(? 7th - 6th century BC)
As Rome began to expand, her neighbors did not always willingly submit to her control. Alba Longa, the city founded by Aeneas' son Iulus (Ascanius), was one such city. Frictions also arose because of cattle raiding between the cities. According to the legend, Tullius Hostilius, king of Rome, decided against full-scale war of city against city. Instead he proposed single combats between a triplet of three brothers from Rome, the Horatii, and another set of male triplets, the Curiatii, who were citizens of Alba. Alba Longa agreed.
The opponents were well-matched and battle was fierce: all three Curiatii received wounds but two of the Horatii were killed. The third resorted to a strategem: he fled, which lured the Curiatii into pursuing him. But as they ran the wounded and weakened Curiatii separated from each other and space increased between them. This enabled the last of the Horatii to turn and confront each individually. He succeeded in killing them one by one, and thus won the day for Rome. The city of Alba Longa was destroyed and Roman influence throughout Latium increased. The story of the Horatii became a favorite for its celebration of stamina, courage against the odds, and willingness to die for one's country.
The sister of the Horatii, however, openly wept over the death of one of the Curiatii who had been her lover. In anger her surviving brother killed her. For this murder he was condemned to death but was spared when he appealed to the people. To do penance he was veiled and led under a yoke, which was a typical punishment indicating submission to the will of another. Unlike a yoke typically used with oxen or to carry heavy buckets from one's shoulders, the punishment yoke was created from three spears to form a doorway through which the penitent must crawl.
A tomb located on the Appian Way is said to be that of the three Curiatii and the two fallen Horatii. The Horatii preparing for combat were depicted in a neoclassical painting titled "The Oath of the Horatii" by Jacques-Louis David, housed in the Louvre, in Paris, France.
D. Fite, 2001.
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