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The Ides of March
Just one of a dozen Ides that occur every month of the year
by Borgna Brunner
The soothsayer's warning to Julius Caesar, "Beware the Ides of March," has forever imbued that date with a
sense of foreboding. But in Roman times the expression "Ides of March" did not necessarily evoke a dark
mood—it was simply the standard way of saying "March 15." Surely such a fanciful expression must signify
something more than merely another day of the year? Not so. Even in Shakespeare's time, sixteen centuries
later, audiences attending his play Julius Caesar wouldn't have blinked twice upon hearing the date called the
Ides.
The term Ides comes from the earliest Roman calendar, which is said to have been devised by Romulus, the
mythical founder of Rome. Whether it was Romulus or not, the inventor of this calendar had a penchant for
complexity. The Roman calendar organized its months around three days, each of which served as a reference
point for counting the other days:



As far as Caesar knew, the Ides
were just another day.
Kalends (1st day of the month)
Nones (the 7th day in March, May, July, and October; the 5th in the other months)
Ides (the 15th day in March, May, July, and October; the 13th in the other months)
The remaining, unnamed days of the month were identified by counting backwards from the Kalends, Nones, or the Ides. For example,
March 3 would be V Nones—5 days before the Nones (the Roman method of counting days was inclusive; in other words, the Nones
would be counted as one of the 5 days).
Days in March
March 1: Kalends; March 2: VI Nones; March 3: V Nones; March 4: IV Nones; March 5: III Nones; March 6: Pridie Nones
(Latin for "on the day before"); March 7: Nones; March 15: Ides
Used in the first Roman calendar as well as in the Julian calendar (established by Julius Caesar in 45 B.C.E.) the confusing system of
Kalends, Nones, and Ides continued to be used to varying degrees throughout the Middle Ages and into the Renaissance.
So, the Ides of March is just one of a dozen Ides that occur every month of the year. Kalends, the word from which calendar is derived,
is another exotic-sounding term with a mundane meaning. Kalendrium means account book in Latin: Kalend, the first of the month, was
in Roman times as it is now, the date on which bills are due.
Read more: Ides of March http://www.infoplease.com/spot/ides1.html#ixzz1GfatWBSU
The Ides of March (Latin: Idus Martii) is the name of 15 March in the Roman calendar, probably referring to the day of the full moon. The term ides
was used for the 15th day of the months of March, May, July, and October, and the 13th day of the other months.[1] The Ides of March was a festive
day dedicated to the god Mars and a military parade was usually held. In modern times, the term Ides of March is best known as the date that Julius
Caesar was killed in 44 B.C. Julius Caesar was stabbed (23 times) to death in the Roman Senate led by Marcus Junius Brutus, Gaius Cassius
Longinus and 60 other conspirators.
On his way to the Theatre of Pompey (where he would be assassinated), Caesar saw a seer who had foretold that harm would come to him not later
than the Ides of March. Caesar joked, "Well, the Ides of March have come", to which the seer replied "Ay, they have come, but they are not gone."[2]
This meeting is famously dramatized in William Shakespeare's play Julius Caesar, when Caesar is warned to "beware the Ides of March".[3][4]
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ides_of_March
Gaius Julius Caesar[2] (13 July 100 BC[3] – 15 March 44 BC)[4] was a Roman general and statesman. He played a critical role in the gradual
transformation of the Roman Republic into the Roman Empire.
In 60 BC, Caesar entered into a political alliance with Crassus and Pompey that was to dominate Roman politics for several years. Their attempts to
amass power for themselves through populist tactics were opposed within the Roman Senate by the conservative elite, among them Cato the Younger
with the frequent support of Cicero. Caesar's conquest of Gaul extended Rome's territory to the North Sea, and in 55 BC he conducted the first
Roman invasion of Britain. These achievements granted him unmatched military power and threatened to eclipse Pompey's standing. The balance of
power was further upset by the death of Crassus in 53 BC. Political realignments in Rome finally led to a stand-off between Caesar and Pompey, the
latter having taken up the cause of the Senate. Ordered by the senate to stand trial in Rome for various charges, Caesar marched from Gaul to Italy
with his legions, crossing the Rubicon in 49 BC. This sparked a civil war from which he emerged as the unrivaled leader of the Roman world.
After assuming control of government, he began extensive reforms of Roman society and government. He centralised the bureaucracy of the
Republic and was eventually proclaimed "dictator in perpetuity". A group of senators, led by Marcus Junius Brutus, assassinated the dictator on the
Ides of March (15 March) 44 BC, hoping to restore the constitutional government of the Republic. However, the result was a series of civil wars,
which ultimately led to the establishment of the permanent Roman Empire by Caesar's adopted heir Octavius (later known as Augustus). Much of
Caesar's life is known from his own accounts of his military campaigns, and other contemporary sources, mainly the letters and speeches of Cicero
and the historical writings of Sallust. The later biographies of Caesar by Suetonius and Plutarch are also major sources.
Michele Cammarano (1771–1844) Mort de Caesar