Gallic Wars Rome wasn't built in a day, and neither was the Roman Empire. One of history's most powerful and influential realms established itself as a free and independent republic long before the likes of Julius Caesar and Emperor Marcus Aurelius. Great philosophers and intellectuals like Cicero and Lucretius graced the ancient paved roads of the Roman Republic nearly 2,000 years ago and helped build the reputation of that polity to be as equal to those of the Greeks. As Rome swelled with tradespeople, artisans, slaves, and wealthy merchant families, its politicians struggled to maintain the fundamental democratic properties of the republican government. Rules were bent and broken, politicians and voters were bribed and lied to, and eventually, the power of Rome fell to the one man who could muster the respect and loyalty of the world-famous Roman army.