Julius Caesar is ancient Romes most famous figure.

A brilliant politician
and general, his accomplishments and influence were so significant that
other languages have words meaning ruler that derive from his name,
such as kaiser in German and czar in Russian. Another lasting
tribute: Hes even got his own month; Quintilis, the month in which
Caesar was born, was renamed Julius (July) in his honor. Find out more
about the man who famously proclaimed after one brief, decisive military
campaign: Veni, vidi, vici, or I came, I saw, I conquered.

He wasnt born by caesarean section.

Gaius Julius Caesar arrived in the world on July 13, 100 B.C., but, contrary to
popular belief, its unlikely he was born by caesarean section. Although the
procedure existed at the time, it was usually fatal to the mother and therefore
only performed when a pregnant woman was dead or dying, in an effort to
save a child. In fact, Caesars mother, Aurelia, lived until 54 B.C., nearly half
a century after her sons birth.

According to some sources, the origin of the Caesar name is attributable to

one of Caesars forebears who was caesus, (Latin for cut) from his
mothers womb. Other origins of the name have been suggested, including
the possibility that the founding member of Caesars family branch might
have had caesaries, or long, flowing hair.

He was kidnapped by pirates.

In 75 B.C., Caesar, then in his mid-20s, set out from Rome for the Aegean
island of Rhodes, a noted center of learning where he planned to study with
Apollonius, a Greek rhetorician whose students had included Cicero, who
became one of ancient Romes most famous orators. However, along the
way to Rhodes, Caesars ship was hijacked by pirates off the southwestern
coast of Asia Minor. When his captors named a ransom price for his release,
Caesar thought the number was insultingly low and insisted a greater sum be
demanded. Eventually, the higher figure was raised and Caesar was freed.
Soon after, he sought revenge against his former captors by commandeering
a group of ships and men to help him hunt down and swiftly capture the
buccaneers, who he then had executed.

His love life was complicated.

Caesar married his first wife, Cornelia, in 84 B.C., when he was a teenager.
Within several years, a general named Lucius Cornelius Sulla became
dictator of the Roman republic and ordered the execution of anyone he
considered an enemy of the state. Caesars father-in-law, Lucius Cornelius
Cinna (d. 84 B.C.), had been a rival of Sulla. As a result, Sulla ordered
Caesar to divorce Cornelia, but Caesar refused. Knowing such defiance
could cost him his life, Caesar fled Rome and became a fugitive. During his
time on the run, he contracted malaria and later was caught by one of Sullas
men, who forced Caesar to pay him a huge bribe, almost all of his money, in
order to remain free. Eventually, some of Caesars influential friends and
relatives persuaded Sulla to let Caesar return to Rome, where he was
reunited with Cornelia. The couple had a daughter, Julia Caesaris, in 76 B.C.

Cornelia died in 69 B.C., and in 67 B.C. Caesar married Pompeia, a

granddaughter of Sulla. In 62 B.C., with Caesar serving as the pontifex
maximus, or chief priest of the state government, Pompeia took part in an
annual gathering of Roman woman called the Bona Dea (good goddess)
festival, held at Caesars house. The event was strictly women-only, but a
young nobleman disguised himself as female and crashed the festivities. At
some point during the evening, he was found out. Scandal ensued and it was
reported that the man was in love with Pompeia or trying to seduce her.
Although it was unknown whether Pompeia had been willingly involved in the
incident, Caesar decided to divorce her, declaring that his wife must be
above suspicion.

Caesar wed his third wife, Calpurnia, in 59 B.C., when she was a teenager,
and remained married to her until his death. A noted womanizer, he also had
multiple mistresses, including Cleopatra VII, the Egyptian queen, and a
woman named Servilia, whose son Marcus Brutus took part in Caesars
murder in 44 B.C.

He had a son with Cleopatra.

