5. Aeneas, Roman Origins, and Julius Caesar

Q: Who was Aeneas?

A: Son of Trojan prince Anchises and goddess Venus; fled Troy with his father and sacred statues of the gods.

Q: Why did Romans admire Aeneas?

A: For his love for his father and reverence for the gods.

Q: What legend connects Aeneas to Rome?

A: Gods commanded Aeneas to found a city in Italy; he married Lavinia, and their son founded Alba Longa. Romulus, a descendant, founded Rome.

Q: What is Virgil’s Aeneid about?

A: Aeneas’s journey from Troy to Italy, overcoming obstacles to found a new city, aided by his mother Venus.

Q: How does Venus support Aeneas in Aeneid?

A: She intervenes directly and persuades Vulcan to forge armor, including a shield depicting Roman history and Augustus’s triumph.

Q: Which Roman families claimed Trojan ancestry?

A: Many, including the Iulii (Julius Caesar’s clan), claiming descent from Aeneas’s son Iulus (Ascanius).

Q: How did Julius Caesar link himself to Venus?

A: Built a temple to Venus Genetrix and claimed descent from Aeneas via Iulus.

Q: How did Augustus use this ancestry?

A: As Caesar’s grand-nephew and adopted son, he also claimed descent from Venus and Aeneas.

Q: How does Ovid link Julius Caesar’s death to mythology?

A: Venus assists her descendant; omens and signs predict Caesar’s death; a comet appears, believed to be his soul ascending to heaven.