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The ''Curia Hostilia'' ( Latin , "Hostilian Court") was the favorite meeting place of the Roman Senate in the Forum Romanum at the foot of the Capitoline Hill , near the well of the Comitia. Tradition held that it was built in the 6th century B.C. by the third King of Rome, Tullus Hostilius , hence the name. The original building was later demolished to make way for a more imposing structure, which was built in the reign of the Emperor Diocletian and which still stands, and is pictured in the photo. It can be noted, however, that this particular building is not really of monumental size: standing inside it one can see it is about the size of a basketball court, with two low raised platforms for seats on the sides. It should be noted that all cinematographic presentations of the Senate relating to this period, showing it to be semi-circular, are therefore demonstrably inaccurate. The Curia Hostilia was the site of the irregular execution of the Demagogue Lucius Appuleius Saturninus and his partisans, and burned down in 52 BC when a mob cremated the body of the demagogue Publius Clodius Pulcher inside it. It was renovated by Julius Caesar during his dictatorate, but his murder in the meeting of the Senate on March 15 , 44 BC, did not take place in the Curia Hostilia, but in the Theatrum Pompeium. The Curia Hostilia as seen in the Forum Romanum owes its survival to the fact that in the early mediaeval period (658 AD) it was converted into a Christian church; the remains of some Christian frescos are still visible in the alcoves on the walls. It was rebuilt, and returned to something approaching its original form during the reign of Italian Fascist Benito Mussolini , who wished to return Italy to the greatness it had seen during the Roman Empire . |
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