The Beginnings of Rome: Italy and Rome from the Bronze Age to the Punic Wars (c.1000-264 BC)

507 Pages·1995·10.29 MB·english

by  Timothy J. Cornell

THE BEGINNINGS OF ROME
The beginnings of Rome, once thought to be lost in the mists of legend, are
now being revealed by an ever-increasing body of archaeological evidence,
muchofitunearthedduringthepasttwenty-fiveyears.Thisnewmaterialhas
made it possible to trace the development of Rome from an iron-age village
to a major state which eventually outstripped its competitors and became a
Mediterranean power. The study of this period raises acute questions of
historical method, demanding analysis of many different kinds of archaeo
logical evidence in conjunctionwithliterarysources.
Professor Cornell uses the results of up-to-date archaeological techniques
and takes current methodological debates into account. The Beginnings of
Rome offers newand oftencontroversialanswers to majorquestions suchas
Rome's relations with the Etruscans, the conflict between patricians and
plebeians, the causes of Roman imperialism and the growth of aslave-based
economy.
Coveringtheperiodfrom c.1000BC to 264 BC, The BeginningsofRome is
the most comprehensive study of this subject. It is essential reading for all
students of Roman history.
T.J.CornellisProfessorofAncientHistoryatthe UniversityofManchester.
ROUTLEDGE HISTORY OF THE
ANCIENT WORLD
General Editor: Fergus Millar
THE ANCIENT NEAR EASTc. 3000-330 BC
AmelieKuhrt
THE GREEK WORLD 479-323 BC
Simon Hornblower
THE BEGINNINGS OF ROME c. 1000-264 BC
T.J. Cornell
THE MEDITERRANEAN WORLD IN LATEANTIQUITY
AD 395-600
AverilCameron
GREECE IN THE MAKING 1200-479 BC
RobinOsborne
THE ROMAN WORLD
44 BC-AD 180
Martin Goodman
THE GREEK WORLD AFTER ALEXANDER
323-30 BC
GrahamShipley
THE BEGINNINGS
OF ROME
Italy and Rome from the Bronze Age
to the Punic Wars (c. 1000-264 Be)
T.]. Cornell
I~ ~~~~~~n~~~up
LONDONAND NEWYORK
First published 1995
by Routledge
2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN
Simultaneously published in the USAand Canada
by Routledge
270 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10016
Routledgeisan imprintofthe Taylor&Francis Group, an informa business
©1995 T.]. Cornell
Typeset in Garamond by
Ponting-Green Publishing Services, Chesham, Bucks
Allrights reserved. No part of this book may be
reprinted or reproduced or utilized in any form or by
any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now
known or hereafter invented, including photocopying
and recording, or in any information storage or
retrieval system, without permission in writing
from the publishers.
British LibraryCataloguing in PublicationData
Cornell, Tim
Beginnings of Rome 1000-264 B.C.
(Routledge History of the Ancient World)
1.Title II. Series
937.01
LibraryofCongress Cataloging in PublicationData
Cornell, Tim.
The beginnings of Rome, 1000-264 B.C./T.]. Cornell.
p. em. - (Routledge history of the ancient world)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
1. Rome-History-Kings, 753-510 B.C.
1.Title. II. Series.
DG233.C67 1995
937/.01-dc20 94-43757
ISBN978-0-415-01595-0 (hbk)
ISBN978-0-415-01596-7 (pbk)
ForMary
CONTENTS
Listoffigures Xl
Lists ofmapsandtables Xlll
Preface XIV
Listofabbreviations XVll1
INTRODUCTION:THE EVIDENCE 1
1 Historicalaccounts 1
2 The sourcesofoursources: lost historicalaccounts 4
3 The sourcesofoursources: Greek accounts 7
4 The sourcesofoursources:family tradition 9
5 The sourcesofoursources: oraltradition 10
6 The sourcesofoursources: documentsandarchives 12
7 The reliability oftheannalistictradition 16
8 The antiquarians 18
9 The sourcesandmethodsoftheantiquarians 24
10 Archaeologicalevidence 26
2 THE PRE-ROMANBACKGROUND 31
1 Early Italy 31
2 The Italian Iron Age 33
3 Literary evidence 36
4 The languages ofItaly 41
5 Who were the Etruscans? 45
3 THE ORIGINS OFROME 48
1 Archaeologyin Romeand OldLatium:the natureofthe
evidence 48
2 The characterofthe settlements 53
