It is common enough to find mention of the twelve cities of Etruria, but nowhere are their respective names recorded.

The probability is that in process of time this or that city fell out of the league, and was replaced by towns of more recent growth, till in the end there were at least seventeen presumable claimants for the title of one of the twelve. This is the case as regards Etruria proper, but there was a time when similar leagues appear to have existed among the Etruscan cities in the neighbourhood of the Po (Etruria Circumpadana), and again among those of Campania. As to the confederation of twelve cities in Etruria proper, and the political principles on which it was founded, nothing is positively known, except that the principles were essen tially aristocratic, much as in early Rome under the kings. The kings were elective for life, and were held in check by the principes or Lucumos who represented the real power of each state. In national enterprises one of the kings was chosen for supreme command, having a lictor from each city. The surroundings of official dignity found afterwards in Rome, the purple robe, the praetexta, the twelve lictors and fasces, the apparitores, the curule chair, and triumphal processions, were derived from Etruria, and in dicate the nature of her constitution. The representatives met at the temple of Voltumna, the locality of which is not known (Livy, iv. 23), apparently in spring; but it would seem that, in fact, the confederation was far from strictly maintained, at any rate in the matter of external policy. For internal affairs they had certain books {libri disciplinae Etruscae) in which they were instructed as to the founding and consecration of public or religious buildings, the distribution of the people into tribes, curiae and centuriae, the constitution of armies, and the management of everything pertaining to peace or war (Festus, s. v. “Rituales ”). These books were divided into three sections, the third, libri rituales, being those to which reference has just been made. The other two were devoted to divination, an art in which the Etruscans surpassed all other nations. The first part was the libri haruspicini, containing instructions for divining the will of the gods from abnormal conditions observed in the entrails of animals slain in sacrifice, or from unusual natural phenomena. The second part was the libri fulgurales, treating of divination from lightning. By such means the gods were believed to indicate their wishes towards men, and, indeed, had declared so much through the divine seer, Tages, a miraculous dwarf whom a labourer ploughing one day found in his furrow. Though then but a boy, Tages had grey hair, and was wise as if of a great age. His sayings, delivered always in verse, like oracles, were taken down by Tarchon, and formed the books in question. Tarchon was the founder of Tarquinii, and from this town proceeded the other cities and their organization. Such is the legend, and in the early history of Etruria we have, as elsewhere, only legend, known mainly through the annals of Rome, which, when they go back to a period before the introduction of writing (apparently in the 7th century. b.c.) must be largely imaginary, and cven long after this, are highly coloured.

First in importance among the Etruscan cities was Veil, the site of which has been identified at Isola Farnese, about 11 miles from Rome, its great rival and ultimate victor. Strong by its natural position on a high cliff, and fortified with massive walls, rich in its own territory, and commanding the assistance of its subject towns, Sabata, Sutrium, Nepete, and Capena, it maintained an almost constant state of war with Rome from the legendary times of Romulus down to its capture by Camillus, 396 b.c., after which, by a decree of the Roman senate, it was forbidden to be inhabited (Livy, v. 6). The spoils then carried away indicated its wealth, and doubtless this, together with other measures then taken, led to the desolation which now reigns on the site. Of the 14 recorded wars with Rome, the most memora"ble were—the 7th (509 b.c. ), in which, to replace Tarquinius Superbus on the throne of that city, Porsena of Clusium marched to its gates, though in a previous battle the Etruscans had been declared vanquished by a mysterious voice in the night, because they had lost one man more than the Romans; the 9th and 10th (482-476 b.c. ), in which occurred the treacherous massacre of the Fabii, who, with their clients, to the number, it is said, of 4000, had voluntered to hold Veil in check from their camp on the Cremera; the 12th, in which their king Tolumnius was slain, and the 14th, in which the Romans, to whose gates the Veientes had so often carried terror, laid seige to Veii, and in the tenth year took it, as is said by the stratagem of a cuniculus or mine up through the rock of the citadel. Those who believe this story, point out that Camillus may have obtained his idea from the cuniculus or outlet of the waters of the Alban lake, which also at this time was made to play a miraculous part. The waters of the lake were observed with alarm to be rising and threatening to overflow. The oracle at Delphi was consulted, and in consequence of its advice this outlet was made by the Romans in the space of a year (Livy, v. 15, 16).

