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OCR GCSE Classical Civilisation (Roman City Life) Smart practice A mixed round aimed at your weak spots
Unit 1
Culture: Roman city life
Roman Housing
Roman housing: insulae and the domus
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The Roman Home and Family
The Roman family: the paterfamilias, patrons and clients
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Education of Roman children
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The dinner party (cena)
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Society
Society: citizens, senators and equites
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Slaves and freedmen
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Leisure and Entertainment
The amphitheatre and gladiators
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Chariot racing and the Circus Maximus
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The Roman theatre
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The baths
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Unit 2
Literature: satire, fiction and letters
Satire and Fiction
Satire and fiction: the authors and their techniques
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Horace, Satires 2.2, 2.6 and 2.8
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Juvenal, Satire 3.190-322: the dangers of Rome
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Petronius, Dinner with Trimalchio
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Pliny and his Letters
Pliny's letters
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Experiencing Roman city life
Experiencing Roman city life in the texts
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Relationships and Roman society
Relationships in Roman society in the texts
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Society: citizens, senators and equites

Practise 27 exam-style questions on Society: citizens, senators and equites for OCR GCSE Classical Civilisation (Roman City Life). Write your answer as you would in the exam and get it marked in seconds against the mark scheme, point by point, with an AI tutor on hand if you get stuck.

  • 27 questions
  • 1–15 marks each
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20 questions, marked as you go

Sample questions with model answers

Here are 4 of the questions in this topic, each with a model answer, an explanation of why it earns the marks and the mark scheme an examiner would use.

Question 1

1 mark

Marcus Holconius Rufus was one of the leading citizens of Pompeii in the time of Augustus. His statue stood at a crossroads in the town, and he paid for rebuilding parts of the Large Theatre.

Which part of his name, 'Marcus Holconius Rufus', is the nomen (the family name)?

Model answer

Holconius is the nomen.

Explanation

The tria nomina - praenomen (personal name, e.g. Marcus), nomen (the family or clan name, e.g. Holconius) and cognomen (an extra family name or nickname, e.g. Rufus, 'red-haired') - marked a man as a Roman citizen. A slave freed by a citizen took his master's praenomen and nomen and kept his slave name as a cognomen, like Gaius Pompeius Trimalchio.

Mark scheme
  1. 1 mark

    Holconius

    Do not accept Marcus (the praenomen, personal name) or Rufus (the cognomen).

Question 2

2 marks

Source A: The Acts of the Apostles 22 (written in the late 1st century AD). Paul has been arrested in Jerusalem, and the Roman tribune has ordered him to be questioned under the whip.

'When they had stretched him out with the straps, Paul said to the centurion standing there, "Is it lawful for you to flog a man who is a Roman citizen, and who has not been found guilty?" When the centurion heard this, he went to the tribune and said, "What are you about to do? This man is a Roman citizen." The tribune came and asked him, "Tell me, are you a Roman citizen?" "Yes," he said. The tribune answered, "It cost me a large sum of money to get this citizenship." "But I was born a citizen," said Paul. At once the men who were about to question him stepped back, and the tribune himself was afraid when he realised that Paul was a Roman citizen and that he had put him in chains.'

Give two things Source A tells us about Roman citizenship.

Model answer

Source A shows that a Roman citizen could not lawfully be flogged without being found guilty, and that citizenship could be gained either by birth, like Paul, or by paying money, like the tribune.

Explanation

Citizens were protected from flogging and crucifixion and could appeal to the emperor - later in Acts, Paul appeals to Caesar and is sent to Rome for trial. The tribune probably bought his citizenship through bribery under Claudius, when grants were said to be easily obtained, which shows how valuable it was.

Mark scheme
  1. 1 mark

    One thing we learn from Source A about Roman citizenship.

