21 April 753 BC

The lineage of legend leading to the foundation of Rome.

Anchises - father of Æneas who flees Troy after its downfall. He was a mortal lover of the goddess Aphrodite (therefore in Roman mythology, the lover of Venus). One version is that she pretended to be a Phrygian (from the central Anatolian plateau) princess, and seduced him - for nearly two weeks. Anchises learned that his lover was a goddess only nine months later, when she revealed herself and presented him with the infant Æneas. He should not have revealed this but did while drunk and Zeus, as a punishment, hit him with a thunderbolt, making him lame.

Venus - the goddess of love and the mother of Aeneas. Venus (Aphrodite in Greek mythology) is a benefactor of the Trojans. She helps her son whenever Juno tries to hurt him, causing conflict among the gods

Æneas - the gods of Olympus have predicted that Aeneas would found a new kingdom, namely Rome, achieved after he leaves Carthage - where he had been a lover of the Queen Dido, who, unable to endure his abandonment, preferred to commit suicide with a sword that he had left behind.His defining characteristic is piety, a respect for the will of the gods. Creusa was his first wife and they had a son called Ascanius. Creusa was a daughter of Priam.

Lavinia - Æneas' second wife - they had one son, Silvius. Her father was Latinus - the king of the Latins, and his forbearance in allowing Æneas into his kingdom and encouragement to become a suitor of his daughter, caused resentment and eventually war among his subjects. Lavinia respects the gods and fate, but does not hold strict command over his people.

Silvius, about whose succession, according to Dionysius of Halicarnassus, caused a dispute as to who should succeed Ascanius. The dispute was decided in favor of Silvius by the people who believed that it was his right as the nephew of Latinus. All the kings of Alba following Silvius bore the name as their cognomen.

Aeneas Silvius - grandson of Ascanius and great-grandson of Aeneas, third in the list of the mythical kings of Alba Longa in Latium, and enjoyed a a reign of 31 years.

Brutus of Britain - The island of Britain derives its name from this Brutus - following Roman sources such as Virgil and Livy (Livy's only surviving work is the "History of Rome" - "Ab Urbe Condita")- whose, the Historia tells how Æneas settled in Italy after the Trojan War, and how his son Ascanius founded Alba Longa, one of the precursors of Rome. Ascanius married, and his wife became pregnant. In a variant version, the father is Silvius, who is identified as either the second son of Æneas, previously mentioned in the Historia, or as the son of Ascanius. A magician, asked to predict the child's future, said it would be a boy and that he would be the bravest and most beloved in Italy. Enraged, Ascanius had the magician put to death. The mother died in childbirth.

Latinus Silvius - fourth king of Alba Longa (according to Livy). It is, however, unclear if this person ever existed.

Alba - fifth king of Alba Longa. He was the son of Latinus Silvius - reigned thirty-nine years

Atys - sixth king of Alba Longa.

Capys - seventh king - "capys" meant 'hawk' or 'falcon' or possibly 'eagle'

Capetus - in Latin Căpĕtŭs Sĭluĭŭs

Tiberinus Silvius - the ninth king, Tiberinus' has a legend about him such that he was drowned while crossing the river then known as the 'Albula', but which was ever after known to the Latins as the Tiberis. This ancient river formed the boundary of Latium and Etruria, and the city of Rome was later founded on a group of seven hills overlooking its banks.

Agrippa - tenth king of Alba Longa - listed as such in the time of Augustus. Some speculate that this was done in order to give prestige to Augustus' friend and son in law Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa.

Romulus Silvius - also known as Aremulus or Alladius. Romulus Silvius is said to have been a wicked ruler and pretended to know how to make thunder in order to frighten his subjects into worshiping him as a God. He perished in a thunderstorm with excessive rain.

Aventinus - buried on the Aventine Hill, later named after him. He is said to have reigned thirty-seven years.

Procas - undistinguished.

Numitor - father of Rhea Silvia. He was overthrown by his brother, Amulius, and thrown out of his kingdom where he had ruled.

Amulius - hostile uncle of Romulus and Remus' mother.

Rhea Silvia - (also written as Rea Silvia), and also known as Ilia, was the mythical mother of the twins Romulus and Remus, who founded the city of Rome. Her story is told in the first book of 'Ab Urbe Condita' of Livy

Ares/Mars - was the father of Romulus and Remus with Rhea Silvia. His love affair with Venus symbolically reconciled the two different traditions of Rome's founding; Venus was the divine mother of the hero Aeneas, celebrated as the Trojan refugee who "founded" Rome several generations before Romulus laid out the city walls.

Hersilia - in Roman mythology, Hersilia was the wife of Romulus

Romulus & Remus are Rome's twin founders in its traditional foundation myth, although the former is sometimes said to be the sole founder. Their maternal grandfather was Numitor, rightful king of Alba Longa, a descendant of the Trojan prince Aeneas, and father to Rhea Silvia (also known as Ilia.) Before their conception, Numitor's brother Amulius deposed his brother, killed his sons and forced Rhea to become a Vestal Virgin, intending to deprive Numitor of lawful heirs and thus secure his own position; but Rhea conceived Romulus and Remus by either the god Mars or the demi-god Hercules. When the twins were born, Amulius left them to die but they were saved by a series of miraculous interventions. A she-wolf found them and suckled them. A shepherd and his wife then fostered them and raised them to manhood as shepherds. The twins proved to be natural leaders and acquired many followers. When told their true identities, they killed Amulius, restored Numitor to the throne of Alba Longa and decided to found a new city for themselves. Romulus wished to build the new city on the Palatine Hill but Remus preferred the Aventine Hill. They agreed to determine the site through augury. Romulus appeared to receive the more favorable signs but each claimed the results in his favor. In the disputes that followed, Remus was murdered by Romulus. Ovid has Romulus invent the festival of Lemuria to appease Remus' resentful ghost.