Bolae
Encyclopedia
Bolae or Bola was an ancient city of Latium
that was repeatedly mentioned in the early history of Rome
.
to the kings of Alba Longa
, and its name is found also in the list given by Diodorus Siculus
of the colonies of that city. Hence, there is no doubt that it was properly a Latin
city, though its name does not appear among the list of those that composed the Latin League
. But it fell at an early period into the hands of the Aequi
ans. Dionysius of Halicarnassus
describes it as one of the towns taken by Coriolanus
, together with Toleria
and Labicum; and though Livy
does not notice its conquest upon that occasion, he speaks of it as an Aequi
an town, when the name next occurs in history towards the end of the 5th century BC. In this instance the Bolani
were among the foremost to engage in war, and ravaged the lands of the neighboring Labicum, but being unsupported by the rest of the Aequians, they were defeated, and their town taken. It was, however, recovered by the Aequians, and a fresh colony established there, but was again taken by the Romans under Publius Postumius Albus Regillensis
, and it was on this occasion that the proposal to establish a Roman colony
there, and portion out its lands among the settlers, gave rise to one of the fiercest mutinies
in Roman history.
Whether the colony was actually sent, the town was again in the hands of the Aequians in 389 BC, when they were defeated beneath its walls by Marcus Furius Camillus
; but Diodorus Siculus
represents it as then occupied by the Latins, and besieged by the Aequi
ans. This is the last mention of the name in history: it was probably destroyed during these wars, as we find no subsequent trace of its existence; and it is enumerated by Pliny
among the towns which had in his time utterly disappeared. The site is called Poli, situated in the mountains about eight miles north of Praeneste; but Livy
tells us that its ager
bordered on that of Labicum, and the narratives of Dionysius
and Plutarch
above cited seem clearly to point to a situation in the neighborhood of Labicum and Pedum. Hence it is much more probable, as suggested by Francesco Ficoroni
and Antonio Nibby
, that it occupied the site of Lugano
, a village about 5 miles south of Palestrina
(Praeneste), and 9 miles southeast of La Colonna (Labicum). The position is, like that of most of the other towns in this neighborhood, naturally fortified by the ravines that surround it: and its situation between the Aequi
an mountains on the one side, and the heights of Algidus Mons
on the other, would necessarily render it a military point of importance both to Aequi
ans and Latins
.
Latium
Lazio is one of the 20 administrative regions of Italy, situated in the central peninsular section of the country. With about 5.7 million residents and a GDP of more than 170 billion euros, Lazio is the third most populated and the second richest region of Italy...
that was repeatedly mentioned in the early history of Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
.
Foundation
Its foundation is expressly ascribed by VirgilVirgil
Publius Vergilius Maro, usually called Virgil or Vergil in English , was an ancient Roman poet of the Augustan period. He is known for three major works of Latin literature, the Eclogues , the Georgics, and the epic Aeneid...
to the kings of Alba Longa
Alba Longa
Alba Longa – in Italian sources occasionally written Albalonga – was an ancient city of Latium in central Italy southeast of Rome in the Alban Hills. Founder and head of the Latin League, it was destroyed by Rome around the middle of the 7th century BC. In legend, Romulus and Remus, founders of...
, and its name is found also in the list given by Diodorus Siculus
Diodorus Siculus
Diodorus Siculus was a Greek historian who flourished between 60 and 30 BC. According to Diodorus' own work, he was born at Agyrium in Sicily . With one exception, antiquity affords no further information about Diodorus' life and doings beyond what is to be found in his own work, Bibliotheca...
of the colonies of that city. Hence, there is no doubt that it was properly a Latin
Latins
"Latins" refers to different groups of people and the meaning of the word changes for where and when it is used.The original Latins were an Italian tribe inhabiting central and south-central Italy. Through conquest by their most populous city-state, Rome, the original Latins culturally "Romanized"...
city, though its name does not appear among the list of those that composed the Latin League
Latin league
The Latin League was a confederation of about 30 villages and tribes in the region of Latium near ancient Rome, organized for mutual defense...
