Before it was a magnificent empire, before it had any mad emperors or great wars, Rome was just another ancient civilization in Mediterranean Europe.
The Kingdom of Rome was the earliest phase in the history of Ancient Rome, traditionally dated from 753 BC to 509 BC. Archeology has found traces of settlements on the site of Rome that are at least 200 years older, but there was indeed a clear fortified delimitation from the 8th century BC. According to legend, the city and its kingdom were founded by Romulus and Remus, twin brothers raised by a she-wolf.
Before that, Romulus and Remus were the sons of Rhea Silvia, supposedly by the god of War, Mars. Their maternal grandfather was Numitor, the rightful king of a place called Alba Longa, through whom the twins were descended from both the Trojan hero Aeneas, and Latinus, the king of another place called Latium.
Before the twins' birth, Numitor's throne had been usurped by his brother, Amulius, who murdered Numitor's son or sons, and condemned Rhea Silvia to perpetual virginity by consecrating her a Vestal priestess. When Rhea became pregnant, she asserted that she had been visited by the god Mars. Amulius imprisoned her based on a prophecy that her children would usurp his throne, and upon the twins' birth, ordered that they be thrown into the Tiber. But as the river had been swollen by rain, the servants tasked with disposing of the infants could not reach the bank of the river, and so put the twins beneath a fig tree at the foot of the Palatine Hill.
This is when the famous female wolf would raise Romulus and Remus. note . They would eventually be found by the king's herdsman, Faustulus, and his wife, Acca Larentia. The brothers would grow up and live near shepherds and other hill folk.
Faustulus would reveal their origin as being the grandsons of Numitor and would eventually be involved in a conflict with Amulius's followers. Eventually with the help of some allies, they tricked Amulius into an ambush and killed him, restoring their grandfather to the throne.
After helping their grandfather restore his throne, the twins developed an interest in founding a city of their own. They returned to the hills overlooking the Tiber, the place where they had been abandoned as infants. They could not agree on which hill should house the new city, leading to conflict between the two and Romulus famously killing his brother Remus. note
Rome was officially founded on April 21 753 BC. Romulus's first act was to fortify the hill and split the population into three tribes, known as the Ramnes, Titienses, and Luceres, for taxation and military purposes. Each tribe was presided over by an official known as a tribune, and was further divided into ten curia, or wards, each led by an official known as a curio. Romulus also allotted a portion of land to each ward, for the benefit of the people.
The Kingdom also outlawed infanticide and allowed criminals and escaped slaves to seek asylum in Rome.
Romulus established the Senate, composed of 100 men from leading families, though unlike The Roman Republic most of the power went to the king. These men were called patres who would be the predecessors of the Republic's patricians.
While the city established its government and laws and buildings there was one problem: the majority of the population were men. Romulus sent envoys to neighboring towns, appealing to them to allow marriage with Roman citizens, but the rulers there declined. Romulus came up with a very cruel plan to forcefully take the women instead.
First, he set up a festival and invited the people of the neighboring cities to attend and many did. The most notable were the Sabines, who came in droves. Second, while people were feasting, a signal was called and the Romans snatched and carried off the women among their guests.
The cities went to war with Rome, but Romulus's legions defeated them all in battle. He famously defeated and slew the prince of a town called Caenina in single combat and stripped him of his armour. Some of the defeated people, such as the families of the abducted women, were allowed to settle at Rome.
Following the defeat of other towns, the Sabines, under the command of Titus Tatius, organised their forces and advanced onto Rome. They gained control of the citadel by bribing the daughter of a Roman commander charged with its defense. Without the advantage of the citadel, the Romans were obliged to meet the Sabines on the battlefield. The Sabines advanced from the citadel, and fierce fighting ensued. The fighting ended with Sabine women stepping between the two forces, begging the two armies too stop fighting and have peace. The leaders of each side met and made peace and formed one community, to be jointly ruled by Romulus and Tatius.
Tatius would later die in a riot whilst performing a ritual sacrifice. Romulus resisted calls to avenge the Sabine king's death, instead reaffirming the Roman alliance with the Sabines and possibly preventing the city from splitting ethnically.
Romulus later conquered the city of Fidenae, which had begun raiding Roman territory to push back against Rome's rising power. The Romans lured the Fidenates and ambushed them. After the Fidenates retreated, the Romans followed them and took over the town.
After Romulus's mysterious disappearance during a storm, Rome endured a year long interegnum under which ten men chosen from the Senate governed Rome. After that, they were ruled by several more kings (seven, according to the legends). During this time, the Vestal Virgins Of Rome were established. The Roman calendar was reformed, adjusting it for the solar and lunar year, as well as by adding the months of January and February to bring the total number of months to twelve.
