
The Rutuli were an Italic tribe who lived in Latium in central Italy during the 13th century BC. Descended from the Umbri and Pelasgians, their capital of Ardea was just 22 miles southeast of Rome, and their young prince Turnus became powerful due to his friendships with several royal houses, including those of King Latinus of Laurentum, Queen Camilla of the Volsci, and King Evander of Arcadia. However, Turnus' support of the ousted Etruscan tyrant Mezentius earned him the scorn of the Etruscans, leading to Kings Latinus and Evander changing their opinions of him. In 1233 BC, when Aeneas and his Trojans arrived in Latium in search of a new home, Turnus was wary of the possibility of Trojan expansion and of Aeneas' marriage of Latinus' daughter Lavinia (whom he desired), so he decided to go to war with Aeneas. After two weeks of battle, Turnus and Aeneas' armies were worn out, so they decided to fight to the death. Aeneas wounded Turnus in the thigh and considered sparing him, but, upon noticing that Turnus was wearing the belt of his dead friend Pallas as a trophy, he killed him. The Rutuli survived for hundreds of more years, and, in the 6th century BC, the Etruscan king Lucius Tarquinius Superbus went to war with the Rutuli, with his campaign being interrupted by the revolution of the Roman Republic. The Rutuli eventually disappeared, possibly being conquered by the Romans.