Did you know that the "Aeneid"
was actually unfinished when Virgil died but Augustus had it published anyway? Hello and welcome to World History Encyclopedia!
My name is Kelly and today's video is all about the Roman epic poem the "Aeneid." Don't forget,
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trip and we hope to see you there! The "Aeneid" was written by the Roman poet
Virgil who lived between 70 and 19 BCE, during the Augustine Period; named for Augustus,
the first emperor of Rome. The 12-book-long epic poem tells the journey of the Trojan Aeneas
and the mythological founding of Rome. Aeneas, a Trojan prince and the son of the goddess Venus
survived the Trojan War and the subsequent sacking of the city and took the scenic route, with a few
stops, from the ravaged Troy in modern-day Turkey, looking for a new home that he finds in
Italy. The "Aeneid" was written during the last 10 years of Virgil's life but it
was left unfinished when he died in 19 BCE. Virgil requested that the unfinished epic poem
be destroyed but lucky for us some two thousand years later, his friend and fellow poet Lucius
Varius Rufus not only refused this request but Augustus had the epic tale published soon after
the death of the author. It makes sense that Augustus would want to have the poem published due
to it being a part of Augustus' political program. The "Aeneid" is a mythological tale that details
how Rome began and eventually connects to Augustus in the present and encourages those reading it to
relate to the protagonist Aeneas with Augustus, who believed that Rome was suffering from moral
decay and wanted a return to the values of old. So, who was Virgil? With his full name
being Publius Vergilius Maro, Virgil was one of the greatest poets of the early Roman Empire.
According to the 5th century CE author Macrobius, Virgil was born to two country parents and had a
passion for the rural life that never left him. He was described as a tall and bulky man with
a dark complexion. His father was a citizen but Virgil didn't attain citizenship until 51 BCE. He
was educated in Cremona and Milan and through his early education, he developed an appreciation for
Greek and Roman authors. By the time he was 30, the Roman Republic was in a shambles after the
assassination of Julius Caesar and the civil war Octavian was embroiled in with Mark Antony and
Cleopatra VII. Virgil ended up finding a patron in a wealthy Roman named Gaius Cilnius Maecenas, who
was both a friend and an advisor to the emperor. Eventually, Augustus became both a friend
and a sponsor of Virgil and Virgil would spend the last 10 years of his life writing
his epic work that never got completed. The "Aeneid" includes themes like conflict
and renewal which reflect the war and strife the Roman Republic had been enduring before the
establishment of the Roman Empire and the peace known as Pax Romana that accompanied the rule
of Augustus. The epic is like a continuation of the "Iliad" and the "Odyssey," which were
composed much earlier as part of the ancient Greek oral traditions and then committed to
writing in the 8th or early 7th century BCE, and the "Aeneid" shows many similarities to its
epic predecessors. The first six books of the "Aeneid" follows Aeneas as he leaves Troy with
other Trojan survivors and travels around the Mediterranean at the mercy of the gods, much like
Odysseus and his adventure-packed journey home. In the latter half, the "Aeneid" focuses on
warfare and battle and once again is reminiscent of the works of Homer, in particular, the funeral
games held for Anchises in Book 5 can be easily compared to the funeral games put on for Patroclus
in Book 23 of the "Iliad." Just as Odysseus makes a journey to the underworld before departing Circe
in Aeaea, Aeneas also descends to the underworld where he sees his father and Dido, the former
queen of Carthage. Similar to that of the "Iliad" and "Odyssey," is the theme of divine intervention
and the mortals being stuck at the mercy of the gods; as Aeneas searches for a new place to call
home, he is aided by his mother Venus and Jupiter, the king of the gods, but Juno on the other hand,
actively plots to stop him from arriving in Italy and setting up the foundations of Rome. This tale
of the "Aeneid" blends the mythological origins and the historical beginnings for the Romans
which help to explain the world around them. "Arms and the man I sing, who first
from the coasts of Troy, exiled by fate, came to Italy and Lavine shores; much buffeted
on sea and land by violence from above, through cruel Juno's unforgiving wrath, and much enduring
in war also, till he should build a city and bring his gods to Latium; whence came the Latin race,
the Lords of Alba, and the lofty walls of Rome." This is how Book I of the "Aeneid" begins,
closely followed by an invocation of the muse and in medias res, which is the Latin for in the
'midst of things' and is a common technique used in epic poetry. The goddess Juno has sent a storm
to destroy the ships of the Trojans and so they end up on the shore of an unknown land which just
so happens to be the coast of Libya near the city of Carthage. The Trojans are met by the queen of
Carthage, Dido, who welcomes them to her city. At this point, Aeneas and his men are many years
into their journey to Italy, all the while Venus, who was worried for her son, begs Jupiter to help
Aeneas and both Juno and Venus scheme to have Dido and Aeneas fall in love, despite Aeneas being
fated to found a great empire in Italy. Venus sends Cupid to make Dido fall in love with Aeneas,
and during a banquet given in honour of the Trojan guests, on the request of the queen, Aeneas tells
the story of the fall and sack of his old city. While he's with Dido in Carthage, he recounts how
the Greeks pretended to leave the shores of Troy; leaving a great wooden horse, apparently as a gift
to the gods in exchange for safe passage home, but actually Greek men were hidden in the
horse and the Greeks stayed in their ships close to Troy but out of sight, despite warning
from Laocoön, the son of Neptune, not to trust gifts from the Greeks, the Trojans brought the
horse within their walls. In the dead of night, the Greeks pour out of the wooden horse, open the
gates to the city and destroy Troy. Aeneas tells of how he saw Achilles' son Pyrrhus, also known
as Neoptolemus, kill Priam's son Polites at his father's feet and then go on to kill Priam, the
king of Troy. Aeneas flees Troy with a handful of surviving Trojans. He goes home for his father
Anchises, his son Ascanius, also known as Iulus, and his wife Creusa, but Creusa never made it
safely out of Troy. Aeneas hoists his father onto his shoulders and with his son and a small
group of Trojans, they make their way into the mountains. The Trojans then travel for six years
across the Mediterranean and endure many hardships until they finally arrive at Epirus; here they are
welcomed by another group of Trojan refugees led by Helenus, the brother of Hector, prince of Troy
and Andromache, Helenus' wife and Hector's widow. This group of Trojans had built a smaller scale
version of Troy but Aeneas knew his destiny was to found a brand new city so his group travelled
on to Sicily and then south of the island to avoid the sea monsters Scylla and Charybdis.
