The Assassination of Julius Caesar
Please read through the following guidelines fully. You will have the choice between a Greek or a Roman history essay. Choosing one of the following topics you will produce an essay of between 5-6 double-spaced pages in length on the basis of your own research and interpretation of the ancient evidence.
- Discuss the role of Alcibiades in the sacrilegious events of 415 BC
- Discuss the assassination of Julius Caesar on March 15, 44 BC.
In separate files in the ‘Essay’ folder on ATL, you will find the materials needed to conduct research into these topics: for Topic 1, see “Religious Scandal of 415”; for Topic 2, see “The Ides of March
In these files, you will find several of the most important passages of ancient (primary) evidence that bear on the subject. Throughout the semester, you have been working on short, passage-for-comment exercises meant to train you in your handling of ancient evidence. You now should have a developing sense of how to spot the most important information in historical passages and how to critically analyze this information and interrogate its sources.
Throughout these early exercises, you have sometimes been guided by questions. In your initial reading of materials for your chosen essay topic it is recommended that you try to come up with a guiding research question that will help focus your selection of materials and guide your essay preparation; that is, come up with the kind of research question that can be reasonably answered in the space allowed and using the available sources.
The goal of this (and any other) essay should not be to produce a report that merely describes what you find in your sources, but to produce an argument based on your reading of those sources; hence the word ‘essay’ from the French essayer (‘to try’ as in “to try to convince” your reader of something). Your argument will take the form of a thesis, a central claim supported by the presentation of subordinated claims based on your analysis of primary evidence and engagement with secondary scholarship
Your essays will be evaluated on the quality of the ideas and argumentation they contain. Ideas and arguments, however great, cannot be appreciated unless they are well articulated. As such, a considerable part of your grade for this essay will depend on its clarity and quality as a piece of writing. The essay should develop one central argument, set out in its introduction (the thesis statement). This argument should be developed clearly and consistently in the body of the essay. Each paragraph should be rooted in analysis (not summary!) of the primary sources (i.e., the ancient evidence).
The Assassination of Julius Caesar
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The Assassination of Julius Caesar
Caesar was a Roman general and a political figure who was immensely popular among the Roman people, having played a significant role in the growth and development of the Roman Republic. Together with the Roman senators and fellow politicians, Caesar helped shape Roman policy and government. After attaining the dictatorship status, many Senate members decided to fight against his power. His arrogance and oppressive rule motivated the Senate to assassinate him. About sixty conspirators decided to assassinate him at the senate meeting on March 15,44BC, commonly known as the ides of March. Collectively, the officials stabbed the Roman leader 23 times, killing him. In this paper, I will address the motives behind the assassination of Julius Caesar through the research question: What were the main reasons for Caesar’s assassination? Based on the readings, the senators who conspired to kill Caesar claimed to be acting over fears that Caesar’s exceptional power concentration during his dictatorship undermined Rome and presented the deed as a tyrannicide act. They believed that assassinating the tyrant would restore the Republic’s institutions. The first sections analyze the reasons for the assassination, while the last part of this paper highlights how the assassination occurred.[Goldsworthy, Adrian. 2013. Caesar's Civil War 49-44 BC. Oxfordshire, England: Routledge.]
The Motivation of the Assassination
One of the primary reasons for Caesar's assassination was the dictatorship. During the Gallic Wars, he emerged as a prominent leader, amassing considerable influence and power in Rome. Caesar was part of the First Triumvirate, an alliance formed with other key political figures to accumulate more political power and influence in the ever-expanding Rome territory. The key political figures include Pompey and Marcus Crassus. Caesar was exceptionally famous among people and the middle class, gaining tremendous support. When Crassus died fighting against the Parthians, a power struggle between Caesar and Pompey began. The two leaders battled in a bitter civil war, which ended with Pompey’s murder upon seeking refuge in Egypt. Caesar took the opportunity to support the Egyptian ruler, Cleopatra, by helping her defeat her brother for control of the Kingdom .[Ibid, 33] [Goldsworthy, Adrian. 2013. Caesar's Civil War 49-44 BC. Oxfordshire, England: Routledge] [Shakespeare, William. 2020. The Tragedy of Julius Caesar. Charlottesville, Virginia: Core Knowledge Foundation.]
In ancient Rome, a dictator was an official title given to someone during an emergency. The tyrant had absolute power within a specific period. Caesar gained this title after returning to Rome. He was declared dictator for life. With the lifetime role declaration, many officials feared it was a step toward monarchy. History depicts that the Romans highly disliked Kings. In 508 BCE, the Romans dethroned their last king and created the Roman Republic. The erstwhile monarchs were too oppressive. As a result, many Romans opposed the kingship idea. Caesar’s dictatorship resembled that of a monarchy, according to some senators. A group of senators led by Marcus Junius Brutus and Gaius Cassius Longinus believed that the only way to restore the Republic was to assassinate Caesar.[Ibid, 59]
Historians of the period, like Suetonius, posited that Caesar used his position to obtain unnecessary honors, labeled himself a lifetime despot without an election, and used suppression to silence the opposition. He also had works and statues dedicated to him. Additionally, the Roman ruler abused his power by appointing high-ranking officials at his discretion. Caesar appointed magistrates for multiple years, violating the established laws and procedures. His close associates secured high-ranking government positions based on their association with the leader. Caesar considered himself an absolute authority figure with eh power to lay out laws and govern the country; he positioned himself above the long-standing Rome’s democratic tradition. Caesar’s disregard for the law gave the conspirators a grip to rebuke him.
Another reason was the senator's fear of becoming irrelevant after Caesar declared himself a monarch of the empire and moved the capital away from Rome. As a governing institution, the Senate is a long-established and well-respected tradition. Being salvaged even after the decline of the Roman mona...