Nevertheless, the spirit of the oath inspired later Romans including his descendant Marcus Junius Brutus. There is no scholarly agreement that the oath took place it is reported, although differently, by Plutarch ( Poplicola, 2) and Appian ( B.C. (By this guiltless blood before the kingly injustice I swear – you and the gods as my witnesses – I make myself the one who will prosecute, by what force I am able, Lucius Tarquinius Superbus along with his wicked wife and the whole house of his freeborn children by sword, by fire, by any means hence, so that neither they nor any one else be suffered to rule Rome.) Tarquinium Superbum cum scelerata coniuge et omni liberorum stirpe ferro igni quacumque dehinc vi possim exsecuturum, nec illos nec alium quemquam regnare Romae passurum. castissimum ante regiam iniuriam sanguinem iuro, vosque, di, testes facio me L. This is, fundamentally, a restatement of the 'private oath' sworn by the conspirators to overthrow the monarchy: Per hunc. (First of all, by swearing an oath that they would suffer no man to rule Rome, it forced the people, desirous of a new liberty, not to be thereafter swayed by the entreaties or bribes of kings.) "The oath of Brutus" by François-Joseph Navez Omnium primum avidum novae libertatis populum, ne postmodum flecti precibus aut donis regiis posset, iure iurando adegit neminem Romae passuros regnare. The Oath of BrutusĪccording to Livy, Brutus' first act after the expulsion of Lucius Tarquinius Superbus was to bring the people to swear an oath never to allow any man again to be king in Rome. Tarquinius Superbus, meanwhile, was refused entry at Rome, and fled with his family into exile. The army received Brutus as a hero, and the king's sons were expelled from the camp. The king, who had been with the army, heard of developments at Rome, and left the camp for the city before Brutus' arrival. īrutus, leaving Lucretius in command of the city, proceeded with armed men to the Roman army then camped at Ardea. The people voted for the deposition of the king, and the banishment of the royal family. The four men gathered the youth of Collatia, then went to Rome where Brutus, being at that time Tribunus Celerum, summoned the people to the forum and exhorted them to rise up against the king. According to legend, Brutus grabbed the dagger from Lucretia's breast after her death and immediately shouted for the overthrow of the Tarquins. Lucretia, believing that the rape dishonored her and her family, committed suicide by stabbing herself with a dagger after telling of what had befallen her. īrutus, along with Spurius Lucretius Tricipitinus, Publius Valerius Publicola, and Lucius Tarquinius Collatinus were summoned by Lucretia to Collatia after she had been raped by Sextus Tarquinius, the son of the king Tarquinius Superbus. Brutus interpreted "mother" to mean the Earth, so he pretended to trip and kissed the ground. The Oracle responded the next person to kiss his mother would become king. The sons asked the oracle who would be the next ruler of Rome. He accompanied Tarquin's sons on a trip to the Oracle of Delphi. Brutus avoided the distrust of Tarquin's family by feigning slow-wittedness (in Latin brutus translates to dullard). Main article: Overthrow of the Roman monarchyīrutus was the son of Tarquinia, daughter of Rome's fifth king Lucius Tarquinius Priscus and sister to Rome's seventh king Tarquinius Superbus.Īccording to Livy, Brutus had a number of grievances against his uncle the king, amongst them was the fact that Tarquin had put to death a number of the chief men of Rome, including Brutus' brother.
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