Some months ago, you may remember the story of Publius Horatius Cocles, the great hero of the Republic, whose inspiring valour saved Rome from destruction at her hour of greatest peril (please click here for the story). It would have been with profound significance that the Romans looked upon Horatius in awe, for he was not the first of his line to shower glory upon his great city. Some one hundred and fifty years earlier, the ancestors of Horatius engaged in an epic duel to decide the fate of the great city, in a story Romans and their descendants would revere millennia later.
About one hundred years after the founding of the City, Rome was ruled by Tullus Hostilius, Third of the Seven Great Kings of Rome. As indeed his name suggests, Tullus was a warlike King. So powerful was his lust for war, Tullus even began to neglect the worship of the gods, something which would later spell his doom. But that was later. Scorning peace as the policy of the weak, and eager to raise the greatness of Rome, Tullus was most at home on the battlefield. Though many men harboured such ambitions in history, Tullus also possessed the ability to win, and was himself a fearsome presence to the enemies of Rome. So when news reached Rome that her pastures had been raided by the troops of the city of Alba Longa, Tullus needed little encouragement. As King, it was his duty to defend his people. The promise of glory was a mighty bonus. Yet Alba Longa was not just another city. War between Alba and Rome was like war between father and son. Both Romans and Albans were descended from the Royal Trojan line of Aeneas, and from Alba Longa had sprung the first men of Rome herself. The prospect of at last uniting the cities under one banner was a grand one, but who would be the master, Alba or Rome?
The envoys of Rome and Alba Longa met before the latter's city with a proposition. For a great dilemma plagued both King Tullus and Mettius Fufetius, the Alban ruler. Both Rome and Alba stood in the shadow of the formidable power of the Etruscans, a powerful people on land and at sea. Should Rome and Alba Longa wear each other out through war, Etruria would overrun them both. Yet honour and fate dictated that one of these great cities would triumph, the other to fall. Tullus, ever ready for glory, suggested that each city send forth its greatest champion to fight in single combat, offering himself to fight as the Roman champion and calling upon Fufetius to follow his example. Fufetius, however, did not have Tullus' bravery. Buckling at the sight of the great Roman King, he quickly suggested an alternative - that each city should choose three champions and put them into the field, as merely one on one was susceptible to the whims of chance as much as fate. Three was also a fortuitous number, containing within it a beginning, a middle and an end. Both Roman and Alban agreed, and each leader turned and stood before his own countrymen. The stakes were enormous, for the victor lay the path of greatness and Empire, for the loser, the path of slavery.
As both rulers addressed their men, a tremendous exultation broke out in both camps. For three among their number lay the promise of immortality, to fight for their country before the eyes of both cities and their Kings. So many were desperate to volunteer, both Tullus and Fufetius had great difficulty in finding just three champions. It so happened that Fate had furnished both Alba and Rome with three heroes. Many years before, a man of Alba Longa named Sicinius had married off his twin daughters, one to Horatius, a Roman, and the other to Curiatius, an Alban. Not long after, each daughter bore three boys, all endowed with nobility of mind, strength of body and perfection of form. Fufetius came to Tullus and reminded him of this, persuading the King that Fate must have been at work here. It so happened that the three Curiatii brothers were present in the Alban camp, and the three Horatii brothers were in the Roman camp. Fufetius told Tullus that the Curiatii eagerly agreed to fight, and Tullus resolved to approach the Horatii. Calling a ten day truce whilst the Romans decided, both parties withdrew.
Tullus came before the three Horatii brothers, and offered them the chance to fight, but expressed his concern that they would be challenging their own blood relatives to mortal combat. The King and the Senate had both agreed that no one would think worse of the Horatii if they refused because of this, but that immortal glory would be bestowed upon them should they prevail. The Horatii stayed their eagerness however, and informed Tullus that they wished greatly the honour he offered, but as dutiful sons they must first consult their father. Praising their devotion, Tullus granted them leave. Their father, giving joy to the gods for having granted him sons possessed of such noble bearing, embraced his three sons, imparting his blessing and bidding them go forth as men now, and that the choice must be theirs. Delighted, the Horatii came before the King and agreed to fight. Fate, they decreed, had already broken the ties of kinship between the two triplets.
" Careless of death and danger, each thought only of his country's fate,
of the grim choice between lordship and ignominy, which they themselves,
But Fate was ever fickle, and the next Curiatius looked in dismay at his fallen brother, and the Alban and Roman champions slammed into each other. Both heroes lunged, and the Roman threw himself under the shield of his foe and slashed the Alban's thigh, blood spattering the ground. But the Alban's aim was truer. With a mighty strike, his sword was plunged deep into the Roman's back, piercing his bowels, and the third of the six fell. Now two of the Curiatii still lived, though one could barely stand, his wounded leg pouring forth blood, whilst only a single Roman champion was left. Alba Longa cried its coming victory, whilst the eyes of the Romans, and Tullus, were fixed upon Horatius, their last hope. The Alban champions surrounded Horatius, whose plight looked desperate. Spying that one of the Curiatii's wounds were grave, forced to support himself with his shield as he was, Horatius conceived a daring plan. Feigning cowardice, Horatius charged off into the distance. The Albans mocked the Romans and revelled in his apparent fear. The Romans chastised their champion for running in battle, lamenting as though all hope was lost. But then, reaching the edge of the arena, Horatius turned to face his foes. The Romans, tears in their eyes, raised their arms to the skies, praying to Father Jupiter. Taken aback by this sudden renewal of courage, the unwounded Alban champion's guard was down when Horatius slammed his sword into the man's arm, cleaving his elbow in two, before striking again in the man's chest. Thus the fourth of the six fell. The Albans looked on, stunned, whilst the Romans gained heart. Horatius sprinted across the field to engage the final foe, who was on the verge of passing out, and brought his sword down one last time, and the Heavens shook to the roar of triumph from the Romans...
