Ancient History
Semester 2, 2022
Jamie-Lou Ross
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,Part 1
Roman Republic Timeline:
753 BCE - Romulus founded Rome
715 BCE - Numa Pompillius becomes King
672 BCE - Tullus Hostillius becomes King
642 BCE - Ancus Marcius becomes King
616 BCE - Tarquinius Priscus becomes King
579 BCE - Servius Tullius becomes King
534 BCE - Tarquinius Superbus becomes King
509 BCE - Tarquinius Superbus exiled, Republic begins, officials now elected
501 BCE - Dictator position created
496 BCE - Battle of Lake Regulus, Romans defeat Latins and sign Treaty
494 BCE - First Succession
493 BCE - Cassian Treaty, alliance between Romans and Latin league
451 BCE - Decemviri appointed to write 12 Tables
450 BCE - Rome defeats Aequi army
450 BCE - The Twelve tables are written
449 BCE - The Valerio-Horatian Laws passed
445 BCE - The Lex Canuleia is passed, equality in law between patricians and plebeians, can now marry.
406 BCE - Battle of veil begins
396 BCE - Conquest of Veii
390 BCE - Sack of Rome by Gauls, defeated Romans and Romans forced to pay large ransom of gold.
368-367 BCE - The Lex Licinia Sextia,
366 BCE - first plebeian consul elected
343 BCE - First Samnite War
342 BCE - Importance based more on individual getting high offices and wealth, not as much based on descent & family
340 BCE - The Latin War
326 BCE - Second Samnite War
287 BCE - The Lex Hortensia is passed, making all laws passed by plebeian council binding on all. Ended conflict of the
orders
275 BCE - Rome controlled entire Boot of Italy
Family Accounts and Oral History: Some of these funeral orations are extant, the families of the deceased having preserved
them as trophies of honour and for use on the death of a member of the same family, whether to recall the memory of past
glories of their house, or to support their own claims to noble origins. Yet by these laudatory speeches our history has become
distorted; for much is set down in them which never occurred, false triumphs, too large a number of consulships, false
relationships and transitions of patricians to plebeian status. It is not easy to choose between the facts or the authorities. The
record has been falsified, I believe, by funeral eulogies and fictitious inscriptions on portrait busts, when families try to
appropriate to themselves the tradition of exploits and titles of office by means of inventions calculated to deceive. This has
undoubtedly led to confusion both in individual achievements and in public records of events.
Between Mythology and History: Rome’s Foundational Myths and the Regal Period
Romulus & Remus: twins, abandoned by parents as babies, put in a basket then placed into River Tiber, twins were
discovered by a female wolf. The wolf nursed babies for a short time before they were found by a shepherd. As boys grew
older they became natural leaders. One day Remus is captured and taken to the king. He discovered his true identity.
Romulus gathered some shepherds to rescue his brother. They ended up killing the king. When the city learned who the boys
were, they offered to crown them as joint kings. They could be rulers of their homeland. However, they turned down the
crowns because they wanted to found their own city. The twins left and set out to find the perfect spot for their city. The twins
eventually came to the place where Rome is located today. They both liked the general area, but each wanted to place the city
on a different hill. Romulus wanted the city to be on top of Palatine Hill while Remus preferred Aventine Hill. They agreed to
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,wait for a sign from the gods, called an augury, to determine which hill to use. Remus saw the sign of six vultures first, but
Romulus saw twelve. Each claimed to have won. Romulus went ahead and started building a wall around Palatine Hill.
However, Remus was jealous and began to make fun of Romulus' wall. At one point Remus jumped over the wall to show how
easy it was to cross. Romulus became angry and killed Remus. With Remus dead, Romulus continued to work on his city. He
officially founded the city 753 BC, making himself king, and naming it Rome after himself. Some Roman writers say Romulus
and Remus were the sons of Aeneas, others say that they were the sons of a daughter of Aeneas, without going on to
determine who was their father; that they were delivered as hostages by Aeneas to Latinus, the king of the Aborigines, when
the treaty was made between the inhabitants and the new-comers, and that Latinus, after giving them a kindly welcome, not
only did them many other good offices, but, upon dying without male issue, left them his successors to some part of his
kingdom. Others say that after the death of Aeneas, Ascanius, having succeeded to the entire sovereignty of the Latins,
divided both the country and the forces of the Latins into three parts, two of which he gave to his brothers, Romulus and
Remus.
