Right to bear arms in Rome

[Epictetus]

Well, when I wrote that I was thinking of archaic warlords. They were semi-independent and not necessarily part of a “state.” Appius Claudius, the father of the Claudians, is probably one of the most famous. He migrated from the Sabine territory to Rome, bringing his armed retinue with him. If Livy is to be believed, this was in the era before gladiatorial games even came to Rome, so these were not gladiator guards. They were simply armed “companions,” loyal to their chief and not to their “country.”

But in regards to aristocrats using armed guards, we know that this did happen.

Of course, we know that magistrates that held imperium had lictors as rather formal bodyguards.

Other individuals from the upper class also used armed bodyguards, at least at times. For instance:

Now, the attendants of the senators carried clubs and staves which they had brought from home

Plutarch, Life of Tiberius Gracchus

But was this a regular occurrence, or were the attendants armed only during times of unrest? I don’t know.