Trouble and woes were yet to come for the Romans, and indeed Horatius, on their return to Rome. The curse of spilling kindred blood never rests, but the duel had been won, and for Rome the path of glory lay beyond, and the omens of her future looked magnificent. In a future post we shall see the aftermath of this great duel, and the tragedy which struck Rome soon after. The road to immortality was a long one...
The story of the duel was a national legend in the Roman consciousness, known by every Roman boy centuries afterward, and picked up by the generations beyond. The legend can be found in two ancient works, both readily available from Amazon:
United Kingdom
Livy:
The Early History of Rome: Bks. 1-5 (Penguin Classics)
(The full story of the Rise of Rome, including the duel of the Horatii and Curiatii)
Dionysius of Halicarnassus:
The Roman Antiquities: v. 2 (Loeb Classical Library)
(Part Two of an account of the Rise of Rome from a Romanised Greek, more detailed)
United States
Livy:
Livy: The Early History of Rome, Books I-V (Penguin Classics) (Bks. 1-5)
(The full story of the Rise of Rome, including the duel of the Horatii and Curiatii)
Dionysius of Halicarnassus:
Dionysius of Halicarnassus: Roman Antiquities, Volume II, Books 3-4 (Loeb Classical Library No. 347)
(Part Two of an account of the Rise of Rome from a Romanised Greek, more detailed)
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| King Tullus Hostilius Painting in the Capitoline Museums. |
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| The Alban Lake - site of Alba Longa of old Photograph taken by the author. |
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| The Oath of the Horatii Painting by Jacques-Louis David. |
Tullus came before the three Horatii brothers, and offered them the chance to fight, but expressed his concern that they would be challenging their own blood relatives to mortal combat. The King and the Senate had both agreed that no one would think worse of the Horatii if they refused because of this, but that immortal glory would be bestowed upon them should they prevail. The Horatii stayed their eagerness however, and informed Tullus that they wished greatly the honour he offered, but as dutiful sons they must first consult their father. Praising their devotion, Tullus granted them leave. Their father, giving joy to the gods for having granted him sons possessed of such noble bearing, embraced his three sons, imparting his blessing and bidding them go forth as men now, and that the choice must be theirs. Delighted, the Horatii came before the King and agreed to fight. Fate, they decreed, had already broken the ties of kinship between the two triplets.
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| The Fallen Roman Champions Painting in the Capitoline Museums. |
Both Alba and Rome returned to the field, and a fateful day. The six champions armed for battle, and both armies faced each other across the plain, both looking upon the ground marked out for the duel before them, both Kings nervous with the tension. As the brothers stepped onto the field, both Alba and Rome cheered their kin, calling upon their ancestors, their country and their gods to smile upon this day:
" Careless of death and danger, each thought only of his country's fate,
of the grim choice between lordship and ignominy, which they themselves,
and they only, were about to decide... "
- THE CHAMPIONS GIRD FOR BATTLE
The Horatii and Curiatii swore an oath to uphold the pact, that neither would retreat, and all would honour the terms of combat. The trumpets blasted, and with a flash of steel and sweat, the duel began. The crash of blade upon shield was matched only by the shouts from both armies, as the champions fought hard. Just then, the dust from battle rose, and neither side was sure of the other, for the Roman and Alban champions were the image of each other, in face and sword arm. Just as the tension became unbearable, a great shout of triumph rose from the Alban ranks. The eldest of the Curiatii, showering blows upon one of the Roman Three, closed in for victory. The Roman champion, wavering through his many wounds, began to see the mist close over his eyes. The Alban seized his chance and thrust his sword through the Roman's groin. So the first of the six fell, and the Curiatii shouted in triumph, and the Romans grieved as though all were already lost. Enraged by his brother's fall, however, the closest Roman champion hurled himself on the celebrating Alban, striking again and again, his grief mixing with anger. In a great rage, the Roman drove his blade into the man's neck, and the second of the six fell lifeless to the dust. The Romans looked up and saw hope, and the pride of Alba Longa wounded.
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| The Triumph of Horatius Painting in the Capitoline Museums. |
Trouble and woes were yet to come for the Romans, and indeed Horatius, on their return to Rome. The curse of spilling kindred blood never rests, but the duel had been won, and for Rome the path of glory lay beyond, and the omens of her future looked magnificent. In a future post we shall see the aftermath of this great duel, and the tragedy which struck Rome soon after. The road to immortality was a long one...
The story of the duel was a national legend in the Roman consciousness, known by every Roman boy centuries afterward, and picked up by the generations beyond. The legend can be found in two ancient works, both readily available from Amazon:
United Kingdom
Livy:
The Early History of Rome: Bks. 1-5 (Penguin Classics)
(The full story of the Rise of Rome, including the duel of the Horatii and Curiatii)
Dionysius of Halicarnassus:
The Roman Antiquities: v. 2 (Loeb Classical Library)
(Part Two of an account of the Rise of Rome from a Romanised Greek, more detailed)
United States
Livy:
Livy: The Early History of Rome, Books I-V (Penguin Classics) (Bks. 1-5)
(The full story of the Rise of Rome, including the duel of the Horatii and Curiatii)
Dionysius of Halicarnassus:
Dionysius of Halicarnassus: Roman Antiquities, Volume II, Books 3-4 (Loeb Classical Library No. 347)
(Part Two of an account of the Rise of Rome from a Romanised Greek, more detailed)
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