It is impossible to understand the
Aeneid without an awareness of the political situation of the period.
Virgil was born on Oct. 15, 70 B.C., at Andes near Mantua in Cisalpine Gaul (modern Mantova, 20-25 miles southwest of Verona) of humble parentage. His father, either a potter or a laborer, worked for a certain Magius, who, attracted no doubt by the intelligence and industry of his employee, allowed him to marry his daughter, Magia. Because the marriage improved his position, Virgil's father was able to give his son the education reserved for children of higher status. Virgil began his study in Cremona, continued it at Milan, and then went on to Rome to study rhetoric, medicine, and mathematics before giving himself to philosophy under the tutelage of Siro the Epicurean. His education prepared him for the profession of law (the alternative was a military career), but he spoke only once in court. He was shy, retiring, and of halting speech--no match physically, temperamentally, or by inclination for the aggressively articulate Roman lawyers who had inherited Cicero's mantle.
Virgil returned from Rome to his family's farm near Mantua to spend his days in study and writing and to be near his parents.
