Biography Julius Caesar

c. 85 BCE: His father died.

At age 18 he married Cornelia (daughter of a prominent member of the Popular faction. Bore him his only legitimate child: Julia).

c. 79 BCE: Caesar was awarded the civic crown (oak leaves) for saving the life of a citizen in battle. Was sent on an embassy to Nicomedes (king of Bithynia) to obtain a fleet of ships. Caesar was successful. There were lots of gossip about this success: it was known that Nicomedes was an homosexual and it was said that Caesar slept with him to obtain this fleet.

in 78 : When Sulla died, Caesar returned to Rom ( career as a orator/lawyer.He was known to be an eloquent speaker).

75 BCE: While sailing to Greece Caesar was kidnapped by Cilician pirates.

72 BCE: Caesar was elected military tribune. (Pompey and Crassus were the consuls for 70 BCE.).

69 BCE: He spoke at the funerals of both his aunt, Julia, and his wife, Cornelia. He emphasized his connections with Marius and the ancient nobility of his family. (he said that it descended from the first kings on his mother's side and from the gods on his father's.

68/67 BCE: Caesar was elected quaestor. Obtained a seat in the Senate. Married Pompeia (a granddaughter of Sulla). He supported Gnaeus Pompey. Helped him get a generalship against the Mediterranean pirates. Later to command of the war against King Mithridates in Asia Minor.

65 BCE: He was elected curule aedile.

63 BCE: Caesar tried everything he could to get elected pontifex maximus (chief priest).

62 BCE: Was elected praetor. He divorced Pompeia (she was involved in a scandal with another man, Caesar is reported to have said : "The wife of Caesar must be above suspicion").

61 BCE: Was sent to the province of Further Spain as propraetor.

60 BCE: He returned from Spain. Joined with Pompey and Crassus in a loose coalition called by modern historians "The First Triumvirate". By his enemies at the time "The three-headed monster".

59 BCE: Caesar was elected consul against heavy Optimate opposition led by Marcus Porcius Cato.

Caesar married his only daughter, Julia, to Pompey to consolidate their alliance. He, himself, married
Calpurnia, the daughter of a leading member of the Popular faction.

58 BCE:Caesar left Rome for Gaul.He would not return for 9 years (during this time he would conquer most of what is now central Europe).

56 BCE: Caesar, Pompey, and Crassus met in Caesar's province. They renew their coalition.

56 BC:Pompey and Crassus were to be consuls again, and Caesar's command in Gaul was extended until 49 BCE.

54 BCE: Caesar led a three-month expedition to Britain (this was the first Roman crossing of the English Channel).

52 BCE: Rioting in Rome led to Pompey's extra-legal election as "Consul without a colleague".

51 BCE: The conquest of Gaul completed, Caesar set up an efficient provincial administration to govern the vast territories.

49 BCE: Caesar tried to maintain his position legally. When pushed to the limit he led his armies across the Rubicon River (the border of his province). It ensued a civil war.

48 BCE: Pompey and the Optimate faction had established a strong position in Greece. Caesar, in Brundisium, did not have sufficient ships to transport all his legions. He crossed with only about 20,000 men. In the final battle, on the plains of Pharsalus, it is estimated that Pompey had 46,000 men to Caesar's 21,000. Caesar was victorious. Pompey escaped, fleeing to Egypt.

October 2, 48 BCE: Caesar, with no more than 4,000 legionaries, landed in Alexandria. When Caesar landed, the eunuch Pothinus and the Egyptian general Achillas, acting on behalf of Ptolemy XIII, had recently driven Cleopatra out of Alexandria.

February, 47 BCE: After some months under siege, Caesar tried unsuccessfully to capture Pharos.

March, 47 BCE: Caesar had sent for reinforcements, two Roman legions and the army of an ally, King Mithridates.

June 23, 47 BCE: Caesar left Alexandria, having established Cleopatra as a client ruler in alliance with Rome.

August, 47 BCE: After leaving Alexandria, Caesar swept through Asia Minor to settle the disturbances there. On August 1, he met and immediately overcame Pharnaces.

July 25, 46 BCE: The victorious and now unchallenged Caesar arrived back in Rome and celebrated four extraordinary triumphs (over the Gauls, Egyptians, Pharnaces, and Juba).Holding the position of dictator, Caesar governed autocratically, more in he manner of a general than a politician.

April, 45 BCE: The two sons of Pompey, Gnaeus and Sextus, led a revolt in Spain. Caesar won at Munda. Gnaeus Pompey was killed in the battle, but Sextus escaped to become, later, the leader of the Mediterranean pirates.

October, 45 BCE: Caesar, back in Rome, celebrated a triumph over Gnaeus Pompey.

February, 44 BCE: Caesar was named dictator perpetuus. On February 15, at the feast of Lupercalia, Caesar wore his purple garb for the first time in public.

February, 44 BCE: Caesar was preparing to lead a military campaign against the Parthians and was due to leave on March 18.

March 15, 44 BCE: Caesar attended the last meeting of the Senate before his departure (held in the portico of the theater built by Pompey the Great). The sixty conspirators, led by Marcus Junius Brutus, Gaius Cassius Longinus, Decimus Brutus Albinus, and
Gaius Trebonius, came to the meeting with daggers concealed in their togas and struck Caesar at least 23 times as he stood at the base of Pompey's statue.
After his death, all the senators fled, and three slaves carried his body home to Calpurnia several hours later.

For several days there was a political vacuum. The conspirators had only a band of gladiators to back them up, while Antony had a whole legion, the keys to Caesar's money boxes, and Caesar's will.

Formally, Ceasarion (whom Cleopatra said to be Caesar's son) wasn't Caesar's son. Before Caesar death he had chosen Gaius Octavius, his sister's grandson, as his successor.

On first January 42BC Caesar has been formally declared a god named Divus Iulius (Divine Julius). He must have been delighted for he once said:"I love the name of honor, more than I fear death."

"Beware the leader who bangs the drums of war in order to whip the citizenry into a patriotic fervor, for patriotism is indeed a double-edged sword. It both emboldens the blood, just as it narrows the mind. And when the drums of war have reached a fever pitch and the blood boils with hate and the mind has closed, the leader will have no need in seizing the rights of the citizenry. Rather, the citizenry, infused with fear and blinded by patriotism, will offer up all of their rights unto the leader and gladly so. How do I know? For this is what I have done. And I am Caesar. (Julius Caesar)"

"Men willingly believe what they wish. (Julius Caesar, De Bello Gallico)"

"In war, events of importance are the result of trivial causes."

"It is better to create than to learn! Creating is the essence of life."

"As a rule, men worry more about what they can't see than about what they can."

"If you must break the law, do it to seize power: in all other cases observe it."

"It is easier to find men who will volunteer to die, than to find those who are willing to endure pain with patience. (Julius Caesar)"