AI Summary
5 min readIn 753 BCE, according to Roman tradition, a city was founded on the banks of the Tiber by a man who had killed his own twin brother. But the Romans themselves did not see Romulus and Remus as the sole founders of their city. They had a whole spectrum of mythic figures—from a Trojan refugee to a series of later kings—and the way they used these stories reveals less about the eighth century BCE and far more about how Romans understood their own identity, politics, and place in the Mediterranean world.
Aeneas: The Useful Traveler
The most distant founder in the Roman imagination was Aeneas, a minor Trojan prince from Homer’s Iliad. His defining trait was piety: after Troy fell, he escaped carrying his elderly father on his shoulders, a gesture so honorable that the Greeks let him go. Then he wandered the Mediterranean, and depending on which tradition you believe, he ended up in Greece, North Africa, Spain, or Italy.
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What you'll learn
- 1 (01:14) **Mythic Founders Beyond Romulus** - Introduction to the episode's scope: exploring Aeneas, Romulus, Remus, and other figures in Rome's origin story
- 2 (02:30) **Why These Myths Matter More Than History** - The stories tell us more about later Roman identity than the actual 8th century BC
- 3 (04:36) **Augustus and the Hierarchy of Founders** - How the first emperor prioritized Aeneas over Romulus
- 4 (06:11) **The Full Spectrum of Roman Founders** - Romulus, the kings, and later "second founders" like Camillus
- 5 (08:35) **Aeneas: The Minor Trojan Who Became a Wanderer** - His role in Homer and his escape from Troy
- 6 (10:51) **Aeneas in Italy: Early Traditions and Archaeological Hints** - Evidence from the 6th century BC and material culture
- 7 (14:39) **Lavinium as a Cult Site** - How Aeneas' landing place became a Roman religious center
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Show Notes
The story of Romulus and Remus is one of the most famous myths from the ancient world. But the Romans believed the founding of their city stretched far beyond the tale of the twin brothers. Heroes, kings and exiles all played a part in Rome's legendary beginnings.
Tristan Hughes is joined by Jeremy Armstrong to explore the myths behind the founding of Rome. Why did the Romans link their origins to figures like Aeneas and Romulus? What do these stories reveal about Roman identity? And could there be any historical truth behind the legends of Rome's earliest days?
MORE
Origins of Rome's Empire
The Kings of Rome
Presented by Tristan Hughes. Audio editor is Tim Arstall. The producer is Joseph Knight. The senior producer is Anne-Marie Luff.
All music courtesy of Epidemic Sounds
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