Editing Cursus honorum (section)

== Consul ==
{{Main|Roman consul}}
The office of consul was the most prestigious of all of the offices on the ''cursus honorum'', and represented the summit of a successful career. The minimum age was 42. Years were identified by the names of the two consuls elected<ref>That is, a [[suffect consul]] did not give his name to the year.</ref> for a particular year; for instance, ''M. Messalla et M. Pisone consulibus'', "in the consulship of [[Marcus Valerius Messalla Niger|Messalla]] and [[Marcus Pupius Piso Frugi Calpurnianus|Piso]]",<ref>{{cite book |first=Julius |last=Caesar |author-link=Julius Caesar |title=[[Commentarii de Bello Gallico]] |others=1.2.1.}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Allen |last2=Greenough |title=New Latin Grammar |url=http://pubman.mpdl.mpg.de/pubman/item/escidoc:402223/component/escidoc:402222/latin_allen1903_o.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170816215813/http://pubman.mpdl.mpg.de/pubman/item/escidoc:402223/component/escidoc:402222/latin_allen1903_o.pdf |archive-date=2017-08-16 |url-status=live |location=New York |year=1975 |page=263 |editor-last=Greenough |editor-first=J. B. |editor2-last=Howard |editor2-first=A. A. |editor3-last=Kittredge |editor3-first=G. L. |editor4-last=D'Ooge |editor4-first=Benj. L. |publisher=[[Ginn and Company]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Hale |first1=William Gardner |author-link=William Gardner Hale |last2=Buck |first2=Carl Darling |author2-link=Carl Darling Buck |title=A Latin Grammar |publisher=[[University of Alabama Press]] |year=1903 |page=220 |url=https://archive.org/stream/alatingrammar03buckgoog#page/n238 |lccn=03017596 |oclc=01561348}}</ref> dates an event to 61 BC. Consuls were responsible for the city's political agenda, commanded large-scale armies and controlled important provinces. The consuls served for only a year (a restriction intended to limit the amassing of power by individuals) and could only rule when they agreed, because each consul could [[veto]] the other's decision.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=Consul - Livius |url=https://www.livius.org/articles/concept/consul/ |access-date=2022-05-03 |website=www.livius.org}}</ref>

The consuls would alternate monthly as the chairman of the Senate. They also were the supreme commanders in the Roman army, with each being granted two legions during their consular year. Consuls also exercised the highest juridical power in the Republic, being the only office with the power to override the decisions of the Praetor Urbanus. Only laws and the decrees of the Senate or the People's assembly limited their powers, and only the veto of a fellow consul or a tribune of the plebs could supersede their decisions.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Consul - Livius|url=https://www.livius.org/articles/concept/consul/|access-date=2021-10-24|website=www.livius.org}}</ref>

A consul was escorted by twelve lictors, held ''imperium'' and wore the [[toga]] ''praetexta''. Because the consul was the highest executive office within the Republic, they had the power to veto any action or proposal by any other magistrate, save that of the Tribune of the Plebs. After a consulship, a consul was assigned one of the more important provinces and acted as the governor in the same way that a [[Promagistrate#Propraetor|propraetor]] did, only owning proconsular ''imperium''. A second consulship could only be attempted after an interval of 10 years to prevent one man holding too much power.<ref name=":0" />