In 48 B.C., Caesar went to Egypt to track down one of his rivals, the Roman
general Pompey, and while there he met Cleopatra, who was embroiled in a
civil war with her younger brother and co-ruler Ptolemy XIII (per ancient
Egyptian custom, the two ruled under the formal title of husband and wife).
Caesar, who declared himself executor of the will of the siblings late father,
ordered the pair to come see him so they could settle their feud. When
Ptolemys army stopped Cleopatra from traveling to the palace where Caesar
was staying, she had herself smuggled in a laundry bag to meet him for the
first time, according to some accounts. Caesar and Cleopatra, who was half
the Roman generals age, became romantically involved, and around 47 B.C.,
she gave birth to a boy, Ptolemy Caesar, who was believed to be Caesars
child. The Egyptians referred to him as Caesarion, meaning little Caesar.
Shortly after Caesars murder in 44 B.C., Cleopatras brother and co-ruler
Ptolemy XIV was killed. (Her previous co-ruler, Ptolemy XIII, had died around
47 B.C.) Although never proven, there was suspicion Cleopatra poisoned
Ptolemy XIV so she could name Caesarion her co-ruler, which she did that
same year. He became known as Ptolemy XV.

In 31 B.C., the forces of Cleopatra and her lover Mark Antony were defeated
at the Battle of Actium by Octavian, Caesars great nephew and chosen heir.
The following year, Antony and Cleopatra both committed suicide, leaving
Caesarion as Egypts sole pharaoh; however, his reign was brief because not
long after his mothers death, Caesarion was murdered on orders from
Octavian, who went on to become the first Roman emperor. Taking the name
Augustus, he ruled from 27 B.C. to A.D. 14.

Caesar had no other known sons besides Caesarion. His only known
daughter, Julia, died in childbirth in 54 B.C.

Hes considered the father of leap year.

Before Caesar came to power, the Romans used a calendar system based
on the lunar cycle, which dictated that there were 355 days in a year. This
system was 10 days shorter than a solar year, the amount of time required
for the Earth to make one complete revolution around the sun. Although
Roman officials were supposed to add extra days to the lunar calendar every
year at their discretion in order to keep it aligned with the seasons, this didnt
always happen and, as a result, the calendar was confusing, out of whack
with the seasons and ripe for abuse by politicians interested in extending their
terms in office. After consulting with the astronomer Sosigenes, Caesar
implemented a new system, the Julian calendar, which went into effect in 45
B.C. and was made up of 365 days in a year. The calendar was intended to
be in sync with the solar cycle; however, because the actual solar year is 365
days long, Caesar also added an extra day, called a leap day, every four
years to make up the difference.
The Julian calendar remained the standard until the late 16th century, when a
slightly modified version of the system, known as the Gregorian calendar,
was introduced. Today, the Gregorian calendar is the worlds most widely
used civil calendar.

Caesar, Cleopatra and Marc Antony

The death of Julius Caesar led to thirteen years of

war and ultimately led to the end of the Roman
Republic. By 33BCE, both Caesars most trusted
lieutenant and the last queen ofEgypt would be
dead, and a young man Caesar apparently met
only once would become Caesars adopted son and
the most powerful man in Rome for over forty
years. The story begins in Egypt.

By the time of Caesars death, the Greek speaking

Ptolemy family had ruled Egypt for more than 275
years. Ptolemy was a general who took control of
the ancient land upon the death of Alexander the
Great.

Julius Caesar arrived in Egypt in pursuit of a rival Elizabe

role in Cleopatra (1963).
general named Pompey. Caesar chased Pompey
first to Spain, then to Greece and finally in 47BCE to
Egypt. In Egypt, the ten-year-old Ptolemy XIII
presented Caesar with the decapitated head of
Pompey. While in Egypt, Caesar found himself in
the middle of a family feud. King Ptolemy XII had
willed his throne both to his ten-year-old son,
Ptolemy XIII, and his eighteen-year-old daughter,
Cleopatra. The pair were to rule Egypt together
both as brother and sister and as husband and
wife, but Ptolemy XIII seized power and forced his
older sister from the throne.

When Cleopatra learned Caesar was in Egypt, she

saw an opportunity to return to power. Cleopatra
arranged to smuggle herself into Caesars suite
wrapped in an ornamental carpet. When Caesar
unraveled his gift, he found the former queen.

