CLT: Lesson - Caesar's Biography

Image: woodcut image of Julius Caesar with the letters: IVLIO CESARCaesar's Biography

Gaius Julius Caesar was born on July 13, 100 BCE. He was a member of the gens Iulia which traced its ancestry back to Aeneas, the Trojan leader and son of Venus who settled in Italy after the Trojan War and is considered the founder of the Roman people. Although the family was politically active, it had produced only three consuls before Caesar.

Early Life and Career

Caesar grew up during an era of great turmoil. Two factions were struggling for control of Rome - the optimates who believed the power emanated from the Senate and the populares who sought power through the people themselves. The two main leaders during this era were Gaius Marius, a member of the populares and Caesar's uncle by marriage, and Lucius Cornelius Sulla (also spelled Sylla) a member of the optimates. Sulla became dictator in 82 BCE and set about eliminating his enemies. Caesar, being allied with Marius, was on the proscription list (proscription was a public posting of citizens who had been declared outlaws - they could have their property seized or even be killed with no consequence to the murderer). Caesar's property was seized because of Sulla's proscription and he had to go into hiding to protect his life. Through the influence of other members of the family who supported Sulla, Sulla relented and allowed Caesar to live.

After Sulla's death and a brief stint in the army, Caesar returned to Rome where he became known for his oratorical skills as he pursued the prosecution of corrupt provincial governors. During this period Caesar was captured by a group of pirates as he was on his way to Rhodes where he intended to study rhetoric. Caesar was released after payment of a ransom. As he promised his captors, Caesar pursued the pirates, captured them, and had them crucified.

Upon his return to Rome Caesar began his political career and in the next few years he progressed on the cursus honorum serving as a military tribune, quaestor, aedile, Pontifex Maximus, praetor, and consul in 59 BCE. While consul, he formed a political alliance with Marcus Licinius Crassus and Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus (Pompey): this group is often referred to as the First Triumvirate (trium = three, vir = man - three men ruling). To solidify the alliance Pompey married Caesar's daughter Julia. At this time, Caesar married his third wife (his first wife had died and he had divorced his second wife), who was named Calpurnia.

The Gallic War

Image: a painting showing the Gallic general Vercingetorix surrendering to Caesar Through political manipulation, Caesar followed his year as consul with the governorship of Cisalpine Gaul (northern Italy), Illyricum (western Balkans), and Transalpine Gaul (southern France). His term of office was extended from the traditional one year to five years. Through his alliance with Crassus and Pompey, he was able to extend this post another five years. He spent these ten years leading an army against the various tribes of Gaul and bringing the territory under the control of the Romans. He also made two excursions into Britain but did not maintain a force there due to pressures from tribes in Gaul. During this time Caesar wrote his Commentarii de Bello Gallico, an account of his military conquests in Gaul and Britain designed to increase his support in Rome. The commentaries are noted for their simple and direct style and have been popular literature studied by Latin students just like yourselves. The image depicts the Gallic general Vercingetorix surrendering to Caesar (Vercingetorix jette ses armes aux pieds de Jules César - painting by Lional Royer, 1899).

The Civil War

During this period Crassus died and Caesar's daughter, Julia also died. With Julia's death, the bond between Caesar and Pompey was broken and the political alliance fell apart with Caesar and Pompey becoming bitter enemies. Under Pompey's influence, the Senate ordered Caesar to disband his army and return to Rome as a civilian. Fearing prosecution for numerous questionable activities through the years, Caesar chose to keep one legion and crossed the Rubicon river in 49 BCE (the Rubicon was considered a border: returning generals were required to disband their armies before crossing this river, or it was considered an act of agression). Thus, Caesar became an enemy of the state and civil war broke out.  In spite of being outnumbered, Caesar successfully drove Pompey and his forces to the port of Brundisium where the Pompeian forces sailed away to Greece. Caesar immediately went to Hispania (modern day Spain) to re-establish two of his legions. After defeating Pompey's forces in Hispania, Caesar went in pursuit of Pompey himself. He defeated Pompey at the Battle of Pharsalus and was appointed dictator. He resigned after eleven days and was then elected to a second term as consul.

Caesar continued his attack on Pompey, following him to Egypt where Pompey was murdered by a representative of the court of King Ptolemy XIII who had hopes of gaining Caesar's favor. The ploy backfired. Caesar, who was said to have grieved at the sight of Pompey's head delivered to him on a platter, sided with Ptolemy's sister Cleopatra in their struggle for power. Caesar and Cleopatra defeated Ptolemy and she became ruler of Egypt. Rumor spread that Caesar and Cleopatra had a son, called Caesarion.

From 47 BCE until 45 BCE Caesar fought battles in the Middle East, in Africa, and Hispania defeating coalitions of opponents. He also served his third and fourth terms as a consul, the last time without a colleague.

Image: a painting depicting the death of Caesar

The End of Caesar's Life

Caesar was not like his predecessors, especially Sulla, who sought revenge on the survivors of his conquests, instead pardoning most of them. As a result, the Senate bestowed a number of honors on him even naming him dictator for life. There were, however, a number of senators who opposed Caesar's actions, fearing that he wanted to become king, an idea that was unacceptable to most Romans. On March 15, 44 BCE, approximately 60 (according to the historian Eutropius) men conspired against Caesar and assassinated him stabbing him 23 times. The image contains a depiction of the scene, titled The Assassination of Julius Caesar, painted by William Homes Sullivan, c. 1888.

In the next 17 years a number of civil wars were fought most notable among them the war between Marc Antony and Octavian. The ultimate winner of all of these struggles was Octavian who solidified his power and became the first emperor of Rome. The Roman Republic was dead.