Now haven’t you heard of the Caesar salad? What about “Hail Caesar”? Maybe Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar or Marlon Brando’s Movie “Julius Caesar. Perhaps the Ides of March. Whatever he is, right now I am going to tell you whether Julius Caesar was a killer, a Politician, a salad, a Roman, a god or one of the most brilliant Generals the world has ever seen.

ANTE BELLUM

Gaius Julius Caesar (102 BC –44 BC.) was born to an aristocrat family, related to one of the Republic’s most brilliant generals, Marius. Making Caesar part of the popular party, only so he would not lose his head from Marius’s bloody vendetta. Once he came to age he joined the military and fought in Greece, Macedon and Hispania. During the Spanish campaign he asked the senate if he could march his army in Rome show off his slaves, captives and wealth. When the senate refused it angered Caesar. Then two men asked Caesar if he wanted to become one of the three men of the Triumvirate.

Of course Caesar said yes, in fact this was better than riding in a triumph. A triumvirate was when three dictators, not the Senate, would rule Rome.  Those two men were Marcus Liccenus Crassus and Gnaius Pompey the Great, the other members of the Triumvirate. Crassus was the wealthiest man in but was more noted for his military exploits such as putting down the slave revolt of Spartacus. Pompey however was a successful General who conquered Spain, Rid the Mediterranean of Pirates, Helped Crassus destroy Spartacus and took Palestine. Besides that Pompey was everything Caesar wasn’t: Pompey was an optimate, Caesar was a Popular, Pompey was indecisive, Caesar was aggressive and sure of himself, Pompey was a terrible speaker, Caesar was a magnificent orator, thus proved that there differences will later lead to hatred.

GALLIC WARS

The trio then planed out what to do next, Crassus would go to Asia Minor to deal with the Parthinians, Pompey would stay in Rome and Caesar will go to Gaul. In Gaul an uprising of Goths, Germans, Celts, Saxons, Britons and Gallic warriors under Vetregonitix set out do destroy Rome, Caesar with the VIII, IX, X, XI,XII,XIII and XIV  legions with hired mercenaries, 48,000 men , Crossed the Alps into Gaul.  His one Easy victories at Cenbum, Bourques and Gergovia using brutal tactics such as killing woman and children. Then he crossed the Rhine River into Germany, something no other Roman had done before,

 And conquered there too. Then he sailed to Britannica, another thing no one else had done, he fought some Britons, built a small town with a garrison, let them keep a ship there and left. Although he did not conquer there he built a foothold that later Claudius would use when he took Britain. He sailed back to Gaul to find the Celts under Veteregonitix were still lingered. They were bottled up in Aliesia, where Caesar besieged them for weeks, the Gauls, almost out of food did not Know that a Relief Force of 300,000 men were siegeing Caesar’s works attacked, Caesar used his mercenary barbarians in defeating the massive Gallic armies in one of the largest battles of history, with odds 8 to 1 Gaul’s favor, later, Aliesia surrendered, thus ending the Gallic wars.

The importance of the Gallic wars was that it added a large province to   Rome, It also made contact and a foothold with Brittan and Germania.  It also was Important  because the soldiers under Caesar were now firmly loyal to him and they conquered one of the three largest tribes( the others were the  Germanic tribes and the Parthinians).

 Crossing the Rubicon: Civil War

Upon returning from Gaul, Caesar Learned of Crassus’s  death at the hand of the Parthinians, with his standards captured, and his head on a pole. A Reorganization  occurred with each of the Consuls, Caesar would disband one of his legions, and Pompey would disband one of his. Caesar disbanded  one of his but Pompey, disbanded a legion that he borrowed  from Caesar. This angered  Caesar because now he disbanded two legions and Pompey did not disband any. If that was not enough, two of Caesar’s generals, after negotiating in Rome, were chased out like criminals on the run, one of them being Marc Antoney. This was war, Caesar, with one legion, facing Pompey’s 18 in Rome, did the unthinkable, unimaginable, to march into Italy, to cross the Rubicon River to the Imperial city, Rome, and  saying “ the die is cast, I abandon the rules of war,  Jupiter, we who are about to die salute you.”

