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Plutarch Rape of the Sabines Plutarch, Romulus (transl. B. Perrin) 14. It was in the fourth month after the founding of the city, as Fabius writes, that the rape of the Sabine women was perpetrated. And some say that Romulus himself, being naturally fond of war, and being persuaded by sundry oracles, too, that it was the destiny of Rome to be nourished and increased by wars till she became the greatest of cities, thereby merely began unprovoked hostilities against the Sabines; for he did not take many maidens, but thirty only, since what he wanted was war rather than marriages. [2] But this is not likely. On the contrary, seeing his city filling up at once with aliens, few of whom had wives, while the greater part of them, being a mixed rabble of needy and obscure persons, were looked down upon and expected to have no strong cohesion; and hoping to make the outrage an occasion for some sort of blending and fellowship with the Sabines after their women had been kindly entreated, he set his hand to the task, and in the following manner. [3] First a report was spread abroad by him that he had discovered an altar of a certain god hidden underground. They called this god Consus, and he was either a god of counsel (for ‘consilium’ is still their word for counsel, and they call their chief magistrates ‘consuls,’ that is to say, counsellors), or an equestrian Neptune. For the altar is in the Circus Maximus, and is invisible at all other times, but at the chariot-races it is uncovered. [4] Some, however, simply say that since counsel is secret and unseen, it is not unreasonable that an altar to the god of counsel should be hidden underground. Now when this altar was discovered, Romulus appointed by proclamation a splendid sacrifice upon it, with games, and a spectacle open to all people. And many were the people who came together, while he himself sat in front, among his chief men, clad in purple. [5] The signal that the time had come for the onslaught was to be his rising and folding his cloak and then throwing it round him again. Armed with swords, then, many of his followers kept their eyes intently upon him, and when the signal was given, drew their swords, rushed in with shouts, and ravished away the daughters of the Sabines, but permitted and encouraged the men themselves to escape. [6]Some say that only thirty maidens were seized, and that from these the Curiae were named; but Valerius Antias puts the number at five hundred and twenty-seven, and Juba at six hundred and eighty-three, all maidens. And this was the strongest defence which Romulus could make, namely, that they took only one married woman, Hersilia, and her by mistake, since they did not commit the rape out of wantonness, nor even with a desire to do mischief, but with the fixed purpose of uniting and blending the two peoples in the strongest bonds. [7] As for this Hersilia, some say that she was married to Hostilius, a most eminent Roman, and others, to Romulus himself, and that she also bore him children: one daughter, Prima, so called from the order of birth, and one son only, whom Romulus named Aollius, from the great concourse of citizens under him, but later ages Avillius. However, Zenodotus of Troezen, who gives us this account, is contradicted by many ------- 17. [1]After the capture of the Caeninensians, while the rest of the Sabines were still busy with their preparations, the people of Fidenae, Crustumerium, and Antemnae banded together against the Romans, and in a battle which ensued, they were likewise defeated, and surrendered to Romulus their cities to be seized, their territory to be divided, and themselves to be transported to Rome. Romulus distributed among the citizens all the territory thus acquired, excepting that which belonged to the parents of the ravished maidens; this he suffered its owners to keep for themselves. [2] At this the rest of the Sabines were enraged, and after appointing Tatius their general, marched upon Rome. The city was difficult of access, having as its fortress the present Capitol, on which a guard had been stationed, with Tarpeius as its captain,— not Tarpeia, a maiden, as some say, thereby making Romulus a simpleton. But Tarpeia, a daughter of the commander, betrayed the citadel to the Sabines, having set her heart on the golden armlets which she saw them wearing, and she asked as payment for her treachery that which they wore on their left arms. [3] Tatius agreed to this, whereupon she opened one of the gates by night and let the Sabines in. Antigonus was not alone, then, in saying that he loved men who offered to betray, but hated those who had betrayed; nor yet Caesar, in saying of the Thracian Rhoemetalces, that he loved treachery but hated a traitor; but this is a very general feeling towards the base on the part of those who need their services, just as they need certain wild creatures for their venom and gall; for while they feel the need of them, they put up with them, but abhor their vileness when they have obtained from them what they want. [4] This, too, was the feeling which Tatius then had towards Tarpeia, when he ordered his Sabines, mindful of their agreement, not to begrudge the girl anything they wore on their left arms. And he was first to take from his arm not only his armlet, but at the same time his shield, and cast them upon her. All his men followed his example, and the girl was smitten by the gold and buried under the shields, and died from the number and weight of them. [5] And Tarpeius also was convicted of treason when prosecuted by Romulus, as, according to Juba, Sulpicius Galba relates. Of those who write differently about Tarpeia, they are worthy of no belief at all who say that she was a daughter of Tatius, the leader of the Sabines, and was living with Romulus under compulsion, and acted and suffered as she did, at her father's behest; of these, Antigonus is one. And Simylus the poet is altogether absurd in supposing that Tarpeia betrayed the Capitol, not to the Sabines, but to the Gauls, because she had fallen in love with their king. These are his words:— And Tarpeia, who dwelt hard by the Capitolian steep, Became the destroyer of the walls of Rome; She longed to be the wedded wife of the Gallic chieftain, [[NB: alternative motives: Tarpeia falls in love with And betrayed the homes of her fathers. the enemy commander (Propertius, 4.4) or wants And a little after, speaking of her death:— the deprive the Sabines of their weapons Her the Boni and the myriad tribes of Gauls (Dionysius of Halicarnassus, Roman Antiquities Did not, exulting, cast amid the currents of the Po; 2.38-40)]] But hurled the shields from their belligerent arms Upon the hateful maid, and made their ornament her doom. 18. However, Tarpeia was buried there, and the hill was called from her Tarpcius, until King Tarquin dedicated the place to Jupiter, when her bones were removed and the name of Tarpeia died out, except that a cliff on the Capitol is still called the Tarpeian Rock, from which they hurl male-factors. [2] The citadel thus occupied by the Sabines, Romulus angrily challenged them to battle, and Tatius was bold enough to accept, since he saw that the Sabines, if worsted, had a strong place of retreat. [[the battle ensues between the Capitoline and the Palatine hills]] ----- 19. Here, as they were preparing to renew the battle, they were checked by a sight that was wonderful to behold and a spectacle that passes description. The ravished daughters of the Sabines were seen rushing from every direction, with shouts and lamentations, through the armed men and the dead bodies, as if in a frenzy of possession, up to their husbands and their fathers, some carrying young children in their arms, some veiled in their dishevelled hair, and all calling with the most endearing names now upon the Sabines and now upon the Romans. [2] So then both armies were moved to compassion, and drew apart to give the women place between the lines of battle; sorrow ran through all the ranks, and abundant pity was stirred by the sight of the women, and still more by their words, which began with argument and reproach, and ended with supplication and entreaty. [3] ‘Wherein, pray (they said), have we done you wrong or harm, that we must suffer in the past, and must still suffer now, such cruel evils? We were violently and lawlessly ravished away by those to whom we now belong, but though thus ravished, we were neglected by our brethren and fathers and kinsmen until time had united us by the strongest ties with those whom we had most hated, and made us now fear for those who had treated us with violence and lawlessness, when they go to battle, and mourn for them when they are slain. [4] For ye did not come to avenge us upon our ravishers while we were still maidens, but now ye would tear wives from their husbands and mothers from their children, and the succour wherewith ye would now succour us, wretched women that we are, is more pitiful than your former neglect and abandonment of us. Such is the love which we have here enjoyed, such the compassion shown to us by you.
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