Julius Caesar

Gaius Julius Caesar was born on 12 or 13 July 100 BC into a patrician family, the gens Julia. Despite their ancient pedigree, the Julii Caesares were not politically influent, although they had enjoyed a revival of their fortunes in the early 1st century BC. Caesar's father, also called Gaius Julius Caesar, governed Asia; his aunt Julia married Gaius Marius, a prominent figure of the Republic; and his mother, Aurelia Cotta, came from an influential family.

In 85 BC, Caesar's father died and he became the head of the family. This coincided with Sulla's first civil war, which opposed his uncle Gaius Marius and Lucius Cornelius Sulla. It was around this time when Caesar was nominated Flamen Dialis (high priest of Jupiter) and married Lucius Cornelius Cinna's daughter, Cornelia.

Sulla won the war and Caesar's connections to the old regime made him a target. He was stripped of his inheritance, his wife's dowry and his priesthood (ironically, it was the loss of his priesthood that allowed him to pursue a military career). Caesar felt it would be much safer away from Sulla, so he left Rome and joined the army, serving in Asia and Cilicia.

Hearing of Sulla's death in 78 BC, Caesar returned to Rome. He acquired a modest house in Subura (a lower class neighbourhood of Rome) and turned to legal advocacy.

Caesar was elected quaestor for 69 BC. He went to serve his quaestorship in Spain. While there, he is said to have encountered a statue of Alexander the Great, and realised with dissatisfaction that he was now at an age when Alexander had the world at his feet, while he had achieved so little. In 65 BC he was elected curule aedile, and staged lavish games that won him further attention and popular support. In 63 BC, he ran for election to the post of Pontifex Maximus (chief priest). Caesar won comfortably, despite his opponents' greater experience and standing.

After serving as praetor in 62 BC, Caesar was appointed to govern Hispania Ulterior. He was in considerable debt and needed to satisfy his creditors. He turned to Marcus Licinius Crassus, one of the richest men in Rome. Crassus paid his debts in return for political support against Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus (aka Pompey).

Caesar was in Crassus' political debt, but he also made overtures to Pompey and tried to reconcile them. The three of them had enough money and influence to control public business. This informal alliance, known as the First Triumvirate, was cemented by the marriage of Pompey to Caesar's daughter, Julia. He proposed a law for redistributing public lands to the poor, a proposal supported by both Pompey and Crassus, making the triumvirate public.

When Caesar was first elected, the aristocracy tried to limit his power by allotting the woods and pastures of Italy as his military command duty after his year in office was over. Caesar managed to overturn this and was instead appointed to govern Cisalpine Gaul and Illyricum, with Transalpine Gaul later added, giving him the command of four legions. 

In 55 BC, he crossed into Britain. His intelligence information was poor, he didn't advance much and ended up returning to Gaul for the winter. He returned in 54 BC, but poor harvests led to widespread revolt in Gaul and he was forced to leave Britain. He never returned.

While Caesar was in Britain, his daughter Julia died in childbirth. Caesar tried to re-secure Pompey's support by offering him his great-niece in marriage but Pompey declined. In 53 BC, Crassus was killed and Rome was on the brink of civil war. Pompey was appointed sole consul as an emergency measure, and married the daughter of a political opponent. The triumvirate was dead.

Though the Gallic tribes were just as militarily strong as the Romans, the internal division of the Gauls guaranteed an easy victory for Caesar. Vercingetorix's attempt to unite them against the Romans came too late. He was an astute commander and defeated Caesar several times, but Caesar's victory at the Battle of Alesia finally forced his surrender. Gaul was effectively conquered.

In 50 BC, the Senate ordered Caesar to disband his army and return to Rome. On 10 January 49 BC, Caesar crossed the Rubicon with a single legion and ignited civil war. Upon crossing the Rubicon, Caesar said alea iacta est (let the die be cast). Pompey and many of the Senate fled to the south.

Pompey managed to escape before Caesar could capture him. Heading for Spain, he left Italy under the control of Marcus Antonius (aka Mark Antony). After a 27-day route-march, Caesar defeated Pompey's lieutenants. He then returned east, to challenge Pompey in Illyricum, where he barely avoided a catastrophic defeat. Pompey was defeated at the Battle of Pharsalus, on 9 August 48 BC.

