![]() Later biographies of Caesar by Suetonius and Plutarch are also important sources. Other contemporary sources include the letters and speeches of Cicero and the historical writings of Sallust. Octavian set about solidifying his power, and the era of the Roman Empire began.Ĭaesar was an accomplished author and historian as well as a statesman much of his life is known from his own accounts of his military campaigns. Caesar's great-nephew and adopted heir Octavian, later known as Augustus, rose to sole power after defeating his opponents in the last civil war of the Roman Republic. ![]() A new series of civil wars broke out and the constitutional government of the Republic was never fully restored. ![]() On the Ides of March (15 March) 44 BC, Caesar was assassinated by a group of rebellious senators led by Brutus and Cassius, who stabbed him to death. His populist and authoritarian reforms angered the elites, who began to conspire against him. He centralized the bureaucracy of the Republic and was eventually proclaimed "dictator for life" ( dictator perpetuo). He initiated land reform and support for veterans. He gave citizenship to many residents of far regions of the Roman Republic. This began Caesar's civil war, which he won, leaving him in a position of near-unchallenged power and influence in 45 BC.Īfter assuming control of government, Caesar began a program of social and governmental reforms, including the creation of the Julian calendar. In 49 BC, Caesar openly defied the Senate's authority by crossing the Rubicon and marching towards Rome at the head of an army. With the Gallic Wars concluded, the Senate ordered Caesar to step down from his military command and return to Rome. These achievements and the support of his veteran army threatened to eclipse the standing of Pompey, who had realigned himself with the Senate after the death of Crassus in 53 BC. During this time he both invaded Britain and built a bridge across the Rhine river. Caesar rose to become one of the most powerful politicians in the Roman Republic through a string of military victories in the Gallic Wars, completed by 51 BC, which greatly extended Roman territory. Their attempts to amass political power were opposed by many in the senate, among them Cato the Younger with the private support of Cicero. In 60 BC, Caesar, Crassus, and Pompey formed the First Triumvirate, an informal political alliance that dominated Roman politics for several years. He played a critical role in the events that led to the demise of the Roman Republic and the rise of the Roman Empire. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in a civil war, and subsequently became dictator from 49 BC until his assassination in 44 BC. Only a month after Caesar’s declaration, a group of senators, among them Marcus Junius Brutus, Caesar’s second choice as heir, and Gaius Cassius Longinus assassinated Caesar in fear of his absolute power.Gaius Julius Caesar ( / ˈ s iː z ər/, SEE-zər Latin: 12 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC) was a Roman general and statesman. His increasing power and great ambition agitated many senators who feared Caesar aspired to be king. In 44 B.C.E., Caesar declared himself dictator for life. He also granted citizenship to foreigners living within the Roman Republic. At the same time, he sponsored the building of the Forum Iulium and rebuilt two city-states, Carthage and Corinth. He wielded his power to enlarge the senate, created needed government reforms, and decreased Rome’s debt. Returning to Italy, Caesar consolidated his power and made himself dictator. This sparked a civil war between Caesar’s forces and forces of his chief rival for power, Pompey, from which Caesar emerged victorious. ![]() When his rivals in Rome demanded he return as a private citizen, he used these riches to support his army and marched them across the Rubicon River, crossing from Gaul into Italy. Throughout his eight-year governorship, he increased his military power and, more importantly, acquired plunder from Gaul. His Roman troops conquered Gallic tribes by exploiting tribal rivalries. Returning to Rome, he formed political alliances that helped him become governor of Gaul, an area that included what is now France and Belgium. Seizing the opportunity, Caesar advanced in the political system and briefly became governor of Spain, a Roman province. During his youth, the Roman Republic was in chaos. ![]() Julius Caesar was a Roman general and politician who named himself dictator of the Roman Empire, a rule that lasted less than one year before he was famously assassinated by political rivals in 44 B.C.E.Ĭaesar was born on July 12 or 13 in 100 B.C.E. ![]()
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