27. The Assassination of Julius Caesar

In 27 BCE, Rome transitioned from a republic to an empire. Emperor Augustus Caesar reinstated past political institutions and championed reform that enabled peace, prosperity, and targeted corruption. The rule of Augustus brought about the beginning of Pax Romana, or Roman Peace, a nearly 200-year period that is considered to have been Rome’s “golden age”. During this time, the Roman Empire reached the pinnacle of its expansion, its population increased, and economic, military, and government institutions experienced stability and growth. Rome laid its extensive road system, connecting the expanses of the Empire with the ancient world where “all roads lead to Rome”. The people of Rome lived in relative safety and security.

But the road to Roman Peace was not paved straight, level, or on solid foundation. It was treacherous, broken and twisted, with rises and falls, and it was built with the bones and blood of its people, and of the people that Rome had conquered. In the years before 27 BCE Rome had created for itself a multitude of enemies. Germanic tribes, British Celts, Dacians, Armenians, Numidians, and scores of others had reason to hate the great Empire, and desired only to add Roman bones to the ever-growing pile. However, not all enemies were of foreign origin. Some enemies could be found within Rome, on its streets, and some within Rome’s own Senate. So learned Dictator for Life, Julius Caesar, on the Ides of March, 44 BCE as he bled out on the floor of the Curia of Pompey, surrounded by some that he called “friend”. This is Hardtack Episode 27: The Assassination of Julius Caesar.

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Sources:

Sizgorich, Tom. "Julius Caesar." In World at War: Understanding Conflict and Society, ABC-CLIO, 2023. Accessed March 8, 2023. https://worldatwar2-abc-clio-com.ezproxy2.apus.edu/Search/Display/1669996.

Nicolaus of Damascus' account appears in Workman, B.K. They Saw it Happen in Classical Times (1964); Suetonius, The Twelve Caesars (Penguin Classics), translated by Robert Graves (1957).

Dio's Rome, Volume 2 by Cassius Dio Cocceianus