Ancient Roman and Greek Governmental Systems and Colonial America - Essay Example

Greece and Rome & Colonial America - The ancient Greeks lived in city-states, which were separate political units, and the administrative system was different in different city-states. The ancient Greeks were citizens of individual city-states and were loyal to their own city-state. Each of these city-states or polis had its customs, laws, and way of life (Hornblower et al, 2004). Initially, these city-states were ruled by a few wealthy men but gradually the administrative system became democratic. Athens was the largest city-state in Ancient Greece and its society was divided into the upper, middle, and lower classes. However despite these differences ancient Greeks were bound by a common heritage and common language just like American people speak a common language. Greek citizens were trained in the arts, music, and they played games represented by the Olympics. There was a system of assemblies in which upper-class citizens discussed issues of government and suggested changes, very much like the modern parliament. Ancient Rome was however ruled by an emperor and the Roman government balanced out political power between three different branches comprising the Executive branch, the Legislative branch, and the Judicial branch. The consuls who supervised the Senate and the army controlled the executive branch along with the mayors and tax collectors (Hornblower et al, 2004). Only adults were allowed to vote or elect rulers. The legislative branch consisted of 300 senate members who owned land and were elected by the consuls. The concept of senate members is still a part of the administrative system in America. The judicial branch comprised of six judges elected every two years and the judges had similar roles as they have now in the United States.  They decided cases of crime and punishment.

Parallels could be drawn between ancient Greek city-states and colonies of America before American colonies developed into a nation of the United States of America in 1776 (Taylor, 2003). Colonial America formed by several European nations had thirteen colonies, which were grouped according to the form of government, and divided into three classes -- the Charter, the Royal, and the Proprietary (Middleton, 2002). This could now be considered as the Corporation and the Provincial. Like the Greek city-states these colonies set up in America in the 17th century were separate units although they also had common features as each of these colonies consisted of three organs,(1) the governor, appointed by the Crown or by the proprietor, or proprietors, (2) the council, also appointed by the Crown, and (3) the assembly or house of representatives, elected by the people (Taylor, 2003). Like the Greek city-states, colonies were first controlled by ancient European rulers, which later made way for more democratic forms of government. According to Roman judicial and legislative systems, the judiciary and Senate were also established in America. Thus implementation of these systems required administrative control.

Conclusion - These instances suggest the tremendous influence of ancient Roman and Greek governmental systems and their implementation on the development of Colonial America.