Biography Of Julius Caesar- Essay, Research Paper

Biography of Julius Caesar-

Julius Caesar was a strong leader for the Romans who changed

the course of the history of the Greco – Roman world decisively and

irreversibly. With his courage and strength he created a strong

empire. What happened during his early political career? How did he

become such a strong dictator of the Roman Empire? What events led up

to the making of the first triumvirate? How did he rise over the

other two in the triumvirate and why did he choose to take over? What

happened during his reign as dictator of Rome? What events led up to

the assassination of Caesar? What happened after he was killed?

Caesar was a major part of the Roman Empire because of his strength

and his strong war strategies.

Julius Caesar was a Roman general and statesman whose

dictatorship was pivotal in Rome s transition from republic to empire.

When he was young Caesar lived through one of the most horrifying

decades in the history of the city of Rome. The city was assaulted

twice and captured by Roman armies, first in 87 BC by the leaders of

the populares, his uncle Marius and Cinna. Cinna was killed the year

that Caesar had married Cinna s daughter Cornelia. The second attack

upon the city was carried our by Marius enemy Sulla, leader of the

optimates, in 82 BC on the latter s return from the East. On each

occasion the massacre of political opponents was followed by the

confiscation of their property. The proscriptions of Sulla, which

preceded the reactionary political legislation enacted during his

dictatorship left a particularly bitter memory that long survived.

Caesar left Rome for the province of Asia on the condition

that he divorce his wife because Sulla would only allow him to leave

on that condition. When he heard the news that Sulla had been killed

he returned to Rome. He studied rhetoric under the distinguished

teacher Molon.

In the winter of 75-74 BC Caesar was captured by pirated and,

while in their custody awaiting the arrival of the ransom money which

they demanded, threatened them with crucifixion , a threat which he

fulfilled immediately after his release. He then returned to Rome to

engage in a normal political career, starting with the quaetorship

which he served in 69-68 BC in the province of Further Spain.

In the Roman political world of the sixties the dominance of

the optimates was challenged by Pompey and Crassus. The optimates,

led by Quintus Lutatius Catulus and Lucius Licinius Lucullus , were

chiefly men whose careers had been made by Sulla. Pompey and Crassus

were consuls in 70 BC and had rescinded the most offensively

reactionary measures of Sulla s legislation. During Pompey s absence

from 67 to 62 BC during his campaigns against the Mediterranean

pirates, Mithridates, and Crassus, his jealous rival. Caesar married

Ponpeia after Cornelia s death and was appointed aedile in 65 BC As

aedile, Caesar returned to Marius trophies to their former place of

honor in the Capitol, thus laying claim to leadership of the

populares.

When Caesar was a praetor, he supported a tribune who wanted

Pompey recalled to restore order in Rome. As a result, Caesar was

suspended from office for a period and antagonized Catulus. Before

leaving Rome to govern Further Spain for a year, Caesar divorced his

wife Pompeia because of the allegation that she had been implicated in

the offense of Publius Clodius. The latter was then awaiting trial

for breaking into Caesar s house the previous December disguised as a

woman at the festival of the Bona Dea, which no man is allowed to

attend.

After his return from a successful year administrating Spain

Caesar was elected consul for 59 BC through political alliance with

Pompey and Crassus . This alliance was called the first triumvirate.

Caesar s purpose was to gain a big military command. Pompey for his

part sought the ratification of his Eastern settlement and land

allotments for his discharged troops. Crassus sought a revision of

the contract for collecting taxes in the province of Asia. An

agrarian bill authorizing the purchase of land for Pompey s veterans

was passed in January of 59 BC at a disorderly public assembly which

Caesar s fellow consul Calpurnius Bibulus, was thrown from the

platform and his consular insignia were broken. Bibulus tried to stop

Caesar and his supporters from passing any further law but was only

able to postpone the creation of the new laws by saying that the skies

would not permit it because there was stormy weather and they were

very superstitious. Caesar disregarded Bibulus behavior and the

remainder of the legislative program of the triumvirate was carried

through. As a result of this action Caesar and his friends incurred

bitter attacks. Their political opponents continued to claim that the

whole of the legislation was unconstitutional and invalid.

Caesar had secured for five years the governorship of three

provinces. The provinces were Cisalpine Gaul , Transalpine Gaul , and

Illyricum. He left Rome and remained in Gaul until his invasion of

Italy. He continued north of the Alps each summer and he would leave

his army there in garrison each winter while he came south to conduct

the civil administration of Cisalpine Gaul and Illyricum and to keep

in contact with Rome.

Caesar became determined to conquer and make a province of the

whole of Gaul. After his defeat of the Belgic tribes in the north and

the submission of the maritime tribes on the Atlantic seaboard, he

believed that the task had all but been accomplished. Caesar decided

to make two short reconnaissance expeditions, one across the Rhine.

and the other across the Straits of Dover to Britain. In a longer and

more serious invasion of Britain he crossed the Thames and received

the submission of the supreme commander of the southeastern Britons,

Cassivellaunus.

