[3,49] Τοιοῦτος μὲν δή τις ὁ Ταρκύνιος ἦν καὶ διὰ ταύτας τὰς αἰτίας ζῶντός τε Μαρκίου πάντων ἐγένετο Ῥωμαίων ἐπιφανέστατος καὶ τελευτήσαντος ἐκείνου τῆς βασιλείας ὑπὸ πάντων ἄξιος ἐκρίθη. ἐπειδὴ δὲ παρέλαβε τὴν ἀρχήν, πρῶτον μὲν ἐπολέμησε τοῖς καλουμένοις Ἀπιολανοῖς πόλει τοῦ Λατίνων ἔθνους οὐκ ἀφανεῖ. οἱ γὰρ Ἀπιολανοὶ καὶ οἱ ἄλλοι σύμπαντες Λατῖνοι μετὰ τὸν Ἄγκου Μαρκίου θάνατον λελύσθαι τὰς περὶ τῆς εἰρήνης ὁμολογίας οἰόμενοι λῃστείαις τε καὶ προνομαῖς τὴν Ῥωμαίων γῆν ἐπόρθουν· ἀνθ´ ὧν τιμωρήσασθαι βουλόμενος αὐτοὺς ὁ Ταρκύνιος ἐξεστράτευσε πολλῇ δυνάμει καὶ τῆς γῆς αὐτῶν τὴν κρατίστην ἐδῄωσεν· ἀφικομένης δ´ ἐκ τῶν πλησιοχώρων Λατίνων ἐπικουρίας μεγάλης τοῖς Ἀπιολανοῖς διττὰς τίθεται πρὸς αὐτοὺς μάχας, κρατήσας δ´ ἐν ἀμφοτέραις περὶ τὴν πολιορκίαν τῆς πόλεως ἐγίνετο καὶ προσῆγε τοῖς τείχεσι τὰς δυνάμεις ἐκ διαδοχῆς· οἱ δ´ ἐκ τῆς πόλεως ὀλίγοι τε πρὸς πολλοὺς μαχόμενοι καὶ κατ´ οὐδένα καιρὸν ἀναπαύσεως τυγχάνοντες ἐξῃρέθησαν σὺν χρόνῳ. ἁλούσης δὲ κατὰ κράτος τῆς πόλεως οἱ μὲν πλείους τῶν Ἀπιολανῶν μαχόμενοι κατεσφάγησαν, ὀλίγοι δὲ τὰ ὅπλα παραδόντες ἅμα τοῖς ἄλλοις λαφύροις ἐπράθησαν, παῖδές τε αὐτῶν καὶ γυναῖκες ἀνδραποδισθέντες ὑπὸ Ῥωμαίων ἀπήχθησαν, καὶ ἡ πόλις διαρπασθεῖσα ἐνεπρήσθη. ταῦτα διαπραξάμενος ὁ βασιλεὺς καὶ τὸ τεῖχος ἐκ θεμελίων κατασκάψας ἀπῆγε τὴν δύναμιν ἐπ´ οἴκου καὶ μετὰ τοῦθ´ ἑτέραν στρατιὰν ἦγεν ἐπὶ τὴν Κρουστομερίνων πόλιν. αὕτη δὲ ἀποικία μὲν ἦν Λατίνων, προσεχώρησε δὲ Ῥωμαίοις ἐπὶ τῆς Ῥωμύλου δυναστείας· Ταρκυνίου δὲ τὴν ἀρχὴν παραλαβόντος τὰ Λατίνων αὖθις ἤρξατο φρονεῖν. οὐ μὴν ἐδέησέ γε καὶ ταύτην πολιορκίᾳ τε παραστήσασθαι καὶ πόνῳ· μαθόντες γὰρ οἱ Κρουστομερῖνοι τό τε πλῆθος τῆς ἡκούσης ἐπ´ αὐτοὺς δυνάμεως καὶ τὴν ἑαυτῶν ἀσθένειαν οὐδεμιᾶς αὐτοῖς ἐπικουρίας παρὰ τῶν ἄλλων Λατίνων ἀφικομένης ἀνέῳξαν τὰς πύλας καὶ προελθόντες οἱ πρεσβύτατοι τῶν πολιτῶν καὶ τιμιώτατοι παρέδοσαν αὐτῷ τὴν πόλιν ἀξιοῦντες ἐπιεικῶς σφισι χρήσασθαι καὶ μετρίως. τῷ δὲ κατ´ εὐχὴν τὸ πρᾶγμα ἐφάνη καὶ παρελθὼν εἰς τὸ τεῖχος ἀπέκτεινε μὲν οὐδένα Κρουστομερίνων, ὀλίγους δὲ πάνυ τοὺς αἰτίους τῆς ἀποστάσεως φυγαῖς ἀιδίοις ἐζημίωσε, τοῖς δ´ ἄλλοις ἅπασι τὰ σφέτερα συνεχώρησεν ἔχειν καὶ τῆς Ῥωμαίων πολιτείας μετέχειν ὡς πρότερον, τοῦ δὲ μηδὲν ἔτι παρακινῆσαι χάριν ἐποίκους αὐτοῖς κατέλιπε Ῥωμαίους.

[3,49] This was the character of Tarquinius and for these reasons he became during the lifetime of Marcius the most illustrious of all the Romans, and after that king's death was adjudged by all as worthy of the kingship. When he had succeeded to the sovereignty he first made war upon the people of Apiolae, as it was called, a city of no small note among the Latins. For the Apiolani and all the rest of the Latins, looking upon the treaty of peace as having been terminated after the death of Ancus Marcius, were laying waste the Roman territory by plundering and pillaging. Tarquinius, desiring to take revenge upon them for these injuries, set out with a large force and ravaged the most fruitful part of their country;then, when important reinforcements came to the Apiolani from their Latin neighbours, he fought two battles with them and, having gained the victory in both, proceeded to (p191) besiege the city, causing his troops to assault the walls in relays; and the besieged, being but few contending against many and not having a moment's respite, were at last subdued. The city being taken by storm, the greater part of the Apiolani were slain fighting, but a few after delivering up their arms were sold together with the rest of the booty; their wives and children were carried away into slavery by the Romans and the city was plundered and burned. After the king had done this and had razed the walls to the foundations, he returned home with his army. Soon afterwards he undertook another expedition against the city of the Crustumerians. This was a colony of the Latins and in the reign of Romulus had submitted to the Romans; but after Tarquinius succeeded to the sovereignty it began again to incline on the side of the Latins. However, it was not necessary to reduce this place by a siege and great effort; for the Crustumerians, having become aware both of the magnitude of the force that was coming against them and of their own weakness, since no aid came to them from the rest of the Latins, opened their gates; and the oldest and most honoured of the citizens, coming out, delivered up the city to Tarquinius, asking only that he treat them with clemency and moderation. This fell out according to his wish, and entering the city, he put none of the Crustumerians to death and punished only a very few, (p193) who had been the authors of the revolt, with perpetual banishment,while permitting all the rest to retain their possessions and to enjoy Roman citizenship as before; but, in order to prevent any uprising for the future, he left Roman colonists in their midst.