Who is Bellona and Was She More Powerful than Mars? Piecing Together the Identity of the Mysterious Ancient Roman Goddess of War
In his History, Livy reported that during a critical part of the battle against the Samnites in 296 BCE, the general Appius Claudius was seen in the front lines raising his hands as he uttered a prayer, “Bellona, if you grant us victory today, I promise to build you a temple.” This prayer was proven to be effective as the Romans proceeded to capture and plunder the Samnite camp, bringing a massive amount of booty to their own soldiers.
Bust of Bellona, Brussels, Belgium (MichelWal/CC BY-SA 3.0)
More than a thousand years later, Shakespeare introduced Macbeth as a violent and brave warrior when the Thane of Ross calls him "Bellona's bridegroom," placing her as the equivalent of Mars himself!
