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Early Life
Caesar was born on July 13, 100 BCE. He was the nephew of Gaius Marius, the legendary Roman general. Caesar claimed to be a descendant of the goddess Venus through the Trojan prince Aeneas and his Lulus.
Caesar's family, despite his noble ancestry, was neither wealthy nor powerful in Roman society. Caesar had become the head of his family at the age of 16 after his father passed away abruptly in 85 B.C., smack in the height of a civil war between his uncle Marius and the Roman dictator Lucius Cornelius Sulla.
Even after the amnesty, Caesar abandoned Rome and joined the army, gaining the legendary Civic Crown for his valor during the Siege of Mitilli in Greece. After Sulla's death in 78 B.C., Caesar returned to Rome and established himself as a renowned defendant known for his oratory skills.
First Triumvirate
Caesar rose to prominence as a Roman magistrate in 65 B.C., producing costly games in the Circus Maximus that charmed him to the populace but put him in debt. He was elected Pontifex Maximus two years later. Caesar was appointed governor of Iberia a year later. Caesar was chosen as senior Roman consul in 59 B.C. after a series of successful military and political operations, as well as the support of Pompey and Marcus Licinius Crassus. Caesar, Crassus, and Pompey formed the First Triumvirate, an unofficial partnership. The Roman Senate was scared by the union, knowing that a coalition of three such powerful individuals would be invincible. They were correct, and the triumvirate quickly seized power in Rome.
In 58 B.C., Caesar was named governor of the enormous Gaul area, where he commanded a strong army. Caesar went on to lead a series of great wars to conquer and secure the region during the Gallic Wars, acquiring a reputation as a fierce military leader. However, Pompey resented him for his achievements in the province, complicating an already tense relationship between Pompey and Crassus. With Caesar's conquest of Gaul, Rome's political position grew increasingly unpredictable, with Pompey serving as the city's sole consul. Pompey united with Caesar's opponents after the deaths of Pompey's wife Julia in 54 B.C. and Crassus in 53 B.C. Caesar refused to return to Rome and, in a bold and decisive move, ordered his army to cross the Rubicon River into Italy, declaring "the die is cast," sparking a civil war between Caesar's followers and Pompey's supporters. Pompey was chased by Caesar and his army through Spain, Greece, and eventually Egypt.
Egyptian- Roman Partnership and Reforms
On September 28, 48 B.C., the young king Ptolemy VIII had Pompey assassinated to prevent Caesar from invading Egypt. Ptolemy presented Caesar with Pompey's severed head when he arrived in Egypt.
Caesar quickly found himself embroiled in a civil war between Ptolemy and Cleopatra, his Egyptian co-regent. Caesar became her lover and collaborated with her to depose Ptolemy and install her as Egypt's monarch.
Their long-term relationship resulted in a son, Ptolemy XV Caesar, also known as Caesarion.
In the Middle East, Africa, and Spain, Caesar spent the next few years annihilating his opponents and the remnants of Pompey's adherents. He was made dictator of Rome for ten years in 46 B.C, proclaiming “Veni, viri, vici”., outraging his political opponents and setting the stage for the Roman Republic's eventual demise.
Caesar began a series of drastic reforms to benefit Rome's lower and middle classes, including regulating the distribution of subsidized wheat, expanding the Senate to reflect more people, lowering government debt, supporting war veterans, awarding Roman citizenship to people living in Rome's far-flung territories, altering the Roman tax codes, and establishing the Julian calendar.
Beware the Ides of March
His quest for total power, on the other hand, did not go over well with many Roman politicians.
A gang of senators plotted to assassinate him because they feared he would become king. The senators stabbed Caesar on the Ides of March, led by Gaius Cassius Longinus, Decimus Brutus, and Marcus Brutus, ending both his rule and his life as he collapsed bleeding into the Senate floor at the foot of a Pompey statue.
Caesar's killing at the age of 55 turned him into a hero and sparked a cycle of civil wars that led to the Roman Republic's demise and the ascension of his grandnephew and heir Gaius Octavius to the throne of the Roman Empire, SPQR.
Caesar is still regarded as a remarkable leader with so many excellent insights into human nature.
Created by Mkk
Created January 9th, 2022
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