This Companion provides an authoritative and up-to-date overview of Roman Republican history as it is currently practiced.

• Highlights recent developments, including archaeological discoveries, fresh approaches to textual sources, and the opening up of new areas of historical study
• Retains the drama of the Republic's rise and fall
• Emphasizes not just the evidence of texts and physical remains, but also the models and assumptions that scholars bring to these artefacts
• Looks at the role played by the physical geography and environment of Italy
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Historians have long asserted that during and after the Hannibalic War, the Roman Republic's need to conscript men for long-term military service helped bring about the demise of Italy's small farms and that the misery of impoverished citizens then became fuel for the social and political conflagrations of the late republic. Nathan Rosenstein challenges this claim, showing how Rome reconciled the needs of war and agriculture throughout the middle republic.

The key, Rosenstein argues, lies in recognizing the critical role of family formation. By analyzing models of families' needs for...