. But it fell at an early period into the hands of the Aequi
Aequi
thumb|300px|Location of the Aequi in central Italy.The Aequi were an ancient people of northeast Latium and the central Appennines of Italy who appear in the early history of ancient Rome. After a long struggle for independence from Rome they were defeated and substantial Roman colonies were...
ans. Dionysius of Halicarnassus
Dionysius of Halicarnassus
Dionysius of Halicarnassus was a Greek historian and teacher of rhetoric, who flourished during the reign of Caesar Augustus. His literary style was Attistic — imitating Classical Attic Greek in its prime.-Life:...
describes it as one of the towns taken by Coriolanus
Coriolanus
Gaius Marcius Coriolanus was a Roman general who is said to have lived in the 5th century BC. He received his toponymic cognomen "Coriolanus" because of his exceptional valor in a Roman siege of the Volscian city of Corioli. He was then promoted to a general...
, together with Toleria
Toleria
Toleria is a genus of moths in the Sesiidae family.-Species:*Toleria abiaeformis Walker, [1865]*Toleria ilana Arita & Gorbunov, 2001...
and Labicum; and though Livy
Livy
Titus Livius — known as Livy in English — was a Roman historian who wrote a monumental history of Rome and the Roman people. Ab Urbe Condita Libri, "Chapters from the Foundation of the City," covering the period from the earliest legends of Rome well before the traditional foundation in 753 BC...
does not notice its conquest upon that occasion, he speaks of it as an Aequi
Aequi
thumb|300px|Location of the Aequi in central Italy.The Aequi were an ancient people of northeast Latium and the central Appennines of Italy who appear in the early history of ancient Rome. After a long struggle for independence from Rome they were defeated and substantial Roman colonies were...
an town, when the name next occurs in history towards the end of the 5th century BC. In this instance the Bolani
Bolani
Bolani is a vegan flat-bread from Afghanistan baked or fried with a vegetable filling. It has a thin crust and can be stuffed with a variety of ingredients, such as potatoes, spinach, lentils, pumpkin, or leeks....
were among the foremost to engage in war, and ravaged the lands of the neighboring Labicum, but being unsupported by the rest of the Aequians, they were defeated, and their town taken. It was, however, recovered by the Aequians, and a fresh colony established there, but was again taken by the Romans under Publius Postumius Albus Regillensis
Publius Postumius Albus Regillensis
Publius Postumius Albus Regillensis, whom Livy calls "Marcus", was a patrician politician of ancient Rome who was appointed one of four military consular tribunes in 414 BC....
, and it was on this occasion that the proposal to establish a Roman colony
Colony
In politics and history, a colony is a territory under the immediate political control of a state. For colonies in antiquity, city-states would often found their own colonies. Some colonies were historically countries, while others were territories without definite statehood from their inception....
there, and portion out its lands among the settlers, gave rise to one of the fiercest mutinies
Mutiny
Mutiny is a conspiracy among members of a group of similarly situated individuals to openly oppose, change or overthrow an authority to which they are subject...
in Roman history.
Whether the colony was actually sent, the town was again in the hands of the Aequians in 389 BC, when they were defeated beneath its walls by Marcus Furius Camillus
Marcus Furius Camillus
Marcus Furius Camillus was a Roman soldier and statesman of patrician descent. According to Livy and Plutarch, Camillus triumphed four times, was five times dictator, and was honoured with the title of Second Founder of Rome....