The Regal Period: Romulus was the invention of later ancient historians. His name, which is not even proper Latin, was
designed to explain the origin of Rome’s name. His fictitious reign was filled with deeds expected of an ancient city founder
and the son of a war god. Thus he was described as having established Rome’s early political, military, and social institutions
and as having waged war against neighbouring states. Romulus was also thought to have shared his royal power for a time
with a Sabine named Titus Tatius. The name may be that of an authentic ruler of early Rome, perhaps Rome’s first real king;
nothing, however, was known about him in later centuries, and his reign was therefore lumped together with that of Romulus.
The names of the other six kings are authentic and were remembered by the Romans, but few reliable details were known
about their reigns. However, since the later Romans wished to have explanations for their early customs and institutions,
historians ascribed various innovations to these kings, often in stereotypical and erroneous ways. Rome’s urban
transformation was carried out by its last three kings: Lucius Tarquinius Priscus (Tarquin the Elder), Servius Tullius, and Lucius
Tarquinius Superbus (Tarquin the Proud). According to ancient tradition, the two Tarquins were father and son and came from
Etruria. One tradition made Servius Tullius a Latin; another described him as an Etruscan named Mastarna. All three kings
were supposed to have been great city planners and organisers. Their Etruscan origin is rendered plausible by Rome’s
proximity to Etruria, Rome’s growing geographic significance, and the public works that were carried out by the kings
themselves. The latter were characteristic of contemporary Etruscan cities. It would thus appear that during the 6th century BC
some Etruscan adventurers took over the site of Rome and transformed it into a city along Etruscan lines. In order to attract
people to the city, Rome became a sanctuary for the indigent, exiled, and unwanted. This caused a problem, in that Rome
came to have a large male population but was bereft of women. Romulus visited neighbouring towns and tribes and attempted
to secure marriage rights, but as Rome was so full of undesirables he was refused. Legend says that the Latins invited the
Sabines to a festival and stole their unmarried maidens, leading to the integration of the Latins with the Sabines. Kings were
head of the army, chief priest, and supreme judge; aristocrats formed a senate, which advised the king.
The Seven Kings of Rome:
Romulus: reigned 753-716 BCE: Divided people into three tribes, laid out the ritual boundary of the city, established the
Senate, and the basis of Roman religious rituals. Established the division between plebs and patricians, and campaigned
against Rome’s neighbours, especially the Sabines after the abduction of their women.
Numa Pompilius: 715-672 BCE: Continued the development of Roman religion and ritual practices. Began construction on
the Temple of Janus, established the office and duties of the Pontifex Maximus, as well as a number of other important
priesthoods, brought the Vestal Virgins to Rome from Alba Longa, and created the Roman calendar.
Tullus Hostilius: 672-642 BCE: Destroyed the city of Alba Longa, and began construction of the Curia Hostilia, the building
where the Roman Senate would convene. Campaigned extensively against Rome’s neighbours, especially the Sabines and
the city of Veii.
Ancus Marcius: 642-616 BCE: Reinstated the religious rites instituted by Numa which lapsed under the reign of Tullus.
Expanded the physical size of Rome, and increased its citizen body. Campaigned extensively against Rome’s Latin
neighbours, and greatly increased the size of Rome’s occupied territory, claiming the important city of Fidenae on the Tiber
and founding the port of Ostia at the mouth of the Tiber.
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, Lucius Tarquinius Priscus: 616-579 BCE: Increased the size of the Senate to 300 individuals, continued to expand Rome’s
boarders into the lands of the Latins, Sabines and Etruscans, began construction of the Circus Maximus, and Rome’s first
sewage system, and brought a number of Etruscan customs and rituals into Rome.
