A timeline of the Roman Republic from its founding to its fall — the Punic Wars, expansion across the Mediterranean, and the civil wars that ended republican government.
Romans expel their last king, Tarquinius Superbus, and create a republic of elected magistrates, the Senate, and citizen assemblies.
Rome's first written law code — demanded by plebeians seeking legal protection against arbitrary patrician power.
Three wars against Carthage transform Rome from an Italian power into master of the western Mediterranean.
In the same year, Rome destroys both Carthage and Corinth — signaling its complete dominance of the Mediterranean world.
Tiberius Gracchus proposes land redistribution and is killed by senators — the first political murder to break the Republic's norms.
The general Sulla leads his legions into Rome itself — an unprecedented outrage that shatters the taboo against military interference in politics.
Caesar, Pompey, and Crassus form an informal power-sharing alliance that exposes the Senate's impotence.
Caesar's eight-year Gallic campaign gives him wealth, loyal legions, and a military reputation that threatens the political establishment.
Caesar leads his army from Gaul into Italy, triggering civil war with the famous words 'the die is cast.'
Caesar is stabbed to death in the Senate on the Ides of March by conspirators who fear his power — but killing him doesn't save the Republic.
Octavian defeats Mark Antony and Cleopatra in a naval battle, becoming sole ruler of the Roman world.
The Senate grants Octavian the title Augustus — marking the end of the Republic and the beginning of the Roman Empire.