Aedile facts for kids

Aedile (pronounced EE-dyle) was an important elected job in the Roman Republic. Based in Rome, aediles were like city managers. They were in charge of keeping public buildings in good shape and organizing public festivals. They also helped keep order in the city and made sure Rome had enough supplies. Think of them as a mix of a modern-day city council member and a public works director.

There were two main types of aediles. The first were the "plebeian aediles" (in Latin, aediles plebis), and only common people, called plebeians, could hold this job. The other two were "curule aediles" (Latin: aediles curules). This job was open to both plebeians and the wealthy, noble families called patricians, often in alternating years. A curule aedile was considered a higher-ranking official.

The job of aedile was usually held by young men who wanted to climb the political ladder in Rome, known as the cursus honorum. It was typically a step after being a quaestor (a financial officer) but before becoming a praetor (a judge or military commander). It wasn't a required step, but it was very helpful. Being an aedile showed that a politician cared about public service. It also gave them a chance to host public festivals and games, which was a great way to become well-known and popular with the people.

History of the Aedile Job

Plebeian Aediles: The Common People's Voice

The plebeian aediles were first created in 494 BC, at the same time as the tribune of the plebs. The tribunes were officials who protected the rights of the common people. At first, aediles helped the tribunes and looked after the Temple of Ceres, which was a meeting place for plebeians. Later, they became responsible for maintaining all of the city's buildings.

Their early duties were mostly helping out. They assisted the tribunes with various tasks, though many of these tasks were not very important. Around 446 BC, they were given the job of looking after the Senate's decisions. When the Senate made a decision (a senatus consultum), it was written down and stored in the public treasury, called the Aerarium. Aediles were given this power because the consuls, who had done this before, sometimes hid or changed the documents. Aediles also kept records of the decisions made by the common people's assembly, called "plebiscites." Over time, their powers grew, but it was sometimes hard to tell the difference between their jobs and those of the censors, who were very powerful officials.

Curule Aediles: For All Romans

According to the Roman historian Livy, after some important laws were passed in 367 BC, an extra day was added to the Roman games. The plebeian aediles didn't want to pay for the extra costs. So, the patricians offered to pay if they could also become aediles. The plebeians agreed, and that's how the two curule aediles were created.

At first, only patricians could be curule aediles. Then, it alternated between patricians and plebeians, and finally, anyone could be chosen. Curule aediles were formal magistrates and had special honors that plebeian aediles did not. They could sit on a special chair called a curule seat and wear a fancy purple-bordered toga. They also had the power to issue rules, especially about public markets and trade. Even though curule aediles were always ranked higher, their jobs slowly became very similar to those of the plebeian aediles.

Differences Between the Two

There was a difference in how the two types of aediles handled public festivals. Some festivals were specifically for plebeians and were managed by the plebeian aediles. Other festivals were only overseen by the curule aediles. It was often at these festivals that aediles would spend a lot of money. They did this to gain support from voters for future elections.

Aediles were not paid back for these public expenses, so most people who wanted the job had to be rich. Since this job was a step towards higher political office, it helped make sure that only wealthy people (mostly landowners) could become important politicians. This lavish spending became very common after the Second Punic War, as Rome gained more wealth from its conquests. Even the emperors later on rarely spent as much as some aediles did during the Republic, like Julius Caesar during his time as aedile.

How Aediles Were Chosen

Both plebeian and curule aediles were elected by the Tribal Assembly, which was an assembly of all Roman citizens. Because the plebeian aediles were elected only by plebeians, they were not technically considered full magistrates.

Before a law called the Lex Villia Annalis was passed in 180 BC, people could run for aedile when they were twenty-seven years old. After this law, the age was raised, probably to thirty-six. By the 1st century BC, aediles were elected in July and started their jobs on the first day of January.

What Aediles Did

The Roman writer Cicero explained the aediles' duties in three main parts:

Looking After the City

Aediles were responsible for keeping the city in good condition. This included:

• Repairing and maintaining temples, sewers, and aqueducts (water channels).
• Cleaning and paving streets.
• Making rules about traffic, dangerous animals, and unsafe buildings.
• Taking steps to prevent fires.
• Overseeing public baths and taverns.
• Making sure people followed laws about spending too much money.
• Punishing gamblers and people who charged too much interest on loans.
• Generally looking after public behavior and morals.
• They also punished those who had too much public land or too many animals on state pastures.

Making Sure There Was Enough Food

Aediles also made sure the city had enough food and that it was fair. They would:

• Check the quality of goods sold and make sure weights and measures were correct.
• Buy grain to sell at a low price if there was a shortage.

Organizing Public Games and Festivals

A big part of an aedile's job was to supervise and organize public games and festivals. This included games they paid for themselves and those paid for by private citizens (for example, at funerals). Ambitious politicians often spent huge amounts of money on these events to become popular with the people and help their careers.

Aediles in Later Roman Times

In 44 BC, Julius Caesar added two new plebeian aediles called cereales. Their special job was to manage the grain supply for the city.

Under Emperor Augustus, the aedile job lost much of its power. Many of its duties, like judging cases and organizing games, were given to other officials. Its city responsibilities were also reduced when an urban prefect was appointed to manage the city. Augustus also took over their religious duties, which was their original purpose. By doing this, he greatly weakened the office. After this, few people wanted to be aediles, and Augustus even had to force some former officials to take the job. Later emperors continued to reduce the aediles' power by creating new offices to handle their tasks. The job of aedile completely disappeared by the 3rd century AD.

However, in Roman colonies and cities outside of Rome, officials with similar powers to the republican aediles often existed, though their exact duties varied. They were usually chosen every year.

Aediles Today

Today, in Portugal, a county mayor can still be called an edil. For example, "O edil de Coimbra" means "the mayor of Coimbra". This term is also used in Brazil and Romania for mayors. In Spain and Latin America, members of city councils are called concejales or ediles.

Shakespeare's Aediles

In his play Coriolanus, Shakespeare includes aediles as minor characters. In the play, their main role is to act as policemen.

See Also

• Cursus honorum
• Ancient Roman occupations
• Ancient Roman titles