Julius Caesar
Gaius Julius Caesar (July 100 BC – March 44 BC) was a Roman general and statesman who was instrumental in the events that led to the Roman Republic's demise and the rise of the Roman Empire.
He was a political and military genius who deposed the decaying political order of Rome and installed a dictatorship in its place. He won the Roman Civil War, but was assassinated by those who thought he was gaining too much power.
EARLY LIFE• Gaius Julius Caesar was born into a patrician family, the gens Julia, which claimed descent from Julus, son of the legendary Trojan prince Aeneas, supposedly the son of the goddess Venus.
• Patricians were the members of Rome’s original aristocracy, which had coalesced in the 4th century BCE with a number of leading plebeian (commoner) families to form the nobility that had been the governing class in Rome since then.
• His father, Gaius Julius Caesar (same name), was the governor of Asia provice.
• Aurelia Cotta, his mother, came from a powerful family.
• By Caesar's time, there were few surviving patrician gentes, and the Caesares appear to have been the only surviving family in the gens Julia.
• Though patrician blood ran in some of the most powerful noble families, it was no longer a political advantage; in fact, it was a disadvantage, because patricians were barred from holding the unconstitutional but powerful office of tribune of the plebs.
• It wasn't wealthy, influential, or even well-known.
• Caesar's father died suddenly in 85 BC, leaving Caesar as the family's head at the age of 16.
• He grew up during a civil war between his uncle Gaius Marius and his rival Lucius Cornelius Sulla. Marius and his ally Lucius Cornelius Cinna were in control of the city when Caesar was nominated as the new flamen dialis (high priest of Jupiter) and he was married to Cinna's daughter Cornelia.
• Caesar was stripped of his inheritance, his wife's dowry, and his priesthood after Sulla's final victory, but he refused to divorce Cornelia and was forced to flee.
• His mother's family, which included Sulla supporters, intervened to remove the threat against him.
MILITARY AND POLITICAL CAREER
ROSE TO POWER
• Following Sulla's death, Caesar entered politics as a prosecuting attorney.
• In 60 BC, Caesar ran for consul and was elected alongside conservative Marcus Bibulus. Caesar was already owed a political favour by Marcus Licinius Crassus, but he also made overtures to Pompey.
• After a decade of feuding, Caesar attempted to reconcile Pompey and Crassus.
• The three of them had enough money and political clout to exert control over government affairs. The First Triumvirate was an informal alliance (rule of three men)
• It was solidified by Pompey's marriage to Caesar's daughter Julia.
• Caesar married a second time, this time to Calpurnia, the daughter of a powerful senator.
• Caesar proposed a law redistributing public lands to the poor—by force if necessary—making the Triumvirate public, a proposal backed by Pompey and Crassus.
• Caesar obtained the lexVatinia, granting him governorship over Cisalpine Gaul (northern Italy) and Illyricum, with the help of political allies (southeastern Europe).
• After the untimely death of its governor, Transalpine Gaul (southern France) was added later at the request of Pompey and his father-in-law Piso, giving him command of four legions.
CONQUEST OF GAUL (FRANCE)
• Caesar waged wars in order to pay off his debts.
• The war began when some oppressed tribes appealed to Caesar for assistance in escaping the Helvetii, a Gallic tribe.
• Many Gauls were impressed by Caesar's victory over the Helvetii and asked him to defeat the Suebi, a Germanic tribe that was invading Gaul.
• Following that, Caesar launched two divisive campaigns: one across the Rhine River, known as Germania, and the other across the English Channel, known as Britannia. Neither campaign was particularly successful, but the fact that Caesar had crossed into the "barbarian" lands of Britain and Germany left a lasting impression on many Romans.
CIVIL WAR
• Because Caesar's term as governor had expired, the Senate (led by Pompey) ordered him to disband his army and return to Rome in 50 BC. Caesar feared that if he entered Rome without the protection of a magistrate, he would be prosecuted. Pompey accused Caesar of treason and insubordination.
• Before Caesar could apprehend Pompey, he managed to flee.
• As he made his way to Spain, Caesar left Italy in the hands of Mark Antony. Caesar defeated Pompey's lieutenants and then returned to Illyria to confront Pompey.
• Following Crassus' death, Caesar marched his army into Italy, defeated Pompey, and declared himself dictator.
• Pompey then fled to Egypt, where he was assassinated by Cleopatra's brother and rival, Cleopatra's brother.
• After defeating the Pharoahs, Caesar assisted Cleopatra in becoming the ruler of Egypt and had an illicit affair with her.
DICTATORSHIP• The Senate began bestowing honours on Caesar while he was still campaigning in Spain. Caesar had not outlawed his foes, instead pardoning nearly all of them, and he faced no serious public opposition.
• In April, huge games and celebrations were held to commemorate Caesar's victory at Munda. Many Romans thought the triumph held after Caesar's victory was in poor taste, according to Plutarch, because those defeated in the civil war were not foreigners, but fellow Romans.
• Caesar instituted some constitutional reforms, but the senate resisted them vehemently. Caesar did not live long enough to see what he had started because of the problems caused by some of the reforms.
• Caesar aimed to strengthen the central government, which was in disarray, and to put a stop to the rampant corruption that had resulted from poor leadership.
• Furthermore, Caesar desired to bring order to the provinces and to centralise the administration. Caesar increased his authority and limited the authority of other institutions in order to achieve these reforms.
• He sat in the Senate with his close associates. By increasing the number of elected magistrates, Caesar was able to weaken individual magistrates. The newly created positions were also skewed in favour of his supporters.
• In addition to political reforms, Caesar improved the Roman people's social and economic well-being. He established a housing programme for the poor and used taxation to relieve the financial burden imposed on the masses.
• In addition, he proposed infrastructure projects to help the economy grow.
• He also brought CARTHAGE and CORNITH back to life.
ASSASINATION
• On the Ides of March in 44 BC, Caesar was scheduled to appear before the Senate, where he was to be assassinated by several senators.
• The assassination involved around 60 men, and he was stabbed 23 times.
AFTERMATH
Caesar quickly became a martyr in the new Roman Empire after his death. At Caesar's funeral, a mob of lower and middle-class Romans gathered, and the enraged crowd attacked Cassius and Brutus' homes. Caesar was the first Roman figure to be deified two years after his death. He was also given the title of The Divine Julius by the Senate.
The Roman Republic came to an end as a result of a power struggle in Rome. Galius Octavian, Caesar's great-grandnephew, assumed the name Augustus and became the first Roman Emperor in 27 BC.