The year 133 BC was a pivotal year for the Roman Republic in terms of the the relationship between the plebeians and the wealthy landowners. Tiberius Sempronius Gracchus was elected tribune of the people in 133 BC. While a general in the Roman army he noticed the huge disparity between the wealth of the rich and the destitute of the poor. Many of his fellow soldiers came back from war to find their homes left in the care of their wives and children sold to wealthy landowners. Gracchus wanted to close the gap and make reforms that allowed the normal man to retain his land. While he was loved by the people, the wealthier landowners disliked his approach and had him killed to avoid the reforms he suggested.