; but Diodorus Siculus
Diodorus Siculus
Diodorus Siculus was a Greek historian who flourished between 60 and 30 BC. According to Diodorus' own work, he was born at Agyrium in Sicily . With one exception, antiquity affords no further information about Diodorus' life and doings beyond what is to be found in his own work, Bibliotheca...
represents it as then occupied by the Latins, and besieged by the Aequi
Aequi
thumb|300px|Location of the Aequi in central Italy.The Aequi were an ancient people of northeast Latium and the central Appennines of Italy who appear in the early history of ancient Rome. After a long struggle for independence from Rome they were defeated and substantial Roman colonies were...
ans. This is the last mention of the name in history: it was probably destroyed during these wars, as we find no subsequent trace of its existence; and it is enumerated by Pliny
Pliny the Elder
Gaius Plinius Secundus , better known as Pliny the Elder, was a Roman author, naturalist, and natural philosopher, as well as naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire, and personal friend of the emperor Vespasian...
among the towns which had in his time utterly disappeared. The site is called Poli, situated in the mountains about eight miles north of Praeneste; but Livy
Livy
Titus Livius — known as Livy in English — was a Roman historian who wrote a monumental history of Rome and the Roman people. Ab Urbe Condita Libri, "Chapters from the Foundation of the City," covering the period from the earliest legends of Rome well before the traditional foundation in 753 BC...
tells us that its ager
Ager
Ager can refer to:People:*Cecilia Ager , American film critic*Maurice Ager , American basketball player*Milton Ager , American pianist and composer*Nikolaus Ager , French botanist born in Alsace...
bordered on that of Labicum, and the narratives of Dionysius
Dionysius of Halicarnassus
Dionysius of Halicarnassus was a Greek historian and teacher of rhetoric, who flourished during the reign of Caesar Augustus. His literary style was Attistic — imitating Classical Attic Greek in its prime.-Life:...
and Plutarch
Plutarch
Plutarch then named, on his becoming a Roman citizen, Lucius Mestrius Plutarchus , c. 46 – 120 AD, was a Greek historian, biographer, essayist, and Middle Platonist known primarily for his Parallel Lives and Moralia...
above cited seem clearly to point to a situation in the neighborhood of Labicum and Pedum. Hence it is much more probable, as suggested by Francesco Ficoroni
Francesco Ficoroni
Francesco Ficoroni was an Italian connoisseur and antiquarian in Rome closely involved with the antiquities trade. He was the author of numerous publications on ancient Roman sculpture and antiquities, guides to the monuments of Rome and the city's ancient topography, and on Italian theatre and...
and Antonio Nibby
Antonio Nibby
Antonio Nibby was an Italian archaeologist.Nibby was a critic of the history of ancient art and from 1812 in service to the Vatican worked to excavate the monuments of Rome. He also served as a secretary to Louis Napoleon, Comte de Saint-Leu.He was a professor of archaeology in the University of...
, that it occupied the site of Lugano
Lugano
Lugano is a city of inhabitants in the city proper and a total of over 145,000 people in the agglomeration/city region, in the south of Switzerland, in the Italian-speaking canton of Ticino, which borders Italy...
, a village about 5 miles south of Palestrina
Palestrina
Palestrina is an ancient city and comune with a population of about 18,000, in Lazio, c. 35 km east of Rome...
(Praeneste), and 9 miles southeast of La Colonna (Labicum). The position is, like that of most of the other towns in this neighborhood, naturally fortified by the ravines that surround it: and its situation between the Aequi
Aequi
thumb|300px|Location of the Aequi in central Italy.The Aequi were an ancient people of northeast Latium and the central Appennines of Italy who appear in the early history of ancient Rome. After a long struggle for independence from Rome they were defeated and substantial Roman colonies were...
an mountains on the one side, and the heights of Algidus Mons
Algidus Mons
The Algidus Mons is the eastern rim of the dormant Alban Volcano in the Alban Hills, about 20 km southeast of Rome, Italy. The ridge is traversed by a narrow crevasse called la Cava d'Aglio...
on the other, would necessarily render it a military point of importance both to Aequi
Aequi
thumb|300px|Location of the Aequi in central Italy.The Aequi were an ancient people of northeast Latium and the central Appennines of Italy who appear in the early history of ancient Rome. After a long struggle for independence from Rome they were defeated and substantial Roman colonies were...
ans and Latins
Latins
"Latins" refers to different groups of people and the meaning of the word changes for where and when it is used.The original Latins were an Italian tribe inhabiting central and south-central Italy. Through conquest by their most populous city-state, Rome, the original Latins culturally "Romanized"...
.