Industriously occupied at this traditional womanly task, she was a perfect model of virtue. Lucretia, however, in the neighboring village of Collatia, was spinning wool late into the evening and supervising her maidservants in the same activity. On reaching Rome, they surprised many of the wives who were banqueting in luxury. Let us mount our horses and ride for the city!" The Roman poet Ovid recounts that the men further questioned, "What of the loyalty of the marriage bed? And are we as dear to our wives as they to us?" Lucretia's husband, Lucius Tarquinius Collatinus, finally offered a challenge: "No need of words! Trust deeds! The night is young. Each claimed that his own was the most virtuous. Legend has it that several young nobles, bored with the lack of military action, turned to comparing their wives. The stage for this story is set during a siege of a neighboring town, Ardea, led by Rome's Etruscan king, Tarquinius Superbus. There are several versions of her story from antiquity, varying in details, but all agree that Lucretia was raped by Sextus Tarquinius, the king's eldest son, and that her consequent plea for vengeance precipitated the revolt which followed. Lucretia appears in the ancient narratives as a paradigm of womanly virtue and as a catalyst for one of the most dramatic events in early Roman history: the expulsion of Etruscan kings and founding of the Roman Republic. Raped by Sextus Tarquinius, the king's son was a catalyst for the Roman overthrow of Etruscan kings and has been the subject of elaborate legend throughout Western history considered a fictional figure by some. 510 bce daughter of Spurius Lucretius Tricipitinus, a prefect of Rome married Lucius Tarquinius Collatinus, a first consul of Rome. Born in Rome date of birth unknown died in either Collatia or Rome, c. Fearing this form of disgrace, she yielded to him and afterwards took her own life, revealing of the misdeed in a letter.Outraged by this injustice, Lucretia's brother Lucius Junius Brutus incited the people of Rome against the royal family by displaying her body, which resulted in overthrow of the monarchy and the establishment of the Roman republic.Roman matron of historic and legendary fame whose rape, plea for vengeance, and consequent suicide led to the overthrow of kings in Rome and the establishment of the Roman Republic. She resisted, but he threatened to kill both her and a male slave and place their naked bodies together so it would appear that she had been caught in adultery. When she was alone, Sextus went to her bedchamber and threatened to kill her if she did not yield to him. The men then gave Collatinus the victory and returned to camp.A few days later, Sextus Tarquinius, inflamed with desire by Lucretia's virtue returned to Rome, where he was welcomed by Lucretia by reason of his friendship with her husband. The other ladies were found dancing and reveling. Only Collatinus found his wife, Lucretia, spinning quietly at home with her maids. They all then set out for Rome, intending to surprise their wives and, thus, test what they had been saying. Description According to the Roman historian Livy the story begins in 509 BC during the Roman siege of Ardea, when the principal men of the army met in the tent of Sextus Tarquinius, son of the tyrant Lucius Tarquinius the Proud, and began talking about the virtues of their wives.
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