Ancient history

Elderly in Ancient Rome, the danger of getting old.

Today in Walking through History we are going to approach to the life of the elderly in Ancient Rome, a history in deep decline. As today, there were different ways of coping with this stage of life, which was undoubtedly given by a main aspect, their social status. Despite this, as we will see, they had in common the title of “paterfamilias ”, which for better or worse united them and even made them equal in the context of the family.

Life expectancy in Ancient Rome.

The first question we should ask ourselves is:at what age were they considered elderly? To try to find an answer and extrapolate it to today, it is interesting to know the life expectancy in Ancient Rome and compare it with today. For this comparison we can start from the data of Spain in 2018, data that sadly will have to be revised after 2020, due to the cruel Covid-19 pandemic that we are experiencing.

  • Life expectancy:women 86.3 years, men 80.7 years
  • In 2018, between men and women, there were almost 9 million people over 65 years of age, which represented 18.15% of the total population.

That said, to say that it is Ancient Rome, the data is obviously not as reliable, nor do we have population tables like the current ones. Even so, the reading of classical writers and the epigraphic studies of funerary stelae have served to make some studies in this regard.

Example of a Roman funerary stela from the 1st century AD. C.

According to Roman funerary stelae from the Tarquinia area, north of Rome, between 200-50 BC. C., that is, in the final phase of the Roman Republic, life expectancy was 41 years for men and 40 for women.

Much more interesting, although they do not allow us to calculate life expectancy, are the data published by the Berlin Academy in the 19th century. After the study of nearly 25,000 funerary stelae scattered throughout all corners of the Roman Empire.

  • In the capital of Rome, just over 8,000 stelae were studied. The result is that, of 4,575 men, 344 reached the age of 60 (7.5%) and 111 (2.4%) at the age of 80. As for the women, 3,490 were analyzed, 138 reached 60 years of age (3.5%) and 34 (0.9%) at 80 years of age.
  • We are going to Hispania:Of 1,111 men, 269 (24%) reached 60 years of age and 70 (6.3%) reached 80 years of age. Of the 885 women, 120 (13%) reached the age of 60 and 23 (2.6%) died over the age of 80.
  • But the one that breaks the mold are the Roman provinces of North Africa:Although the data is joint for men and women. Of the total number of stelae studied, 6,238, 2,389 (38%) were over 60 years old, and 1,030 (16.5%) over 80 years old. Note that even 98 people were over 105 years old.

Add that with these data we do not know the exact life expectancy, since we lack figures on the total number of inhabitants. But if we can get a rough idea. It is evident that the data from North Africa may seem exaggerated, according to the study they may have been rounded, even so, it can be thought that the life expectancy of these provinces was more similar to ours today, than that of the capital of Rome.

In said capital and without the data being completely reliable, we can think that they would be approximately the same as we have reported previously, that is, around 40 years.

It should be noted that in an intermediate position we find Roman Hispania, according to the authors of the study, the reason may be greater longevity in rural areas.

We cannot conclude without pointing out that in the period covered by the Roman culture, unlike today, men lived longer than women, the answer seems obvious, high mortality suffered by women during childbirth.

Paterfamilias ”, the power of the elders in Ancient Rome.

Within Roman culture, from its very beginnings, the figure of the “Pater familia ” granted special powers to the elderly in the private sphere of the family. Roman law granted them the “sui juris ”, that is to say “in its own right”, while the rest of the family unit remained as “alieni juris ”, that is, a person subject to family power.

Therefore, the male figure gained power with age, and when he reached old age, his wife, children and grandchildren remained under him. A “Pater familia ”He could throw his children and grandchildren out of the house, he could sell them as slaves, and even abandon them at birth without committing a crime. Furthermore, providing certain evidence, which seemed brief, he could sentence any member of his family to death. It is not surprising that some members are these, they were wishing the death of the elderly, this aspect was very present in the comedies and tragedies that were represented in the Roman theaters.

Sculpture of Patricio Barberini, showing the memory of his predecessors, (representation of the power of the Roman family)

It is evident that the ancient women of Rome lacked this power. But it is not difficult to understand that they had another, which emanated from legal equality with the rest of the family members. That is to say, grandchildren and children saw in the elderly women a key character in the family balance, having their same problems before the “Paterfamilias ”, but with a dose of experience that the rest of the members turned to in case of family problems. The main problem for the old women was when they became widows, since they were left alone without the protective umbrella of man.

But like other Roman traditions, the figure of the “Pater familia ” progressively loses power during the imperial period. Through the years this figure is regulated, in such a way that in the second century AD. C., they could already be denounced for abuses of authority. On the other hand, Roman laws began to legislate the family institution, life, death, or the sale of children were now subject to legality. The figure loses all its public character, although it is preserved within the family institution. In short, the authority of the elders becomes moral, but the law no longer protects them to be able to apply it.

The elders and the politics of Rome.

Roughly speaking, as we will see below, in Roman politics the authority of the elders was falling at the same time as within the family institution.

If we go back to the beginning of the history of Rome we find the institution of the Senate. This was composed at its dawn by 30 senators, all of them “Paterfamilias ”, from which the word “patricii descends. ”, as it is known at the beginning, all the senators were patricians.

During the Roman Republic the elders had enormous power, since the institution of the Senate, although it was still an advisory institution, was made up of men with proven experience in the main positions politicians, since, to be a senator, one had to have passed through a curule magistracy. The senators were the most renowned elders of Rome, and they exercised their power and influence in the decisions of the magistrates, from consuls to tribunes, they allowed themselves to be guided by the proposals of the senators.