Pompey, surprisingly, fled Rome and went to southern Italy to assemble an army. The senate, angered with Caesar, fled too. Caesar was then reinforced with six legions, all in all seven legions, sailed to Greece and a scared Pompey followed. Once they got in there winter camps, Caesar, in the dead of winter, marched his army around Pompey’s flank and defeated him in battle even though the odds 7 to 1, in  Pompey savor, but never the less, Pompey’s army was destroyed and he sailed to Egypt. When Pompey arrived  he did not receive a warm welcome, Ptolemy XIII, chopped off his head and gave it to Caesar when he arrived, Caesar was not amused, and he ordered Ptolemy to be banished and his sister, Cleopatra, to be Queen of Egypt From the time Caesar crossed the Rubicon to now, it was the end of allies.

Vini,Vidi,Vici.

 Caesar than went to finish off Pompey’s supporters in Africa where he was accompanied by his grand nephew, Octavian. The next winter he married Cleopatra, and had a son named little Caesar. Caesar then went to Asia Minor to avenge Crassus’s death,  he re-captured the  standards and conquered,  and when he returned he said “ I came, I saw, I conquered”.  He returned to Rome and became a unofficial Emperor or Dictator.

During this time of  Peace or Paxa Romana, Caesar remade the calendar into what we have today. He also had feasts for the people and on one of them he was offered a crown, Caesar declined. He also  brought Cleopatra to Rome, that angered the senate, something had to be done, and soon! Then they conspired.

Etu, Brute?

That was enough, thought Cassius, Caesar must be killed!  Then Casca, Brutas, Cassius and sixty other senators, who used to be his friends, leaped upon him and stabbed him 21 times. Caesar then said, “And you to, Brutas? Then fall Caesar”. It had been planed for a long time, ever since he crossed the Rubicon they despised him. When he brought Cleopatra as queen, they hated him. Then when the people loved him, they hated him. The day Marc Antoney offered him a crown, even though he refused, they hated him.  And then his old friend Brutas killed him, in Pompey’s  Theatre,  beneath the statue of his old nemesis, Pompey. Then the assassins,  who were too afraid of him to kill him armed then acted like they were saviors  of the Republic, for that is what the slime of Cicero hailed him, made a speech. Then his troops failed to seize them, oh, oh, oh.

Then Fall Caesar…

Although he died Caesar will go down in history as the world’s greatest leader. Who could have took all of Western Europe in 5 years. Who could’ve annihilated 450,000 men when he had but 45,000. Who could’ve had 6,000 men against 168,000 and taken all of Italy in 2 days. Who could’ve  destroyed an army three times his size. Who could’ve taken Asia Minor in less than a month. Who could’ve  thought of a calendar like what we have today. And who could’ve did the thousands of other things he did. Only Caesar. Later his heir Octavian fulfilled all his wishes  and  made Rome into an Empire that would last longer than any other country in history. And as Caesar said “after my death history will repeat itself. So now you know what July, great Caesar’s ghost,  Hail Caesar and everything else came from. Now farewell great people of the newest  Rome, Hail Caesar!

• What do my fellow countrymen think about this matter?

Comments

Dec. 27, 2006 - Wow! A great way to learn!

Posted by Anonymous

I always read your blog and learn more each time I read it. I am reading about Caesar now more than I ever have before. Your Knowledge of history amazes me. I would like to have more info about the Romans

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Dec. 27, 2006 - good job!

Posted by Anonymous

Good job!

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Jan. 14, 2007 - Untitled Comment

Posted by kittyqueen

Hi, Jonah. Great post. Hope to see more soon.

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May. 23, 2007 - Untitled Comment

Posted by Anonymous

You are sooooooooo smart. I bow to you Emperor!

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May. 26, 2007 - Untitled Comment

Posted by Anonymous

I think you should stop praising yourself with your own comments

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