Between the years of 70 BC and 30 AD Rome entered its most popular time period. The year 70 B.C. is sometimes seen as the turning point in Roman history. A series of events changed Rome from a republic to an empire.
In the year 70 B.C. a slave revolt occurred that changed Rome's view on slavery. The revolt was started by a man named Sparticus. Sparticus refused to fight and die for the people. The revolt lasted for two years. Rome sent their best general to stop the revolt Pompey.
Caesar was born in 100 B.C. into a wealthy patrician family. He was pushed hard his entire life. He tried to mold himself like Alexander the Great. Caesar used the great benchmarks of Alexander as his benchmarks too. Caesar was found at 25 weeping at the base of a statue of Alexander. The reason he was upset is because he did not control the entire world at the same age as Alexander.
Caesar rose quickly through the ranks of the Roman army. He was infamous for always winning no matter what the circumstances. Caesar is credited with conquering the Gauls (France), Spain, parts of Germany, and Britain. After every victory he became more and more powerful. He soldiers were loyal to Caesar, not the government. If Caesar wished it, his soldiers did it.
Because Caesar paid his soldiers a higher wage than the other generals, all the soldiers wanted to fight for him. A Roman had to be a very good soldier to be accepted into Caesar's army. After he conquered Spain in 61 B.C. the senate saw him as a very strong potential enemy. That is why they made him a co-council, but Caesar wanted more.
Caesar formed a partnership with the generals Crassus and Pompeii. This was called the First Triumvirate. Caesar's popularity was ever rising. The poor loved him because he gave money and food to them. He visited their sections of town. He drank with them. He made it look like he was one of them.
By 50 B.C. the government was scared to let Caesar enter Rome and would not let him cross the Rubicon River. Eventually Caesar was invited to Rome by himself, but he knew if this happened, he would be dead. To have his army cross the Rubicon, would start civil war. Caesar chose civil war. The two generals Pompeii and Crassus were instructed to stop him.
Crassus is defeated in battle on the near Greece, but Pompeii escapes to Egypt. Caesar chases him to Egypt. There were two famous sayings that followed Caesar. The first one is, "Vini, Vidi, Vici," which means, "I came, I saw, I conquered."
The other saying was, "Lock up your wives, Caesar is coming." It was widely known that Caesar loved women. Many women, married or single.
Caesar decides to follow Pompeii to Egypt and upon his arrival the Pharaoh has a gift. Caesar is presented the head of Pompeii as a gift. Egypt is far from its glory, and Rome is the strongest power in the world. This however is not the best gift Caesar receives in Egypt.
That night Caesar is presented with an expensive rug. Upon placing the rug on the floor it started to move. Thinking it is an assassin, Caesar's men are quickly on the case. When they unrolled the rug, they found a woman in the rug. Cleopatra, the sister of the Pharaoh, gave herself as a gift. Caesar was pleased.
Cleopatra had to sneak herself to see Caesar. She was considered a threat to her brother's throne. Cleopatra was very intelligent, confident, and an excellent politician. Contrary to popular belief, Cleopatra was not good looking. Thank Hollywood for this. She is 18 years old when she and the older Caesar start their fling. Cleopatra's sexual appetite was only matched by Caesar. They were perfect for each other.
Upon their union, the Pharaoh was told that he will know rule Egypt jointly with his sister. She is his eyes and ears in Egypt when she was to come back after she returned with him to Rome. In Rome she is not well received. She is a foreigner, she is intelligent and they believe the treatment of Caesar's Roman wife Calpernia is the fault of Cleopatra. Rome hates her, but they still love Caesar. Caesar is not without his enemies, namely the senate.
When Caesar returns to Rome he demands to be made dictator for life. In other words, he wants to disband the Senate, the principal of government of Rome since Romulus and Remus in 753 B.C. In February of 44 B.C. Caesar demands his dictatorship and is given it. The bad news though, he is murdered by a group of Senators on March 15, 44 B.C. He is stabbed 35 times. The people of Rome wish to make him a god, but instead they burn down the houses of all the Senators that were involved. Many of them were murdered along with their families.
For a small amount of time Rome is in chaos. No real ruler could emerge until a group of three take control. These three men were Mark Anthony, one of Caesar's most trusted generals; Octavian, Caesar's grand-nephew who he officially adopted as his son; and Marcus Leopodus. They were the Second Triumvirate. Just like the First Triumvirate, power corrupts these three men.
Marcus Leopodus is the weakest of the three and is quickly eliminated. Mark Anthony left for Egypt and started a smear campaign against Octavian. Mark Anthony makes his push for ultimate power and starts war between the two men. While in Egypt, Mark Anthony meets and falls in love with an older, smarter Cleopatra. The two fall in love and together try to stop Octavian.
In Egypt, a final naval battle explodes with many twists and turns. Mark Anthony is desperate and tries to trick Octavian into pulling a out of his battle plan. Mark Anthony lets it leak that he has killed himself and his army is breaking up. Unfortunately the only person that believed this message was Cleopatra. Upon of hearing of Mark Anthony's death, she kills herself.
It is difficult to say why Cleopatra killed herself. If you read Shakespeare, it was out of love. Possibly. The theory I prefer is that she did not want to be brought back to Rome and paraded as a trophy of war. As for Mark Anthony, maybe he did it for love. Possibly. The theory I prefer is he saw the end was near, he couldn't be Octavian. In ancient times if a man killed himself, there would be no further smearing of his name.
Octavian Caesar became the emperor of Rome. He changed his name to Augustus Caesar. Augustus means "divine." Octavian initiated a time of peace and prosperity in Rome. His rule started in 27 B.C. and ended in 2 A.D. In the twilight of his rule, Augustus once said, "I left Rome a city of marble, I arrived it a city of bricks."
