Tullia Minor is a semi-legendary figure in Roman history who was the last queen of The Roman Kingdom, younger daughter of Rome's sixth king, Servius Tullius, and most hated woman in Ancient Rome.
Tullia was the younger of the two daughters of Rome's sixth king, Servius Tullius, who arranged the marriage of his daughters to the two sons of his predecessor, Tarquinius Priscus , Lucius (who would become the infamous "Tarquin The Proud") and Arruns. Tullia actually married Arruns first, whose calm demeanor contrasted her aggressive personality, which went obviously went as poorly as you think . Her similar personality to Lucius drew them closer to each other, and Tullia inspired her brother-in-law to arrange the murder of their respective siblings in quick succession, and Tarquinius and Tullia were afterwards married.
After that, Tullia encouraged her new husband to overthrow her father and seek the throne for themselves. Tarquinius was convinced and began to solicit the support of the patrician senators, and the two bribed presents and vilified the king when they meet.
Having acquired the backing of a large number of senators, Tarquinius went to the senate house with armed guards and seated himself on the throne, threw Tullius into the street and where he was murdered by Tarquinius's assassins, which was suggested by Tullia. Tullia then drove in her carriage to the senate house, where she hailed her husband as king and then proceeded to drive her carriage over her father's mutilated body. Tullia's desecration of her murdered father's corpse spattered her with blood and stained her clothes.
It is unknown what happened to her between the time of her father's death and her husband's overthrow, whether she was actively as involved in ruling on behalf or with her husband or if she simply let Tarquin take over everything after her involvement. When the uprising led by Lucius Junius Brutus ended the Roman monarchy and King Tarquinius and his family were exiled from Rome, Tullia in particular was cursed by the Roman people as she fled her home, given her role in the murder of her own father and and disappeared never heard about again.
After driving over her father's remains with her carriage, the street on which the act was performed (originally called Orbian Street) was from then on referred to as Impious Street by the Romans (Vicus Sceleratus - "street of infamy", or "of wickedness").
Works about or featuring Tullia Minor include:
Art:
- She's been an artistic subject for a long time, and was depicted in a now lost drawing by prominent French painter François Pascal Simon Gérard. This painting, which most likely depicted Tullia and Lucius being driven out of Rome, is widely believed to have been a metaphor for The French Revolution and the removal of King Louis XVI and Queen Marie-Antoinette.
Theatre:
- The main character of the 1533 play Tullia by Italian writer Lodovico Martelli.
