The legendary Ancus Marcius becomes the fourth king of Rome in about 640.

Upon the death of the previous king, Tullus Hostilius, the Roman Senate had appointed an interrex, who in turn called a session of the assembly of the people who elected the new king.

According to Livy, his first act as king was to order the Pontifex Maximus to copy the text concerning the performance of public ceremonies of religion from the commentaries of Numa Pompilius to be displayed to the public, so that the rites of religion should no longer be neglected or improperly performed.

The Etruscans, who enter the territory of the warlike Latin tribes around 625, cross the Tiber River to take over the cluster of disconnected villages collectively called Roma, and establish the Tarquinian dynasty of kings.

Tarquinius Priscus, according to Livy, had come from the Etruscan city of Tarquinii and was originally named Lucumo (it is now thought that lucumo was the name of an Etruscan political position).

Disgruntled with his opportunities in Etruria, he had migrated to Rome with his wife Tanaquil, at her suggestion.

He had been prohibited from obtaining political office in Tarquinii because of the ethnicity of his father, Demaratus the Corinthian, who had come from the Greek city of Corinth.

On his arrival in Rome in a chariot, an eagle took his cap, flew away and then returned it back upon his head.

Tanaquil, who is skilled in prophecy, had interpreted this as an omen of his future greatness.

Tarquinius Priscus has attained great respect Ii Rome through generosity and skill.

King Ancus Marcius, Rome’s fourth king according to tradition, himself had noticed him and adopted him as his son, also appointing him guardian of his other sons.

After the death of Ancus Marcius in 616, Tarquinius Priscus is able to persuade the People's Assembly that he should be elected king over Marcius' natural sons.

His military ability is immediately tested by an attack from the Sabines.

The attack is defeated after dangerous street fighting in Rome, and he then further subjugates the Etruscans.

Thus the cities Corniculum, Firulea, Cameria, Crustumerium, Americola, Medullia and Nomentum become Roman.

Tradition credits Rome’s King Tarquinius Priscus with subduing the Sabines and the Latins; draining the marshes; building the Circus Maximus, the Forum, and the Capitoline temple; and infusing Roman institutions with elements of Etruscan culture.

The first games of the Ludi Romani are staged at the location of the Circus Maximus (Latin for greatest circus), a hippodrome and mass entertainment venue situated in the valley between the Aventine and Palatine hills, first utilized for public games and entertainment by Lucius Tarquinius Priscus, the legendary fifth king and first Etruscan ruler of Rome.

Following a great flood, the damp lowlands of Rome are drained by the construction of the Cloaca Maxima (great sewers) to create a site for the Forum Romanum.

This public work, ordered by Priscus, is largely achieved through the use of Etruscan engineers and large amounts of semi-forced labor from the poorer classes of Roman citizens.

As his last great act, Priscus begins the construction of a temple in honor of Jupiter Optimus Maximus on the Capitoline Hill, partially funded by plunder seized from the Latins and Sabines.

Many of the Roman symbols both of war and of civil office date from his reign, and he is the first to have celebrated a Roman triumph, after the Etruscan fashion, wearing a robe of purple and gold, and borne on a chariot drawn by four horses.

His thirty-eight-year reign supposedly ends with his assassination in 579 BCE at the behest of the natural sons of his adoptive father, the late King Ancus Marius.

Thanks to the intelligent foresight of the widowed queen Tanaquil however, the assassins are not chosen, but rather Tarquinius' son-in-law Servius Tullius is elected as his successor.

Servius Tullius is the first king to come to power without the consultation of the plebeians.

After military campaigns against Veii and the Etruscans, he improves the administrative and political organization of Rome.

He undertakes building projects and expands the city to include the Quirinal, Viminal and Esquiline hills.

Favoring the goddess, Fortuna, he builds several temples to her as well as to Diana.

He also builds a palace for himself on the Esquiline.

