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ROME'S FOUNDING LEGEND

PRINCE AENEAS

According to legend, the foundation date for what would become “The Eternal City” is the 21st of April, 753 BC. In their own legends, Romans were descendants of refugees from the legendary Greek siege of Troy, historically dated to finishing in 1184 BC. A Trojan prince, Aeneas, the son of Aphrodite, escaped with several followers, heading west.

[ABOVE: "Aeneas Flees Burning Troy", by Federico Barocci, 1598]

Before reaching Italy, he stopped at the then-young city of Carthage, in what is now Tunis, Tunisia. Captivating the local queen, Dido, Aeneas eventually left for Italy, causing the enraged Queen to curse Aeneas’ descendants, famously saying,

Hell hath no fury like a woman’s scorn.

before throwing herself onto a fire, cursing Carthage and Aeneas’s followers to be destined to war with each other. But that’s for another time.

[ABOVE: "Aeneas Tells Dido About the Fall of Troy", by Pierre-Narcisse Guérin, 1815]

Reaching Italy, Aeneas was welcomed by Latinus, king of the Latins. Having married Latinus’s daughter, Aeneas became king when Latinus died, later founding the city of Alba Longa. His descendants ruled and lived in Alba Longa for the next five centuries.

ROMULUS AND REMUS

Down the line, king Procas died. He was meant to be Numitor’s successor, but was ousted by Amulius. Amulius had Numitor’s family killed, save for his daughter Rhea Silva, who he had forced into the Vestal Virgins, a college of priestesses sworn to celibacy, rendering her unable to produce heirs. However, she was raped by the war-god Mars, producing twins: Romulus and Remus.

Seeing the twins as threats to his power, Amulius ordered them thrown to the River Tiber to die. The story here is they were found and nurtured by a she-wolf, allowing the boys to suckle on her for nourishment. Eventually, they were found by a shepherd, Faustulus, who raised them in a life of agriculture atop the “Seven Hills” nearby, unaware of their true, legendary origins.

[ABOVE: The Capitoline Wolf. The wolf sculpture may be dated to the 13th century, while the twins were added in the 15th by Antonio del Pollaiuolo. Now held in the Capitoline Museum, Rome]

Growing up, the twins became involved in a dispute between Numitor’s and Amulius’s followers, during which Remus was taken captive to Alba Longa. Remus, learning his origins, marched to Alba Longa, killed Amulius and rescued Remus. Numitor was reinstated, leaving Romulus and Remus to found their own city.

THE FOUNDING OF ROME

The location they chose were the Seven Hills, where they were raised by Faustulus. However, they couldn’t agree which hill to settle on. Romulus preferred the Palatine Hill for its trading potential, while Remus preferred the Aventine for its defensive advantage. As pious men, they settled their dispute via augury, essentially religious bird-watching. Remus first saw six birds land atop the Aventine, but Romulus later saw twelve perch atop the Palatine. So Remus claimed victory by precedence, Romulus by quantity.

[ABOVE: Palatine Hill excavations, showing a hut that may have been Romulus' personal hut]

With their own loyal following, the two resolved to settle atop their own hills, fortifying them with palisades. When Remus and his followers charged into Romulus’s city, a fight broke out. According to legend, Romulus killed Remus, and his side had won.

The date: the 21st of April, 753 BC. He then named his new city after himself: ROME.

THE ROMAN KINGS

KING ROMULUS

[ABOVE: "Medallion at the Base of the Facade", now held in the Certosa de Pavia, Italy]

As Rome’s first king, Romulus is credited with establishing the cornerstones of Rome’s politics. He set up Rome’s boundaries, and divided the population into three tribes for taxation and military organisation. Each tribe was led by a tribune and split further into ten curia, each providing ten horsemen and one-hundred foot soldiers, known as a century, who at this time were rag-tag spear, javelin and sling-armed warriors. In total: three-thousand foot soldiers and three-hundred horsemen. The cavalry made up the royal bodyguard.

From the three tribes, Romulus established the government, presumably from wealthier and/or more respected families. Gathering a hundred of the leading men from each tribe, the first three-hundred senators were established.

As good as this all was, the city was lacking one crucial element, overlooked by the city’s men: WOMEN. Rome welcomed refugees and criminals of all kinds to become citizens. As a result, to put it gently, early Rome was a sausage fest, and they needed women. So, being the heart-warming gentlemen they were, they announced to the other nearby settlements of Rome’s coming festivals and games they’d be hosting, inviting all to bring their families. Many showed up, prominently including the Sabines. At a prearranged signal, the Sabine men were held off and the women abducted and raped… this is all according to their own myths and legends, by the way.

