the Silk Road
- 134 BCETiberius Gracchus is murdered and the Republic enters its crisis
- c. 131 BCEHipparchus discovers the precession of the equinoxes
- from 111 BCE to 105 BCEJugurthine War
- 3 January 106 BCEBirth of Cicero
- 104 BCEEstablishment of Qumran
More in Wars, politics & history
- 587 BCENebuchadnezzar destroys Jerusalem and the First Temple
- from 264 BCE to 241 BCEFirst Punic War
- 203 BCEScipio defeats Hannibal at Zama
- from 66 CE to 74 CEFirst Jewish-Roman War
- 293 CEDiocletian establishes the Tetrarchy
- 17 January 395 CEThe Roman Empire is permanently divided
The era
This moment belongs to the Ancient civilizations (3,200 BCE to 500 CE), writing, cities and empires. You can also browse everything in the 2nd century BCE.