Servius Tullius had arranged the marriage of his two daughters to the two sons of his predecessor Lucius Tarquinius Priscus.

The sons were named Lucius Tarquinius and Aruns Tarquinius.

According to Livy, the younger of the two daughters had the fiercer disposition, and yet she was married to Aruns, who was the milder of the two sons.

"Tarquin and the younger Tullia, did not, in the first instance, become man and wife; for Rome was there by granted a period of reprieve."

Livy says that the similar temperament of the younger Tullia and Lucius Tarquinius drew them to each other, and she inspired Lucius to greater daring.

The younger Tullia and Lucius Tarquinius next arranged the murder of their respective siblings, the elder Tullia and Aruns, in quick succession, and Lucius and the younger Tullia were afterwards married.

She then encouraged Lucius Tarquinius to seek the throne.

Lucius was convinced, and began to solicit the support of the patrician senators, especially those families who had been given senatorial rank by his father.

He bestowed presents upon them, and to them he criticized the king.

Tarquinius, seizing the throne in 534, goes to the senate-house with a group of armed men, seats himself on the throne, and summons the senators to attend upon King Tarquinius.

Tarquin then speaks to the senators, criticizing Servius: for being a slave born of a slave; for failing to be elected by the Senate and the people during an interregnum, as had been the tradition for the election of kings of Rome; for being gifted the throne by a woman; for favoring the lower classes of Rome over the wealthy and for taking the land of the upper classes for distribution to the poor; and for instituting the census so that the wealth of the upper classes might be exposed in order to excite popular envy.

When Servius Tullius arrives at the senate-house to defend his position, Tarquinius throws him down the steps.

Servius returns home, but is murdered in the streets of Rome by a group of men sent by Tarquin, possibly on the advice of Tullia.

Tullia then drives in her chariot to the senate house, where she hails her husband as king.

He orders her to return home, away from the tumult.

She drives along the Cyprian street, where the king had been murdered, and turns towards the Orbian Hill, in the direction of the Esquiline Hill.

There she encounters her father's body and, on a street later to become known as wicked street because of her actions, drives her chariot over her father's body.

Livy also says that she took a part of her father's body, and his blood, and returned with it to her own and her husband's household gods, and that by the end of her journey she was, herself, covered in the blood.

Tarquinius refuses to permit Servius to be buried, thereby earning for himself the name "Superbus", translated as 'proud.

The Etruscans, who control more than one-third of Italy and wish to further extend their control, allow the deposed Tarquinius Superbus to attempt to regain his Roman throne.

Tarquinius’ sometime ally, the king of Chiusi (Clusium) besieges Rome and, after three battles, takes the city for Chiusi.

Tarquinius assembles a force composed of Sabines, some Latins, and the Greeks of Cumae, to defeat the Chiusian army, drive it back to Rome, and compel Chiusi to withdraw in favor of the infant republic’s rulers.

Following another defeat, Tarquinius, possibly wounded, retreats to Cumae, where he dies in 503.

The Romans, under the first consulate of the the patrician Spurius Cassius Vecellinus, defeat the Sabines in 502.

Rome establishes the office of the tribunus plebus in 494 BCE, thus providing the plebeians, or plebs, official representation.

Until this point, the plebs, constituting a majority of Rome’s free citizens have been denied most of the rights accorded the privileged, hereditary patrician class.

Having warred intermittently with the Latin League (made up of other cities in Latium), the Romans conclude an alliance of mutual defense with the league, called the Foesus Cassianum, under the second consulate of Spurius Cassius in 493 BCE.

Mediterranean Southwest Europe (477–334 BCE): Iberian Artistry and Regional Power Shifts

The age 477–334 BCE in Mediterranean Southwest Europe is defined by artistic cultural achievements in Iberia, evolving political and territorial dynamics in Italy, Sicily, and conflicts involving emerging powers like Rome and Carthage.

