SENATE, in general, is an assembly or council of
senators; that is, of the principal inhabitants of a state,
who have a share in the government.
The senate of ancient Rome is of all others the most
celebrated. It exercised no contentious jurisdiction;
but appointed judges, either from among the senators
or knights, to determine processes; it also appointed go-
vernors of provinces, and disposed of the revenues of the
commonwealth, &c. Yet did not the whole sovereign
power reside in the senate, since it could not elect mag-
istrates, make laws, or decide of war and peace; in
all which cases the senate was obliged to consult the
people.
The senate, when first instituted by Romulus, con-
sisted of 100 members; to whom he afterwards added
the same number when the Sabines had migrated to
Rome. Tarquin the ancient made the senate consist of
300, and this number remained fixed for a long time;
but afterwards it fluctuated greatly, and was increased
first to 700, and afterwards to 900 by Julius Cæsar, who
filled the senate with men of every rank and order. Un-
der Augustus the senators amounted to 1000, but this
number was reduced, and fixed to 600. The place of a
senator was always bestowed upon merit: the monarchs
had the privilege of choosing the members; and after
the expulsion of the Tarquins, it was one of the rights
of the consuls, till the election of the censors, who from
their office seemed most capable of making choice of
men whose character was irreproachable, whose morals
were pure, and relations honourable. Only particular
families were admitted into the senate; and when the
plebeians were permitted to share the honours of the state,
it was then required that they should be born of free
citizens. It was also required that the candidates should
be knights before their admission into the senate. They
were to be above the age of 25, and to have previously
passed through the inferior offices of quaestor, tribune of
the people, edile, prætor, and consul.
The senate always met of course on the 1st of Janua-
ry, for the inauguration of the new consuls; and in all
months, universally, there were three days, viz. the ka-
lends, nones, and ides, on which it regularly met: but
it always met on extraordinary occasions, when called
together by consul, tribune, or dictator.
To render their decrees valid and authentic, a cer-
tain number of members was requisite, and such as
were
were absent without some proper cause were always fined. In the reign of Augustus, 400 senators were requisite to make a senate. Nothing was transacted before sunrise or after sunset. In their office the senators were the guardians of religion; they disposed of the provinces as they pleased; they prorogued the assemblies of the people; they appointed thanksgivings; nominated their ambassadors; distributed the public money, and in short had the management of every thing political or civil in the republic, except the creating of magistrates, the enacting of laws, and the declaration of war or peace, which were confined to the assemblies of the people.