Scarcely less important than Veii, and like it also undoubtedly one of the twelve cities, was Tarquinii, now Corneto, the queen of the Maremma, towards which Graviscae seems to have served as the port by which its great trade was carried on. The story runs that among those who preferred exile to the tyranny of Cypselus in Corinth in the early part of the 7th century b.c. was a wealthy merchant, Demaratus, who,· accompanied by certain artists with mythical names (Eucheir, Diopus, and Eugrammus), settled in Tarquinii, which it is to be presumed was then sufficiently advanced in civilization to offer prospects of comfort, and to have been known to the traders of Corinth at least. Demaratus married a lady of Tarquinii, and had a son Lucumo or Lucius, who, though rich, suffered from being looked down on as a foreigner, and, to escape this, migrated to Rome, where in time he rose to the highest office of king, under the title of Tarquinius Priscus, and compelled the submission of the whole of Etruria, the token of which was the insignia of the twelve fasces, representing the twelve cities. He was succeeded by Servius Tullius, or Mastarna, as the Etruscans called him, under whose rule Etruria revolted, but without final success. Then came Tarquinius Superbus and his expulsion from Rome, on which occasion Tarquinii and Veii sent an army to endeavour to reinstate him. In the battle which followed, Aruns Tarquinius and Junius Brutus the first consul fell by each other’s hands. From this time Tarquinii was quiet for a century, till 397 b.c., when it joined Veii against Rome unsuccessfully, and thus revived a series of wars, in which, though generally worsted with severe loss, she yet maintained her independence down to the defeat at the Vadimonian lake, 283 b.c. Towards the close of the second Punic war, when the Etruscan cities had to furnish Scipio’s fleet each with its staple commodity, Tarquinii supplied sail-cloth.

Corn and other provisions were supplied by Caere, a town which, if less famous in war than the two already described, was better known in the arts of peace. No doubt, in the legendary age, when it was ruled by the cruel Mezentius (Aeneid, viii. 482), it was sufficiently warlike, but in later times it rarely joined in the stnιggles against Rome, where, indeed, its people stood in high favour for having sheltered the Roman vestals and the Flamen Quirinalis from the Gauls (389 b.c.). From the privileges enjoyed by the Caerites in Rome arose, it was said, the’word “caerimonia.” It is recorded to the honour of Caere that she abstained from the piracy common among coast towns in early times (Strabo, v. 220); and it is a proof both of her advancement in civilization and of her reputation among the Greeks that she had a treasury at Delphi, where it was known as the treasury of Agylla, such having been the original name of the city. How the change of name arose is accounted for (Strabo, v. 220) with the ingenuity characteristic of ancient derivations. Agylla had been founded by Pelasgians from Thessaly, but was afterwards captured by the Tyrrhenians from Lydia (cf. Aeneid, v. 479), who, having enquired the name of the town they were besieging, and having been answered by some one from the walls with a word which they took to be the Greek χα7pe, adopted this as the new name of the city. Herodotus (i. 167) speaks of it as Agylla, and relates how it joined the Carthaginians against the Phocaeans of Alalia in Corsica (about 534 b.c.), and, having carried away its share of the booty and of the prisoners, put the latter to death. Upon this followed a plague, as to which the Agyllaeans consulted the oracle at Delphi, and were told in reply that the way to appease the Phocaeans would be to institute public festivals of athletic games and horse-racing. The sea-port was Pyrgi, celebrated also for the wealth of its temple of Eileithyia, which Dionysius, the tyrant of Syracuse, ransacked (384 b.c. ), taking from it 1000 talents, and spoils to the value of 500 talente more. As evidence of the high antiquity of the arts in Caere, there is the statement of Pliny (xxxv. 4-6) that paintings existed there older than the foundation of Rome. It was said to have been the last refuge of the Tarquins, and in confirmation of this is the modern discovery of a large sepulchre belonging to a family of that name, as seen from the numerous inscriptions in it. Little remains except tumuli and sepulchres, among which the most famous is that known as the Regulini-Galassi tomb, the masonry of which iβ Pelasgic in character.

In close political relationship to Veii, and probably reckoned as one of the twelve cities, though its population (theFalisci) was not purely Etruscan, was FalerH, originally on a high bare rock, but afterwards under Roman compulsion transferred to the broad plain which stretches to the Tiber, the Aequum Faliscum as it was called, to indicate the plain, not the justice of the people. The very ancient Fescennium seems to have been included in its territory. Trusting in its natural strength, Falerii vainly made light of the Roman siege conducted by Camillus (391 b.c.). It was on this occasion, as told by Livy (v. 27), that an official of Falerii, to whom was entrusted the education of the sons of the better class, led his pupils outside the city for their exercises as in times of peace, and by daily increasing the distance of their walks avoided suspicion, till at last he reached the Roman camp and offered to surrender the boys to Camillus, who, indignant at the treachery of the man, ordered him to be stripped, bound, and handed over to his pupils to be led back and punished. The habit of appointing an official of this kind is spoken of as a Greek one, and, in connexion with the legendary foundation of Falerii by Halesus or Haliscus, a son of Agamemnon, together with the fact of its temple of Juno being the counterpart of the temple of that goddess at Argos, is taken as evidence of a strong Greek element in the town. Strabo (v. 226) quotes the opinion of some that the Falisci were not Tyrrhenians, but a distinct nationality,

