Julius Caesar Summary and Study Guide

Julius Caesar Summary and Study Guide J​ulius Caesar may have been the greatest man of all times. His birth date was July 12/13, probably in the year 100 B.C., although it may have been in 102 B.C. Caesar died March 15, 44 B.C., which date is known as the Ides of March. By age 39/40, Julius Caesar had been a widower, divorce, governor (propraetor) of Further Spain, captured by pirates, hailed imperator by adoring troops, quaestor, aedile, consul, named to an important priesthood, and elected pontifex maximus (although he may not have been installed) a lifelong honor usually reserved for the end of a mans career. What was left for his remaining 16/17 years? That for which Julius Caesar was most well known: the Triumvirate, military victories in Gaul, the dictatorship, civil war, and, finally, assassination. Julius Caesar was a general, a statesman, a lawgiver, an orator, an historian, and a mathematician. His government (with modifications) endured for centuries. He never lost a war. He fixed the calendar. He created the first news sheet, Acta Diurna, which was posted on the forum to let everyone who cared to read it know what the Assembly and Senate were up to. He also instigated an enduring law against extortion. Caesar vs. the Aristocracy He traced his ancestry to Romulus, putting him in as aristocratic a position as possible, but his association with his uncle Marius populism put Julius Caesar in political hot water with many of his social class. Under the penultimate Roman king, Servius Tullius, the patricians developed as the privileged class. The patricians then took over as the ruling class when the Roman people, who were fed up with kings, drove out Servius Tullius murderer and successor. This Etruscan king of Rome was referred to as Tarquinius Superbus Tarquin the Proud. With the end of the period of kings, Rome entered into the period of the Roman Republic. At the start of the Roman Republic, the Roman people were mainly farmers, but between the fall of the monarchy and the rise of Julius Caesar, Rome changed dramatically. First, it mastered Italy; then it turned its sights to the Carthaginian hold on the Mediterranean, to gain supremacy over which it needed a fighting naval force. Citizen fighters left their fields prey to land speculators, although if all went well, they returned home with ample booty. Rome was building its remarkable empire. Between slaves and the conquered wealth, the hard-working Roman became the luxury-seeking spendthrift. Real work was carried out by slaves. A rural lifestyle gave way to urban sophistication. Rome Avoided Kings The governing style that developed as an antidote to monarchy originally included severe limitations on the power of any one individual. But by the time large-scale, enduring wars became the norm, Rome needed powerful leaders whose terms would not end mid-battle. Such men were called dictators. They were supposed to step down after the crisis for which they were appointed, although during the late Republic, Sulla had put his own time limits on his term as dictator. Julius Caesar became dictator for life (literally, perpetual dictator). Note: Although Julius Caesar may have been the permanent dictator, he was not the first Roman emperor. The conservatives resisted change, seeing the downfall of the Republic in every nuance of reform. Thus Julius Caesars murder was incorrectly hailed by them as the only way back to the old values. Instead, his murder led to the rise of, first, civil war, and next, the first Roman princeps (from which we get the word prince), whom we refer to as the Emperor Augustus.​ There are only a few names of the great men and women of the ancient world whom almost everyone recognizes. Among these is the last dictator of the Roman Republic, Julius Caesar, whose assassination Shakespeare immortalized in his play,  Julius Caesar. Here are some of the main points to know about this great Roman leader. 1. Caesars Birth Julius Caesar was probably born 3 days before the  Ides of July, in 100 B.C. That date would be July 13. Other possibilities are that he was born on July 12 in 100 B.C. or that he was born on July 12 or 13 in the year 102 B.C. 2. Caesars Pedigreed Family His fathers family was from the patrician gens of the Julii. The Julii traced its lineage to the first king of Rome, Romulus, and the goddess  Venus  or, instead of Romulus, to Venus grandson Ascanius (aka Iulus or Jullus; whence Julius). One patrician branch of the Julian gens was called Caesar. [See  Surnames of the Julii from UNRV.] Julius Caesars parents were Gaius Caesar and Aurelia, daughter of Lucius Aurelius Cotta. 3. Familial Ties Julius Caesar was related by marriage to  Marius. The first 7-time consul, Marius supported the and opposed  Sulla. Sulla supported the  optimates. (It is common, but inaccurate to consider the  optimates  like the conservative party and the  populares  like the liberal party of modern political systems.) Perhaps more familiar to military history buffs, Marius drastically reformed the military during the Republican period. 4. Caesar and the Pirates The young Julius went to Rhodes to study oratory, but on his way he was captured by pirates whom he charmed and seemingly befriended. After he was freed, Julius arranged to have the pirates executed. 