00:00 The Roman Republic had a hierarchical system called the Cursus Honorum, which determined the political and social status of individuals and families.

01:56 The Cursus Honorum was the hierarchical path in ancient Rome that aristocrats had to follow in order to climb the ladder of success, with military service as the first step.

03:28 Once a young man from a noble family had military experience, they could run for elected office, starting with the position of Quaster responsible for finances, accounting, and payments, and then progressing to the position of Adile responsible for public buildings and maintaining order.

05:02 The position of Adile was important for gaining popularity and name recognition, but not mandatory in the Cursus Honorum, while the position of Praetor required previous experience as a Quaster and involved serving as a judge, with the Praetor Urbanus having the power to overturn lower court decisions and adjudicate trials for high-ranking officials, and Praetors also had the perk of being assigned six lictors as bodyguards.

06:39 Praetors had the perk of Imperium, which granted them wide-ranging executive authority and immunity from prosecution, and after serving a year, they would be assigned a position as Pro Praetor with the same authority, while the highest rank on the Cursus Honorum was that of Consul, which required previous service as a Praetor, being 42 years of age, and came with the honor and status that would last for generations.

08:25 After serving as Consuls, individuals were given positions as Pro Consuls, usually as Generals or Governors of Provinces, where they had unlimited power and often used it for personal gain, and the final step on the Cursus Honorum was the rank of Sensor, responsible for taking a census, determining voter rolls, and enforcing public morality in Rome.

10:01 The Tribune of the Plebs were considered sacrosanct and could not be touched, and the highest position possible in the Republic was that of dictator, who had absolute military and civil authority for 6 months, while the final position was that of Pontifus Maximus, the supreme priest in the Roman religion, with a term of office for life.