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Romulus and Remus – The Founding of Rome According to the roman mythology, the founders of Rome were Romulus and Remus. The twin-brothers were the supposed sons of the god Mars and the priestess Rhea Silvia. The story begins with the deposition of Numitor (their grandfather and king of the ancient Italian city of Alba Longa), by his brother Amulius. Numitor's daughter, Rhea Silvia, was made a Vestal Virgin by Amulius - which meant that she was made a priestess of the goddess Vesta and therefore forbidden to marry and condemned to virginity. However, the god Mars came to her in her temple and of him she conceived her two sons, Romulus and Remus. As soon as they were born, Amulius knew that he had to rid himself of them. Fearing the possibility that her story may be true about Mars being the father, Amulius knew that he could not outright kill the boys. The boys’ demise was wanted because Amulius feared that the boys would grow up to overthrow him. So he had them placed in a trough and thrown into the River Tiber. At that time the river was in flood so he could then justify that the river had killed the boys, not him, thereby avoiding the wrath of Ares. If the waters did not kill the boys, he knew that the river would take the boys far away from his kingdom of Alba Longa. Thus would be the case. When the flooding waters fell, the trough, still containing the two boys, came ashore. They were found by a shewolf, who instead of killing them, looked after them and fed them with her milk, the she-wolf was helped by a woodpecker who brought them food too. Interesting enough both these animals were sacred to Mars. Romulus and Remus were then discovered by Faustulus, a shepherd, who brought the children to his home. Faustulus and his wife, Acca Larentia, raised the boys as their own. Upon reaching adulthood, Romulus and Remus were strong, striking young men. They had Ares skill and with the love and guidance provided by the parents who raised them (Faustulus’ and his wife), Romus and Remus were proud and confident. Through rumor and legend, the two eventually learned of their birth and from where they came. Knowing their horrific past, they set out for vengeance and set out for Alba Longa. Once there, they killed Amulius and reinstated Numitor, their grandfather, as King. Because they were young and wanted adventure, they decided to create a kingdom of their own. Romulus and Remus chose the place where the she-wolf had nursed them. Once Romulus and Remus arrived at the Palatine Hill, the two argued over where the exact position of the city should be. Romulus was set on building the city upon the Palatine, but Remus wanted to build the city on the strategic and easily fortified Aventine Hill. They agreed to settle their argument by testing their abilities as augurs and by the will of the deities. Each took a seat on the ground apart from one another, and, Remus saw six vultures (which were considered to be sacred to Mars, their father), while Romulus saw twelve. Remus was enraged by Romulus’s victory. He claimed that since he had seen his six vultures first, he should have won. When Romulus began digging a trench (or building a wall) where his city's boundary was to run, Remus ridiculed some parts of the work, and obstructed others. At last, Remus leapt across the trench, an omen of bad luck, since this implied that the city fortifications would be easily breached. Romulus, enraged at this, slew him, uttering “So perish every one that shall hereafter leap over my wall." Fighting broke out between those who supported Remus and those who supported Romulus. But with Remus dead, it was only time before Romulus’ forces were victorious. Once the fighting subsided, Romulus buried Remus before continuing to build his city. He named the city Roma after himself, and served as its first king. After the completion of the city, Romulus divided the people of Rome who were able to fight into regiments of 3000 infantry and 300 cavalry. Romulus called these regiments "legions". The rest of the people became the populace of the city, and out of the populace, Romulus hand selected 100 of the most noble men to serve as a council for the city. He called these men Patricians and their council the Roman Senate. Romulus called these noble men Patricians not only because they were the fathers of legitimate sons, but also because he intended the great and the wealthy to treat the weak and the poor as fathers treat their sons. This delineates, symbolically, the inauguration of the patron-client relationship, known as clientela, which was central to Roman culture and society, and was later passed down to medieval societies. Romulus spread the reputation of Rome as an asylum to all who desired a new life. Because of this, Rome attracted a population of exiles, refugees, murderers, criminals, and runaway slaves. Rome's population grew so much that the city settled five of the seven hills of Rome: the Capitoline Hill, the Aventine Hill, the Caelian Hill, the Quirinal Hill, and the Palatine Hill. Romulus, however, saw a problem quickly forming before him: few of the foreigners had wives. Romulus decided he needed to fill his city with women as well. To provide wives so that his society could flourish, Romulus decided to steal women from the Sabines, an Italian tribe. He proclaimed a festival and invited many Sabines to it. While the attention of the men was elsewhere Romulus' men rushed in and carried off the women. This was the famous "Rape (carrying off) of the Sabine women" (which later became a subject for painters). The Sabine men were furious and, led by their king Titus Tatius, made war on Romulus. When the fighting had reached its peak the Sabine women, who had grown fond of their Roman husbands, rushed between the ranks and begged both sides to make peace. So the battle was stopped, Romulus and Titus Tatius ruled together over the two peoples until Titus Tatius was killed in battle. For the rest of his life Romulus ruled alone, proving himself a great leader in peace and war. He did not die but disappeared one day in a violent storm. The Romans believing he had been taken up to heaven, worshipped him under the name of Quirinus. He was succeeded by Numa Pompilius. The people of Rome grew proud of their city and loved the two gods they believed were the most influential – Venus and Mars. Although still seen as promiscuous, Venus was viewed by the Romans as more of a loving, caring goddess. As for Mars, he was viewed as their patron. He took on the qualities of Athena – strategy, tactics and wisdom. LINEAGE: Venus & Anchises → Aeneas → 12 generations → Numitor → Rhea Silvia & Mars → Romulus & Remus → 20 generations → Julius Caesar. In legend, Julius Caesar claimed that he was actually descended from the gods Venus and Mars. He used this propaganda to his best benefit is his rise to power in Rome in the last 1st century BC. Romulus & Remus Questions Name: Date: Per: As you read the story, answer the following questions. 1) Who are the parents of Romulus and Remus? 2) Why did their mother originally become a Vestal Virgin? 3) Why are the two boys sent away? 4) Who/what finds the babies first and what is done with baby boys? 5) Who finds them with the she-wolf? 6) How do the boys learn about who they really are? 7) Where do the boys go and what do the boys do when they learn about their past? 8) Why do they move on instead of staying in the place they on in question #7? 9) Why did they choose the particular area for their new city? 10) How was Palatine Hill finally chosen as the exact spot? 11) What kind of people first populated “Roma”? Why? 12) How were Rome’s military history and government started? 13) What happened with the Sabines? Explain fully. 14) Who is the most famous “descendent” of the patron gods of Rome? 15) Using the remaining space to illustrate one of the following: a) The abandonment of Romulus & Remus and being found by answer to question #4, OR b) The building of Roma, OR c) The episode with the Sabines