Juno is a goddess, the wife of Jove and therefore queen of the gods. She loves Dido and Carthage, acting as a patron for that city. She also loves the Latin people and Turnus. (In Virgil's day, she was worshipped as the patron goddess of the Roman Empire.) She often sends her messenger, Iris, the goddess of the rainbow, to deal with affairs on earth. Juno is Aeneas's main antagonist throughout the Aeneid. She hates the Trojans for a number of personal, rather petty reasons, including the fact that the Trojans Ganymede and Paris had once offended her pride. She is a wrathful, proud and vicious force, tirelessly harassing Aeneas and the Trojans, even though she knows that she can't ultimately stop them from achieving their fate.
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Juno Character Timeline in The Aeneid
The timeline below shows where the character Juno appears in The Aeneid. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Book 1
Virgil gives some background about Carthage, Juno's favorite city, a rich and old Phoenician settlement located in North Africa (modern-day Tunisia). Juno...
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Juno fears the potential Trojan destruction of Carthage. In addition, Paris, a Trojan prince, was once...
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Now the Trojans are sailing near Sicily. Juno angrily recalls a time when Minerva burned Greek ships. Juno, prideful about her power, wonders...
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Juno goes to Aeolus, the wind god, who keeps the winds in his dungeon. She asks...
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...Neptune, the god of the ocean, notices the storm and recognizes it as his sister Juno's work. He angrily commands the winds to return to Aeolus, and proclaims that he, Neptune,...
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...and Mars, will be born, and Romulus will found Rome, which will endure indefinitely. Even Juno will change her mind and love Rome. Eventually, Julius Caesar will bring peace—he will close...
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...workers building up the city like busy bees. On the walls of a temple to Juno, Aeneas sees a depiction of the Trojan War of a large temple of Juno, including...
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Venus, still concerned about Juno's wrath and mistrustful of Carthaginian hospitality, sends Cupid, disguised as Aeneas's son Ascanius, to make...
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Book 2
...family. She gives him a glimpse of the fight from the gods' perspective, showing how Juno and even Jove are on the Greek side, and encourages him to depart.
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Book 3
...of a woman and the body of a dolphin or whale. Helenus recommends praying to Juno and visiting the Sibyl of Cumae.
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Book 4
Juno angrily addresses Venus for putting Dido in such a state. Hoping to protect Carthage and...
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Juno explains the wedding plans to Venus. When Aeneas and Dido join a hunting group tomorrow,...
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...build the pyre under false pretenses. Anna climbs the pyre and holds her dying sister. Juno sends Iris to end Dido's slow torment. Iris offers Dido's body to the underworld, and...
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Book 5
Juno watches these celebrations from the heavens, and sends down Iris to investigate. Iris finds the...
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...their senses. As Aeneas and others arrive, the embarrassed women leave the scene, shaking off Juno's influence. But the boats continue to burn.
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The reduced group of Trojans sets sail. Venus goes to Neptune and describes Juno's recent plot, then asks Neptune to grant the Trojans safe passage to Italy. Neptune agrees,...
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Book 7
...horses to the Trojans, and prepares a carriage led by half-god horses for Aeneas. But Juno, spying on the proceedings from above, is disgusted at the Trojans' good fortune and is...
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Juno goes to the fury-goddess Allecto and instructs her to destroy Latium's peace and turn people...
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Allecto proudly shows her work to Juno, and offers to do more. Juno refuses the offer and sends Allecto away. The crazed...
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Book 8
...Arcadian king, Evander, to his side. The Tiber god also tells Aeneas to pray to Juno, to make her a little less angry.
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...the river. They see the white sow, and Aeneas sacrifices it as an offering to Juno. The men continue, reaching the place where someday Rome's towers will rise, a spot now...
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Book 9
Iris, sent by Juno, instructs Turnus to attack the Trojans' camp, since Aeneas has left it to find Evander....
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...so accidentally closes Turnus within the Trojan walls. Pandarus throws his spear at Turnus, but Juno diverts it. Turnus brutally kills Pandarus and many other Trojans, strengthened by Juno.
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...manage to stop Turnus's progress. Jove sends Iris down to tell Turnus to leave, because Juno can't disobey Jove by continuing to help him. Unable to fight any longer, he escapes...
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Book 10
Juno angrily responds that Aeneas chose to make Turnus his enemy, and that he brought war...
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Back on Mount Olympus, Jove tells Juno that Venus has been helping the Trojans. Juno asks to remove Turnus from the battle,...
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...commit suicide, or to jump in the water and swim back to the battle, but Juno stops him.
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Book 12
...march to the battlefield, not to fight but to accompany their leaders for the duel. Juno, watching from a nearby mountain, speaks to Turnus's sister Juturna, a nymph of lakes. Juno...
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Latinus, Turnus, and Aeneas enter in separate chariots. Aeneas prays and asks Juno to be more kind. He says the Trojans will leave peacefully if he falls, but...
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Jove asks Juno when this will all end, and what hope she still has. They both know that...
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