"The Women's March: Rome" Topic

"The women of ancient Rome took to the streets in protest in 195 BC. It was a striking manifestation of their power in what was a rigidly patriarchal society.

The event was the Senate's discussion on the repeal of the lex Oppia, a wartime austerity measure implemented at the height of the Second Punic War in 215 BC. A series of laws were implemented in this period of financial crisis, including those which saw the doubling and tripling of taxes, trust funds borrowed for use by the state and citizens' private property diverted to public use. The lex Oppia was implemented to severely curb female expenditure on adornment and finery. This law restricted how much gold women were allowed to wear and what they wore; they were no longer permitted to dress in multi-coloured garments, particularly purple. They were also no longer allowed to ride in their carriages within one mile of the city. These restrictions prevented what these women saw as their right to be elegant in appearance. More importantly, however, at a time when women did not enter into the service of the state and rarely into business, these continuing restrictions denied Roman…."
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