office, the administrative functions of the state, the top priestly offices and the courts. But they had always been influential in these areas. The problem came when the nobiles began to monopolize land ownership as well. When Rome conquered an enemy, especially in Italy, a commission was sent by the senate to organize how that conquered state would function thereafter. If a city occupied a strategic location, it was highly likely that the original occupants would be displaced and the city occupied by retired Roman legionaries. In such an event, the city became an extension of Rome itself – a
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