Romulus

In Roman legend, the founder and first king of Rome; the son of Mars and Rhea Silvia, daughter of Numitor, king of Alba Longa.

Romulus and his twin brother Remus were thrown into the Tiber by their great-uncle Amulius, who had deposed Numitor, but the infants were saved and suckled by a she-wolf, and later protected by the shepherd Faustulus. On reaching adulthood they killed Amulius, restored Numitor, and founded the city of Rome on the River Tiber.

The brothers quarrelled over the name and site of the city, and Romulus eventually murdered Remus for laughing at his walls on the Palatine. He made the Capitol an asylum for refugees and adventurers, and his settlers abducted their wives from the women of the Sabine peoples. The resulting war ended in the joint rule of Tatius, king of the Sabines, and Romulus, but he later reigned alone until he vanished in a storm.

After his disappearance, he was worshipped as the god Quirinus by the Romans. Quirinus derived from a Sabine god, possibly of war, and the Roman deity had close associations with Mars, who bore the name of Quirinus as one of his titles.

Romulus

Town in Wayne County, southeast Michigan; population (1990) 22,900. It is situated 32 km/20 mi southwest of Detroit. Its economy is based mostly on the auto industry. The city also makes industrial ovens and dental supplies and equipment. Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport is to the southeast.