Servius Tullius: 579-534 BCE: The Servian reforms, minted Rome’s first coins, began construction of the temple of Diana in
Rome, significantly rebuilt the defence wall surrounding the city of Rome.
Lucius Tarquinius Superbus: 534-509 BCE: Diminished the size and authority of the Roman Senate, instigated war with the
Latins, the Sabines and the Volsci, but made peace with the Etruscans and Aequi, began construction of the Temple of Jupiter
Optimus Maximus on the Capitoline Hill, and began construction of a better sewage system, the cloaca maxima. Obtained the
Sibylline Books.
Rome the Etruscan City?: Etruscans were most powerful of the many groups on the boot; left behind huge tombs depicting
daily life; by 600BCE, Etruscans had conquered most of northern and central Italy, including Rome; passed to the Romans:
writing, engineering, and road building. Etruscans had invented latin alphabet by adapting the greek letters for their own needs
- not surprising last 3 roman kings Etruscan. Rome borrowed military and government organisation.
The Servian Reforms: Established and expanded Roman tribes based on geographical location; Grouped Roman people
based on economic wealth; 5 population categories of economic wealth, census taken to group people, every 5 years;
Centuries were groups of citizens who were able to vote on political issues; Members of the aristocracy running for office,
electing two consuls; As a Roman citizen you were required to serve in the Roman army; The system of the census improved/
expanded during the 5th century.
Once kings ruled this city; however, they did not pass it on to successors within their families. Members of other families and
even foreigners came to the throne, as Numa, coming from the Sabines, succeeded Romulus; he was a neighbour certainly,
but at that time he was a foreigner, as Tarquinius Priscus succeeded Ancus Marcius. Tarquinius, prevented from holding office
in his own land because of his impure blood – for he was the son of Demaratus of Corinth and his mother was from Tarquinii, a
woman noble but poor, as she will have been if she needed to give her hand to such a husband – subsequently migrated to
Rome and gained the throne. Between Tarquinius and his son or grandson (for even this is disputed among the sources),
Servius Tullius intervened. If we follow Roman authorities, his mother was a prisoner of war, Ocresia; if we follow Etruscan
authorities, he was once the most faithful companion of Caelius Vibenna and took part in all his adventures; subsequently,
driven out by a change of fortune, he left Etruria with all the remnants of the army of Caelius and occupied the Caelian hill,
naming it thus after his leader Caelius; Servius changed his name (for his name in Etruscan was Mastarna) and was called by
the name I have used and he obtained the throne, to the very great advantage of the state.
The Expulsion of the Tarquins: The overthrow of the Roman monarchy is an event in ancient Rome that took place between
the 6th and 5th centuries BC where a political revolution replaced the then-existing Roman monarchy under Lucius Tarquinius
Superbus with a republic. The details of the event were largely forgotten by the Romans a few centuries later; later Roman
historians invented a narrative of the events, traditionally dated to c. 509 BC, but largely believed to be fictitious by modern
scholars. The traditional narrative story involves a dynastic struggle in which the king's second son, Sextus Tarquinius, rapes a
noblewoman, Lucretia. After revealing the assault to some Roman noblemen, she kills herself. The Roman noblemen, led by
Lucius Junius Brutus, obtain the support of the Roman aristocracy and the people to expel the king and his family and create a
republic. The Roman army, supporting Brutus, forces the king into exile. Despite a number of attempts by Lucius Tarquinius
Superbus to reinstate the monarchy, the Roman people are successful in establishing a republic and thereafter elected two
consuls annually to rule the city. Many modern scholars dismiss this narrative as fictitious. There does not exist, however, any
concrete evidence for or against it. Various scholars have dismissed aspects of the traditional story, from the historicity of
almost all of its major characters to the overthrow's entire existence.
The Beginning of the Republic:
The New ‘Republic”?: aristocrats grew weary of monarchy; In 509BCE, Roman hero Junius Brutus chased the last king out of
Rome; Rome became a republic, a form of representative democracy; The Republic is ‘invented’ by Brutus, he comes up with
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