Historiae Romanorum

Censor

An powerful magistracy of Republican Rome.  The main duty of the censors was to act as the registrar of Rome , and therefore oversee the public census.  The true power of the censor, however, lay in his ability to oversee the enforcement of public morality.  He could cause equestrians and patricians to lose their rank, and even remove a senator from office.  Due to the potential power of of the censor, most achieved this rank only after they had already become consul, thereby already proving their good character.

This page was last updated on July 21, 2004.