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The Founding of Rome: The Legend of Romulus and Remus
Below are three retellings of the legend of Romulus and Remus...
Version ONE
The kingdom of Alba Longa was ruled by the wicked king,
Amulius. Amulius fought his brother, Numitor, and sent him
into exile. Amulius forced Numitor's daughter, Rhea Silvia,
to become a Vestal Virgin. Vestal Virgins were not allowed
to marry and have children.
One day Mars, the god of war, saw Rhea Silvia and
fell in love with her. Some time later she gave birth to
twin boys. Amulius ordered his slave to throw the
two twins into the River Tiber. But the slave left the
twins in their cradle to give them a chance. They
floated down the river. A she-wolf rescued the two babies and
looked after them.
A shepherd called Faustulus saw the she-wolf with the baby boys. He took them
home to his wife and they called them Romulus and Remus. When they grew up the boys
became shepherds like Faustulus. One day they had a fight with some shepherds who
looked after Numitor's sheep. Remus was arrested and sent to Numitor as a prisoner.
When Numitor heard the story he realised that Remus was his grandson! He told
Romulus and Remus what had happened to him and their Mother.
Romulus and Remus attacked their Great Uncle Amulius and killed him. Now
Romulus and Remus lived with their grandfather in Alba Longa, but they got bored and
missed the countryside where they grew up. They decided to move back to the place
where Faustulus had found them and build their own city on the banks of the River Tiber.
But the twins argued over where the city should be built. Romulus wanted to
build it on the Palatine Hill and Remus wanted to build it on the Capitoline Hill. In the
end they built two cities! The arguing didn't stop. Remus teased his brother about the
height of his city walls, saying they were too low. The brothers had a fight and Romulus
killed Remus. Romulus became King of the new city, which was called Rome in his
honour.
Version TWO
The founding of Rome is reported by many legends, which in recent times are
beginning to be supplemented by more scientific reconstructions. The most popular and
most famous legend is the story about the two brothers raised by a she-wolf.
Cornell note-taking Activity: The Legend of Romulus and Remus
M.Beilin, 2012
Page 1
M. Beilin, 2012
The earlier legend of the founding of the Rome, was supplanted over the centuries
by the attribution of the founding to twin brothers, Romulus and Remus. In Roman
mythology, they are sons of the priestess Rhea Silvia and Mars, the god of war,
abandoned at birth at Tiber by servants in charge of executing them. The twins were
taken by a she-wolf, who fed the babies with her own milk and cared for them. Later a
shepherd named Faustulus came and took Remus and Romulus. Faustulus and his wife
raised these two children.
When Remus and Romulus became adults they decided to establish a city. They
couldn’t decide who would rule the city so they gave it to omens. Remus was the first to
see six vultures flying in the sky. Soon after Romulus saw twelve vultures. Remus saw
the birds first but Romulus saw more. Finally Romulus was the one who was designated.
One day, Remus visited Romulus and made fun of his wall by jumping over it and saying
how easily it could be breached. Romulus was so annoyed that he killed Remus and said
the he would kill anyone who mocked his city or tried to break through the walls of
Rome.
Romulus buried
Remus, and carried on with
building his city. But the young
king faced another one
problem: all the inhabitants,
being shepherds, runaway
slaves, and criminal, were men.
Romulus held games in honor
of the god Consus, and invited
people from the Sabine
villages. While they were
watching the games, Romulus
gave a signal and the Romans seized the young Sabine women who were attending the
games and made off with them. The Sabine tribe was not happy about this and declared
war on Rome. The war went on for many years but eventually the Sabine tribe and
Romulus reached an agreement and the Sabines became a part of Rome under the rule of
Romulus.
After having reigned over Rome for 38 years, Romulus disappeared in a violent storm,
and it was announced that he had been taken up to heaven, from where he would continue
to look after Rome’s destiny as the god Quirinus.
Version THREE
The story of Romulus and Remus is a legend. In many civilizations there is a need
for stories and legends that explain the origin of man and the world. Romans felt the need
for a legend that explained their origin. On the ruins of Troy the Gods decided to save
one hero, Aeneas. After a long journey he ended up in Latium, the region of present-day
Rome. There, Aeneas settled down and founded the town of Lavinium.
Cornell note-taking Activity: The Legend of Romulus and Remus
M.Beilin, 2012
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M. Beilin, 2012
After Aeneas Julus ruled Lavinium. Very soon the town wasn't big enough for all
the people and therefore he founded a new town, called 'Alba Longa' - 'the long white
town'. Alba Longa was situated near the later city of Rome.
Almost three hundred years later, Procas, king of Alba Longa, left behind two
sons after his death. Numitor, the elder son, was the heir apparent to the throne. The
younger son was called Amulius. Amulius wanted to be king and with the money from
his father's inheritance he recruited followers and chased king Numitor, his brother.
Amulius, for his part, was afraid he would also be dethroned by the sons of his
brother Numitor. That's why he had Numitor's children killed and his daughter Silvia
taken to a temple, dedicated to the goddess Vesta. But the god Mars, indignant about the
cruelty of Amulius, felt sorry for her and gave her a pair of twins. When the king heard
this, he was furious and afraid he would be overthrown. He had Silvia imprisoned and he
gave orders to throw the twins into the Tiber River. Because the river had flooded the
basket with the two children floated to a shallow pool and got stuck on the roots of a fig
tree.
A she-wolf, curious about the crying of the children, felt pity on the crying kids,
and started licking the mud off the poor boys. Then she kept looking after them.
The shepherd Faustulus found the twins. He took them with him to his house and
his wife called them Romulus and Remus. They were not aware of the princely origin of
the boys and raised them as their children. Through a series of divine signs Romulus and
Remus found out who they were. They took the power and decided to found a town at a
hill near the fig tree. The boys didn't agree about the exact place where the town had to be
founded. Remus chose the Aventine. Romulus chose the Palatine.
They asked Numitor for advice and on his advice they waited for divine signs at
their hills. Remus first saw six vultures. Romulus, however, later saw twelve vultures.
The question wasn't any longer where the town had to be built, but by whom? The two
would-be rulers consulted their followers and they declared that Romulus was their king.
Romulus immediately began with the preparations for the building of his city. On 21
April 753 BC - a holiday for the shepherds - the stone foundation for the first building
was laid out.
The town was enclosed by a solid wall. During the construction Romulus forbade
everyone to jump over the wall. Only the gates could be used for getting in and out.
Remus, however, furious because he hadn't been chosen as king, jumped over the wall,
crying: “Is this wall meant to protect the town?” Then Romulus was so furious, that he
killed his brother with a pickaxe. Eventually he gave the town his own name – ROME.
Cornell note-taking Activity: The Legend of Romulus and Remus
M.Beilin, 2012
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M. Beilin, 2012