3 The ancienttradition 57
4 The origin ofthe legends:RomulusandRemus 60
5 The origin ofthe legends:Aeneasandthe Trojans 63
6 The origin ofthe legends: EvanderandHercules 68
Vll
CONTENTS
7 The historicalvalue ofthe legends 70
8 Archaicformulae andinstitutional'fossils' 73
9 The Sabines andearly Rome 75
10 Rome's Indo-European heritage 77
11 Conclusions 80
4 THE RISEOF THE CITY-STATE 81
1 Aristocrats, clans,andthe 'orientalising'phase 81
2 Greek colonisation anditseffects 86
3 Urbanisation 92
4 The city-state:theoreticalproblems 97
5 Literacyanditsuses:the calendarofNuma 103
6 Changes infunerarypractice 105
7 Sanctuaries 108
8 Institutions 114
5 TRADITIONAL HISTORY: KINGS, QUEENS, EVENTS
AND DATES 119
1 The seven kings 119
2 The chronologyofthe regalperiod: general 121
3 The chronology ofthe regalperiod: the Tarquin dynasty 122
4 The Tarquins: anewphase ofRoman history? 127
5 Who was Servius Tullius? 130
6 The nature ofkingship at Rome 141
7 Adventurersandtyrants 143
6 THEMYTH OF 'ETRUSCANROME' 151
1 'Etruscheria' 151
2 Etruscan rule in Latiumand Campania 153
3 The Tarquins andthe nature ofEtruscan rule in Rome 156
4 Etruscan culturaldomination 159
5 RomeandEtruscan culture: alternative models 163
6 The evidence ofthe sources 165
7 Conclusion 169
7 THE REFORMS OF SERVIUSTULLIUS 173
1 The localtribes 173
2 The centuriate organisation 179
3 The origins ofthe centuriate organisation: Fraccaro'stheory 181
4 The hoplitephalanx 183
5 Subsequent developments 186
6 Centuriesandtribes:the problem 190
7 Centuriesandtribes:apossible solution 192
8 Politicalimplicationsofthe centuriate reform 194
VI11
CONTENTS
8 THE POWEROF ROME INTHE SIXTH CENTURY 198
1 The walls ofRome 198
2 The sacredboundaryandthe 'city ofthefour regions' 202
3 Territory andpopulation 204
4 'La grande Roma dei Tarquinii' 208
5 The treaty betweenRomeand Carthage 210
9 THE BEGINNINGS OFTHE ROMAN REPUBLIC 215
1 The expulsion ofthe kings 215
2 Theproblem ofchronology 218
3 The 'departure ofthe Etruscans' 223
4 The new republic 226
5 OtherItalian republics 230
6 The separation ofpoliticalandreligiousfunctions 232
7 Conclusion 236
Appendix:anote on the Regia 239
10 PATRICIANS AND PLEBEIANS 242
1 The nature ofthe problem 242
2 Thepatricians, the Senate, andthe cavalry 245
3 The origin andnature ofpatricianprivilege 251
4 The 'closingofthe patriciate' 252
5 The riseoftheplebs 256
6 The 'state within the state' 258
7 Plebeian grievances: debtandfood shortages 265
8 Plebeian grievances:agrarian problems 268
11 THETWELVETABLES 272
1 The Decemvirate 272
2 The Valerio-Horatian Laws 276
3 The nature ofthe code 278
4 The laws:slavery, debtandnexum 280
5 The laws:family andproperty 284
6 The laws:economicimplications 287
7 The laws:socialdistinctions 288
12 WARSAND EXTERNAL RELATIONS, 509-345Be 293
1 Romeandthe Latin League 293
2 The foedus Cassianum anditsconsequences 299
3 Early Latin colonies 301
4 The incursions ofthe Sabines, Aequiand Volsci 304
5 The conflictbetween Romeand Veii 309
6 The Gallic catastrophe 313
7 The Roman recovery 318
8 The beginningsofRoman expansion 322
IX
CONTENTS
13 THE EMANCIPATION OFTHE PLEBS 327
1 Economicandsocialproblems:publicland 327
2 Economicandsocialproblems: the debt crisis 330
3 The Licinio-Sextian Rogations 333
4 The riseofthe nobility 340
14 THE ROMAN CONQUESTOF ITALY 345
1 The outbreak ofthe Samnite Wars 345
2 The Latin revoltanditsconsequences 347
3 The SecondSamnite War 352
4 The Roman conquestofcentralItaly 355
5 The battleofSentinum anditsconsequences 359
6 The invasion ofPyrrhusandthe unification ofItaly 363
7 The nature ofRoman control in Italyandthe dynamics of
imperialism 364
15 ROME INTHE AGE OFTHE ITALIANWARS 369
1 The transformation ofthe state 369
2 The careerofAppius Claudius Caecus 373
3 The LexHortensia anditseffects 377
4 Economicdevelopments 380
5 Epilogue: Roman societyandculture on the eve ofthe
Punic Wars 390
Appendix:anote on early Roman chronology 399
Notes 403
Bibliography 472
Index 492
x