Lars Tolumnius
Encyclopedia
Lars Tolumnius was the most famous king of the wealthy Etruscan
city-state
of Veii
, roughly ten miles northwest of Rome
, best remembered for initiating the conflict with the fledgling Roman Republic that ended with Veii's destruction. His name in Etruscan was Larth Tulumnes, the Tulumnes family being a leading family in Veii and known from votive offering inscriptions.
revolted against the Republic. The Fidenese leaders of the revolution offered Tolumnius control over their city, which the king gladly accepted, and when Rome sent the four emissaries (Tullus Cloelius, Gaius Fulcinius
, Spurius Antius
, and Lucius Roscius
) to Veii to demand the hegemony
of Fidenae back, Tolumnius had them executed. The legendary explanation for this grievous breach of peace is that at the moment his aides inquired if they should execute the Roman ambassadors, Tolumnius, playing at dice
and having just rolled fortuitously, exclaimed, "Excellent!", thus inadvertently ordering the execution of the diplomats and unknowingly sealing his own fate.
The Roman Senate
, outraged by Tolumnius's actions, declared war on Veii in 437 BCE and sent an army under Dictator
Aemilius Mamercus to besiege the city. Tolumnius himself died early in the conflict, slain in single combat with the tribunus militum Aulus Cornelius Cossus while defending the city that his unwitting action had doomed to a fiery end.
Etruscan civilization
Etruscan civilization is the modern English name given to a civilization of ancient Italy in the area corresponding roughly to Tuscany. The ancient Romans called its creators the Tusci or Etrusci...
city-state
City-state
A city-state is an independent or autonomous entity whose territory consists of a city which is not administered as a part of another local government.-Historical city-states:...
of Veii
Veii
Veii was, in ancient times, an important Etrurian city NNW of Rome, Italy; its site lies in Isola Farnese, a village of Municipio XX, an administrative subdivision of the comune of Rome in the Province of Rome...
, roughly ten miles northwest of Rome
Roman Republic
The Roman Republic was the period of the ancient Roman civilization where the government operated as a republic. It began with the overthrow of the Roman monarchy, traditionally dated around 508 BC, and its replacement by a government headed by two consuls, elected annually by the citizens and...
, best remembered for initiating the conflict with the fledgling Roman Republic that ended with Veii's destruction. His name in Etruscan was Larth Tulumnes, the Tulumnes family being a leading family in Veii and known from votive offering inscriptions.
Conflict Over Fidenae
Very little is known of Lars Tolumnius outside of his involvement in Roman legend: he enters history when, in the late 5th century BCE, the Roman colony of FidenaeFidenae
Fidenae, or Fidenes, home of the Fidenates, was an ancient town of Latium, situated about 8 km north of Rome on the Via Salaria, which ran between it and the Tiber. As the Tiber was the border between Etruria and Latium, the left-bank settlement of Fidenae represented an extension of Etruscan...
revolted against the Republic. The Fidenese leaders of the revolution offered Tolumnius control over their city, which the king gladly accepted, and when Rome sent the four emissaries (Tullus Cloelius, Gaius Fulcinius
Gaius Fulcinius
Gaius Fulcinius was a Roman envoy to the colony of Fidenae. According to Livy, he was one of four Roman ambassadors murdered on the orders of the Veientine Lars Tolumnius.-References:*Livy 4.16...
, Spurius Antius
Spurius Antius
Spurius Antius was a Roman envoy to Fidenae. He was murdered on he orders of the Veientine Lars Tolumnius.-References:Livy 4.16...
, and Lucius Roscius
Lucius Roscius
Lucius Roscius was a Roman envoy to Fidenae. He was murdered on the orders of the Veientine Lars Tolumnius.-References:*Livy 4.16...
) to Veii to demand the hegemony
Hegemony
Hegemony is an indirect form of imperial dominance in which the hegemon rules sub-ordinate states by the implied means of power rather than direct military force. In Ancient Greece , hegemony denoted the politico–military dominance of a city-state over other city-states...
of Fidenae back, Tolumnius had them executed. The legendary explanation for this grievous breach of peace is that at the moment his aides inquired if they should execute the Roman ambassadors, Tolumnius, playing at dice
Dice
A die is a small throwable object with multiple resting positions, used for generating random numbers...
and having just rolled fortuitously, exclaimed, "Excellent!", thus inadvertently ordering the execution of the diplomats and unknowingly sealing his own fate.
War With Rome And Death
Roman Senate
The Senate of the Roman Republic was a political institution in the ancient Roman Republic, however, it was not an elected body, but one whose members were appointed by the consuls, and later by the censors. After a magistrate served his term in office, it usually was followed with automatic...
, outraged by Tolumnius's actions, declared war on Veii in 437 BCE and sent an army under Dictator
Dictator
A dictator is a ruler who assumes sole and absolute power but without hereditary ascension such as an absolute monarch. When other states call the head of state of a particular state a dictator, that state is called a dictatorship...
Aemilius Mamercus to besiege the city. Tolumnius himself died early in the conflict, slain in single combat with the tribunus militum Aulus Cornelius Cossus while defending the city that his unwitting action had doomed to a fiery end.