Sicily and the imperialism of Mid-Republican Rome : (289-191BC)

Abstract

This thesis will use Sicily as a microcosm to illustrate the imperialism of mid-Republican Rome, in particular in the western Mediterranean. Here, Rome received tangible benefits from occupying the places they conquered, as opposed to the east, where subjugation brought with it few short term benefits other than movable plunder. In Sicily, the revenue of occupation was grain, specifically grain for the Roman army. The second. aim of the thesis is to demonstrate the process of Roman administrative imperialism in Sicily; that Roman control and administration expanded as the island became more important as a source of military provisions. That Sicily became not just the granary of Italy, but also of the Roman legions, was not a result of the Roman conquest or of the later administration that was put into place. Instead, the reverse is true; Roman government on Sicily was a byproduct of the fact that the island provided Rome with the means to make war.