Romulus

Romulus was the legendary founder and first king of Rome. He is remembered for creating many of the city's most important laws, government systems, religious practices, and social customs. Though stories about Romulus often include folklore and myth, the ideas and traditions linked to him became very important to Roman culture and history.

Many tales tell of how Romulus helped build Rome and guide its early days. Because of this, he is seen as a key figure in understanding how Rome began and grew into a great city. The stories of Romulus show what early Romans valued and believed about leadership and community.

For the famous story of Romulus and his brother Remus, see Romulus and Remus. For other uses of the name Romulus, see Romulus (disambiguation).

Traditional account

The stories about Romulus include his amazing birth and early life with his twin brother, Remus. According to Roman myths, Romulus and Remus were the sons of the goddess Rhea Silvia and the god Mars. Their grandfather, Numitor, was the rightful king of Alba Longa, but he lost his throne to his brother Amulius. Amulius locked up Rhea Silvia and ordered the twins to be thrown into the river Tiber after they were born. However, the river was too swollen, so the twins were left under a fig tree. A wolf found and cared for them until a shepherd named Faustulus and his wife Acca Larentia discovered them.

As they grew up, Romulus and Remus decided to build a city. They disagreed on where to build it, and during their argument, Romulus killed Remus. Romulus then started building Rome on the Palatine Hill. He created laws, divided the people into groups for organizing the city, and set up a group of leaders called the Senate. To grow the city's population, Romulus held games and festivals. During one of these events, he and his men took women from nearby towns to become wives for the men of Rome. This led to a war, but eventually, peace was made, and the two groups joined together to rule the city.

Romulus ruled Rome for many years. After his reign, he disappeared during a stormy day while reviewing his soldiers. Some believed he was taken up to the heavens by the god Mars. His steps were followed by another king, Numa Pompilius, who was chosen from the Sabines.

Primary sources

Livy, Dionysius, and Plutarch used Quintus Fabius Pictor as one of their main sources. Other important sources include Ovid’s Fasti and Virgil’s Aeneid. Some Greek historians said Rome was founded by Greeks and named its founder Aeneas. Roman historians link Romulus to Aeneas through family ties and talk about an earlier settlement on the Palatine Hill, sometimes saying it was started by Evander and his Greek group.

The story of Romulus captures Rome’s view of itself, its beginning, and its important values. For today’s scholars, it is one of the most complicated and tricky of all stories about how a city starts. Ancient historians were sure that Romulus gave his name to the city. Most historians today think his name probably came from the name of the city. Roman historians said the city was founded between 758 and 728 BC, and Plutarch mentions a calculation by Varro’s friend Tarutius that Romulus and his twin were born in 771 BC. The tradition that Romulus was connected to the semi-divine Trojan prince Aeneas was added later, and Romulus was made the ancestor of Rome’s first Imperial dynasty. It is not clear if the tale of Romulus or his twins were part of the original story of Rome’s beginning, or if they were added later.

Romulus-Quirinus

Ennius (active in the 180s BC) called Romulus a god without linking him to Quirinus. Roman storytellers said Quirinus was originally a Sabine war god and the same as the Roman god Mars. Lucilius listed Quirinus and Romulus as separate gods, and Varro said they had different temples. Pictures of Quirinus showed him as a bearded warrior with a spear, representing Roman strength and the city of Rome as a god. He had a special priest called the Flamen Quirinalis, who took care of his worship and rituals in the religious system started by Romulus’s successor, Numa Pompilius. However, there is no proof that Romulus and Quirinus were combined before the 1st century BC.

Ovid in Metamorphoses XIV describes how Romulus and his wife Hersilia were turned into gods and given new names, Quirinus and Hora. Mars, Romulus’s father, was allowed by Jupiter to bring his son to live with the Olympians. One idea about this tradition suggests that two different stories came from an earlier single hero. While Romulus is known as the city’s founder, Quirinus might have been a god of the harvest, and the Fornacalia a festival for a main food crop (spelt). Through the dates and festivals, they became linked. A pattern noticed by anthropologists shows that a story about a founding hero being killed, his body buried in fields, and a festival for that hero, a harvest god, and a food crop is a common shape, called a “dema archetype”. This pattern suggests that in an older tradition, the god and the hero were actually the same person who later became two figures.

Historicity

It is unclear if Romulus was a real person or just a story made up over time. Many stories about Romulus were told by Roman historians who tried to make them fit with Roman values and actions. Other stories seem to come from folk tales and old legends. Some scholars think these stories might have been made up by Rome's enemies to make fun of them, but others believe the stories were real and just part of old Roman traditions.

Tomb of Romulus

In 1899, an archaeologist found a small stone box that people thought might be Romulus' tomb. This box was buried near important places in Rome, like the Senate House. However, no bones were found inside, and because Romulus is a legendary figure, it is unsure if this was really his tomb. Some think it might have been a special monument made in his honor, rather than a real grave.

Depictions in art

The story of Romulus has been very popular in art, literature, and philosophy since ancient times. Romulus and Aeneas were often shown in artworks about Rome's early history.

In the late 1500s, the Magnani family from Bologna asked artists to create works about Rome's founding. These included sculptures and a big set of paintings called Histories of the Foundation of Rome by the Carracci brothers: Ludovico, Annibale, and Agostino. Some of these paintings show Romulus drawing the city's borders with a plough, the Sabine women, and other important moments.

Many famous artists have painted scenes from Romulus's story, including Il Sodoma, Nicolas Poussin, Peter Paul Rubens, and others. There are also artworks showing the story of Tarpeia and Hersilia, as well as scenes about the death of Tatius.