Julius Caesar arrived in Egypt in 47BCE in pursuit of a

Cleopatra convinced Caesar to remove Ptolemy Egypt, the 54-year-old Caesar met and fell in love with
Cleopatra.
XIII and return her to power. Caesars army
defeated Ptolemy XIIIs forces in battle; the
Roman army was in pursuit of the young Egyptian
king when he drowned in the Nile River. Cleopatra
returned to power and following the custom of
Egypt at that time, she married an even younger
brother, Ptolemy XIV. The couple ruled as both
husband and wife and as brother and sister.

The 54-year-old Caesar began a love affair with the

much younger Cleopatra. The pair traveled the
Nile together where Caesar witnessed Cleopatras
luxurious lifestyle. Caesar was the most powerful
general in the world, but the Egyptians
worshipped Cleopatra as a goddess. Soon after
their voyage, Cleopatra gave birth to Caesars only
son, Caesarion.

Shortly after Caesar returned to Rome, Cleopatra

and Caesarion came to visit, staying in one of
Caesars country homes. Caesar was popular with
the Roman people, but the presence of a foreign
woman in Rome was a scandal. Further, both
Caesar and Cleopatra were married to other
people.

Caesar's murder in 44BCE, plunged Rome back into

civil war. Caesars most trusted generalMarc After Julius Caesar's death, Cleopatra's relationship with
scandal in Rome.
Antonytook control of Rome, but Caesar had a
surprise for everyone. The dictators will
named Octavian, his eighteen-year-old
grandnephew, as his heir. An heir is someone who
inherits a title or possessions. Despite having met
only once, Caesars will decreed that Octavian be
treated as his son. Octavian instantly became one
of the wealthiest men in Rome, but even more
important, Roman law allowed Octavian to call
himself Caesar.

Octavian came to Rome to claim his inheritance,

The Battl
but Marc Antony dismissed the young heir. Castro (1672)

Octavian raised an army of soldiers who were loyal

to Julius Caesar, plunging Rome into months of
turmoil. As a result, Octavian and Marc Antony
agreed to an uneasy truce; Marc Antony married
Octavians sister to seal the alliance.

Octavian and Marc Antony formed the Second

Triumvirate with a third general named Lepidus.
Octavian remained in Rome while Antony took
control of the empires eastern provinces. In 41BCE,
Antony summoned Cleopatra to answer questions
about her loyalty. The Egyptian queen so
charmed Antony that he moved to Alexandria to
be with her.

Cleopatra regained sole control of Egypt after the

mysterious poisoning of Ptolemy XIV. Antony and
Cleopatra fell in love and had three children
together. Antony hoped to oust Octavian and rule
both Rome and Egypt with Cleopatra, but
Octavian used their relationship to his advantage.
Octavian told the Roman people that Cleopatra
cast a spell on Antony and argued that Antony was
willing to give away the Roman world to a foreign
woman. Octavian declared war on Cleopatra,
forcing Marc Antony to choose between Cleopatra
and Rome. Antony chose Cleopatra.

Octavians forces defeated Antony and Cleopatras

ships in the Battle of Actium on the Mediterranean
Sea in 31BCE. Antony and Cleopatra managed to
escape the encounter, but Marc Antony committed
suicide as Octavians army approached. When
Cleopatra learned of Antonys death, she realized
that Octavians army would kill her. The Egyptian
queen chose to end her life on her own terms.
According to legend, Cleopatra wrapped an asp
around her arm. The asp is a venomous snake that
was the symbol for Egyptian royalty. The asps bite
ended Cleopatras life and the rule of the Ptolemys.

Resources
Download this lesson as Microsoft Word file or as an Adobe Acrobat file.

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Listen as Mr. Dowling reads this lesson

Lexile Measure 1040L Mean Sentence Length 15.04 Mean Log Word Frequency 3.36 Word
Count 797

Mr. Donn has an excellent website that includes a section on Ancient Rome.