Cloelia Fleeing the Camp of Porsena LACMA M

Cloelia ( grc, Κλοιλία) was a legendary woman from the early history of

ancient Rome In modern historiography, ancient Rome refers to Roman civilisation from the founding of the city of Rome in the 8th century BC to the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century AD. It encompasses the Roman Kingdom (753–509 BC ...

Biography

She was one of the women taken hostage by

Lars Porsena Lars Porsena (or Porsenna; Etruscan: ) was an Etruscan civilization, Etruscan king (lar) known for his Roman-Etruscan Wars#War with Clusium in 508 BC, war against the city of Rome. He ruled over the city of Clusium (Etruscan language, Etruscan: ; ...

as a part of the peace treaty which ended the war between Rome and Clusium in 508 BC. There are two different stories explaining her escape and it is unclear which one is true as both are accepted by different scholars and historians. The first version of Cloelia's escape recognizes that the female hostages went to the river to bathe. Once having persuaded their guards to leave them alone at the river, in order to remain modest, they swam across the river into Roman territory. Once in Roman territory the female hostages were then safe from their captures. The second version of Cloelia's escapes claims that she escaped from the Etruscan camp, leading away a group of Roman virgins. According to

Valerius Maximus Valerius Maximus () was a 1st-century Latin writer and author of a collection of historical anecdotes: ''Factorum ac dictorum memorabilium libri IX'' ("Nine books of memorable deeds and sayings", also known as ''De factis dictisque memorabilibus'' ...

, she fled upon a horse, and swam across the river

Tiber The Tiber ( ; it, Tevere ; la, Tiberis) is the third-longest List of rivers of Italy, river in Italy and the longest in Central Italy, rising in the Apennine Mountains in Emilia-Romagna and flowing through Tuscany, Umbria, and Lazio, where ...

through a barrage of hostile darts thus bringing her band of girls to safety. When Porsena learnt of their escape, he quickly sent emissaries to Rome demanding her return. However, Porsena soon reconsidered deciding that her deeds were worthy of admiration, equal to that of

Horatius Cocles Publius Horatius Cocles was an officer in the army of the early Roman Republic who famously defended the Pons Sublicius from the invading army of Etruscan King Lars Porsena of Clusium in the late 6th century BC, during the war between Rome and ...

and

Gaius Mucius Scaevola Gaius Mucius Cordus, better known with his later cognomen Scaevola ( , ), was an ancient Roman youth, possibly mythical, famous for his bravery. In 508 BC, during the war between Rome and Clusium, the Clusian king Lars Porsena laid siege to Rom ...

. He declared to the Romans that if she were restored to him he would send her back to Rome safe and inviolate, but if his demands were not met he should regard the treaty as broken. The Romans agreed to the conditions and returned the pledge of peace, as the treaty required. Porsena praised Cloelia on her arrival and as a reward for her heroism, promised to release half the share of his hostages of her choice. It is said that she selected the young boys, as was unanimously decided by the hostages, since they were particularly at risk of abuse. Once peace had been established The Romans celebrated her valour by building a statue of a maiden seated on a horse, set up on the summit of the

Via Sacra The Via Sacra (, "''Sacred Street''") was the main street of ancient Rome, leading from the top of the Capitoline Hill, through some of the most important religious sites of the Forum (where it is the widest street), to the Colosseum. The ro ...

Cultural depictions

Cloelia has been depicted in several paintings and in the libretto ''

Il trionfo di Clelia ''Il trionfo di Clelia'' is an Italian opera libretto by Metastasio originally written for Johann Adolf Hasse Johann Adolph Hasse (baptised 25 March 1699 – 16 December 1783) was an 18th-century German composer, singer and teacher of music. Im ...

'' (1762) by

Pietro Metastasio Pietro Antonio Domenico Trapassi (3 January 1698 – 12 April 1782), better known by his pseudonym of Pietro Metastasio (), was an Italian poet and librettist, considered the most important writer of ''opera seria'' libretti. Early life Met ...

She was also portrayed by Sylvia Syms in the 1961 Italian movie '' Le Vergini di Roma''.

References

Sources

Livy Titus Livius (; 59 BC – AD 17), known in English as Livy ( ), was a Roman historian. He wrote a monumental history of Rome and the Roman people, titled , covering the period from the earliest legends of Rome before the traditional founding in ...

, '' Ab urbe condita''
2.13
*

, ''

Factorum ac dictorum memorabilium ''Factorum ac dictorum memorabilium libri IX'' ("nine books of memorable deeds and sayings", also known as ''De factis dictisque memorabilibus'' or ''Facta et dicta memorabilia'') by Valerius Maximus (c. 20 BC – c. AD 50) was written arou ...

''
3.2.2

External links

* {{Authority control 6th-century BC Roman women Ancient Roman women in warfare Cloelii

Biography

Cultural depictions

See also

References

Sources

External links