Year 9

Unit 3 - Roman Republic

Lesson 1 - The founding of Rome - myth and reality
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​In ancient times, many different peoples occupied much of the land we now call Italy. Almost 3000 years ago, a town began to develop on the banks of the river Tiber.

This city was Rome and it was to grow gradually in importance until it eventually became the centre of a powerful empire. Ancient Rome was to take over from Greece as the most powerful military and cultural force in Europe.

Although the Romans easily conquered the Greeks; they admired and copied many aspects of Greek culture. The Romans, in turn, had a powerful influence on the development of the later culture of Europe.

The founding of Rome - the myth

The origins of Rome are most famously associated with the story of Romulus and Remus, the twins who were brought up by a friendly wolf. 

​‘Long ago and in a faraway country lived Venus. She was the goddess of love and beauty. She had a son called Aeneas. She was very proud of him. He had fought bravely in defending his city, Troy, against its enemies. But when Troy was captured, Aeneas had to flee for his life. He made a long voyage by land and sea and eventually reached the beautiful plain of Latium in Italy. Here he married the King's daughter and founded a kingdom of his own.
 
Many, many years passed, and the kingdom entered troubled times. Numitor, one of Aeneas' descendants, was now King. His daughter Rhea had just given birth to twin sons called Romulus and Remus. Their father was Mars, the mighty god of war. It should have been a happy time for Numitor. But his wicked brother Amulius wanted his kingdom and drove Numitor out of the country. Amulius ordered his soldiers to throw the babies Romulus and Remus into the River Tiber. But the babies didn't drown. They were washed ashore. A she-wolf heard them crying, took them away and cared for them alongside her cubs. Later they were discovered by a shepherd, who carried the boys home and looked after them as if they were his own children.
 
The boys grew up strong and brave, and with their help their grandfather, King Numitor, won back his throne from his brother. Romulus then began to build a city of his own. He chose a place where the River Tiber could be crossed, surrounded by seven hills overlooking the river. But Remus made fun of him and the city he was building. The twins fought each other and Remus was killed. But Romulus carried on building. And when he finished his city he became its first King. The city was called Rome. After reigning as King for forty years, Romulus mysteriously disappeared in the darkness of a great storm and became a god.'

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-51587892

The founding of Rome - the reality

In fact, Rome developed gradually from several different villages, which were built by the Latin people at the side of the river Tiber about twenty five kilometres from the sea. These villages occupied the tops of seven small hills. They were situated near an island on the river, where the river became shallow enough to be crossed by foot and too shallow for ships to pass any further upstream.

Activities

1. Copy and paste the text of the story of Romulus and Remus. In one colour, highlight three things in the story which might be true, and in a second colour, three things that are unlikely to be true.
2. Why do you think the myth of the founding of Rome was told to children? (Clue - think about your previous work on Sparta) What were children expected to learn from the myth?
3. Using the map and the text to help you,  explain why in reality Rome was an ideal site for a settlement?