    Two from: a citizen could not lawfully be flogged without being found guilty / had protection from degrading punishment (1); citizenship could be inherited by birth (1); citizenship could be obtained by paying money (1); officials were afraid of the consequences of mistreating a citizen, so it gave real protection (1); citizens living far from Rome, in the provinces, had the same rights (1); a man from the provinces (a Jew from the East) could be a citizen (1). Max 2. Points must come from the source.

  2. 1 mark

    A second, different thing.

    As above.

Question 3

4 marks

Source A: Martial, Epigrams 5.8 (the emperor Domitian had just renewed the law reserving the fourteen rows behind the senators in the theatre for equites)

'While Phasis, red in his purple cloak, was praising in the theatre the edict of our Lord and God, by which the seats are fixed more firmly and the equites have got their rows back unmixed, and while he was boasting, proud and puffed up: "At last we can sit in comfort; at last the dignity of the equites is restored; we are not crushed or polluted by the mob" - while he was saying this and more, leaning back in his seat, the usher Leitus ordered that purple and arrogant cloak to get up.'

How does Martial make fun of Phasis in Source A? Make two points, supporting each with evidence from the source.

Model answer

First, Martial makes Phasis a snob: he boasts that the equites are no longer 'crushed or polluted by the mob', looking down on ordinary citizens. Second, Martial uses irony and a surprise ending: Phasis praises the emperor's law so loudly, leaning back in his seat, that the usher Leitus notices him and orders him to get up - the law he praises turns him out, because he is not really an eques at all.

Explanation

The poem shows how seriously Romans took seating by rank: ushers checked who sat in the fourteen rows, and men who did not meet the property qualification for an eques could be removed. Martial, himself an eques, laughs at a pretender whose expensive purple cloak could not buy him the rank.

Mark scheme
  1. 2 marks

    First point with supporting evidence from Source A: 1 mark for a valid way in which Martial makes fun of Phasis, 1 mark for a relevant reference or quotation from the passage that supports it. The two marks are independent: award 1 for a valid point even if no evidence is given, and 1 for a relevant quotation from, reference to or close paraphrase of the source even if the point is missing, weak or wrong.

    Two pairs from, e.g.: Phasis is a snob (1) - 'we are not crushed or polluted by the mob' (1); he is arrogant and pompous (1) - 'boasting, proud and puffed up', 'leaning back in his seat' (1); his showy clothes (1) - 'red in his purple cloak' (1); irony - he praises the very law that throws him out (1) - the usher orders him to get up (1); surprise ending / punchline delayed to the last line (1) - 'Leitus ordered ... to get up' (1); Martial mocks the cloak, not the man - status is just clothing (1) - 'that purple and arrogant cloak' (1); he is exposed as not really an eques (1) - he is made to leave the equestrian rows (1). The second pair must make a different point from the first. Points must come from the passage.

  2. 2 marks

    Second, different point with supporting evidence from Source A: 1 mark for a valid point, 1 mark for a relevant reference or quotation. The two marks are independent: award 1 for a valid point even if no evidence is given, and 1 for a relevant quotation from, reference to or close paraphrase of the source even if the point is missing, weak or wrong.

    As above; must be a different point from the first.

Question 4

8 marks

Source A: a military diploma (late 1st or early 2nd century AD): two small bronze tablets, tied together with wire and sealed by seven witnesses, issued to a retired auxiliary soldier. The text was copied from a bronze notice put up in Rome. It records that the emperor has granted to the cavalry and infantry of the auxiliary units named, who have served for twenty-five years or more and been honourably discharged, 'citizenship for themselves, their children and their descendants, and the right of legal marriage with the wives they had when citizenship was granted to them, or, if any were unmarried, with those they marry later, one wife each'.

To what extent was Roman citizenship a valuable reward? Use Source A as a starting point and your own knowledge.

