Based on an informed reading of Greek and Latin literary sources, the author of this study examines the Roman perspective on the development of the Roman state at the end of the Republic. Analysing social, economic and moral aspects of the political system in the 2nd and 1st centuries BC, we are introduced to the greed, vice, corruption and sometimes violence that was weakening the Republic. A detailed investigation is made into the institutions of the old system that were part of this process and how these sought to challenge and direct political change. Spanish text.