[ABOVE: "Der Raub der Sabinerinnen", by Theodoor van Thulden, 1669]

An alliance was formed against Rome in response, but impatience at attacking Rome led to the allies being cut down one by one, and Rome emerged victorious. Eventually, Romulus and the Sabine king, Titus Tatius, allied and ruled jointly. Titus was later killed in a riot, and Romulus, while inspecting his troops one day, was taken in a whirlwind, never seen again.

KING NUMA

[ABOVE: Denarius from a mint in Greece from the time of Pompey the Great, showing the bearded King Numa]

Romulus had gained a cult following, forming the cult of Quirinus, likely the indigenous Sabine deity. Since the Sabines hadn’t had a monarch since Titus Tatius, a Sabine among them was chosen as the heir: Numa Pompilius.

Where Romulus was credited with establishing Rome’s political foundations, Numa was credited with establishing Rome’s religious foundations. Namely, he established the Roman calendar, previously a ten-month Lunar calendar beginning in March (after “Mars”, the father of Rome’s first king) and ending in December (“dec” as in “ten”), each month having thirty or thirty-one days. Numa divided it instead into twelve months according to the solstice revolution, adding January and February.

Numa also opened the Temple of Janus, whose doors remained shut in times of peace and open in times of war. The previously established three-hundred-strong cavalry bodyguard was disbanded as a peace sign. He even brought the Vestal Virgin college from Alba Longa to preside in Rome. He also established several religious cults, and established the chief religious office of Pontifex Maximus, or Supreme Pontiff, the precursor to what would become the Pope.

KING HOSTILIUS

After his death, Tullus Hostilius came to power. And if you want to remember what he’s known for, just remember: “Hostilius” is Latin for “hostile; his reign was said to be more warlike than Romulus’. Tullus believed the more peaceful reign of Numa made Rome weak, thus he sought favour with the gods by declaring war on Rome’s neighbours, namely: Alba Longa itself. To settle the war, three Romans and three Albans duelled in front of their respective armies. With one Roman left standing, Rome won and Alba Longa was vassalised.

[ABOVE: "Tullus Hostilius Defeating the Army of Veii and Fidenae", by Cavalier d'Arpin, 1601]

In a future encounter with the Etruscans to the north, Tullus requested aid from his Alban allies. Providing them with soldiers, they also secretly made a pact with the Etruscans, promising to desert Rome should they lose. Rome won, however, and the Alban dictator Mettius was taken prisoner and executed, and Alba Longa was destroyed. Tullus is credited with constructing the Curia Hostillia, the new and permanent Senate house, needed since several citizens from Alba Longa were now incorporated into Rome.

[ABOVE: "Sculpture of Tullus Hostilius", c.1650]

In legends, Tullus was struck down by lightning - this will not be the last time a prominent Roman is struck by lightning, trust me - supposedly because he angered the Gods with his warring and aggression. Or he died of plague, presumably another divine intervention struck onto him. He was succeeded by Ancus Marcius.

KING ANCUS MARCIUS

[ABOVE: 57 BC denarius depicting Ancus Marcius]

So, where Numa was a king of peace and Tullus was a king of war, Ancus would be both. He was the descendant of Rome’s first Pontifex Maximus and of Numa Pompilius. He had the texts concerning public ceremony performances published across the city to ensure their correct performance in the future. He also repelled attacks from the Latin League, who assumed Rome was weaker since Tullus’s death. Several towns were taken, stormed or looted, and Rome’s power and influence grew.

Ancus is also known as Rome’s great constructor king. He built Rome’s first prison, expanded the city’s temples, and connected his newly constructed port city of Ostia via a series of aqueducts.

KING TARQUINIUS PRISCUS

[ABOVE: Portrait of Tarquinius Priscus, from "Promptuarium Iconum Instigniorum" by Guillaume Rouillé, 1553]

With Ancus dying of natural causes, his trusted Etruscan friend Tarquinius Priscus, failing to secure kingship in his own lands, ensured Ancus’ young sons would be ousted for his own rise to power in Rome instead. He increased the number of Rome’s senators to increase the amount of loyalty he had amongst Rome’s powerful men.

Tarquin also waged war against the Latins, Sabines and Etruscans, ignoring past peace treaties and reestablishing the royal guard. With the immense war loot, Tarquin ordered the construction of the Circus Maximus, Rome’s hippodrome - a chariot racing stadium. With a seating capacity anywhere from 150,000 to 250,000, it was larger than any sports stadium today.

He also built Rome’s great sewers, the Cloaca Maxima, as well as a large temple to Jupiter and a stone wall around the city. He also celebrated Rome’s first triumph, a military parade showing off the spoils of war, while Tarquin wore a golden loral crown, a royal purple garment, carried a sceptre… if it wasn’t clear already, Tarquin wanted to show that he was in charge, and all powerful.

