What do the foundation legends of Rome tell us, and how far can archaeology test them?
The foundation legends of Rome: Aeneas and the Trojan origins, Romulus and Remus, the she-wolf and the founding of the city in 753 BC, the rape of the Sabine women, and how Livy's narrative can be tested against the archaeology of the early settlement on the Palatine.
An OCR GCSE Ancient History answer on the foundation legends of Rome, covering the Trojan origins through Aeneas, Romulus and Remus and the she-wolf, the founding of the city in 753 BC and the rape of the Sabine women, and how Livy's narrative can be tested against the archaeology of the early settlement on the Palatine.
Reviewed by: AI editorial process; not yet individually human-reviewed
Have a quick question? Jump to the Q&A page
Jump to a section
What this dot point is asking
The Roman period study opens with the foundation legends of Rome: the stories the Romans told about how their city began. You need the legends (Aeneas and Troy, Romulus and Remus, the she-wolf, the founding in 753 BC, the Sabine women), but the real exam value is the method: how to use Livy as a source for stories recorded centuries later, and how archaeology can test what the legends claim. This is the course's best lesson in combining a literary tradition with material evidence.
The answer
The Trojan origins: Aeneas
Romulus, Remus and the she-wolf
The founding and the Sabine women
Testing the legends with archaeology
So Livy's narrative and the material evidence are used together: archaeology grounds the date and scale, the legends reveal Roman self-image.
Examples in context
A model answer distinguishes what material evidence can prove (a settlement, a date) from what only the literary legend claims (the founder, the miracles).
Try this
Q1. Who, according to legend, founded Rome, and in what traditional year? [Knowledge recall]
- Cue. Romulus, traditionally in 753 BC, after killing his twin Remus.
Q2. Explain why archaeology can confirm a settlement on the Palatine but not the legend of Romulus. [Short explanation]
- Cue. Archaeology finds physical remains (huts, burials) that show a real settlement existed at roughly the traditional date, but physical remains cannot identify legendary individuals such as Romulus or confirm miraculous events such as the she-wolf, which belong to the literary tradition.
Exam-style practice questions
Practice questions written in the style of OCR exam questions on this dot point, with worked answer explainers. The year tag is the paper they imitate, not the source.
OCR J198/02 20195 marksStudy Livy's account of Romulus and Remus (Book 1). What does this source suggest about how the Romans saw the origins of their city? [5-mark source-inference question]Show worked answer →
A Section A source-inference question (AO3) on a prescribed passage.
Make inferences. The story presents Rome's founder as descended from Mars (the god of war) and saved by a she-wolf, suggesting the Romans saw their city as divinely favoured, warlike from the start, and destined for greatness.
Support each point. Tie inferences to detail: the divine paternity (Mars), the miraculous survival, and Romulus killing Remus over the city walls (a sign of Rome's bloody, contested birth).
Top marks. Two or three developed inferences linked to the source, noting that this is a legend recorded much later, expressing Roman self-image rather than fact.
OCR J198/02 202110 marksExplain how archaeology can be used to test the legends of Rome's foundation. [10-mark explanation question]Show worked answer →
A Section A explanation question (AO1, AO2 and AO3) on how evidence is used.
Knowledge. Excavation on the Palatine hill has found traces of early Iron Age huts and burials dating to around the eighth century BC, the time the legends give for the foundation.
Explanation. Reward developed reasons: archaeology can confirm that there was a real settlement on the site at roughly the traditional date, can show its scale (a small village, not the grand city of legend), but cannot confirm individuals such as Romulus or events such as the she-wolf.
Top band. Explain what archaeology can and cannot test (the existence and date of a settlement, yes; the legendary figures and events, no) and judge how the two kinds of evidence work together.
Related dot points
- The regal period and the seven kings of Rome: the contributions of Numa, Tullus Hostilius, Ancus Marcius and the Etruscan kings (Tarquinius Priscus, Servius Tullius and Tarquinius Superbus), the reforms of Servius Tullius, and the influence of the Etruscans on early Rome, studied through Livy.
An OCR GCSE Ancient History answer on the regal period and the seven kings of Rome, covering the contributions of Numa, Tullus Hostilius and Ancus Marcius, the Etruscan kings Tarquinius Priscus, Servius Tullius and Tarquinius Superbus, the reforms of Servius Tullius, and the influence of the Etruscans on early Rome, studied through Livy.
- The fall of the monarchy and the founding of the Republic: the tyranny of Tarquinius Superbus, the rape of Lucretia and the expulsion of the kings in 509 BC, the creation of the two annual consuls, and the new Republican constitution, studied through Livy.
An OCR GCSE Ancient History answer on the fall of the Roman monarchy and the founding of the Republic, covering the tyranny of Tarquinius Superbus, the rape of Lucretia and the expulsion of the kings in 509 BC, the creation of the two annual consuls and the new constitution, and how to use Livy's dramatic narrative critically.
- The early Republic and the Conflict of the Orders: the division between patricians and plebeians, the first secession of the plebs in 494 BC and the creation of the tribunes of the plebs, and the plebeians' struggle for legal and political rights, studied through Livy.
An OCR GCSE Ancient History answer on the early Republic and the Conflict of the Orders, covering the division between patricians and plebeians, the first secession of the plebs in 494 BC and the creation of the tribunes of the plebs, and the plebeians' struggle for legal and political rights, studied through Livy.
- The prescribed sources for the Foundations of Rome period study: Livy as the main literary narrative (and the problem of a moralising author writing centuries later), Dionysius of Halicarnassus as a parallel Greek account, and the archaeological evidence for early Rome, and how to weigh later literary tradition against material evidence.
An OCR GCSE Ancient History guide to the prescribed sources for the Foundations of Rome period study, explaining how to use Livy as the main literary narrative (and the problem of a moralising author writing centuries later), Dionysius of Halicarnassus as a parallel Greek account, and the archaeological evidence for early Rome, and how to weigh later literary tradition against material evidence.
- The AO3 source skills: making supported inferences from a source, comparing two sources, and judging how useful a source is for a stated enquiry using content, provenance (nature, origin and purpose) and contextual knowledge, rather than labelling a source reliable or biased.
An OCR GCSE Ancient History skills guide to the AO3 source questions, explaining how to make supported inferences, compare two sources, and judge how useful a source is for a stated enquiry using content, provenance and contextual knowledge, with a method that transfers across the Greek and Roman options.
Sources & how we know this
- OCR GCSE (9-1) Ancient History J198 specification — OCR (2017)
- Livy, Ab Urbe Condita, Book 1 — Perseus Digital Library