A Dictionary of Greek and Roman biography and mythology. By various writers. Ed. by William Smith. Illustrated by numerous engravings on wood.

658 ROMILIUS. ROMULUS.
reached the court that Manuel had been defeated with his colleague, and sentenced to pay a heavy
and taken prisoner. The emperor was artfully fine.
persuaded by some false friends to refrain from ROMI'LIUS MARCELLUS, one of the centaking the command once more, and matters would turions of the army in Germany, who espoused the
have taken a bad turn, but for the rare shrewdness cause of Galba, and was in consequence put to
of Manuel. It happened that Chrysoscul, the death. (Tac. Hist. i. 56, 59.)
victorious Turkish general, pretended to have a ROMI'LIUS PO'LLIO. [PorLLo.]
better right to the sultanship than Alp-Arsl&n, and ROMU'LIUS DENTER, is said to have been
Manuel was no sooner aware of it than, a real appointed praefectus urbi by Romulus. (Tac. Ann.
Comnene as he was, he persuaded him to desert vi. 11.)
the sultan, and fly with him to Constantinople, RO'MULUS, the founder of the city of Rome.
promising him the assistance of the emperor for the It is unnecessary in the present work to prove
recovery of his rights. The vanquished thus led that all the stories about Romulus are mythical,
his victor to Constantinople, to the utmost asto- and merely represent the traditional belief of the
nishment of the court. Rornanus took as much Roman people respecting their origin. Romulus,
advantage of this strange incident as circumstances which is only a lengthened form of Romus, is
would allow; and, in 1071, again set out in person simply the Roman people represented as an indiagainst Alp-ArslAn. But little acquainted with vidual, and must be placed in the same category as
human baseness, he left many of his real friends at Aeolus, Dorus, and Ion, the reputed ancestors of
home, and took with him many a secret enemy the Aeolians, Dorians, and Ionians, owing to the
invested with high power. He penetrated as far universal practice of antiquity to represent nations
as the Araxes, not without a manly resistance from as springing from eponymous ancestors. But
the Turks -and many a partial defeat of his ge- although none of the tales about Romulus can be
nerals. His position in those wild regions became received as an historical fact, yet it is of importance
dangerous, but he stoutly refused the peace cffered to know the general belief of the Roman people
to him by the sultan. Upon this a pitched battle respecting the life of the founder of their city. It
was fought at Manzicert on the Araxes (26th of is, however, very difficult to ascertain the original
August, 1071); and owing to the treachery of some form of the legend; since poets, on the one hand,
of his officers, no less than to the valour of Alp- embellished it with the creations of their own
Arslan, Romanus lost the day and his liberty. It fancy, and historians, on the other hand, omitted
has been said that the noble sultan ill-treated his many of its most marvellous incidents, in order to
captive, but this is not true, on the contrary he re- reduce it to the form of a probable history. The
ceived him well, and discoursed with him as a various tales related respecting the foundation of
friend. "' What would you have done with me," Rome may be reduced to two classes, one of Greek
asked the sultan, " if I had been your prisoner?" and the other of native origin. The former bring
"Beaten you to death," was theByzantine's answer. Romulus into close connection with Aeneas. A
" I will treat you differently," replied the barbarian few Greek writers make Aeneas the founder of
infidel, "and according to the precepts of your own Rome, and speak of his wife under the name of
religion, which commands humanity and forgive- Roma; others represent Romulus as his son or a
ness of injuries." Alp-Arslan accordingly gave remote descendant; but the greater part make
him 10,000 pieces of gold, and all those prisoners him his grandson by his daughter Ilia. In most
whom the emperor chose to pick out. Upon this of these accounts the twin brothers are spoken of,
a peace was concluded on equitable terms, except but they appear under the names of Romulus and
a ransom of 1,500,000, and an annual tribute of Romus, not Remus (comp. Dionys. i. 72, 73;:360,000 pieces of gold. Romanus shed tears when Plut. Rome. 2, 3; Serv. ad Virg. Aen. i. 274;
he took leave of his noble victor, who allowed him Festus, s.v. Roma). These accounts, however,
to return to Constantinople before the conditions of scarcely deserve the name of traditions, as Niethe treaty of peace were fulfilled. The news of buhr has remarked; they are for the most part the
this disaster caused a complete revolution in the inventions of Greek writers, who were ignorant of
capital, so that when Romanus appeared at its gates, the native legend, but having heard of the fame of
he was refused admittance. Michael Parapinaces Rome, wished to assign to it an origin.
had been raised to the imperial dignity, but Ro- The old Roman legend was of a very difmanus did his utmost to crush him and recover his ferent kind. It was preserved in popular poems,
throne. He was not successful. Twice defeated which were handed down from generation to
in pitched battles, he at last surrendered, and was generation, and some of which were in existence
put to death by order of Michael. Romanus left in the time of Dionysius (i. 79); and it seems
three sons, of whom Nicephorus made himself to have been recorded in prose in its most geconspicuous in after years. The reign of Romanus nuine form by the annalist Q. Fabius Pictor, who
Diogenes, though short, is full of highly interesting lived during the second Punic War. This legend
events, especially of military adventures, such as probably ran nearly as follows:-At Alba Longa
those of the noble Scot Ursel or Russell Baliol; there reigned a succession of kings,- descended
but space forbids us to enter upon these details. from Iulus, the son of Aeneas. One of the last of
(Zonar. vol. ii. p. 277, &c.; Glycas, p. 326, &c.; these kings left two solns, Numitor and Amulius.
Manass. p. 131; Bryenn. p. 112, &c., in the Paris The latter, who was the younger, deprived Numieditions.) [W. P.] tor of the kingdom, but allowed him to live in the
T. ROMI'LIUS ROCUS VATICA'NUS, was enjoyment of his private fortune. Fearful, howconsul B. c. 455, with C. Veturius Geminus Cicu- ever, lest the heirs of Numitor might not submit so
rinus, and was a member of the first decemvirate, quietly to his usurpation, he caused his only son
B.c. 451 (Liv. iii. 31, 33; Dionys. x. 33, &c.;56). to be murdered, and made his daughter' Silvia
Respecting the events in the year of his consulship,
see CICURINUs No. 4. He was condemned along * Many writers call her Rhea orRea Silvia. Nie