One of the twelve cities also was Volci (Vulci) apparently, though the historical notices of it are but few, and leave no impression of any great power. Yet its remains, as discovered in numerous sepulchres, show that it must have been an important city. Of these the tumulus of Cucumella, as it is now called, is remarkable not only for its size (200 feet in diameter, and 40 to 50 feet high still), but also for its general similarity to the tomb of Porsena at Clusium, of which we have only the description as quoted by Pliny (xxxvi. 13, 19), and to the tomb of Alyattes in Lydia. Up to 1830 this tomb at Vulci was encircled round the base with a massive wall, which is now gone. In the heart of the mound were discovered two loosely built towers, one of them square, the other conical, which perhaps may be fairly compared with the pillars in the tomb of Porsena and the οvροι in that of Alyattes. From the other sepulchres of Vulci has been obtained a vast number of antiquities, not a few of which are of the first importance for the history of art in Etruria, and will be afterwards referred to. Volsinii, called by the Etruscans Felsuna, as appears from its coinage, and now Bυlsena, was one of the most powerful and warlike of the Etruscan states. The original site, it has been thought, was at Orvieto, which the Romans after a long and arduous siege destroyed, compelling the Volsinii to settle on the low ground at Bolsena. Clusium (Chiusi), originally Camars (Livy, X. 25), had been founded by the Umbrians, but became one of the principal cities of Etruria, being apparently at the height of its fame under the rule of its king Porsena, who to reinstate Tarquinius Priscus made that march to Rome (505 b.c.) with which are associated the undying legends of Roman heroism in the persons of Horatius, Scaevola, Cloelia, and Publicola (Livy, ii. 11-13). Before this we find Clusium joined with other Etruscan cities on the side of the Latins against Tarquinius Priscus. Afterwards it was the assistance given by Rome to Clusium which drew down the Gauls on the former in 389 b.c. At the close of the second Punic war Clusium furnished corn and fir for ship-building to the Roman fleet. Mention has been made of the tomb of Porsena said to have existed at Clusium. In one place labyrinthine passages have been found among the tombs, such as appear to correspond to one of the features in the description of that sepulchre. Arretium (Arezzo) was one of the twelve cities, but famous chiefly in comparatively recent times. In 301 b.c. the citizens rose against the tyranny of their great family, the Cilnii, and drove them to exile in Rome, where their cause was taken up with this practical result, that a Roman army defeated the Arretines at Russellae. Afterwards the city joined in league with theGauls and Umbrians against Rome, but again was defeated. Next it was besieged by the Gauls. There is no record of its final submission to Rome. In the second Punic war it furnished corn, implements, and material of war for the Roman fleet. During the civil wars it took the side of Marius, and would in consequence have lost all rights but for the intercession of Cicero. Tl·e present site does not appear to be that of the ancient town. Of its walls, which were said to have been built of brick, there is no trace. Conspicuous still for its stupendous walls and towers, commanding a high bare rock, is Cortona, ∣ where everything that remains is in harmony with the tradition of its extraordinary autiquity. Of other records there are scarcely any. Like Perusia (Perugia) it had once been an Umbrian city, and likc it also one of the twelve states of Etruria. Parts of the walls of Perusia remain, and many objects of great interest have been found on its site, none more precious, however, than the “Cippus of Perugia,” with its long Etruscan inscription. Perusia comes first into notice arrayed against Fabius, who compelled her to sue for peace. In the following year she was again at war, and shared in the disaster at the λ adi-monian lake. Other defeats followed, but not even that in which Fabius slew 4500 of her men, and took 1740 prisoners, was sufficient to reduce her to obedience to Rome, though that event followed not long after. In the second Punic war she supplied corn and fir to the Roman fleet. In the civil wars she took an active part, and when besieged by Octavius Caesar yielded only to famine. A great fire followed, after which the city was rebuilt by Augustus. Even under the empire it maintained a position of importance.

Volaterrae, called Velathri on its coinage, and now Volterra, of which the massive walls from 4 to 5 miles in circuit still stand on a great bare height visible far round, appears to have been one of the twelve cities, notwithstanding the fact of its having taken part with the Latins against Tarquinius Priscus. Almost nothing, however, is known of its history...