Autocrat- A Roman History Podcast
Aug 8, 2026 · 9 min · 5 segments
Once Lucumo son of the Corinthian exile Demaratus, Lucius Tarquinius decides that he wants more from life than being a rich Roman Senator, commander and trusted friend of the king- and his wife…
Sure.
Ancus ruled for 24 years, which is not that great in terms of Roman kings, as far as reign lengths go.
He had taken the throne in 640 BCE, after an unspecified interregnum between his reign and that of his predecessor Tullus Hostilius, but I'm assuming it wasn't that long.
He now died in 616 BCE.
Eutropius explicitly tells us that Ancus Marcius died of an illness in the 24th year of his rule, so he might have a cause of death.
Orosius does talk about Priscus, but doesn't discuss the transfer of power after Ancus dies.
The kings are being very much summed up by him rather than being discussed in detail.
Oh, and let's check.
Yep.
We have still nothing from Apian.
Yay, so helpful.
Dio just says Marcius died without mentioning the illness, but we do have some sources.
Yeah.
I do.
Now, this seems unlikely to me.
Okay, why?
A book called The Chronicle of the Roman Republic fixes his birth in 675 BCE, so about three years before Numa died, at which point the old king Numa was in his late 70s.
Seems plausible, right? So when Ancus Marcius dies in 616 BCE, he would have been about 59 years old.
Don't get me wrong, by modern standards that's still quite early, but for the ancient world it hardly strikes me as premature.
He was, apparently, more famous as a warrior and an administratively capable king than any of the three kings that came before him.
Now, Ancus had his own sons.
Did he?
Yes, and they were almost ready to be men.
Dionysus says one of them was just growing a beard and the other was still a child.
Sure.
Ancus ruled for 24 years, which is not that great in terms of Roman kings, as far as reign lengths go.
He had taken the throne in 640 BCE, after an unspecified interregnum between his reign and that of his predecessor Tullus Hostilius, but I'm assuming it wasn't that long.
He now died in 616 BCE.
Eutropius explicitly tells us that Ancus Marcius died of an illness in the 24th year of his rule, so he might have a cause of death.
Orosius does talk about Priscus, but doesn't discuss the transfer of power after Ancus dies.
The kings are being very much summed up by him rather than being discussed in detail.
Oh, and let's check.
Yep.
We have still nothing from Apian.
Yay, so helpful.
Dio just says Marcius died without mentioning the illness, but we do have some sources.
Yeah.
I do.
Now, this seems unlikely to me.
Okay, why?
A book called The Chronicle of the Roman Republic fixes his birth in 675 BCE, so about three years before Numa died, at which point the old king Numa was in his late 70s.
Seems plausible, right? So when Ancus Marcius dies in 616 BCE, he would have been about 59 years old.
Don't get me wrong, by modern standards that's still quite early, but for the ancient world it hardly strikes me as premature.
He was, apparently, more famous as a warrior and an administratively capable king than any of the three kings that came before him.
Now, Ancus had his own sons.
Did he?
Yes, and they were almost ready to be men.
Dionysus says one of them was just growing a beard and the other was still a child.
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