Continuing with the Republic there are many cases of prominent elders who exercised their power. Like for example Cato the elder , after going through all the magistracies, had and to have, he remained until his death at the age of 85, directing the designs of the Roman Senate as a firm hand. On the other hand, when Rome's situation was worst, power was usually left in the hands of elders. A memory for Fabio Máximo , who with more than 60 years and with Hannibal threatening to enter the city of Rome, was proclaimed dictator of Rome, that is to say, all powers were temporarily granted to him. With wisdom, temperance and serenity he knew how to avoid direct contact with the Carthaginian armies, accused by some of cowardice, such an action could have served Rome to get rid of its most important enemy throughout the history of the Republic.

Cato "the old"

With the arrival of the imperial period the power of the elders begins to diminish, at least as a social group. Certainly the Senate, which in Caesar's time had reached 900 senators, passes with the Empire into the background. Now the main power group is reduced in number, since the “consilium principis ”, institution that advises the emperor, there are less than 50 members, apart from them only about 20 were senators, the rest came from the social class of the equites, in which they rose more quickly.

The power of the elders in the Imperial period can be considered to have been largely individual. We can look at the main one, the emperor. The emperors of the first century, we can consider that they exercised power until well into their old age. Augustus until he was 76 years old, his successor Tiberius until he was 77 years old, or Galba who was 73 years old on the day of his investiture are just a few examples. In the second century the decline began, it can be said that recently "retired" they already died, both Trajan, Hadrian and Marcus Aurelius were just over 60 years old on the day of his death. From the third century, as is known, being emperor of Rome was a risky profession, being an old man was no longer synonymous with power, not even in politics.

Galba, the short-lived sixth emperor of Rome

The other elders.

Needless to say, most of the elders did not become senators, emperors, consuls, or even aediles. Regarding this majority of the elderly, the only source that can help us to know what they were like and how they lived is Roman literature. Note that they usually do not come out very well for this.

We begin with the description of the old age that makes Décimo Junio ​​Juvenal , a Roman poet from the end of the 1st century. It is true that we are facing a very personal satire of this character, and we do not know the depth that these had in Roman society. But in the same way, we cannot forget the great importance that his work had, and of which he did not leave memorable phrases such as "bread and circuses" or "healthy mind, healthy body", which are still a criticism of society. Roman.

“They have a deformed, horrible face and sagging cheeks. Their voice trembles and all their members. They are hairless, toothless, deaf and do not own their heads. The one who has not lost an eye has lost a hand and both must be fed. They are useless.”

Tenth June Juvenal

Somewhat more benevolent towards the elderly was Pliny “the younger”. At least his look at his old age brings us closer to the vision of the harsh reality of how people aged in Ancient Rome, showing us his sadness for it, not without a certain melancholy. In his famous letters he tells us on several occasions the suicides of his elderly friends, sometimes with the cruelty of being accompanied or at the hands of their wives, who served as an example, by committing suicide along with their husbands. It is, without a doubt, the unequivocal sign of a society with little regard for its elders.

But Plinio, fortunately, gave us another vision of how to age gracefully and know how to be. Possibly they were the least, and the lucky ones must have belonged to the highest social classes of Rome. But it is significant how he narrated the aging of his friend Espurina; the ideal of a Roman old man, rich, cultured and in excellent health.

“he walks about three miles every morning, then receives his friends whom he regales with long and rich conversations. Also, he likes to walk with his wife, with his carriage around Rome. On the way back, if time permits, he bathes naked, after the bath he has a leisurely dinner usually accompanied by a comedy performance. He is 77 years old and all his senses intact ”

It is easy in Roman literature to find more individuals like Pliny's friend, in short, they tell us about the misadventures of the rich Roman patricians. But the daily life of the elders of the Plebe is not reflected in the same way. He is only reflected in a few lines, playing dice in the square or occupying the high rows of Roman theaters or amphitheatres.

The health of the elderly.

The doctors of Ancient Rome did not devote much effort to improving the old age of the elderly.

To Aulo Cornelius Celsus , a supposed contemporary doctor of the emperor Augustus, the old people had all the chronic diseases; rheumatism, problems with urine, kidney pain, breathing difficulties, back pain and poor circulation. The only medicine that sent them really curious; bathe in hot water and drink undiluted wine, for tired eyes rub your eyes with honey.

The only known Roman doctor who cared to explain what old age was was Galen of Pergamon . Which, by the way, is even more curious than that of his colleague Celso of him:

“The body is a mixture of blood and semen, as it ages it loses its vigor and dehydrates. When the bones are dry, they no longer grow, at which point the blood vessels expand and the body becomes stronger. As the desiccation does not stop, the person begins to lose weight and wrinkle, his limbs become weaker and weaker. Nobody can get rid of this natural process, and as such the ailments of this process do not need to be treated”

Galen of Pergamon

In short, doctors did little to treat old age.

To conclude we can add what the Romans thought of death, these thoughts cannot make us understand that the Roman elders should not have been particularly afraid of it, and possibly considered it a relief to the last years of life.

Cicero wrote this when he was 62 years old, that is two before he was assassinated.

Old age means the nearness of death. Die? Nice business! One of two things:either there is nothing after death, and in this case it is not to be feared, or it is the door to eternal life, and in this case it is to be desired.

The following sentence is from Cato, who we remember died at the age of 85 and apparently in full possession.

“death affects the young more than the old; the proof is that very few reach old age!”

To conclude, a little personal appreciation:

“It is true that we are Romans, but luckily we have evolved somewhat”

Recommended reading:

Buy. 24 hours in ancient Rome.

Buy. Dominate. The women who built Imperial Rome.

Buy. Blood on the forum.

More info:

History of Old Age, from Antiquity to the Renaissance, Georges Minois, translation by Celia María Sánchez, 1987

On Old Age, Marcus Tullius Cicero.