Use this index to skip to topics OR scroll down on your own Introduction There are many stories that were written to explain the founding of the city of Rome. Most of these stories are legend and myth but they still manage to inspire awe in anyone who studies them. |
Romulus and Remus 
The most popular and well known story of Rome's founding is the legend of the twin brothers, Romulus and Remus. Legend says that they were born of the Roman god of war, Mars, and a vestal |
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| named Rhea Silvia(also known as Ilia) who was the daughter of Numitor, the king of Alba Longa. Out of fear for his own power, the evil King Amulius who had usurped the throne of Rhea Silva's father ordered the twins to be killed. However, instead of being killed the babies were put in a basket and were sent down the Tiber river and came to rest at the foot of the Palatine hill. As the legend says the two babies were then found by a female wolf who nursed and looked after them until they were adopted by a sheperd couple.
When they got older, Romulus and Remus decided to build a town.They both had different ideas on who should rule it so they decided to leave it up to the devine will of the gods. Romulus went up the Palitine hill and Remus went up the Aventine hill in order to view a birds flight,which they hoped would be an oman from the gods as to who should be the rightful ruler of this new city. The result of this test was that Romulus saw twelve Vultures fly by but Remus only saw six so Romulus concluded that the gods had chose him as the ruler of this new city. As Romulus was tracing the outline of the city walls for the newborn city Remus ,in an act of defiance of his brothers power, jumped over the tracing that was marked on the ground. In rage over his brothers betrayal, Romulus killed Remus on the spot. This act was to be the future unifying force of the Roman republic and Empire as it symbolized to the Romans that anyone who betrays or deserts the "eternal" city in any way will be struck down. After this Romulus found square Rome(or the Roman forum) which was to be the nuculus of this new city for 1200 years. It was the month of April 21 in the year 753 BC that the city of Rome was born(so it is said). To help his new city grow Romulus provided an asylum for slaves, murderers and anyone else who had nowheres else to go. Also,to give his new citizens(who were all male) wives he invited the Sabines, a tribe further north of Rome,to a religious festival at the new city. While the Sabines were enjoying the festival, the Romans carried off all the Sabine women and caused a war between the two societies. The Sabines were understandibly very upset over this treachery by the Romans and so led a vicious attack on the Romans to get their women back and to get revenge for this very dishonorable insult on their pride.This attack was lead by Titus Tazio who was the leader of Curiti (a local Sabine tribe). Duiring this attack the Romans were besieged and were forced to retreat to the Capitol hill to escape the Sabine attackers.It is during this time that one of the more famous images of Roman mythology appears. It is said that while the Romans were trapped on the Capitol ,a Roman girl named Tarpea betrayed her fellow Romans and opened the city gates to the Sabines who promised her a reward of the gold bracelets they were wearing .Tarpea ,of course paid for her treachery against Rome with her life and was crushed by the shields of the Roman soldiers.Her name was later given to the Tarpeian Rock where future generations of Romans would throw down all criminals who were condemmed to die.. After the betrayal, the Sabines besieged the city and faught against the enemy Romans with a fury.As a chance for peace between the two societies was at it's lowest point,the women interviened and asked for both sides to stop fighting.By now,the captive women had fallen in love with their Roman captors and diddn't want to see their fathers and brothers fighting their new husbands. Because of this,the peace was restored between the Sabines and the Romans and they became one united people ruled jointly by Romulus and Titus Tazio until Tazio's death at the hands of an enemy five years later. |
