This course covers the history of Rome from its earliest foundation myths all the way through to the overthrow of the Tarquins in 509 BC. View all content
In this introductory module, we explore what we know - and what we don't know - about the Romans' earliest historical traditions. A proper understanding of the nature of our sources is critical for the serious student of Roman history, and this is precisely what we aim for in this module.
Lecture 1.2 - Earlier Roman Histories
18 MinutesLecture 1.3 - Earlier Greek Histories
8 MinutesLecture 1.4 - Ancient Archives
14 MinutesLecture 1.5 - Oral and Family Traditions
16 MinutesLecture 1.6 - The Antiquarian Tradition
14 MinutesLecture 1.7 - Archaeological Evidence
9 MinutesIn this module, we take a look at Italy prior to the founding of Rome. We also look at several Roman origin myths and bring the story down to Romulus and Remus.
Lecture 2.1 - Italian Overview
16 MinutesLecture 2.2 - The Hellenic Colonies
16 MinutesLecture 2.3 - Etruscan Origins
19 MinutesLecture 2.4 - The Etruscan Polities
15 MinutesLecture 2.5 - The Aeneas Legend
15 MinutesLecture 2.6 - The Evander Legend
19 MinutesLecture 2.7 - Between Aeneas and Romulus
14 MinutesThis module covers the legendary early founding of Rome, from Romulus down to Ancus Marcius.