Model answer

Source A suggests that citizenship was a valuable reward: auxiliary soldiers had to serve for twenty-five years to earn it, and it was granted not only to them but to 'their children and their descendants', together with the right of legal marriage, so that their children would be legitimate citizens. The grant was copied from a notice in Rome and carried on bronze tablets sealed by witnesses, so that the veteran could prove his status.

Citizenship brought real benefits. A citizen could vote and, if a man, stand for office; he could marry another citizen, make contracts and leave property under Roman law; and he was protected from degrading punishments. Paul's claim to be a citizen stopped him being flogged, and Pliny as a governor sent Christians who were citizens to Rome for trial instead of executing them on the spot. Citizens wore the toga and had the tria nomina, visible signs of belonging. The fact that the tribune in Acts paid 'a large sum' for his citizenship shows how much it was wanted, especially in the provinces.

However, citizenship also had limits and costs. It brought duties such as military service and taxes like the inheritance tax. In Rome, where most free people were citizens, it gave little status on its own: Juvenal says a poor citizen in a grubby toga was simply laughed at, and freedmen, though citizens, could not hold office. Real power came from wealth and rank, and when Caracalla gave citizenship to almost all free people in AD 212 its special value declined.

Overall, citizenship was a very valuable reward for provincials such as auxiliary soldiers, because it gave legal protection, rights for their families and higher status; but within Rome itself it was a basic status, worth much less than wealth or membership of the senatorial and equestrian orders.

Explanation

Top answers use the diploma's details (25 years, children and descendants, conubium, official record), add the rights and protections of citizenship with examples (Paul, Pliny), and weigh them against duties and limits (poor citizens in Rome, freedmen, wealth and rank), concluding that its value depended on who and where you were.

Mark scheme
  1. 8 marks

    Levels of response (8 marks). AO1 (4) and AO2 (4) are equally weighted.
    Level 4 (7-8 marks): consistently accurate and detailed knowledge of the rights, duties and status that citizenship brought and of how it was gained, using both Source A and own wider knowledge; shows very good understanding of the cultural context (differences between Rome and the provinces, rich and poor) and of possible interpretations; a well-argued response with a clear judgement on how valuable citizenship was, supported by a range of well-selected evidence, including critical analysis.
    Level 3 (5-6 marks): accurate knowledge, using both the source and own knowledge; a focused response with relevant analysis and a judgement.
    Level 2 (3-4 marks): sound, mostly accurate knowledge; engages with the general topic of citizenship, with a limited range of evidence and some analysis.
    Level 1 (1-2 marks): limited knowledge, may only use the source given; isolated analysis.
    0 marks: no response or no response worthy of credit.
    A mainly descriptive or narrative answer with little analysis or judgement cannot go above Level 2.

    Indicative content (not a checklist; credit other valid points): AO1: Source A - citizenship as the reward for 25 years' service; passed to children and descendants; the right of legal marriage (conubium), making children legitimate citizens; officially recorded in Rome and carried as proof. Rights: to vote and stand for office (men), to marry a citizen and have citizen children, to make contracts and inherit under Roman law, to appeal to the emperor, protection from flogging and crucifixion (Paul in Acts 22; Pliny sending Christians who were citizens to Rome for trial); the toga and the tria nomina; entry to the legions and careers. Value shown by demand: the tribune in Acts paid a large sum; emperors granted it as a favour (Claudius' generosity mocked by Seneca); freedmen proud of citizen names (Gaius Pompeius Trimalchio). Duties: military service, taxes such as the 5% inheritance tax. Limits: in Rome itself most people were citizens, so it gave little status on its own - poor citizens were mocked (Juvenal 3); freedmen citizens still barred from office and the orders; women citizens could not vote; real power and status came from wealth and rank; Caracalla's grant to almost all free inhabitants in AD 212 reduced its distinctiveness. AO2: in the provinces citizenship was a mark of privilege with real legal protection and social advantages, a reward worth 25 years of service; in Rome it was a basic status which mattered less than wealth and rank; it carried duties as well as rights; judgement.

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