The Gracchus Revolution (I): Plebeians Vs Patricians

A History of Mankind (191)

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While Italy was filling with slaves, densely populated regions or states like Egypt — where the peasantry wasn't often called to take part in large, bloody military enterprises — had no need for slave labor. This was because there was plenty of cheap, qualified free labor around in those regions¹.

Generally speaking, about 80% of the Roman population was rural², so the impact of peaks in slave availability probably was significant on rural wages; mass recruitment into the legions led to temporary labor scarcity and higher wages for those staying behind or returning to work but, when the gap was then filled with slaves, this led to decreasing wages and consequent unrest in the countryside.