Regillus was an ancient lake of

Latium Latium ( , ; ) is the region of central western Italy in which the city of Rome was founded and grew to be the capital city of the Roman Empire. Definition Latium was originally a small triangle of fertile, volcanic soil (Old Latium) on whi ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

, famous in the legendary

history of Rome The history of Rome includes the history of the city of Rome as well as the civilisation of ancient Rome. Roman history has been influential on the modern world, especially in the history of the Catholic Church, and Roman law has influenced m ...

as the lake in the neighborhood of which occurred (in 496 B.C.) the

Battle of Lake Regillus The Battle of Lake Regillus was a legendary Roman victory over the Latin League shortly after the establishment of the Roman Republic and as part of a wider Latin War. The Latins were led by an elderly Lucius Tarquinius Superbus, the se ...

between the Romans and the

Latins The Latins were originally an Italic tribe in ancient central Italy from Latium. As Roman power and colonization spread Latin culture during the Roman Republic. Latins culturally "Romanized" or "Latinized" the rest of Italy, and the word Latin ...

which finally decided the hegemony of Rome in Latium. The lake, now drained, was near the present-day town of

Frascati Frascati () is a city and ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Rome Capital in the Lazio region of central Italy. It is located south-east of Rome, on the Alban Hills close to the ancient city of Tusculum. Frascati is closely associated with ...

. During the battle, so the story runs, the Roman dictator Postumius vowed to build a temple to the twin gods

Castor and Pollux Castor; grc, Κάστωρ, Kástōr, beaver. and Pollux. (or Polydeukes). are twin half-brothers in Greek and Roman mythology, known together as the Dioscuri.; grc, Διόσκουροι, Dióskouroi, sons of Zeus, links=no, from ''Dîos'' ('Z ...

, who were specially venerated in

Tusculum Tusculum is a ruined Roman city in the Alban Hills, in the Latium region of Italy. Tusculum was most famous in Roman times for the many great and luxurious patrician country villas sited close to the city, yet a comfortable distance from Rome ( ...

, the chief city of the Latins (it being a Roman custom to invoke the aid of the gods of the enemy). The pair duly appeared during the battle dressed in white armour riding white horses, helped to Romans to prevail, and afterwards took the news of the victory to Rome. There they watered their horses at the spring of

Juturna In the myth and religion of ancient Rome, Juturna, or Diuturna, was a goddess of fountains, wells and springs, and the mother of Fontus by Janus. Mythology Juturna was an ancient Latin deity of fountains, who in some myths was turned by Jupi ...

, close to which their temple in the Forum was subsequently erected. There can be little doubt that Lake Regillus actually existed. Of the various identifications proposed, the best is that of Prof. L. Pareti, who locates the lake in a crater, ( Prataporci), which lies north of

. The lake has since been drained by an emissarium of uncertain date. Most of the other sites proposed are not, as Regillus should be, within the limits of the territory of Tusculum.

References

496 BC 490s BC conflicts 5th century BC in the Roman Republic Battles involving the Roman Republic Lakes of Lazio {{AncientRome-battle-stub