Ancus Marcius’s sons, however, now grown up, believed the throne was rightly theirs. Arranging an assassination disguised as a riot, Tarquin was killed. Instead of Ancus’ sons coming to power, the son of a prince who fell in battle against Tarquin’s forces, Servius Tullius, was made king. He had been raised in the palace and married one of Tarquin’s daughters.

KING TULLIUS

[ABOVE: Portrait of Servius Tullius, from "Promptuarium Iconum Instigniorum" by Guillaume Rouillé, 1553

Another Etruscan king, Servius Tullius proved a popular king, overseeing construction projects, supposedly inventing Rome’s first coinage, expanding the city into the neighbouring hills and instituting festivals. He also divided the population into voting blocks based on wealth class, which influenced their position in the military. Thus, richer citizens had more voting power and could afford better military equipment. This of course coincided with Servius conducting Rome’s first census. Atop of this, the Servian Walls were also constructed, which would serve as the city’s fortified boundaries for centuries to come.

KING TARQUINIUS SUPERBUS

“Superbus” means “the proud”. Which he was, and not in a good way.

The grandson or son of Tarquinius Priscus, Tarquin solicited support from the patricians and spread malicious rumours of Servius Tullius. In time, he marched into the senate house with armed guards and sat himself atop the throne. When Tullius approached him, Tarquin threw the old man down the senate stairs, where he was assassinated. Tarquin's wife, Tullia, being driven up to the senate house at the time, took the chariot’s reins herself and drove over Tullius’s body, splatting it open and bloodying her clothes.

Now king, Tarquin refused to bury Tullius’s body, killed several senators loyal to Tullius, judged capital crimes without advice, waged further wars and spent Rome’s funding on more building projects. One day, it is said that he was approached by a Sibyl, a woman of extremely old age able to foresee the future, who offered him nine books. When he refused, she came back and offered him six. Again refusing, she returned to offer him three books. He capitulated, and these new Sibylline Books would go on to be relied upon by Rome in times of great need to save them from dire circumstances.

[ABOVE: "Tarquinius Superbus Makes Himself King", by Gilbert Abbott à Beckett, c.1850]

SEXTUS

Tarquin worked quick. His construction pace and general tyranny did not go down well with the people. Seeking to rectify this, Tarquin declared war, naturally, on the wealthy nation of the Rutuli. Keen to take their spoils, he put their capital city of Ardea under siege. While waiting for a fight, the king’s nobles fell to drinking, and boasting of their wives’ virtuosity. One noble, named Collatinus, claimed to have the most loyal wife, a woman named Lucretia. While the nobles’s wives were partying, Lucretia was alone, doing her domestic duties. Her beauty and virtues sparked a fire of passion inside Collatinus’ cousin, and the king’s son, Sextus Tarquinius.

Sextus desired Lucretia for himself. Going to her, he made an advance on her, but she refused. When he made his move again, Sextus threatened to kill her, and claimed he’d found out about her supposed adulterous past with a slave. To spare her husband Collatinus, Lucretia gave herself to Sextus’ desires.

[ABOVE: "Tarquin and Lucretia" by Tiziano Vecellio, 1571]

Returning to Rome’s city centre, dressed in black, Lucretia described to the Romans and her father-in-law, Spurius, alongside his companions Publius Valerius and Lucius Junius Brutus,  of how she had been brutalised by Sextus. Out of shame, she plunged a dagger into herself, dying instantly. Spurius, Valerius and Brutus thus together swore an oath to oust the kings and their families from Rome altogether.

OVERTHROW OF THE MONARCHY

As tribune of one of Rome’s leading tribes, Brutus lead the king’s personal guard, and had the rite to summon the people’s assembly. Tullia and Sextus fled the city, but Sextus was killed. Tarquin, meanwhile, was sent into exile in Etruria to the north. In his place, the position of king was replaced with two consuls, heads of state ruling jointly for one year. Rome’s first consuls were Collatinus and Brutus. The year was 509 BC, and the Roman Republic (from “Res Publica”, “the public thing”) was born. The senate and people of Rome (Latin: “Senatus Populusque Romanus”) were now in charge, birthing the initialism “SPQR”.

[ABOVE: Brutus' oath and Lucretia's death, depicted by Jacques-Antoine Beaufort, 1771]

THE BATTLE OF SILVA ARSIA

28th February, 509 BC

Tarquin, meanwhile, gathered allies from the cities of Veii and Tarquinii, preparing to march on Rome. Both cities had been brutalised by Rome in the past, so grievances were high. Valerius led the infantry for Rome, while Brutus led the cavalry. Similarly, Tarquin led the Etrurian infantry, while his son Aruns led the cavalry. The two sides met on the 28th of February, in or nearby a forest known as Silva Arsia, just outside Rome.

