#318 | A Job From Hell | Slaves in Ancient Rome
English Learning for Curious Minds
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The History of Slavery
Citizens who committed violent crimes could be punished by having their citizenship removed and then being sold into slavery. Innocent children could face the same fate as parents could sell their children into slavery, following the law laid down by Romulus in Rome's earliest days. Any child born to slave parents was automatically considered a slave too. Some people were also forced to sell themselves into slavery, if, for example, they were facing financial difficulties. These instances of Romans either selling themselves as slaves or selling their children as slaves were far less frequent than people who were sold into slavery after being captured and kept as prisoners of war.
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