Asia pacified, Sulla could now return to Italy. Cinna who had gathered troops to confront him, but with his death, which occurred in a mutiny, the strength of the popular was undone, although he continued with Papirio Carbón and Mario's son, Mario the Younger.
The decisive battle between Optimates and Populares took place in Rome, at the Puerta Colima. Many young aristocrats had joined Sulla, including Cn. Pompey (106-48 BC).
Sila then had himself appointed Dictator to reform the Roman Constitution and get rid of the Populares, whose names were posted on the album in the forum. Anyone who had been "outlawed" in this way could be killed with impunity and whoever killed him received a reward.
Many people, whose only crime had been to be rich, died this way (in principle only 40 senators and 1,600 knights had been outlawed, but several soldiers perished) because Sulla needed a lot of money and land to settle his 120,000 soldiers.
The Sila reforms
Sila carried out a series of reforms during his dictatorship with which he favored the Optimates:
- he Reorganized the Roman Republic and appointed 300 new Senators from the ranks of knights and wealthy Italics.
- From this moment on, the 20 elected quaestors would automatically go to the Senate, so that the number of Senators remained constant without the need for election by the Censors.
- Knights are no longer part of the Courts.
- Public provisioning of wheat has been abolished.
- The Tribunes of the Plebs have been stripped of all authority.
- They were prevented from running for public office and being re-elected if ten years had not passed since their previous exercise of office.
- The Senate was given the power to veto any law.
- Criminal jurisdiction passed from the Assembly to 7 permanent Courts, all of them made up of judges of senatorial rank.
- To fill the position of President of these courts, the number of Praetors was increased to eight —there were six—.
- Each Praetor held his position for one year in Rome and the following year, as Propraetor (usually with the name of Proconsul ) in a Province.
- Of the 10 Provinces that made up the Roman territory (Sicily, Sardinia, Corsica, the two Hispanias, Macedonia, Asia, Gaul Narbonensis, Gaul Cisalpine and Cilicia) eight were governed by these Proconsuls and two by former Consuls.
Public works
In Rome, Sulla rebuilt the Temple of Capitoline Jupiter and the Senate building and built a large State Archive (the Tabularium ) on the west side of the Forum. In addition, other buildings were built in various cities of the State.
Other cultural aspects
From a cultural point of view, it is worth noting the publication of all of Aristotle's works, which had remained ignored for several centuries.
Silla's Retreat (79 B.C.)
Finished these reforms, Sila retired to Campania, dying the following year.
After a few years, one of the main representatives who took power was Pompey. In the year 71 a. C., with only 35 years of age, Pompey was elected consul for the first time.