{"id":9220,"date":"2023-11-03T22:40:20","date_gmt":"2023-11-03T21:40:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.learnancientrome.com\/?p=9220"},"modified":"2023-11-03T22:40:20","modified_gmt":"2023-11-03T21:40:20","slug":"who-were-the-seven-kings-of-ancient-rome","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.learnancientrome.com\/who-were-the-seven-kings-of-ancient-rome\/","title":{"rendered":"Who Were The Seven Kings Of Ancient Rome"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Who were the seven kings of ancient Rome? As the roots of a grand republic and the birthplace of a grand empire, the Ancient Romans created a civilization of their own that stands today in its context. Although Rome was destroyed by fire in 410CE and its civilization was reorganized shortly after, it has remained a symbol of the peak of civilization and can be traced back to its earliest days. In Rome’s infancy, it was ruled by a series of influential kings.<\/p>\n

The legendary founding of Rome by Romulus and Remus is also symbolic of Rome’s transformation from civic disunity to a unified nation. Although the mythology surrounding their story is likely purely symbolic, the seven kings who succeeded them in tradition are often considered historical by modern historians. The first of the line, Romulus, is believed to have raised Rome from its early years of disunity and invasions to the apex of its Iron Age history.<\/p>\n

Led by Augustus, later Roman citizen elites also romanticized the leadership of the seven kings as part of their own political strategy. Through their own poetic tales and patronizing of figures such as Aeneas and Julius Caesar, the Roman elite, particularly Augustus, sought to establish themselves in the same lofty position as their mythical forebears. As such, figures such as the Claudia gens and other Romanesque families set the stage for processes of legitimization that proved indispensable for the emperors who followed.<\/p>\n

The kings are a more important part of Roman history than Rome’s other governments. Although their reign ended with the ascension of the Republic, they shaped Rome as a society so much that their leadership continued to inspire Roman citizens and rulers even during the formation of the imperial government. As seen through the legends of Romulus and his successors, the leading Roman families tried to visually link themselves to the kings of the past and add gravitas to their own political power.<\/p>\n