Cicero’s Attitude toward the Use of Weapons

Abstract

The question of attitudes toward using weapons in Rome is a complex one. The available legal sources are vague and imprecise, and Roman public opinion was based on informal criteria and ‘customary notions’ rather than on clear regulations or explicit prohibitions.  The article examines a corpus of Cicero’s works. Romans were suspicious of weapons within the walls of the city – understood as a civilian territory – due to the questionable propriety of weapons there. In Cicero’s view, under ordinary circumstances, refraining from using arms is regarded as meritorious. However, this principle should radically change in times of crisis. This dualism – “peace by default, arms if peace fails” – became, for Cicero, the foundational concept for preserving the Republic.