What were some of the advantages and disadvantages of the time limits on Roman government service?

Answer 1

The advantage was that one man could not become the supreme authority and if a man were elected consul he would have his chances to get back the funds he had to spend on getting himself elected sooner, as most ex-consuls were given provinces to govern and to exploit. A disadvantage was that the time limit of one year that the Romans imposed, was not really long enough to bring about any more than one or two major changes.

Answer 2

The limited terms of office existed during the Roman Republic. The monarchic period and the period of rule by emperors did not have these restrictions. The term of office of four of the five types of officers of state (the consuls, praetors, aediles and quaetors) was one year. That of the censors was 18 months.

The reason for such short of terms of office was that the Republic was established after the overthrow of the last king of Rome, who was a tyrant. The purpose of the Republic was to prevent the return of tyranny. The king was replaced by two annually elected consuls. Having two men in charge meant that the two could counterbalance each other. The short term of office meant that no one could concentrate power in their hands. Apart from the censors, when the other officers of state were created, they were given the same term of office. Originally, the term of office of the censors was five years because the Romans held a census every five years. It was then reduced to 18 months because such long tenure could lead to corruption.

The Romans saw two advantages in the short term of office. One was that it safeguarded liberty by preventing the accumulation of personal power through public office. The other, judging by the shortening of the tenure of the censors, was that it could act as a break on corruption.

A big disadvantage was the resulting lack of policy continuity. Such continuity was ensured by the (unelected) senate, which debated policy matters, made decisions through voting and issued advice. The consuls usually followed this advice. This and other factors made the senate the most powerful political body. The senate was composed of patricians (aristocrats) and former officers of state. This made it the political power base of the aristocracy. It also created conflict with the plebeian tribunes, the representatives of the common people and the poor, whose power base was the Plebeian Council.

There also could be problems on the military front. The consuls were also the commanders of the army. There were occasions when a consul rushed into a battle prematurely in order to fight before the end of his term as victory in battle would confer prestige. Moreover, with the emergence of longer wars which lasted several years this meant that military command had to change continuously. The power to command an army was also given to the second highest officer of state, the praetor. There was also the creation of the procunsuls propraetors, who were allowed to continue to command their armies after their office tenure was up.