Verginia
Verginia, or Virginia (c. 465 BC – 449 BC), was the subject of a story of
The story of Verginia
In 451 BC, the decemvir
When Verginius arrived two days later, he gathered his supporters in the Forum. Claudius, however, unmoved by Verginius' widespread support, would not let him speak or defend himself, and declared that Verginia was indeed Marcus Claudius' slave. Appius Claudius had brought an armed escort with him and accused the citizens of sedition. The supporters of Verginius left the Forum rather than cause any violence, and Verginius begged to question his daughter himself. Claudius agreed to this, but Verginius grabbed a knife and, at the Shrine of Venus Cloacina, he stabbed Verginia, the only way he felt he could uphold her freedom and virtue. Upon killing her, Livy claims that Verginius spoke to Claudius directly, yelling: "By this blood, Appius, I devote thy head to the infernal gods."[5] Verginius and Icilius were arrested, and their supporters, incensed by the injustice of Claudius, returned to attack the lictors and destroy their fasces. Claudius was eventually jailed but he committed suicide before his trial. Marcus Claudius was tried, found guilty, and exiled to Tibur. This controversy led to the overthrow of the decemviri and the re-establishment of the Roman Republic.[3][4]
References to Verginia in Literature
Livy compared the story of Verginia's death to the rape of Lucretia, whose death led to the overthrow of the Roman monarchy in 509 BC. Modern historians view the stories of Roman women such as Verginia and Lucretia as supporting traditional Roman values through the women's displays of feminine virtue and symbolization of criticisms against the tyrannical Roman government.[6] The people of Rome were already angry with the decemviri for not calling the proper elections, taking bribes, and other abuses after taking power within the Roman government and the story of Verginia attested to this discontent.[6]
The tale is retold, with varying fidelity, in several works of Western literature. Among these are
See also
Footnotes
- ^ Livy, History of Rome; book 3, chapter 44-58
- ^ "Smith, Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology > v. 3, page 1267". Archived from the original on 2007-09-20. Retrieved 2007-12-14.
- ^ )
- ^ a b Livy, History of Rome; book 3, chapter 44-58
- ^ "Titus Livius (Livy), The History of Rome, Book 3, chapter 48". www.perseus.tufts.edu. Retrieved 2023-12-16.
- ^ )
External links
- Texts on Wikisource:
- “Thomas Babington Macaulay(a fictional portrayal)
- "Virginia, or Verginia, in Roman legendary history, daughter of L. Virginius, a plebeian centurion". Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). 1911.
- "Virginia, the daughter of Lucius Virginius". Collier's New Encyclopedia. 1921.
- “