How Rome Began: The History As Told by Ancient Historians

Much attention has been paid to the fall of the Roman Empire, by everyone from august historians like Edward Gibbon to modern-day observers wringing their hands over the fate of the United States of America. But as every Rome enthusiast knows, that long collapse constitutes just one chapter — or rather, a series of chapters at the very least — of a story with much more to it. And as with any story, nobody can hope to understand how it ends unless they understand how it begins: hence the new Voices of the Past video above, “How Did Rome Begin?”

If you’re at all familiar with Roman mythology (or if you, like me, played Centurion: Defender of Rome growing up), you’ll have seen the image of the twins brothers Romulus and Remus being nursed by a giant she-wolf, la Lupa Capitolina, on the banks of the Tiber river. According to one version of events, Rome was founded by Romulus on April 21st in 753 BCE, after he killed Remus and named the Eternal City-to-be after himself.

What relationship this dramatic tale has to historical events is a matter of scholarly interest, but Voices of the Past’s investigation has a wider scope, beginning four and a half centuries earlier with the fall of Troy as told by Homer, one of the many sources cited along the video’s two-hour historical journey.

To make vivid the conditions under which Rome arose, the video closely examines the ruins of the ancient world while quoting the words of historians who lived under the actual Roman Empire, like Livy and Dionysius of Halicarnassus. While they may come with certain embellishments, and even fabrications, these texts together offer a coherent narrative of Rome’s rise, which in this video stretches to eight turbulent centuries. Its final chapter opens in 387 BC, with the storm of Rome’s sack by the Gauls quickly gathering. For Roman citizens at the time, it would have seemed that their long-established city had met its end. Little did they know, it still had — if not an eternity — centuries and centuries still to go.

Related content:

Hear an Ancient Chinese Historian Describe The Roman Empire (and Other Voices of the Past)

What the Romans Saw When They Reached New Parts of the World: Hear First-Hand Accounts by Appian, Pliny, Tacitus & Other Ancient Historians

The History of Ancient Japan: The Story of How Japan Began, Told by Those Who Witnessed It (297‑1274)

The History of Ancient Rome in 20 Quick Minutes: A Primer Narrated by Brian Cox

Do You Think About Ancient Rome Every Day? Then Browse a Wealth of Videos, Maps & Photos That Explore the Roman Empire

Based in Seoul, Colin Marshall writes and broadcasts on cities, language, and culture. His projects include the Substack newsletter Books on Cities and the book The Stateless City: a Walk through 21st-Century Los Angeles. Follow him on Twitter at @colinmarshall or on Facebook.