The origins of Tarquinia are shrouded in legend, its history long and rich. A cosmopolitan city as early as the seventh century BC, Tarquinia was the home city of the three Etruscan Kings of Rome, but modern day Tarquinia was built in the fifth century AD, when the old city was destroyed by Alaric, King of the Visigoths, and was originally named Corneto; the ancient name was restored only in late XIX century.