Collegium (ancient Rome)

Some collegia were linked to participating in political violence and social unrest, which resulted in the suppression of social associations by the Roman government. Following the passage of the lex Julia during the reign of Julius Caesar as consul and dictator of the Roman Republic (49–44 BC), and their reaffirmation during the reign of Caesar Augustus as princeps senatus and imperator of the Roman Army (27 BC – 14 AD), collegia required the approval of the Roman Senate or the Emperor in order to be authorized as legal bodies.

Civil collegia

Collegia could function as guilds, social clubs, or burial societies; in practice, in ancient Rome, they sometimes became organized bodies of local businessmen and even criminals, who ran the mercantile/criminal activities in a given urban region (similar to a rione). Legal collegia possessed certain rights, such as common property, a common treasury, and legal right to an attorney. Large portions of the population of a town could be a part of collegia associations, with many aspects of daily life having corresponding collegia. The organization of a collegium was often modeled on that of civic governing bodies, the Senate of Rome being the epitome. The meeting hall was often known as the curia, the same term as that applied to that of the Roman Senate.

The formation of collegia and other civil organized bodies were subject to the discretion of the central Roman government. After the implementation of Julius Caesar's social reforms between 49 and 44 BC (lex Julia) and their reaffirmation by Augustus, collegia required the approval of the Roman Senate or the emperor in order to be authorized as legal bodies. Collegia were often the target of restrictions and bans as a result of suspicions on the part of the Roman government about the function of these social associations.

The legality of civil collegia was subject to constant legislation. In 64 BC, all civic collegia were banned by the Senate for being against the Roman constitution, only to be restored six years later in 58 BC by Clodius. Part of the social reforms of Julius Caesar's reign disbanded all but the most ancient collegia and instituted that any new collegia had to be deemed by the Senate to be useful to the community. Later in the 2nd century AD, collegia in the Roman world showed signs of an increased tolerance on the part of the Roman government. Under Hadrian, inscriptions in Asia Minor depict collegia that functioned with more freedom as Roman restrictions became smaller and more temporary in scope. The Roman emperor Aurelian imposed state control over collegia in the late 3rd century.