Rome would go through periods between expanding and including more of its neighbors into Rome, not expanding and only fighting wars to defend its territory, and diplomacy to peacefully unite smaller surrounding cities into alliance with Rome. Under both methods, Rome completed the conquest of the Latins and relocated them to the Aventine Hill, forming the plebeian or commoner class of Romans.
Many of Rome's earliest public projects were established, such as the first salt mines, the first aqueducts, the first bridges, and the Roman Games, with the building of the Circus Maximus, a giant stadium for chariot races.
The Romans eventually expanded north and conquered the Etruscans under Roman King Lucius Tarquinius Priscus, who was the first King of Rome to be of Etruscan birth . This added 100 new members to the Senate from the conquered Etruscan tribes, bringing the total number of senators to 200. After that the first wall was built all around the Seven Hills of Rome, known as the pomerium.
The Kingdom Of Rome ended under the reign of its seventh, and arguably worse, King, Lucius Tarquinius Superbus or Tarquin The Proud who used violence and intimidation to control Rome and disrespected Roman customs and the Roman Senate. What finally crossed the line was when his son, Sextus Tarquinius, raped Lucretia, wife and daughter to a powerful Roman noble. Lucretia told her relatives about the attack, and committed suicide out of dishonor.
Four men launched a coup and overthrew Tarquin and his family from Rome in 509 BC. Lucius Junius Brutus (who yes is related to the more infamous Brutus) and Lucius Tarquinius Collatinus became Rome's first consuls, marking the beginning of the The Roman Republic. Compare and contrast The Roman Empire due to both involving the expansion of territory under the reign of a monarchical figure.
For the Roman Army specifically, see The Glory That Was Rome. See also the following pages of eminent figures of the Roman Kingdom:
- Romulus
- Titus Tatius
- Numa Pompilius
- Tullus Hostilius
- Ancus Marcius
- Tarquinius Priscus
- Servius Tullius
- Tullia Minor
- Tarquinius Superbus
- Lucretia
Tropes as portrayed in fiction:
- Adapted Out: Most of the era between the founding of Rome and the establishment of the Republic is skipped over in media about Rome.
- Alternative Calendar: Under the second king Numa Pompilius, the Roman calendar was adjusted for the solar and lunar year, and would add the months of January and February to bring the total number of months to twelve.
- Alternative Character Interpretation: Romulus, as he is seen by by both Ancient Romans after the Kingdom and the modern public, as a blood thirsty tyrant who betrayed his own brother or a competent ruler who laid the foundations for Rome's glory or a combination of both.
- The Caligula: The Roman Kingdom had these even before the Trope Namer existed, most infamously Tarquinius Superbus who ruled cruelly and maliciously.
- Historical Downgrade: Romulus, who is forever known for murdering his brother and possibly his adopted father and to a lesser extent for the kidnapping of the Sabine women but everything else he's done since then is often ignored.
- Historical Villain Upgrade: Tarquin The Proud who is depicted as an evil and tyrannical king by Roman historians centuries after his reign; we'll never know if he was actually as evil as the sources say or if it is an exaggeration by later Republican chroniclers.
- Raised by Wolves: The Founders of Rome were feral children mothered by a female wolf... if you don't take the meaning of Latin's Lupa as "prostitute", that is.
- Rape Is a Special Kind of Evil: After the rape of Lucretia committed by Tarquin's son, the Roman senate thought they had gone too far and overthrew Tarquin, ending the era of the Roman Kingdom and establishing the Republic.
- Start My Own: Romulus and Remus when founding Rome after helping their grandpa be restored to his.
Works about or including the Roman Kingdon include:
Art:
- Oath of the Horatii
, 1784 painting by Jacques-Louis David.
Films:
- Romulus and Remus, a 1961 Italian-French film about the two brothers founding Rome.
- Romulus and the Sabines, a 1961 Italian film about the Abduction of the Sabine Women.
- Duel of Champions, 1961 Italian film about the Horatii and Curiatii.
- Hero of Rome, 1964 Italian film depicting the expulsion of the last kings of Rome and the legend of Gaius Mucius Scaevola.
- The First King: Birth of an Empire, a 2019 Italian film about the founding of Rome.
Literature:
- The Rape of Lucrece (1594), narrative poem by William Shakespeare.
Live-Action Television:
- Romulus, a 2020 Italian historical drama series about the life of Romulus and Remus.
Video Games:
- Hegemony III: Clash of the Ancients covers the struggles between the Romans, Etruscans, Gallics, and Greeks before Rome's rise.
- The Total War: Rome II Expansion Pack Rise of the Republic.