Caesar had avoided recall to Rome at the end of the five years

of command voted to him by coming to a fresh agreement with Pompey and

Crassus at Luca. The optimates in control of the senate, now awake to

the immense increase in Caesar s personal power, wealth, and prestige,

kept Pompey in Italy, allowing him to govern his Spanish provinces by

deputies. Pompey s own attachment to Caesar was broken when Caesar s

daughter Julia to whom Pompey had been happily married since 59 BC

died in 54 BC Crassus was killed by the Parthians at Carrhae in

Mesopotamia. In planning Caesar s return to civil life in Rome he

could assume that as soon as he lost the immunity from prosecution

which his military command conferred, his political enemies would

endeavor to secure his exile by prosecuting him in the courts either

for bribery or for the use of force in politics. In Rome there was

support in the senate for a negotiated compromise when Curio put forth

the proposal by which Caesar would give up his military command and

stand in person at the consular election on condition that Pompey

abandon his military command at the same time. On January 7, 49 BC

Antony and one of his fellow tribunes were warned that their lives

would be in danger if they sustained their veto and the proclamation

of military law was passed. Caesar was told to leave his troops

behind and cross the Rubicon into Rome alone. Caesar knew that this

was a death sentence for him so he did not leave his troops but

marched into the city and caused a civil war. He defeated Pompey s

troops in many battles and became the dictator of Rome.

From the time that he had first faced battle in Gaul and

discovered his own military genius, Caesar was evidently fascinated

and obsessed by military and imperial problems. He gave them an

absolute priority over the more delicate by no less fundamental task

of revising the Roman constitution. The need in the latter sphere was

a solution which would introduce such elements of authoritarianism as

were necessary to check corruption and administrative weakness.

Caesar s first dictatorship was simply a commission to enable

him to hold elections in the absence of the consuls of the year who

were with Pompey, but after the news of Pharsalus, Caesar was created

dictator again; after Tapsus he was made dictator for ten years and in

the winter of 45 BC he was appointed perpetual dictator.

When Caesar was out of Italy after 49 BC real power lay in the

hands of his representatives. When he was dictator the most important

of these representatives was his master of the horse . This

representative was Mark Antony. Much resentment was felt by prominent

senators like Cicero on account of the great power and influence of

such against of Caesar. Caesar s military dominance was established

beyond the possibility of successful challenge, the senate gave him a

profusion of personal honors which were out of keeping with Roman

tradition, reflecting as they did the extravagant distinctions

accorded earlier to the Hellenistic kings. The month of July was named

after Caesar and his statue was placed in the temple of Quirinus.

Caesar was considered to be a dictator for life. According to

the traditional Republican constitution this office was only to be

held for six months during a dire emergency. Caesar also obtained

honors to increase his prestige. He wore the robe, crown, and scepter

of a triumphant general and used the title imperator. He was also in

command of the armies. Caesar used his dictatorship and used it to

increase his power. With all of his powers he was pretty much the

king of Rome. Mark Antony was his major supporter and he helped

convince the others to allow Caesar to have these abilities, but it

led to some problems.

A group of conspirators had been formed against Caesar because

they felt that he had too much power and that if he became the king of

Rome he would become corrupt and use his powers to create a bad

society. The senate resented his actual position that was shown in

the sixty member conspiracy which Marcus Brutus had organized to kill

him. On the Ides of March , two days before he was due to leave Rome

on his great eastern expedition, he was stabbed to death at a meeting

of the senate in Pompey s new theater. He fell dead at the foot of

Pompey s statue. Pompey was avenged, as well as Bibulus and Cato.

After a provocative funeral oration by Mark Antony, Caesar s body was

burned by the mob in the forum. When at the games in his honor the

following July a comet appeared and it was regarded as evidence of his

godhead and he was formally consecrated and divus Julius, or divine

Julius. Octavius, whose name became Caesar Octavianus after his

adoption by Caesar s will, solved, by his creation of the Roman

principate, the constitutional problem that Caesar failed to solve.

Caesar had started as a consul and had formed the first

triumvirate with Crassus and Pompey. They had taken over the Roman

civilization and had controlled for a while. When Crassus was killed

and agreement was made. Pompey and Caesar were supposed to give up

their military and enter the city of Rome to find a real ruler.

Pompey was in on the deal and he was supposed to take over. Caesar

knew that if he entered the city of Rome without his troops he would

be killed by Pompey and so he crossed the Rubicon with his troops and

attacked Rome. He took over as a dictator for life and gained a lot

of power. He was able to run a strong military and even though he was

considered only a dictator he wrote laws that actually made him have

the same powers as a king. The conspirators saw the problem that had

arised and so they planned the murder of Caesar on the Ides of March.

Caesar was killed and there was another triumvirate formed. Caesar

was a strong military leader that had showed strength and courage to

take over the town and he was able to form a civilization that was

strong militarily and politically.

33e