The Servile Wars were thee separate and unrelated rebellions. In the third one, escaped gladiators gathered 120,000 slaves. They were an effective fighting force which defeated Roman army detachments sent against them. They also pillaged the countryside and looted towns. This lasted for three years. The Romans had to assemble 8 legions to defeat them.
The men who suppressed the rebellion, Crassus and Pompey marched on Rome and refused to disband their armies. They stood for election as consuls and both were elected, even though Pompey was not eligible. This was due to the presence of their armies encamped outside the city. Their action was a further subversion of the republican institutione as it was another instance of the army being used to obtain political gain ‘unconstitutionally’. The bust from the suppression of the rebellion helped these two men to become powerful. Later they formed the triumviratum, a tripartite alliance with Caesar which made these thee men the most powerful politicians in the Republic.
The men who suppressed the rebellion, Crassus and Pompey marched on Rome and refused to disband their armies. They stood for election as consuls and both were elected, even though Pompey was not eligible. This was due to the presence of their armies encamped outside the city. Their action was a further subversion of the republican institutione as it was another instance of the army being used to obtain political gain ‘unconstitutionally’. The bust from the suppression of the rebellion helped these two men to become powerful. Later they formed the triumviratum, a tripartite alliance with Caesar which made these thee men the most powerful politicians in the Republic.
