The War Economy of the Roman Republic (406-100 Bce)

The System That Built an Empire

Biglino, Fabrizio

How did the Roman economy support the expansion of the Republic and play a crucial role in its success and rise from regional power in Central Italy to the dominant superpower of the Mediterranean world? To what extent did the intensification of the military efforts contribute to the growth of the Roman economy, and how did this happen? In The War Economy of the Roman Republic, Fabrizio Biglino examines the growth of the Roman army and its economic impact from the late fifth to the end of the second centuries BCE. By building an original interpretational framework, Biglino offers a new analysis of the interplay of warfare and the economy in the Republican period and, on a wider scale, the role of warfare in the development of pre-industrialised economies.