[1][2] The consuls of the previous year, Titus Romilius and Gaius Veturius Cicurinus had defeated the Aequi at Mount Algidus, but were now prosecuted for having sold the captured material and equipment in order to replenish the treasury, without having received the approval of the troops, who would otherwise have been entitled to a share of the proceeds.
[3][4] Aternius and Tarpeius also maintained the opposition of the Senate and the patricians to a law passed two years earlier by the tribunes of the plebs, opening the Aventine Hill to settlement.
With the two orders deadlocked, an agreement was forged to appoint a body consisting of both patricians and plebeians, which should pass measures for the benefit of all.
Three envoys (all patricians) were sent to Athens, to study the laws of Solon and Greek political institutions, and report their findings upon their return.
This settlement led to the creation of the Decemviri Legibus Scribundis, who held power from 451 to 449, and established the Twelve Tables of Roman law.