5. Cursus Honorum QuaestorJulius entered the course of advancement (cursus honorum) in the Roman political system as quaestor in 68 or 69 B.C.Curule AedileIn 65 B.C., Julius Caesar became curule aedile and then managed to be appointed to the position of  pontifex maximus, contrary to convention, since he was so young.PraetorJulius Caesar became  praetor  for 62 B.C. and during that year divorced his second wife for not being above suspicion, in the Bona Dea scandal involving Claudius/Clodius Pulcher.ConsulJulius Caesar won one of the consulships in 59 B.C. The chief advantage for him of this top political position was that following the term in office, he would become governor (proconsul) of a lucrative province.ProconsulAfter his term as  consul, Caesar was sent to Gaul as the proconsul. 6. Caesars Promiscuity MistressesJulius Caesar himself was guilty of many extra-marital affairs, with Cleopatra, among others. One of the most significant relations was with Servilia Caepionis, the half-sister of Cato the Younger. Because of this relationship, it was thought possible that Brutus was Julius Caesars son.Male LoverJulius Caesar was taunted all his life with charges of having been the lover of King Nicomedes of Bithynia.WivesJulius Caesar married Cornelia, a daughter of Marius associate, Lucius Cornelius Cinna, then a relative of Pompey named Pompeia, and finally, Calpurnia. 7. Triumvirate Julius Caesar engineered a 3-way division of power with enemies Crassus and Pompey that was known as the Triumvirate. More on the 1st Triumvirate 8. Caesars Prose Second-year Latin students are familiar with the military side of Julius Caesars life. As well as conquering the Gallic tribes, he wrote about the  Gallic Wars  in clear, elegant prose, referring to himself in the third person. It was through his campaigns that Julius Caesar was finally able to work his way out of debt, although the third member of the triumvirate, Crassus, also helped. Caesars Gallic Wars Commentaries 9.Rubiconand Civil War Julius Caesar refused to obey the command of the Senate, but instead led his troops across the Rubicon river, which started civil war. 10. Ides of March and Assassination Julius Caesar was the Roman dictator with divine honors, but he didnt have a crown. In 44 B.C. conspirators, claiming they feared Julius Caesar was aiming to become king, assassinated Julius Caesar on the Ides of March. More on the Ides of March 11. Caesars Heirs Although Julius Caesar had a living son, Caesarion (not officially acknowledged), Caesarion was an Egyptian, the son of  Queen Cleopatra, so Julius Caesar adopted a great nephew, Octavian, in his will. Octavian was to become the first Roman emperor, Augustus. 12. Caesar Trivia Caesar was known to be careful or abstemious in his consumption of wine and was said to have been particular in his hygiene, including having himself depilitated. I dont have a source for this. Major Events in the Timeline of Julius Caesar 102/100 B.C. - July 13/12  - Caesars Birth84  - Caesar marries the daughter of L. Cornelius Cinna75  - Pirates capture Caesar73  - Caesar is elected Pontifex69  - Caesar is quaestor. Julia, Caesars aunt (Marius widow), dies. Cornelia, the wife of Caesar, dies67  - Caesar marries Pompeia65  - Caesar is elected Aedile63  - Caesar is elected Pontifex Maximus62  - Caesar is praetor. Caesar divorces Pompeia61  - Caesar is Propraetor of Further Spain60  - Caesar is elected Consul and forms the  Triumvirate59  - Caesar is Consul58  - Caesar defeats the Helvetii and Germans55  - Caesar crosses the Rhine and invades Britain54  - Caesars daughter, who is also Pompeys wife, dies53  - Crassus is killed52  - Clodius is murdered; Caesar defeats Vercingetorix49  - Caesar crosses the  Rubicon  -  Civil War  begins48  - Pompey is murdered46  - Thapsus Battle (Tunisia) against Cato and Scipio. Caesar made dictator. (Third time.)45 or 44 (Before Luperca lia)  - Caesar is declared dictator for life; literally perpetual dictator* Ides of March  - Caesar is assassinated *For most of us, the distinction between perpetual dictator and dictator for life is trivial; however, it is a source of controversy for some. Caesars final step, according to Alfoldi, was a compromise. He had been designated Dictator in perpetuum (Livy Ep. CXVI), or as the coins read, Dictator perpetuo (never, according to Alfoldi p. 36, perpetuus; note that Cicero** cited the dative, dictatori perpetuo, which could fit either form), apparently in the fall of 45 B.C. (Alfoldi pp. 14-15). He had taken up this new dictatorship upon the conclusion of his fourth annual dictatorship on or near February 15. (Mason Hammond. Review of Studien à ¼ber Caesars Monarchie by Andreas Alfà ¶ldi. The Classical Weekly, Vol. 48, No. 7, Feb. 28, 1955, pp. 100-102.) Cicero (106-43 B.C.) and Livy (59 B.C.-A.D. 17) were contemporaries of Caesar. Study Guide Non-Fiction Caesars Final Aims, by Victor Ehrenberg.  Harvard Studies in Classical Philology, Vol. 68, (1964), pp. 149-161.Caesar: Life of a Colossus, by Adrian GoldsworthyCaesar, by Christian Meier. 1995Party Politics in the Age of Caesar, by Lily Ross Taylor. Reissued in 1995.The Roman Revolution, by Ronald Syme. 1969. Fiction Colleen McCulloughs  Masters of Rome  series provides a well researched historical fiction series on Julius Caesar: First Man in RomeThe Grass CrownFortunes FavoritesCaesars WomenCaesar, A NovelThe October Horse Questions to Consider What would have happened to Rome had Caesar remained in power?Would the Republic have continued?Was the change from Republic to Empire inevitable?Were Caesars assassins traitors?Was Caesar a traitor when he crossed the Rubicon?Under what circumstances is treason justified?Why is Caesar the greatest leader ever?What reasons are there for saying he was not?What are Caesars most important/lasting contributions?