Plebeii

Plebeii, or plebeians, were the free citizens of ancient Rome who were not members of the patrician class. The term derives from plebs, the Latin word for the common people. In the early Republic, patricians held most political and religious power, while plebeians faced legal and economic disadvantages despite their large numbers.

During the Conflict of the Orders (5th–4th centuries BCE), plebeians sought political equality through protests, legal pressure, and the creation of new offices. They secured the office of tribune of the plebs, whose members enjoyed sacrosanctity and the power to veto legislation and magistrates’ actions. The plebeian assembly (concilium plebis) and the codification of laws in the Twelve Tables around 450 BCE broadened plebeian rights and laid down a public legal framework. The Lex Hortensia of 287 BCE made plebiscites binding on all Romans, including patricians, effectively unifying the legal framework.

Over time, plebeians gained access to nearly all political offices. The consulship and other magistracies were opened to plebeians after the mid-4th century BCE, and the Senate gradually included more plebeians. Military service also reinforced their social standing, as plebeians formed the backbone of the Roman army.

In the later Republic and into the Empire, the distinction between patrician and plebeian remained a recognized social category but diminished in political importance. The term plebeian thus came to describe the non-aristocratic segments of Roman citizenry and, more broadly, the common people, a usage that persisted in later Western languages.