Download Assassination of Julius Caesar

Assassination of Julius Caesar
Julius Caesar (100–44 BCE) had a distinguished career as a military man and politician. He was a smart and
cultured man, a successful leader and military commander. Roman philosopher Cicero and others describe
him as a moderate man, hardworking and often generous. Although he could be cunning and ruthless, he
was known to be merciful. Born to a noble, but not wealthy, family, he was well educated. These skills were
essential for a Roman politician. Caesar was honored as a soldier and later was a successful speaker and
lawyer in the city of Rome. By 73 BCE Caesar was moving up in Roman society and ready to actively begin
his own successful political and military career.
Politically astute, Caesar courted public and senatorial favor. He spent freely, paying for grand gladiatorial
games and bribing officials when needed. His oratorical speeches glorified his family history, and he worked
to preserve and maintain his reputation and that of his family, even going so far as to divorce his second
wife Pompeia to avoid sullying his reputation, famously remarking that even a wife of his must be above
suspicion. Caesar went on to serve as senior magistrate and later as governor of the province of Further
Spain (present-day Spain).
Political alliances were essential in ancient Rome, and Caesar wisely allied himself with two prominent
political figures: Pompey and Crassus. This alliance of three, called the First Triumvirate, enabled Caesar to
conquer and become governor of the Roman province of Gaul (present-day France and northern Italy).
The First Triumvirate alliance broke down and led into a civil war one faction led by Caesar and the other by
Pompey. The civil war was brief, ending with Caesar’s triumphant return from Gaul to Rome in 46 BCE,
with a full forty days of celebration and thanksgiving planned.
Caesar issued a general pardon to all those who had fought against him and set about ruling Rome, setting a
pattern of merciful dealings with many of his enemies. He introduced a number of reforms, which affected
both the Senate and people of Rome. Caesar was given the title of dictator perpetuus, or dictator for life, by
the Senate. Prior to Caesar, the title of dictator was reserved for short periods of extreme need and not
considered a permanent position. After the Etruscan king ruled over Rome in 509 BCE, Romans were
hesitant to give too much power to any one individual. Caesar’s life appointment as dictator was an
important shift away from this tradition. Although Caesar maintained some of the trappings of the republic,
including elections, debate in the Senate, and judicial proceedings, he held the power to make all decisions
on his own without the support or consent of the Roman Senate.
The Event
In March 44 BCE, Caesar was preparing to leave the city of Rome to go to war with Parthia, in present-day
Iraq. The Ides of March (as March 15 was called in the Roman calendar) was to be Caesar’s last visit to the
Senate before he left Rome. A fortuneteller was rumored to have warned him to “beware of the Ides of
March.” However, Caesar left his house unguarded. His wife, Calpurnia, fearing for his well-being, almost
persuaded him to stay at home that morning, but an early visit from one of his fellow senators, Marcus
Junius Brutus, changed his mind.
Caesar entered the temporary home of the Senate, the portico of the Theatre of Pompey. A group of
conspirators, who called themselves the Liberators, were waiting for Caesar, having arrived early at the
Senate, daggers concealed in the tubes that normally held their writing styluses. Caesar seated himself in his
usual place, a golden chair. The conspirators surrounded Caesar with requests and questions. At an agreedupon signal, they attacked Caesar, stabbing him twenty-three times. Mark Antony had heard of the
conspiracy and intended to warn Caesar but was detained outside the Senate. Several of the conspirators
were stabbed in the chaos that followed as Caesar staggered from his seat. He died at the foot of the great
statue of Pompey. Caesar’s last words, “You, too, my son?” spoke of his betrayal, according to the secondcentury Roman historian Suetonius. This phrase would more famously be remembered as “Et tu, Brute?”
(“And you, Brutus?”), as written by English playwright William Shakespeare in his play entitled, Julius
Caesar. Most of the Senate fled to their homes, and Caesar’s body was returned to his home by his slaves.
The conspirators walked to the capitol, carrying a pole with a freedman’s cap, a cone-shaped cap associated
with emancipated slaves, to symbolize that Caesar’s death had freed the Roman people. The crowd at the
Forum did not show their support for the conspirators.
Sixty senators of the nine hundred in the Senate joined in the plot to assassinate the fifty-six-year-old
Caesar. Two men led the conspiracy: Brutus and Cassius. Brutus was the son of one of Caesar’s female
companions, Servilia, and the two men had once been close. Cassius was Brutus’ brother-in-law. Both
Cassius and Brutus had fought for Pompey in the civil war and been pardoned and promoted by Caesar
following the war. Many of the other conspirators had once been supportive of Caesar, siding with him
during the civil war. Some were even his close associates and advisers. Although each member of the
conspiracy had his own motives, the group was united by a desire to preserve the Roman Republic and the
values for which it stood. They sought to eliminate the dictator and return Rome to its republican roots.
Although the assassination of Caesar was essential, the group agreed, at Brutus’ urging, to kill no one else,
including Caesar’s close ally and supporter, Mark Antony.
The day after the assassination, the Senate passed a motion to recognize and acknowledge Caesar’s acts and
appointments. He was granted a public funeral with full honors. The Senate also pardoned the conspirators,
working to create a compromise that would satisfy all sides. At Caesar’s funeral, Mark Antony spoke,
reading a list of the honors granted to Caesar by the Senate, the oath taken by the Senate to preserve Mark
Antony’s life, and reading Caesar’s will to the crowd. The crowds attending Caesar’s funeral demanded his
cremation in the Senate itself, in the heart of the Forum. Benches and seats were broken to feed his funeral
pyre. The people of Rome rioted and attacked the conspirators’ homes in the days and weeks following the
funeral. Although the conspirators sought to restore the republic, they misjudged the response of the people
and the strength of Caesar’s allies.
Global Effect
The conspiracy failed to achieve its desired goal, and rather than restoring the republic, the assassination of
Caesar triggered another civil war. Caesar’s will officially made his great-nephew Octavian an heir.
Octavian, now known as Caesar Augustus, was only nineteen years old, but he soon showed himself to be an
effective leader. Augustus eventually ruled the empire alone, turning Rome into a monarchy once again.
Adapted from:
"The Assassination of Julius Caesar: 44 bce." Global Events: Milestone Events Throughout History. Vol. 4: Europe.
Detroit: Gale, 2013. Student Resources in Context. Web. 14 Dec. 2013.