The culture that is now called Etruscan developed in north-central Italy about 800 B.C.E. The Etruscans established permanent settlements that evolved into cities resembling the Greek city-states and built a rich cultural life that became the foundation of civilization in much of Italy. The Etruscans spread their influence over the surrounding countryside. They traded natural products, especially iron, with their Greek neighbors to the south and with other peoples throughout the Mediterranean in exchange for a variety of goods.

Etruscan cities appear to have been organized in leagues and, beginning about 750 B.C.E., the Etruscans expanded southward into central Italy through military actions on land and sea and through the establishment of colony cities. In the process of expansion, they encountered a small collection of villages subsequently called Rome.