Tarquin the Proud was unusual. He eventually succeeded to the throne in virtue of his marriage to Tullius’s daughter Tullia.”
“The historians say that Tarquin the Proud regarded Tullius as an usurper.”
“That is natural. And that Tarquin the Proud killed Tullius with Tullia’s assistance was nothing remarkable either. On the contrary, every king of this antique sort expected to be killed by his son-in-law when his term of office expired. But by an unlucky accident Tullia was defiled by her father’s blood and obliged to retire into private life. Thus Tarquin lost his title to the throne, which could only be renewed by marriage with the next heiress-at-law, namely Lucretia, the wife of his cousin Collatinus, who was descended from a sister of King Numa’s wife. It was not Lucretia’s beauty but her title that attracted Tarquin ; except for his sister Tarquinia, who was the mother of Lucius Brutus and who was now past child-bearing, and Tullia, who was defiled, Lucretia was the only surviving heiress of the ancient royal House of Carmenta. Tarquin carried Lucretia off and forced her to become his wife ; but she committed suicide to spite him. So both Collatinus and Tarquin were now without a title to the throne and the monarchybecame extinct, for Tarquin had no daughters, and neither Brutus nor Collatinus had sisters. Tarquin was then driven out by his enraged people, and Brutus and Collatinus became co-rulers of Rome—Brutus as the son of Tarquinia, and Collatinus as the son of Egeria, a descendant of King Numa’s sister of the same name. But they could not call themselves Kings because they lacked the necessary marriage title ; instead, they called themselves Consuls, or Consultants. Lucretia had killed more than a woman when she committed suicide : she had killed Carmenta.”
“Carmenta ?”
“An Arcadian goddess whom King Evander had brought to Italy in the generation before the Trojan War. She had migrated to Arcadia from Byblos in Phoenicia. By ‘goddess’ I mean, of course, a line of priestesses in whom a divinity is held to be incarnate, as Miriam (or Rahab) is incarnate in the Michal line.”
“I understand the theory,” said Antipater. “But before I examine its relevance to Jewish history I must protest that according to the First Book of Chronicles the House of Eli has no claim to be regarded as the senior line of Aaron’s family. And does it not lie under a divine curse since Eli’s day ?”
“That curse is an unhistorical interpolation of the time of King Josiah, who reigned some six centuries ago. Eli’s son Abiathar, King David’s faithful High Priest, remained loyal after the King’s death to Adonijah the heir to the throne, whom Solomon supplanted with the help of his chaplain Zadok. With Solomon’s help Zadok similarly supplanted Abiathar, who was forced into retirement, and the Zadokites have regarded themselves as the only legitimate High Priests ever since.”
“But surely it was Zadok who was descended from Eleazer the elder son of Aaron, and Abiathar who was descended from Eleazer’s younger brother Ithamar? I was reading the First Book of Chronicles only yesterday.”
“No, Prince, that is another interpolation of the same date. In the First Book of Samuel it is stated that Eli, Abiathar’s ancestor, was of the original priestly House ; and it is also stated in the Second Book of Kings that Zadok was not of this House. In other words, Zadok, like Solomon, was a usurper and his descendants tampered with the genealogies. A plausible reason had to be found for Abiathar’s supersession in the High Priesthood. It was given in the form of a fable about some man of God or other who prophesied that the High Priesthood would leave the House of Eli as a punishment for Eli’s indulgence of his wicked sons, and that the House would be reduced to beggary. But the Zadokites were clumsy. They should have stuck to a single story : either that Zadok was of the elder line and
“The historians say that Tarquin the Proud regarded Tullius as an usurper.”
“That is natural. And that Tarquin the Proud killed Tullius with Tullia’s assistance was nothing remarkable either. On the contrary, every king of this antique sort expected to be killed by his son-in-law when his term of office expired. But by an unlucky accident Tullia was defiled by her father’s blood and obliged to retire into private life. Thus Tarquin lost his title to the throne, which could only be renewed by marriage with the next heiress-at-law, namely Lucretia, the wife of his cousin Collatinus, who was descended from a sister of King Numa’s wife. It was not Lucretia’s beauty but her title that attracted Tarquin ; except for his sister Tarquinia, who was the mother of Lucius Brutus and who was now past child-bearing, and Tullia, who was defiled, Lucretia was the only surviving heiress of the ancient royal House of Carmenta. Tarquin carried Lucretia off and forced her to become his wife ; but she committed suicide to spite him. So both Collatinus and Tarquin were now without a title to the throne and the monarchybecame extinct, for Tarquin had no daughters, and neither Brutus nor Collatinus had sisters. Tarquin was then driven out by his enraged people, and Brutus and Collatinus became co-rulers of Rome—Brutus as the son of Tarquinia, and Collatinus as the son of Egeria, a descendant of King Numa’s sister of the same name. But they could not call themselves Kings because they lacked the necessary marriage title ; instead, they called themselves Consuls, or Consultants. Lucretia had killed more than a woman when she committed suicide : she had killed Carmenta.”
“Carmenta ?”
“An Arcadian goddess whom King Evander had brought to Italy in the generation before the Trojan War. She had migrated to Arcadia from Byblos in Phoenicia. By ‘goddess’ I mean, of course, a line of priestesses in whom a divinity is held to be incarnate, as Miriam (or Rahab) is incarnate in the Michal line.”
“I understand the theory,” said Antipater. “But before I examine its relevance to Jewish history I must protest that according to the First Book of Chronicles the House of Eli has no claim to be regarded as the senior line of Aaron’s family. And does it not lie under a divine curse since Eli’s day ?”
“That curse is an unhistorical interpolation of the time of King Josiah, who reigned some six centuries ago. Eli’s son Abiathar, King David’s faithful High Priest, remained loyal after the King’s death to Adonijah the heir to the throne, whom Solomon supplanted with the help of his chaplain Zadok. With Solomon’s help Zadok similarly supplanted Abiathar, who was forced into retirement, and the Zadokites have regarded themselves as the only legitimate High Priests ever since.”
“But surely it was Zadok who was descended from Eleazer the elder son of Aaron, and Abiathar who was descended from Eleazer’s younger brother Ithamar? I was reading the First Book of Chronicles only yesterday.”
“No, Prince, that is another interpolation of the same date. In the First Book of Samuel it is stated that Eli, Abiathar’s ancestor, was of the original priestly House ; and it is also stated in the Second Book of Kings that Zadok was not of this House. In other words, Zadok, like Solomon, was a usurper and his descendants tampered with the genealogies. A plausible reason had to be found for Abiathar’s supersession in the High Priesthood. It was given in the form of a fable about some man of God or other who prophesied that the High Priesthood would leave the House of Eli as a punishment for Eli’s indulgence of his wicked sons, and that the House would be reduced to beggary. But the Zadokites were clumsy. They should have stuck to a single story : either that Zadok was of the elder line and
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