It is convenient to begin with Livy, who though an imperial writer, and under the stylistic influence of his age, probably adhered in the main to the technical terminology of the republican annalists from whom he drew. The first point which will be established is that in Livy’s usage the difference between comitia and concilium is not a difference between the whole people and a part of the people.[712]
The plebeian tribal assembly is termed comitia in Livy ii. 56. 1, 2; ii. 58. 1; ii. 60. 4; iii. 13. 9 (“Verginio comitia habente conlegae appellati dimisere concilium,” in which comitia and concilium in one sentence are applied to the same assembly); iii. 17. 4 (the comitia for passing the Terentilian law, which from Livy’s point of view was the plebeian assembly);[713] iii. 24. 9; iii. 30. 6; iii. 51. 8 (comitia of plebeian soldiers for electing military tribunes and tribunes of the plebs); iii. 54. 9, 11: (plebeian comitia under the pontifex maximus); iv. 44. 1; v. 10. 10; vi. 35. 10 (“Comitia praeter aedilium tribunorumque plebi nulla sunt habita”); vi. 36. 9 (the comitia for voting on the Licinian-Sextian laws); vi. 39. 5; xxv. 4. 6; xxxiv. 2. 11; xlv. 35. 7. Other examples of comitia of a part of the people are Livy ii. 64. 1 (as the plebeians refused to participate in the consular election, the patricians and clients held the comitia); xxvi. 2. 2 (comitia held by the soldiers, and hence by only a part of the people, for the election of a propraetor). Still more to the point are the comitia sacerdotum: for electing a chief pontiff, Livy xxv. 5. 2; for electing an augur, xxxix. 45. 8; for electing a chief curio, xxvii. 8. 1. Comitia sacerdotum were composed of seventeen tribes, and hence of only a part of the people.[714] Lastly is to be noted the fact that the plebeian assembly met on a comitialis dies; Livy iii. 11. 3.
It is now sufficiently established that Livy often applies the term comitia to the assembly of plebs and to other assemblies which included but a part of the people. It is equally true that he uses concilium to denote an assembly of the whole people. The principal instances of Roman assemblies are:
(1) Livy i. 8. 1: “Vocataque ad concilium multitudine, quae coalescere in populi unius corpus nulla re praeterquam legibus poterat, iura dedit.”
(2) i. 26. 5: “Concilio populi advocato” (for the trial of Horatius).
(3) i. 36. 6: “Auguriis certe sacerdotioque augurum tantus honos accessit, ut nihil belli domique postea nisi auspicato gereretur, concilia populi, exercitus vocati, summa rerum, ubi aves non admississent, dirimerentur.”
(4) ii. 7. 7: “Vocato ad concilium populo” (representing the consul as calling the people to an assembly).
(5) iii. 71. 3: “Concilio populi a magistratibus dato” (for settling the dispute between Ardea and Aricia).
(6) vi. 20. 11: “Concilium populi indictum est” (an assembly of the people which condemned Marcus Manlius).