Editing Lucius Tarquinius Priscus (section)

==King of Rome==
=== Rise to power ===
Although Ancus Marcius was the grandson of [[Numa Pompilius]], the second King of Rome, the principle of hereditary monarchy was not yet established at Rome; none of the first three kings had been succeeded by their sons, and each subsequent king had been acclaimed by the people.  Upon the death of Marcius, Tarquin addressed the ''[[Legislative Assemblies of the Roman Kingdom#Curiate Assembly|Comitia Curiata]]'' and convinced them that he should be elected king over his predecessor's natural sons, who were still only youths,<ref>{{Cite book|last=Henry Dyer|first=Thomas|title=The History of the Kings of Rome|publisher=Lippincott|year=1868|pages=230–270}}</ref> making him the first Roman king to ever actively succeed at lobbying for the throne.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Livy.|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/191752403|title=The rise of Rome : books one to five|others=Luce, T. James (Torrey James), 1932–|date=2008|isbn=978-0-19-954004-4|edition=New|location=Oxford|page=140|oclc=191752403}}</ref> In one tradition, the sons were away on a hunting expedition at the time of their father's death, and were thus unable to affect the assembly's choice.<ref name=Livy135>[[Livy]], ''[[Ab urbe condita libri (Livy)|Ab urbe condita]]'', [[s:From the Founding of the City/Book 1#35|1:35]]</ref>

=== Political reform ===
According to Livy, Tarquin increased the number of the [[Senate of the Roman Kingdom|Senate]] to 300 by adding one hundred men from the leading minor families.<ref name=Livy135/>  Among these was the family of the [[Octavia gens|Octavii]], from whom the first emperor, [[Augustus]], was descended.<ref>[[Suetonius]], ''The Life of Augustus'' [https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Suetonius/12Caesars/Augustus*.html#2 2].</ref> He did so with the hope that those added to the Senate would be grateful for their position and thus loyal to him, strengthening his rule as king.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Penella|first=R. J.|date=2004-12-01|title=The Ambitio of Livy's Tarquinius Priscus|url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/cq/54.2.630|journal=The Classical Quarterly|volume=54|issue=2|pages=630–635|doi=10.1093/cq/54.2.630|doi-broken-date=1 November 2024 |issn=0009-8388}}</ref>[[File:Tarquin and the Eagle.gif|thumb|Tarquin and the Eagle|left]]

=== Military conquest ===
Lucius Tarquinius Priscus is accredited with expanding Rome's borders. He did so through conquest of the surrounding tribes. Those tribes were the Latins, Sabines, and Etruscans.

==== War with the Latins ====
Tarquin's first war was waged against the [[Latin League#War with Rome under Tarquinius Priscus|Latins]]. Tarquinius took the Latin town of [[Apiolae]] by storm and took great booty from there back to Rome.<ref name=Livy135/>  According to the ''[[Fasti Triumphales]]'', this war must have occurred prior to 588 BC. The Latins claimed that peace treaties developed by [[Romulus]] and the other Roman kings no longer applied and as such, launched the first set of attacks. Seeing the opportunity to incorporate the Latins into Rome's ranks, Tarquin quickly responded by conquering multiple Latin cities. As a result, the Latins requested help from the [[Sabines]] and [[Etruscan civilization|Etruscans]]. Choosing not to split up his military power, Tarquin chose to keep the attack on the Latins, leading to a Roman victory.<ref name="Halicarnassus">{{Cite book|last=Halicarnassus|first=Dionysius|title=Rhōmaïkḕ Arkhaiología.}}</ref>

==== War with the Sabines ====
After conquering the Latins Tarquin began his assault on the Sabines. Having their basecamp at the corner of two rivers, the Sabines were able to move their troops quickly and efficiently. Using his military cunning Tarquin chose to launch a surprise attack on the base at night. He did this by setting a fleet of small boats aflame and then sending them down the river to set the Sabine camp on fire. While the Sabines were focused on dousing the flames, Tarquin and his troops moved in to dismantle the camp.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Halicarnassus|first=Dionysius|title=Rhōmaïkḕ Arkhaiología}}</ref>

Later, his military ability was then tested by an [[Roman-Sabine wars#War with Tarquinius Priscus|attack]] from the [[Sabines]]. Tarquin doubled the numbers of [[Roman equestrian order|equites]] to help the war effort.<ref name="ReferenceA" /> The Sabines were defeated after difficult street fighting in the city of Rome.<ref name="Eutropius1.6">[[Eutropius (historian)|Eutropius]], ''Breviarium historiae romanae'', I, 6.</ref>  In the peace negotiations that followed, Tarquin received the town of [[Collatia]], and appointed his nephew, [[Arruns Tarquinius (Egerius)|Arruns Tarquinius]], better known as ''Egerius'', as commander of the garrison there. Tarquin returned to Rome and celebrated a [[Roman triumph|triumph]] on September 13, 585 BC.<ref>''Fasti Triumphales''</ref>

