The Origins of Rome : Myth & Reality

The Romans believed that their city was founded in 753BC by Romulus after he had killed his twin brother Remus. The boys had been abandoned by the River Tiber and fed by  a she-wolf . They had grown up and then had an argument about  being the ruler of the new city .

Romulus and Remus were said to be the children  of Mars  and of Rhea Silvia , a descendant of Aeneas who had fled Troy when it was sacked by the Greeks.

The reality of Rome's origins is not quite as vivid as the legend. Rome was built  in a  marshy area in a region called Latium. The first settlement was  on seven hills.  The first Romans were farmers and then they became artisans and traders. They had a port at Ostia , where the Tiber reaches the sea.

To the north were the Etruscans and to the south were  Greek colonies. Both these people had an influence on the early Romans.  They were ruled by Etruscan kings until 509BC when the last king was overthrown and a republic was created.