In 509 B.C. the Romans overthrew Tarquin the Proud, their Etruscan king. They then set up a republic, a form of government in which people choose their rulers. Chapter 14 focuses on the Roman Republic.

Section 1 explains how the government of the Roman Republic was organized.

Section 2 covers how the Roman Republic was able to expand and protect its territory from Etruscan control.

Section 3 explores the 118-year period during which Rome and Carthage fought three wars known as the Punic Wars.

Section 4 describes how the conquests and the wealth that came with them changed Rome's economy and government. Among the changes were the replacement of small farms by large estates, the coming of slavery, a movement from farms to cities, and the decline of the Roman Republic.

Section 5 focuses on the many popular leaders, including the Gracchus brothers, Gaius Marius, Lucius Cornelius Sulla, and Julius Caesar, who tried to reform and save the Roman Republic.