[ABOVE: Portrait of Collatinus, from "Promptuarium Iconum Instigniorum" by Guillaume Rouillé, 1553]

First to engage in the battle were the cavalry. Aruns had previously spotted and recognised the Roman bodyguard, so charged straight for Brutus, recognising him as consul. The two cousins are said to have charged at each other. In the fight, they stabbed each other with their spears, and both men died. The infantry, meanwhile, joined the fight. Both sides were fairly evenly matched, and both sides’s right wing was victorious. Eventually, after a gruelling match-up, the Romans were victorious. Tarquinius escaped.

Valerius celebrated the Republic’s first triumph the following day in March, while Brutus, named as Rome’s Second Founder, was buried with full honours.

THE SIEGE OF ROME

508 BC

Tarquinius was not done; having escaped the battle of Silva Arsia, he next sought the support of Clusium, and their king Porsena, the following year. Hearing of Porsena’s army’s approach, the Roman senate took to strengthen the people’s resolve, like purchasing grain from the nearby Volsci people and from the citizens of Cumae. This nationalised the licences for selling salt (Latin: “sal”, at the time a very expensive commodity often used as salary) and excluded lower class citizens from taxes and customs duties. These measured proved worthwhile, and the populace were turned fully against Tarquin. Porsena’s forces were still approaching, and in 508 BC marched towards Rome itself.

Next is a story I simply cannot leave out: While Porsena’s men were surging towards the key bridge over the Tiber, the Pons Sublicus, a Roman officer, Publius Horatius Cocles, leapt over the bridge to defend it by himself, holding off the entire army who presumably were in shock at this sheer act of bravery. Joined by two other officers, Herminius and Spurius, who suddenly left as the bridge was collapsing, Cocles waited for the bridge to crumble to swim back towards Rome, under enemy fire. His bravery thwarted the entire army of Porsena, forcing them to place the city under siege. A statue of himself would go on to be erected in Rome.

Porsena’s fort blocked river transport up the Tiber and allowed him to send raiding parties to the countryside. In the siege, the new consul, Publius Valerius Publicola, baited much of Porsena’s army out with cattle herds. The other new consul, Tricipitinus, waited with soldiers at Rome’s Naevian Gate, while Herminius lay in wait with soldiers along the Via Gabina, and Spurius waited with troops inside the Colline Gate. Together, they waited in ambush for Porsena’s army. The trap was sprung, and Porsena’s warband were set upon from all sides.

[ABOVE: The animated battle, showing the Romans (red) and Clusium (blue)]

With the siege continuing, and with senatorial approval, the Roman youth Gaius Mucius snuck into Porsena’s camp to assassinate Porsena. Mistaking his secretary for the king, Mucius killed him instead, and was captured. In captivity, Mucius showed his loyalty to Rome by swiping his right hand into a camp fire. Porsena let him go, free to return to Rome. It is said that the siege ended with a peace treaty, in which Porsena asked for Tarquin to be returned to power. Rome of course refused, but did offer the previously taken lands of Veii in exchange for Roman POW’s.

AFTERMATH

These key events, namely the ousting of Tarquinius Superbus, the battle of Silva Arsia and the first siege of Rome, became the founding events of the new Roman Republic. For his actions, Valerius was given the name “Publicola” - that is, “one who courts the people”. He would later stop another power-hungry consul who replaced the dead Brutus from constructing a large house for himself atop the Velian Hill, visible from the Senate house, a symbol of his supposed wish to reinstate the monarchy. His construction project was demolished over night, with Publicola stating,

I have just liberated Rome, bravely, but now I am slandered, like being either an Aquillius or a Vitellian [plebeian-class families of lower origins]. I am the bitterest enemies of the former kings, so I shouldn’t be accused of wanting to be king.

To rid suspicions of him performing the act in order to build his own house atop the hill, Publicola built his at the foot of the hill instead. In later years, Rome’s famous Temple of Victory would come to be built at the foot of the Velian Hill. Publicola went on to replace the depleted senate with new members, and introduced new laws such as the right to appeal from a magistrate’s decisions. Publicola would go on to serve as consul four times, and he and Brutus had thus successfully paved the way for the nascent Republic to go on and, one day, conquer the world.

[ABOVE: Drawing of Publicola]

As for Brutus: his family, the gens Junia, would eventually birth Decimus Junius Brutus and Marcus Junius Brutus, the two key politicians behind the murder of Julius Caesar in 44 BC - the family that founded the Republic would play its part in ending it, paving the way for the monarchical rule of the emperors…

NEXT POST: The FALL of ROME'S LAST KING: The Battle of Lake Regillus, 496 BC

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