- The Curia was the name of the Roman Senate House, where the Roman Senate conducted their business.
- It was located in the Forum Romanum. Curia in Latin means ‘Meeting House’.
Description
- Originally it was called the Curia Hostilia and started as the meeeting place to conduct the business of government under the Kings of Rome.
- During the Roman Republic (509-27 BCE) it was the meeting place for the Senate.
- In 80 BCE it was rebuilt and enlarged by Sulla when he doubled the number of Senators and called it the ‘Curia Cornelia’.
- Julius Caesar then started rebuilding it in 44 BCE and it was called the Curia Julia.
- The building was completed in 29 BCE by Augustus.
The Site today
- The Curia Julia survives today because it was incorporated into the Basilica of St. Adriano al Foro in the 7th Century CE.
Curia Julia