Birth of A Republic: The Early History of Rome
The story of how ancient Rome became one of the world's most powerful civilizations.
The early history of Rome is hard to disentangle from mythology. Up until about the First Punic War, the Romans did not keep any good records of their history. They made stuff up about their ancient history. But the Romans’ mythology shaped how they viewed themselves.
Geography
Rome is located on seven hills along the north bank of the Tiber River. The famous Forum is located in the flat area between the hills. Rome’s port of Ostia, which connects out to the Mediterranean, is about 19 miles from the city’s center. The Field of Mars was by Rome’s military to conjure up legions, which were placed under the command of consuls.
Latium
Latium was the home of a regional tribe in central Italy, known as the Latins. Hence, we get the Latin language, which shapes and colors all of ancient Roman history. Rome is located near the northwest of Latium. The original Romans were Latins, who later intermarried with Etruscan and Sabine settlers. That fusion of three cultures bred what we today call the Romans. The Latin language dates as far back as the 8th century BC, around the same time as the Homeric myths of ancient Greece.
Many of Rome’s earliest records were destroyed during the fateful sack of the city at the hands of the Gauls in 390 BC. This allowed Roman writers to simply make up their earlier history, because there was no extant evidence to contradict them.
Early histories
The earliest known Roman historian was a man named Quintus Fabius Pictor, who probably wrote during the Second Punic War (218-202 BC). Fabius Pictor was a relative of the more famous general Fabius, who created the so-called Fabian strategy in military affairs. Pictor’s works were widely read and imitated among later Roman historians.
The first full account we get of Rome’s constitution comes from the Greek historian Polybius, who wrote during the 2nd century BC. Polybius was living in Rome at the time as a political hostage. He was an educated Greek who read the works of Homer. An ardent lover of Greek culture, he was inspired by Greek historians to write a history of the Romans. Thus, he attempted to connect the Romans to the Trojan Diaspora found in Homer’s Iliad. Allegedly, Rome was founded by the Homeric hero Aeneas, but this connection was never made before the 3rd century BC. Polybius’ theory of mixed government was heavily influential on the American Founders.
Romulus and Remus
According to Livy’s History of Rome, the founding of Rome is traditionally dated to 753 BC. In the mythology of the Romans, two brothers—Romulus and Remus—were raised by a she-wolf, and founded a city on the Palatine Hill. This grew into the Eternal City of Rome. Romulus’ city attracted many settlers from the surrounding area. To get wives, Romulus arranged a festival to draw in large crowds. This was at a time when a city’s population could easily die out from lack of breeding. Romulus and his men then proceeded to seize the Sabine women, forcing them to become their wives. Romulus defeated two different Sabine tribes, and triumphed twice in the year 752 BC. Titus Tatius, a Sabine King, nearly captured Rome, but the Sabine women arranged for merger of the Roman and Sabine kingdoms.
Seven Kings of Rome
Numa Pompilius, son-in-law of the Sabine King, was elected after Romulus’ death. He served from 715-673 BC. He was a philosopher and religious expert who wrote many books, and established Rome’s religious orders. This included the pontifices, flamines, Salii, and fetiales. King Numa created the Temple of Janus, and determined the sacred boundary of Rome. He imported the Vestal Virgins from Alba Longs, and created the office of Pontifex Maximus, the high priest of Roman religion.
After conquering the Greeks, the Romans purposely Hellenized their history to make it resemble that of Athens. Romulus was akin to the Greek hero Theseus. King Numa was the equivalent of Greece’s Solon, the legendary lawgiver of Athenian democracy.
The next King was Tullus Hostilius (r. 673-643), who conquered Alba Longa.
Then there was Ancus Marcius (r. 642-617), who settled the Aventine Hill, conquered Latium, and founded the port of Ostia.
The next King, a man named Lucius Tarquinius Priscus (r. 616-579), was an Etruscan who conquered more of Latium, and fought against the Sabines and Etruscans.
The Romans had another Etruscan King, a man named Servius Tullius (c. 575-535), who enlarged Rome to three more hills. He built temples to Diana and Fortuna, and possibly created Rome’s first coinage.
The Republic is born
The seventh and last King was the infamous Tarquinius Superbus (r. 535-509 BC). His surname means “arrogant.” He seized the throne by assassinating King Servius Tullius, with support from the patricians. He began constructing the Temple of Jupiter Optimus Maximus on the Capitoline. When he was away on campaign, his son Sextus Tarquinius raped a noblewoman named Lucretia.
Lucretia reported the rape to Rome’s noblemen, and then committed suicide. Enraged, a man named Lucius Junius Brutus rallied the nobility and the commoner alike to expel the monarchy in 509 or 508 BC. With aid from the Etruscans and Latins, King Superbus unsuccessfully attempted to restore his rule until his death in 495 BC. The successful expulsion of King Superbus became the founding myth for Rome’s aristocracy, which deeply resented all things monarchical.
One of the Republic’s early structures was the Temple of Jupiter Optimus Maximus, finished shortly after the Republic’s birth. It set a new standard for temple architecture. The Etruscan city of Veii built a smaller Temple of Minerva, which closely imitated the Roman temple. The Capitoline Jupiter Temple was destroyed in a fire in 83 BC, and rebuilt with a new Greek design in 69 BC.
Struggle of the Orders
Rome’s first Senate, consisting of 100 members during the monarchy, consisted of members who were appointed, not elected. This special status was often invoked to assert one’s patrician heritage. Patricians were highly protective of their privileges, and claimed a monopoly over political decision-making. One of the Early Republic’s definition conflicts was between the plebeians and patricians. In the Early Republic, it appears that the praetors were more powerful than the consuls. Also, the commoners didn’t have any power at all. Patricians dominated all political offices. Over time, as Rome’s institutions evolved, rich plebeians were able to break into politics. The patricians constantly engaged in warfare, to the detriment and dismay of the plebs. The plebs threatened labor strikes and secession. The so-called Struggle of the Orders lasted almost two centuries, from 494 to 287 BC. Finally, a new office called the Tribune of the Plebs was invented to protect the interest of the commoners. Assemblies were created to enable average citizens to vote on laws and elect candidates.
From Conquered to Conqueror
A traumatic moment came for the Early Republic when, sometime between 393 and 387 BC, the Romans were crushed by the Senones, led by chief Brennus. Brennus and his men sacked the city of Rome itself. When the Romans couldn’t pay the full indemnity, Brennus threw his sword onto the scales to make weight. This early Sack of Rome seems to have destroyed all early Roman records.
It was a defining moment for the Roman consciousness. Having been humiliated by the Gauls, the Romans wanted to entirely wipe them out. They began to incorporate the concept of preemptive warfare in their theory of just war (jus bellum).
It took Rome a generation to recover from the Gallic Sack, but it inspired Rome to spend the next century conquering her Italian foes. The toughest of these early conflicts was against the Samnites, as well as the Pyrrhic War against a Greek mercenary named Pyrrhus of Epiros. These conflicts led to a number of defeats. However, these experiences taught the Romans indispensable lessons about the art of warfare. They learned how to mobilize large armies. They learned how to wear down their opponents through attrition. They began to appreciate the importance of clever diplomacy, and strategically placed their overseas colonies.
By the year 265 BC, the Romans had finally conquered the last Greek settlement in Italy. The next year, Rome started to go on the offensive, with the Senate voting in favor of intervening in Sicily.