In Rome, Caesar was appointed dictator with Mark Antony as his second-in-command. Caesar presided over his own election to a second consulship and then resigned his dictatorship. He pursued Pompey to Egypt, arriving soon after his murder.

Caesar became involved in an Egyptian civil war between the child-pharaoh, Ptolemy XIII, and his sister, wife and co-ruler, Cleopatra; he sided with Cleopatra. He withstood the Siege of Alexandria and then defeated the pharaoh's forces at the Battle of the Nile. Cleopatra was installed as a ruler and they both celebrated their victory with a triumphal procession on the Nile.

Caesar was not married to Cleopatra. However, he did continue his relationship with her throughout his third marriage (to Calpurnia), and probably fathered a son, Caesarion.

After spending the first months of 47 BC in Egypt, Caesar went to the Middle East. From there, he proceeded to Africa to deal with the remnants of Pompey's supporters. He quickly gained a significant victory in 46 BC over Cato, who committed suicide. After this victory, Caesar was appointed dictator for ten years.

While he was campaigning in Spain, the Senate began to bestow honours on Caesar. He had not proscribed his enemies, instead pardoning almost all, and there was no opposition to him. On his return to Italy in 45 BC, he filled his will, naming his grandnephew, Gaius Octavius (aka Octavian, later Augustus) as his principal heir.

Caesar established a new constitution, which intended to accomplish three goals: 1, to supress all armed resistance and bring order back; 2, to create a strong central government in Rome; 3, to knit all the provinces together into a single unit. The first goal was accomplished when Pompey and his supporters were defeated. To accomplish the other two, he needed to be certain that his control over the government was absolute. 

Finally, he enacted a series of reforms. He ordered a census to be taken, and passed a law that rewarded families for having many children. He restructured debt laws, which ultimately eliminated about a fourth of all debts owed. However, the most important change was his reform of the calendar. Caesar replaced the old calendar (regulated by the moon) with the Egyptian one (regulated by the sun). He set the length of the year to 365.25 days, by adding a leap day at the end of February every four years.

Shortly before his assassination, the Senate named Caesar censor for life and Pater Patriae. The month of Quintilis was renamed July in his honour. Coins were issued with his image and his statue was placed next to those of the kings. He was also granted a golden chair at the Senate, was allowed to wear triumphal dress whenever he wanted and was offered a form of popular cult.

On the Ides of March (15 March) of 44 BC, Caesar was due to appear at a session of the Senate. Several senators had conspired to murder Caesar; Mark Antony, having vaguely learned of the plot, went to warn Caesar. The plotters anticipated this and had arranged for him to be intercepted just as he approached the Theatre of Pompey, where the session was to be held.

According to Plutarch, when Caesar arrived, Lucius Tillius Cimber presented him with a petition. The other conspirators gathered around to offer support. Caesar waved him away, but Cimber grabbed his shoulders. Caesar cried why, this is violence! At the same time, Publius Servilius Casca Longus produced a dagger and made a thrust at Caesar's neck. Caesar caught Casca by the arm and said Casca, you villain, what are you doing? Frightened, Casca shouted ἀδελφέ, βοήθει (help, brother). Within moments, the whole group was striking out at the dictator. Caesar tried to escape but, blinded by blood, tripped and fell; the men continued stabbing as he lay defenceless. He was stabbed 23 times. Suetonius reports that Caesar's last words were και συ τεκνον; (you too, child? *looking at you, Brutus*). However, Suetonius' own opinion was that Caesar said nothing.

Marcus Junius Brutus and his companions then marched to the Capitol, while crying out People of Rome, we are once again free! They were met with silence. The result unforeseen by the assassins was that Caesar's death precipitated the end of their beloved Republic. The middle and lower classes, with whom Caesar was immensely popular, became enraged that a small group of aristocrats had killed their champion. The mob attacked the houses of Brutus and Cassius, ultimately providing the spark for the Liberators' civil war.

In 42 BC, Julius Caesar was formally deified as Divus Iulius.

Modern statue of Julius Caesar

Rimini, Italy