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The Greeks, under the pretext of rescuing Helen, the consort of Menelaus, laid siege to the city of Troy for 10 years.
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Aeneas and the surviving Trojans finally land in Italy, after which he founds the city of Lavinium, which will one day lead to Rome.
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After killing Remus for mocking his wall, Romulus founds Rome, naming it after himself and populating it with criminals seeking asylum and abducted Sabine women.
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Romulus acts as Rome's first king, beginning its monarchy and many of its early traditions.
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Numa Pompilius, Rome's second king, was a Sabine who contributed to many of Rome's religious traditions.
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Tullus Hostilius was known as a very hostile king, who entered Rome into a number of wars with neighboring states.
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Ancus Marcius defeated the neighboring Latins in several wars, expanding the territorial jurisdiction of the Roman monarchy at the time more than any of his predecessors.
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Lucius Tarquinius Priscus (Tarquin the Elder) was the first Etruscan king of Rome, known among other things for constructing the Circus Maximus, as well as for being the father of Tarquin the Proud.
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Servius Tullius was known for establishing the census, as well as lending his name to the Servian Wall, which defended Rome from invaders. His daughter Tullia conspired with Tarquin the Proud to depose him, making her infamous.
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Lucius Tarquinius Superbus (Tarquin the Proud) is best known for being the final king of Rome. A tyrant who had already deposed his predecessor, he was eventually driven out of Rome by Brutus, leading to Rome's longstanding mistrust of kings.
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After Rome's newfound fear of tyranny by kings, a republic was established, a representative democracy with a cursus honorum headed by 2 elected consuls to represent the people.
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This was the first war between Rome and Carthage, in which the belligerents fought over control of Sicily and of Corsica. Throughout the war, the Roman navy improved (such as by inventing the corvus to their warships and building a much larger fleet), and eventually overwhelmed the Carthaginians with naval superiority.
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This was the second war between Rome and Carthage, in which Hannibal, a Carthaginian general with a dead father disgruntled after the First Punic War, managed to defeat Rome in many early battles. Most famously, he had a thorough and decisive victory at the Battle of Cannae. The Roman general, Scipio Africanus, did eventually manage to defeat him by maneuvering around him and driving into Carthage, luring Hannibal back and winning the Battle of Zama. Rome's terms were far less forgiving.
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Marius was the first general to start raising private armies and gathering vast public support, which began setting an important trend in Roman politics of generals becoming very popular. Marius ended up being elected consul 7 times.
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Sulla continued Marius's trends of gathering public support, despite being his rival. Sulla ousted Marius using his private army and had himself declared dictator, beginning further trends as well as setting the precedent of proscriptions.
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This was an attempted coup by Catiline to overthrow the Roman government at the time. Foiling and exposing it made Cicero extremely popular at the time.
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Along with Pompey and Crassus (making up the First Triumvirate), Caesar managed to get himself elected consul, and proceeded to take advantage of the entirety of Roman government, eroding democratic norms and signalling the beginning of the end of the Republic.
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Clodius was an eccentric politician, an enemy of Cicero, and at one point a tribune of the plebs, despite being born into a patrician family. At one point he snuck into one of Caesar's parties dressed as a woman. After becoming tribune, he worked both to outlaw Cicero and to fulfill Caesar's Populist wishes.
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Clodius, the tribune of the plebs in 58, became an enemy of Milo, a later tribute of the plebs who worked to undo a number of his achievements, including the exile of Cicero. Milo and Clodius opposed each other through legal and political means, and often attacked each other with gangs engaging in physical violence. Eventually, at a confrontation in Bovillae, the violence grew particularly intense and Clodius was killed, with Milo subsequently prosecuted.
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These were a serious of campaigns waged in Gaul by Caesar in an effort to expand the bounds of the Republic, gain popularity with the public, and maintain his military imperium until his next consulship. Although they were very successful in many aspects, Caesar utilized them to brag and exaggerate while writing De Bello Gallico.
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Pompey became extremely popular for his exploits during this time, and even Cicero backed his appointment as praefectus annonae. He remained powerful, becoming consul with Crassus in 55 with Caesar's support, and in 52 he was elected sole consul after the Clodius-Milo incident.
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After Crassus's death and the subsequent schism in the First Triumvirate, Caesar and Pompey fought each other for control of Rome, after Caesar crossed the Rubicon with his private army. After Caesar defeated Pompey in the Battle of Pharsalus, he pursued Pompey to Egypt, where Ptolemy presented his severed head, much to Caesar's fury.
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After fears of tyranny arose from Caesar's appointment as dictator "in perpetuum", a conspiracy was hatched, and on the Ides of March, Caesar was fatally stabbed (with 23 stab wounds).
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After Caesar is assassinated, Octavian was declared his heir, and sailed to Rome in order to acquire his fortune and his political position.
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Octavian, Marc Antony, and Lepidus banded together to form the Second Triumvirate, a state-sanctioned commission giving them dictator-like control.
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At the Battle of Actium, with the help of his brilliant commander Agrippa, Octavian defeated Antony's and Cleopatra's forces in a naval battle, ending the civil war in Octavian's favor.
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Octavian takes on the name Augustus, meaning "magnificent," and names himself "princeps", or first citizen, in order to dodge the accusations of tyranny that had ended Caesar's reign. He became in all but name the first emperor of Rome.