Subsequently, the Latin cities of [[Corniculum (ancient Latin town)|Corniculum]], old [[Ficulea (ancient Latin town)|Ficulea]], [[Cameria]], [[Crustumerium]], [[Ameriola]], [[Medullia]], and [[Nomentum]] were subdued and became Roman.<ref name="Livy138">[[Livy]], ''[[Ab urbe condita libri (Livy)|Ab urbe condita]]'', [[s:From the Founding of the City/Book 1#38|1:38]]</ref>

==== War with the Etruscans ====
Tarquin also wished to seek peace with the [[Etruscan civilization|Etruscans]], but they refused. Since Tarquin had kept the captured Etruscan auxiliaries prisoners for meddling in the war with the Sabines, the five Etruscan cities who had taken part declared war on Rome.<ref name="Halicarnassus"/>  Seven other Etruscan cities joined forces with them. The Etruscans soon captured the Roman colony at Fidenae, which thereupon became the focal point of the war.  After several bloody battles, Tarquin was once again victorious, and he subjugated the Etruscan cities who had taken part in the war.  At the successful conclusion of each of his wars, Rome was enriched by Tarquin's plunder.<ref>{{Cite journal|date=1905|title=''Outlines of Greek History, with a Survey of Ancient Oriental Nations'', By William C. Morey, Ph.D., D.C.L. (New York: The American Book Company. 1903. pp. 378) |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1086/ahr/10.2.371|journal=The American Historical Review|doi=10.1086/ahr/10.2.371|issn=1937-5239}}</ref>

=== Construction ===
[[File:Tarquin the Elder consulting Attus Nevius the Augur, Ricci, Sebastiano.png|thumb|254x254px|Tarquin the Elder consulting Attus Nevius the Augur]]
Tarquin is said to have built the [[Circus Maximus]], the first and largest stadium at Rome, for chariot racing.<ref name="EB1911"/> The Circus Maximus started out as an underwhelming piece of land, but was built into a grand and beautiful stadium. Raised seating was erected privately by the senators and equites, and other areas were marked out for private citizens. There the king established a series of annual games; according to Livy, the first horses and boxers to participate were brought from Etruria.<ref name=Livy135/> It received the name Circus Maximus as a way to set it apart from the other stadiums built at this time in a similar fashion.<ref>{{Citation|last=Gellius|first=Aulus|editor1-first=P. K|editor1-last=Marshall|title=Noctes Atticae|date=1968-03-13|url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/oseo/instance.00134296|work=Oxford Classical Texts: Aulus Gellius Noctes Atticae, Vol. 1: Libri I–X|pages=1|publisher=Oxford University Press|doi=10.1093/oseo/instance.00134296|isbn=978-0-19-814651-3|access-date=2020-12-04}}</ref>

After a great flood, Tarquin drained the damp lowlands of Rome by constructing the [[Cloaca Maxima]], Rome's great sewer.<ref name="EB1911"/> The arch was constructed in 578 BC and took inspiration from Etruscan structures of the earlier period.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Campbell|first=Nicole|title=Columbia Encyclopedia|publisher=Columbia University Press|year=2001|isbn=978-0787650155|edition=6th|location=New York|page=6}}</ref>  He also constructed a stone wall around the city, and began the construction of a temple in honour of [[Jupiter (god)|Jupiter]] Optimus Maximus on the [[Capitoline Hill]].  The latter is said to have been funded in part by the plunder seized from the Sabines.<ref name=Livy138/>

=== Shows of triumph ===
Tarquinius was the first Roman ruler to ever celebrate a Roman triumph. According to Florus, Tarquin celebrated his triumphs in the Etruscan fashion, riding a golden chariot drawn by four horses,<ref name="EB1911">{{Cite EB1911|wstitle=Tarquinius Priscus, Lucius|volume=26|pages=430–431}}</ref> while wearing a gold-embroidered [[toga]] and the tunica palmata, a tunic upon which palm-leaves were embroidered.  He also introduced other Etruscan insignia of civilian authority and military distinction: the [[sceptre]] of the king; the [[trabea]], a purple garment that varied in form, but was perhaps most often used as a mantle; the [[fasces]] carried by the [[lictor]]s; the [[curule seat|curule chair]]; the [[toga#Varieties|toga praetexta]], later worn by various magistrates and officials; the rings worn by [[Roman Senate|senators]]; the [[paludamentum]], a cloak associated with military command; and the [[phalera (military decoration)|phalera]], a disc of metal worn on a soldier's breastplate during parades, or displayed on the standards of various military units.<ref name="Florus1.5.6">[[Florus]], ''Epitoma de Tito Livio bellorum omnium annorum DCC'', I, 5.6.</ref>  Strabo reports that Tarquin introduced Etruscan sacrificial and divinatory rites, as well as the [[Roman tuba|tuba]], a straight horn used chiefly for military purposes.<ref>Strabo, ''Geographia'', V, 2.2</ref> As a result, most classical Roman symbols for war harken back to his time as king.