Suessa Pometia
Encyclopedia
Suessa Pometia was an ancient city of Latium
, which had ceased to exist in historical times.
It bordered on the Pomptinus ager
or Pomptinae Paludes, to which it was supposed to have given name. Virgil
reckons it among the colonies of Alba
, and must therefore have considered it as a Latin city (Aen.
vi. 776): it is found also in the list of the same colonies given by Diodorus (vii. Fr. 3); but it seems certain that it had at a very early period become a Volscian city. It was taken from that people by Tarquinius Superbus, the first of the Roman kings who is mentioned as having made war on the Volscians (Livy
i. 53; Strabo
v. p. 231; Vict. Vir. Ill. 8): Strabo indeed calls it the metropolis of the Volscians, for which we have no other authority; and it is probable that this is a mere inference from the statements as to its great wealth and power. These represent it as a place of such opulence, that it was with the booty derived from thence that Tarquinius was able to commence and carry on the construction of the Capitoline temple at Rome
. (Liv. l. c.; Dionys.
iv. 50; Cic.
de Rep. ii. 2. 4; Plin.
vii. 16. s. 15). This was indeed related by some writers of Apiolae
, another city taken by Tarquin (Val. Antias, ap. Plin. iii. 5. s. 9), but the current tradition seems to have been that connected with Pometia (Tac.
Hist. iii. 72). The name of Suessa Pometia is only once mentioned before this time, as the place where the sons of Ancus Marcius
retired into exile on the accession of Servius. (Liv. i. 41).
It is clear also that it survived its capture by Tarquin, and even appears again in the wars of the Republic with the Volscians, as a place of great power and importance. Livy indeed calls it a Colonia Latina, but we have no account of its having become such. It, however, revolted (according to his account) in 503 BCE, and was not taken till the following year, by Sp. Cassius, when the city was destroyed and the inhabitants sold as slaves. (Liv. ii. 16, 17). It nevertheless appears again a few years afterwards (495 BCE) in the hands of the Volscians, but was again taken and pillaged by the consul P. Servilius (Ibid. 25; Dionys. vi. 29). This time the blow seems to have been decisive; for the name of Suessa Pometia is never again mentioned in history, and all trace of it disappears. Pliny notices it among the cities which were in his time utterly extinct (Plin. iii. 5. s. 9). and no record seems to have been preserved even of its site. We are, however, distinctly told that the Pomptinus ager and the Pomptine tribe derived their appellation from this city (Fest. s. v. Pomptina, p. 233), and there can therefore be no doubt that it stood in that district or on the verge of it.
Latium
Lazio is one of the 20 administrative regions of Italy, situated in the central peninsular section of the country. With about 5.7 million residents and a GDP of more than 170 billion euros, Lazio is the third most populated and the second richest region of Italy...
, which had ceased to exist in historical times.
It bordered on the Pomptinus ager
Pontine Marshes
thumb|250px|Lake Fogliano, a coastal lagoon in the Pontine Plain.The Pontine Marshes, termed in Latin Pomptinus Ager by Titus Livius, Pomptina Palus and Pomptinae Paludes by Pliny the Elder, today the Agro Pontino in Italian, is an approximately quadrangular area of former marshland in the Lazio...
or Pomptinae Paludes, to which it was supposed to have given name. Virgil
Virgil
Publius Vergilius Maro, usually called Virgil or Vergil in English , was an ancient Roman poet of the Augustan period. He is known for three major works of Latin literature, the Eclogues , the Georgics, and the epic Aeneid...
reckons it among the colonies of Alba
Alba Longa
Alba Longa – in Italian sources occasionally written Albalonga – was an ancient city of Latium in central Italy southeast of Rome in the Alban Hills. Founder and head of the Latin League, it was destroyed by Rome around the middle of the 7th century BC. In legend, Romulus and Remus, founders of...
, and must therefore have considered it as a Latin city (Aen.