Anchises dies at the tip of the island of Sicily, where they had come ashore and this is where
Aeneas finishes his tale of the fall of Troy. Dido is now fully in love with Aeneas,
thanks to Cupid. Juno plans a marriage between Aeneas and Dido so he won't ever
want to leave Carthage and found his city, but Jupiter reminds Aeneas that his destiny is not
here at Carthage. Aeneas puts his duty to found a new city above his love for Dido and leaves her.
Dido in heartbreak, builds a great pyre to burn objects left by Aeneas but ends up throwing
herself on the burning pyre. Upon her death, Dido curses Aeneas and calls for eternal war
against him and his people which is somewhat of an explanation for the Punic Wars and for the Romans
complete destruction of Carthage in 146 BCE. The Trojans are sailing for Italy but gets
swept up in another raging storm, all the way back to Sicily and the place where Aeneas'
father Anchises had died one year previously. Aeneas honours his father with funeral
games and performs, for the very first time, the Parentalia - which is the Roman Festival of
the Dead. Aeneas leaves the women, the elderly and the children in Sicily with Acestes who hosted
them the first time they visited in his city and Aeneas and his men get back on the ships to Italy,
losing his steerman Palinurus on the way. Finally, In Book VI of the tale, Aeneas makes it to
Italy; he lands in Cumae, near modern-day Naples and consults the Priestess of Apollo - the
humane Sibyl who guides Aeneas to the underworld. Here he encounters his father who foreshadows
the greatness of Rome with mentions of Romulus, descendants of Aeneas' son Ascanius, and the
Golden Age that will begin under the reign of a Caesar;an obvious allusion to Augustus, as
well as Dido who is silent and heartbroken. Aeneas and his Trojans sail into the mouth of
the Tiber River and there they settle in Latium. The king of Latium, Latinus, welcomes the Trojans
and offers his daughter Lavinia's hand in marriage to Aeneas. King Turnus of the neighbouring tribe
of Rutuli was vying for Lavinia's hand in marriage before Aeneas turned up and Lavinia's mother Amata
supports him. Juno decides to stir up some trouble and sends Allecto down to not only persuade Amata
to oppose Lavinia's marriage to Aeneas but whips Turnus into a frenzy and pushes him to go to war
against the Trojans. Aeneas then travels to the village of Pallantium, which will one day be known
as Palatine and is one of the Seven Hills of Rome, and there he meets Evander who recounts the
tale of Hercules who saved them all from the monster Cacus; the fire-breathing giant and son of
Vulcan. Evander sends his son Pallas and some of their cavalry with Aeneas to claim leadership of
all the other armies that are against the Latins, whilst Venus, who is concerned for her son,
asks Vulcan to make him some new armour, including a shield that tells
of the future wars of Rome. Whilst Aeneas and Pallas are gathering up the
armies, the Trojans are attacked by Turnus and the Rutulians, and as Aeneas told his men, they
closed the gates and did not engage in battle. The Rutulians sieged the Trojan camp and eventually
Turnus breaches the walls, but instead of letting his men in, he goes on a rampage. He kills Trojans
as long as he can before he is forced to withdraw, because of his short-sightedness, he then has to
swim across the River Tiber fully armoured to get back to his men. Now in Book X, Aeneas returns
to the Trojans at the head of the Etruscan army and Pallas, the son of Evander is killed by
Turnus, who makes off with the boy's belt. Aeneas slaughters many men in revenge but Turnus is saved
by Juno who spirits him from the battlefield. The proper funeral rites are conducted for
Pallas and the Latins send men to Aeneas asking for a truce so they can safely gather
up their dead. As Aeneas approaches the Latins, rather than fight in single combat, Turnus
calls for his forces. The brave Camilla volunteers to confront Aeneas and his cavalry,
while Turnus waits to ambush the enemy forces, but Camilla is killed and Turnus abandons
his plan of ambush. Both armies move towards Latinus city and Turnus decides that now he's
ready to meet Aeneas in one-on-one combat, with the winner getting to marry Lavinia and if
Aeneas loses, he has to retreat and settle with Evander in Pallantium instead. Aeneas is shot by
an arrow, by whom we aren't told, but is healed by his mother and returns to battle. Turnus is saved
from the wrath of Aeneas by his sister Juturna, but realises what he needs to do and returns
to battle. The King and Queen of the gods finally reconcile and Juno puts an end to
her tirade against Aeneas and the Trojans. The unfinished epic ends with Aeneas
killing Turnus as he begs for mercy: "Blazing with rage, he plunged the steel full
into his enemy's breast. The limbs of Turnus were dissolved in cold and his life left him with
a groan, fleeing in anger down to the shades." How do you think the "Aeneid" compares with the
"Iliad" and the "Odyssey?" Let us know what you think in the comments below! If you enjoyed
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