Etruscans
Etruscans (Latin Etrusci, Tusci, etc. - Greek τυρσηνοί,τυρρηνοί, self-name. Rasenna, Raśna) — an ancient civilization that inhabited the north-west of the Apennine Peninsula between the Arno and Tiber rivers in the first millennium BC. e. and created a developed culture, which later in the course of assimilation had a huge impact on both Roman culture and culture in antiquity as a whole.
Expansion of the Etruscan civilization and 12 cities of the Etruscan League.Origin of the Etruscans
Ancient authors offered different explanations of Etruscan origins. Herodotus connected them with migration from Lydia; Dionysius of Halicarnassus regarded them as indigenous. Northern accounts also existed. These traditions record ancient views rather than independent proof of migration.
Archaeology shows substantial continuity between Early Iron Age Villanovan culture and Etruscan centres. Etruscans also maintained intensive connections with Greeks and the eastern Mediterranean. Imported objects and artistic borrowings do not by themselves establish population replacement.
A 2021 ancient-DNA study found that the sampled Iron Age Etruscan groups resembled neighbouring central Italian populations rather than showing the expected signal of a recent mass migration from Anatolia. Genetic affinity does not determine language or cultural identity.
Etruscan is not an Indo-European language; its relationships with Lemnian and Raetic matter for linguistic history. The formation of Etruscan society cannot be reduced to a demonstrated sequence of three migration waves.
Sarcophagus of the Amazons with frescoes depicting Etruscan warriors. National Archaeological Museum,Florence. Around 360 BC.Roman conquest of Etruria
With the conquest of the Veii and the seizure of their lands, the Romans gained a significant foothold in southern Etruria. Relying on it, they intended to continue their offensive against their neighbors. Building on their initial success, they captured Capena as early as 395 BC, and in the following year they also subdued Faleria, thus taking over not only the immediate possessions of the Vei, but also the area of their political influence. In 391 BC, the Romans first approached the Ciminus Forest, on the borders of the possessions of Clusium, Tarquinium and Volsinium. All of a sudden, all their original plans were mixed up in the most unexpected way. At the same time as Rome's growing onslaught in the south, an even greater danger loomed over Etruria from the north. Having heard from merchants about the riches of Italy, the Gauls who lived beyond the Alps from the second half of the 5th century BC began to make predatory raids on its lands. Faced with the weak resistance of the local rich peoples, the Gauls moved from raids to full-scale conquests. Rome, represented by the Senate, sent an embassy to the Gauls in 390 BC, demanding that their leader Brennus leave the Etruscans alone. As a result, the Gauls broke camp and went straight to Rome, defeating his army, after which they sacked and burned the great city itself. After receiving a large ransom, they soon left Latium, but their detachments remained a constant source of military threat not only to Rome, but also to the whole of central Italy.
Etruscan sculpture of Diana, goddess of hunting, 5th century BC; an example of early Italic image tradition.After a thirty-year hiatus, in 358 BC, Etruscans from the Tarquinii, Volsinii, and Caere launched a joint raid on Roman territory. The Romans demanded reparations from them and sent an army to Etruria under the command of the Consul Gaius Fabius Ambustus, which the Tarquins defeated, and the captured 307 Romans they brought to their city and executed in the forum. This caused the whole of Etruria to revolt and declare war on Rome. Later, the Volscians joined them, opening a second front in the south, albeit unsuccessfully-the Romans won several victories over them. In 356 BC. The consul Marcus Fabius Ambustus, brother of the previously defeated Gaius, inflicted a series of defeats on the Tarquins and Falisci. In 355 BC, the Etruscans attacked the Roman salt mines at the mouth of the Tiber, but were defeated by the troops of the dictator Gaius Marcius Rutilus. After that, the Romans themselves went on the offensive. The consul Gaius Sulpicius Peticus ravaged the Tarquinianian possessions, and the following year, Marcus Fabius Ambustus, who again became commander, defeated the Tarquinians in a general battle. The 358 noble youths he had captured were sent in chains to Rome, where they were also beheaded in the forum in retaliation for the murder of Roman prisoners. In 353 BC, the inhabitants of Caere entered the war against Rome, but immediately capitulated at the sight of the Roman army. After that, the consul Titus Manlius Torquatus invaded the territory of the Falerii, destroying the crops in the fields and burning the villages. Neither the Tarquins nor the Falisci had the strength to fight anymore, and in 351 BC a 40-year peace treaty was concluded with them.
Roman possessions in the southern part of Etruria at the end of the IV century BC.At the end of 40 years, the Etruscans decided to declare war on Rome again. They were mainly hoping to take advantage of the opportunity that had developed for them — the Romans at that time were involved in a major war againstthe Samnites. As in the last war of 389-386 BC, the Etruscans gathered a large army and laid siege to the border town of Sutria. The consul Quintus Aemilius Barbula came to the aid of the city, who gave battle under the walls of the city. Both sides suffered serious losses in it, as a result of which no other military operations were conducted until the end of the year. In 310 BC, the Roman army was led by Quintus Fabius Maximus Rullianus. He formed an alliance with the Umbrians and plundered Volsinii territory, and at Sutria he defeated the newly assembled Etruscan allied army. Perusia and Cortona then withdrew from the coalition, concluding a separate peace with the Romans. The decisive battle of the war took place in 309 BC near Lake Vadimon in the land of Falisci, where Roman troops under the command of the dictator Lucius Papirius Cursor defeated the main forces of the Volsinians. Livy wrote about the results of the battle: "On this day, for the first time, the power of the Etruscans, who had been prosperous since ancient times, was crushed; they lost their best forces in the battle, and the camp was stormed and sacked on the same day."
Etruscan statuette of a warrior of the IV century BC Antique collection,Berlin
Figure of an Etruscan warrior. 4th century BCThe gradual establishment of Roman rule did not immediately eliminate Etruscan communities, language or traditions. Their position changed through wars, agreements and incorporation into the Roman system.
Etruscan influence appeared in religious practices, symbols of power, urban culture and engineering skills. Each custom’s origins nevertheless require separate examination: assertions that Etruscans “invented Roman cement” or demonstrably originated all gladiatorial combat are too categorical. Early representations of duels in southern Italy also matter for the history of gladiators.
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