The office, position, or term of service of a decemvir; the period during which decemvirs held power, or the system of government they represented.
From decemvir plus the suffix -ate (Latin -atus, indicating office or condition). Describes both the position itself and the historical period when the decemviral system governed Rome.
The decemvirate was technically temporary—they were supposed to write laws and then step down—but they got power-hungry and refused to leave, which is why Romans eventually overthrew them and got back to their republic.
The office or body of decemviri; term preserves the masculine-only historical governance structure of Rome.
Use 'decemvirate' for historical Roman contexts only. For modern governance, substitute 'magistracy', 'council', or 'executive board' to establish gender-neutral authority language.
["council","magistracy","executive board"]
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