| What makes it historical? |
Castor and Pollux were the mythical twin sons of Jupiter, and the Spartan queen, Leda. Pollux was immortal, while Castor (also the Latin word for “beaver”) was mortal! It was reported after the Battle of Lake Regillus in 499 or 496 BC that two twins on white horses had ridden into battle and led to Roman victory! General Aulus Postumius, who made the report, commissioned a temple built in their honor at a spring where the twins had been spotted giving their horses water!
There was a memorial parade here every July 15th for four centuries until the temple burned to the ground between 14 and 9 BC, and Caesar Augustus, who had twin sons himself, rebuilt it, rededicating the feast day to January 27! |