Iberian Culture and Art

The Iberian Peninsula witnesses significant cultural and artistic achievements, especially from the ancient Iberian people known as the Bastetani or Bastuli. Their territory spans present-day Almería, Granada, Albacete, eastern Málaga, southeastern Jaén in Andalusia, and western Murcia. Prominent towns include Baria (present-day Villaricos), Bailo (Cádiz), Abdera, Sexi, Malaca, and Carteia. Notably, Iberian sculpture reaches a high point with the creation of iconic works such as the Lady of Baza (la Dama de Baza), a limestone female figure displaying traces of painted stucco decoration discovered in 1971 near Granada.

Another significant Iberian sculpture is the famous Lady of Elche, a Phoenician-influenced, polychrome stone bust depicting a regal woman from around the fourth century BCE. This sculpture, believed to have associations with the Carthaginian goddess Tanit, demonstrates a blend of Iberian craftsmanship and Hellenistic artistic influences. Its construction, featuring an aperture at the rear, suggests it likely functioned as a funerary urn.

Etruscan and Roman Transformations

Throughout this period, the power of the Etruscans steadily declines, challenged by incursions from both Rome and Celtic tribes. The city of Veii, a rich Etruscan center, falls to Rome in 396 BCE after a prolonged siege led by General Marcus Furius Camillus. Subsequently, Roman territorial expansion continues, notably with the capture of Sutri and Nepi in 387 BCE, followed by Caere and its port of Pyrgi in 384 BCE.

Additionally, in response to increasing social tensions, Rome undergoes significant political restructuring. The plebeian class gains greater political rights, most notably after 367 BCE, when one of the two Roman consuls is consistently chosen from the plebeians, allowing broader representation in the Senate.

Greek Colonization and Sicilian Conflicts

Sicily remains a focal point of Greek colonization and conflicts during this age. Notably, the Greek city of Poseidonia falls under domination by the Lucanians before 400 BCE, subsequently renamed Paestum. Furthermore, conflicts between Greek colonies such as Selinus and Segesta draw in Carthaginian involvement. The Second Sicilian War (410–404 BCE) begins after Carthage, under Hannibal Mago, intervenes to support Segesta, dramatically shaping Sicilian geopolitics.

In 344 BCE, Timoleon of Corinth intervenes decisively in Sicilian affairs, defeating the tyrant Hicetas and a Carthaginian army at the Battle of the Crimissus, resulting in a peace treaty in 338 BCE that restricts Carthaginian influence in Sicily.

Roman-Latin and Samnite Wars

The era is also marked by critical military conflicts, such as the Latin War (340–338 BCE), which concludes with the dissolution of the Latin League and the expansion of Roman territorial control. Concurrently, the First Samnite War (343–341 BCE) sees Rome drawn into conflict with the warlike Samnites, initially siding with the city-state of Capua. Although this first conflict ends quickly, it foreshadows prolonged future struggles between Rome and Samnium.

Celtic Expansion

Celtic tribes, notably the Senones, significantly impact northern Italy, crossing the Alps around 400 BCE. By 390 BCE, under King Brennus, they sack Rome after defeating Roman forces at the Allia River, causing extensive destruction and prompting a costly Roman tribute.

Legacy of the Era

The age 477–334 BCE profoundly shapes Mediterranean Southwest Europe, characterized by significant artistic achievements, shifting geopolitical landscapes in Italy and Sicily, the rise of Rome as a dominant regional power, and ongoing cultural integration influenced by Iberian, Greek, Roman, and Carthaginian interactions. These developments lay the groundwork for the subsequent classical civilizations and the broader historical trajectory of the region.

The Senones, a Gallic tribe originating from the modern areas of France known as Seine-et-Marne, Loiret, and Yonne, have expanded to occupy northern Italy, making their way over the Alps in about 400 BCE and, having driven out the Umbrians, settling on the east coast of Italy from Ariminum to Ancona, in the so-called ager Gallicus, and establish the town of Sena Gallica (Sinigaglia), which becomes their capital.