Lucius Junius Brutus

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Lucius Junius Brutus in a depiction on a later coin. From Eckhel: Brief Beginnings for Ancient Numismatics, Vienna 1787
Bust of a stranger from the middle republic (so-called "Brutus"); Rome, Capitoline Museums

According to legend, Lucius Junius Brutus († allegedly 509 BC) came from the Tarquinian family and was the first consul or praetor maximus of the Roman Republic after the overthrow of the last Etruscan king of Rome , Tarquinius Superbus .

According to current research, however, Brutus may not have existed at all. There are practically no authentic sources dating back to the early Republic. Later authors developed the scanty tradition more and more freely, partly out of self-interest. So probably invented the plebeian (and only during the Middle Republic, from the end of the 4th century BC. BC., Politically effective) sex Iunii Bruti a mythical ancestor who allegedly patrician should have been, like all the consuls of the early republic .

Brutus is said to be instrumental in the expulsion of the last Etruscan king Tarquinius Superbus in 509 BC. Have been involved. The royal rule was replaced by the Roman Republic ( libera res publica ).

legend

According to tradition, Brutus was the son of Tarquinias, sister of King Tarquinius Superbus. After the king had the brother of Brutus and other noble citizens murdered, Brutus acted stupid in order not to give the king cause to fear him and therefore to have him killed. This earned him the nickname Brutus ( Latin for "stupid"), which he accepted without complaint in accordance with his disguise.

When King Tarquinius was frightened by an unfavorable omen and had sent two of his sons to the Oracle of Delphi to inquire about it, Brutus accompanied them. When they arrived in Delphi, the sons of Tarquinius asked the oracle to reveal which of them would rule Rome. When they received the reply that this would be the first to kiss his mother, the Tarquins believed that this referred to their biological mother. But Brutus recognized that the oracle was speaking of the common mother of all human beings, the earth, pretended to fall and kissed her.

Johann Heinrich Wilhelm Tischbein : Brutus discovers the names of his sons on the list of conspirators and sentences them to death. Oil painting in the Kunsthaus Zurich
Jacques-Louis David : Brutus to whom the corpses of his sons are brought into his home (1789)

Sextus , the youngest son of the king raped, according to tradition Lucretia , the wife of Lucius Tarquinius Collatinus . Lucretia made her husband and Brutus, among others, swear to avenge them, and stabbed herself. Brutus saw the opportunity to overthrow the king.

Lucretia's body was carried from the house to the forum of her place of residence, Collatia ; Brutus, who got rid of his supposed nonsense, upset the people there and then also in Rome with fiery speeches about the arrogance and the crimes of the king and his clan against him. He obtained a resolution by which the king lost his rule and was banished along with his family. According to legend, Brutus formed in 509 BC Together with Collatinus the first couple of Roman consuls.

As a result, the Tarquins were able to win over Brutus' sons, Titus and Tiberius, to conspire with them in order to restore royal rule; the plot was discovered and Brutus had his sons executed. Brutus himself is said to have died in a duel against Arruns, a son of the expelled king. Current research suggests that the consulate was introduced much later; after the reign of kings, the highest office was probably first the praetor maximus .

effect

The murderers of Caesar (44 BC) took the legend as a model for their deed, especially Marcus Iunius Brutus , who was seen as the direct descendant of the republic's founder. But even under Caesar's heir Augustus , Brutus was highlighted as the embodiment of Roman virtues, especially Livy and Virgil .

bust

Since the 16th century there has been a bust in the Conservators' Palace in Rome, which Cardinal Rodolfo Pio da Carpi bequeathed to the city of Rome from his collection. This bust, called Capitoline Brutus , was abducted to the Louvre in Paris under Napoleon and returned to Rome in 1815.

In 2010 the bust was the focus of a cabinet exhibition in the rotunda of the Altes Museum in Berlin.

literature

Web links

Commons : Lucius Junius Brutus  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Livy : Ab urbe condita , 1.60.2-3.
  2. ^ T. Robert S. Broughton : The Magistrates Of The Roman Republic. Volume 1: 509 BC - 100 BC (= Philological Monographs. Vol. 15, Part 1, ZDB -ID 418575-4 ). American Philological Association, New York NY 1951, pp. 1-5, on the historicity of Brutus especially p. 4, (Unchanged reprint 1968).
  3. ↑ a b Livius, 1.56.7.
  4. ↑ Livy, 1.56.8.
  5. ↑ Livy, 1.56.10-12.
  6. ↑ Livy, 1.53.5.
  7. ↑ Livy, 1.58.1-59.1.
  8. ↑ Livy, 1.59.2-11.
  9. ^ Livy, 2.5.
  10. ↑ Livy 2.6.8-9.
personal data
SURNAME Junius Brutus, Lucius
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Roman consul
DATE OF BIRTH before 509 BC Chr.
DATE OF DEATH uncertain: 509 BC Chr.