Aeneid
The Aeneid is a Latin epic poem, written by Virgil between 29 and 19 BC, that tells the legendary story of Aeneas, a Trojan who travelled to Italy, where he became the ancestor of the Romans. It is composed of roughly 10,000 lines in dactylic hexameter...
vi. 776): it is found also in the list of the same colonies given by Diodorus (vii. Fr. 3); but it seems certain that it had at a very early period become a Volscian city. It was taken from that people by Tarquinius Superbus, the first of the Roman kings who is mentioned as having made war on the Volscians (Livy
Livy
Titus Livius — known as Livy in English — was a Roman historian who wrote a monumental history of Rome and the Roman people. Ab Urbe Condita Libri, "Chapters from the Foundation of the City," covering the period from the earliest legends of Rome well before the traditional foundation in 753 BC...
i. 53; Strabo
Strabo
Strabo, also written Strabon was a Greek historian, geographer and philosopher.-Life:Strabo was born to an affluent family from Amaseia in Pontus , a city which he said was situated the approximate equivalent of 75 km from the Black Sea...
v. p. 231; Vict. Vir. Ill. 8): Strabo indeed calls it the metropolis of the Volscians, for which we have no other authority; and it is probable that this is a mere inference from the statements as to its great wealth and power. These represent it as a place of such opulence, that it was with the booty derived from thence that Tarquinius was able to commence and carry on the construction of the Capitoline temple at Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
. (Liv. l. c.; Dionys.
Dionysius of Halicarnassus
Dionysius of Halicarnassus was a Greek historian and teacher of rhetoric, who flourished during the reign of Caesar Augustus. His literary style was Attistic — imitating Classical Attic Greek in its prime.-Life:...
iv. 50; Cic.
Cicero
Marcus Tullius Cicero , was a Roman philosopher, statesman, lawyer, political theorist, and Roman constitutionalist. He came from a wealthy municipal family of the equestrian order, and is widely considered one of Rome's greatest orators and prose stylists.He introduced the Romans to the chief...
de Rep. ii. 2. 4; Plin.
Pliny the Elder
Gaius Plinius Secundus , better known as Pliny the Elder, was a Roman author, naturalist, and natural philosopher, as well as naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire, and personal friend of the emperor Vespasian...
vii. 16. s. 15). This was indeed related by some writers of Apiolae
Apiolae
Apiolae was a town in ancient Latium, Italy.During the early semi-legendary history of Rome, in the reign of Rome's fifth king, Lucius Tarquinius Priscus, it is said that the Latins went to war with Rome. Tarquinius took Apiolae by storm, and from there returned to Rome with much booty....
, another city taken by Tarquin (Val. Antias, ap. Plin. iii. 5. s. 9), but the current tradition seems to have been that connected with Pometia (Tac.
Tacitus
Publius Cornelius Tacitus was a senator and a historian of the Roman Empire. The surviving portions of his two major works—the Annals and the Histories—examine the reigns of the Roman Emperors Tiberius, Claudius, Nero and those who reigned in the Year of the Four Emperors...
Hist. iii. 72). The name of Suessa Pometia is only once mentioned before this time, as the place where the sons of Ancus Marcius
Ancus Marcius
Ancus Marcius was the legendary fourth of the Kings of Rome.He was the son of Marcius and Pompilia...
retired into exile on the accession of Servius. (Liv. i. 41).
It is clear also that it survived its capture by Tarquin, and even appears again in the wars of the Republic with the Volscians, as a place of great power and importance. Livy indeed calls it a Colonia Latina, but we have no account of its having become such. It, however, revolted (according to his account) in 503 BCE, and was not taken till the following year, by Sp. Cassius, when the city was destroyed and the inhabitants sold as slaves. (Liv. ii. 16, 17). It nevertheless appears again a few years afterwards (495 BCE) in the hands of the Volscians, but was again taken and pillaged by the consul P. Servilius (Ibid. 25; Dionys. vi. 29). This time the blow seems to have been decisive; for the name of Suessa Pometia is never again mentioned in history, and all trace of it disappears. Pliny notices it among the cities which were in his time utterly extinct (Plin. iii. 5. s. 9). and no record seems to have been preserved even of its site. We are, however, distinctly told that the Pomptinus ager and the Pomptine tribe derived their appellation from this city (Fest. s. v. Pomptina, p. 233), and there can therefore be no doubt that it stood in that district or on the verge of it.