During the latter part of the Roman Republic, the vast military conquest of the Mediterranean and the Near East created an effect domino in the Roman Empire. The army, made up mainly of formerly agricultural peasants, brought a plethora of wealth and slaves back to the Empire. This, in turn, caused the political elite to become ultra-rich. Using their newly acquired wealth, the Roman political elite purchased vast tracts of agricultural land, latifundia, and staffed them with slaves. Due to the abundance of slaves and the scarcity of agricultural peasants, it was economically prudent for the elite to use large numbers of slaves to work their lands. When the peasants returned home, the slaves took their old jobs or their land had been purchased. to form larger estates, forcing a massive influx of people into the city of Rome in search of work. The unprecedented number of people living in Rome created problems with inadequate housing, hygiene, and food. In order to solve this problem, Tiberius Graccus suggested legislation to limit the amount of public land ...