Copyright Information Chapter 13 Beginnings Copyright Information

SECTION 1 Founding of Rome SECTION 2 The Etruscans SECTION 3 Etruscans and Romans Contents

Terms to Learn People to Know soothsayers Aeneas omens Romulus catacombs Forum fasces mundus Romulus Remus Places to Locate Rome Palatine Etruria Lydia Chapter Focus 3

Founding of Rome Romans have a legend about the founding of their city. About 800 B.C., a Latin princess broke an oath never to have children and gave birth to twin sons fathered by the god Mars. A a punishment, her sons - Romulus and Remus –were taken from her and left to die. The two boys were found by a she-wolf, which fed and cared for them. Section 1-1

Founding of Rome (cont.) Later, a shepherd killed the she-wolf and took the babies to his home. When the boys were older, they decided to build a city on the Tiber, but could not agree on which one should rule the city. They decided to let the gods choose the city’s ruler. The two brothers fought, and Remus was killed. Romulus became king of the city, which he named Rome. Section 1-2

Founding of Rome (cont.) About 1000 B.C., groups of people with iron weapons began invading the lands around the Mediterranean. One group, the Latins, settled on the Palatine; Romans belonged to this group. The Latins’ settlement area had a pleasant climate, fertile soil, and dense forests. By 776 B.C., the settlement on the Palatine had become a farming village of about 1,000 people. Section 1-3

The Etruscans Around 800 B.C., a people called Etruscans settled in Etruria, the country north of the Latin village on the Palatine. The Etruscans were Italy’s first highly civilized people. Etruscan farmers used mostly iron tools. Some Etruscan were metalworkers and sculptors. They were known as “the people of the sea,” feared as pirates and respected as traders. Section 2-1

The Etruscans (cont.) Over time, the Etruscan cities grew, and by 600 B.C., they dominated all of northern Italy, including the Latin village on the Palatine. Section 2-2

Daily Life The Etruscans enjoyed playing and watching games like chess, backgammon, wrestling, running, boxing, and horse racing. The Etruscans loved music and dancing best. The Etruscans had a strong sense of social order, or the way groups of people are classed. A few wealthy families owned most of the land and most of the enslaved people, who tended the land and did other work. Section 2-3

Religious Beliefs The Etruscans had many gods, most of whom were modeled after the Greeks. The Etruscans believed the universe was divided into provinces with each province ruled by different gods. The Etruscans also believed humans were powerless before the gods so they wanted to please their gods. Section 2-4

Religious Beliefs (cont.) They discovered what the gods willed through a priestly group of aristocrats called soothsayers, or people who can predict events. Soothsayers read certain omens, or signs of what is to happen. Section 2-5

Tombs of Gold When an Etruscan noble died, a great banquet was held, and two of the noble’s slaves fought one another to the death. The dead were buried in tombs beneath the ground called catacombs. The Etruscans believed that life after death lasted longer and was more important than life on Earth. They filled their tombs with works of art and treasures of gold, silver, bronze, and ivory. Section 2-6

Tombs of Gold (cont.) Because of this, Etruscan tombs are known as “tombs of gold.” Outside each Etruscan city was a necropolis, or cemetery, made up of acres of these tombs. Section 2-7

Etruscans and Romans In 616 B.C., Lucius Tarquinius became the first Etruscan ruler of Rome, and his dynasty ruled Rome for more than 100 years. The Etruscans drained the swamp at the foot of the Palatine which became Rome’s Forum, or the public square. The Romans borrowed the Etruscan alphabet and some Etruscan customs, including the gladiatorial games. Section 3-1

Etruscans and Romans The Romans amused themselves by watching these games, which were fights between armed men, between men and animals, between women and dwarfs, and between animals. Another custom was the triumph, or the parade-like welcome given to a Roman hero returning from battle. Section 3-2

Etruscans and Romans (cont.) In addition, the Romans borrowed Etruscan symbols of authority. One of these was the fasces, or a bundle of rods bound around an ax that became the symbol of a Roman ruler's power. The Etruscans built the first temple on the Capitoline; today, it is the center of Rome’s municipal, or city, government. The Romans founded their cities according to a ritual borrowed from the Etruscans. Section 3-3

Etruscans and Romans (cont.) Priests marked where the two main streets would meet and marked it with a stone. The Romans believed the place where the two streets met was the mundus, or the meeting point for the worlds of the living and the dead. Etruscans played an important role in the development of Roman civilization. Section 3-4