Numitor, King of Alba, had been ousted by his brutal brother, Amulius. Amulius made sure Numitor would have no heirs by forcing Numitor's only child, his daughter, Rhea Silvia, to spend her days as a vestal virgin, serving in the temple of Venus, goddess of the hearth. Nevertheless, Rhea subsequently gave birth to twin boys, Romulus and Remus. Their father was not a man, but Mars, god of war. When Amulius found out what had happened, he slew Rhea Silvia and had the two boys thrown into the Tiber River. The river bore the twins safely ashore, where they were found by a she-wolf who suckled them with her milk. The wolf looked after them u