Once upon a time the year only had ten months and was simple. One day someone decided to add an extra month making it much more complicated, and you may rightly feel that they should be stabbed to death, which is interesting because today is Julius Caesar’s birthday.
Modern day uses
Julius is the most famous Roman not least because he wrote extensively about how brilliant he was. These texts are easy to read and became the workhorse of the Latin teachers across the public schools and grammar schools in Britain and abroad. I have my copy of the Wars in Gaul in front of me now! It’s from these texts that we get so many powerful and useful Latin expressions. In fact, I saw him quoted in Batman vs Superman last week.
Early life
Julius was born into a wealthy and ancient family that said it could trace itself back to Venus Aphrodite via Anneus who escaped the fall of Troy to found Rome after dallying about in North Africa with Dido. His divine ancestry was compounded by epilepsy which the Romans considered to be a divine illness. His early life was a challenge to become the priest of Jupiter which was a powerful position and then being prescribed and having to flee Rome. After losing everything he became an commander in the army as a prelude to a political career. Julius was moved by Alexander the Great and wept bitter tears when he saw a statue of him and knew that Alexander had achieved so much more than he at the same age. I have seen that statue, and its hard not to be moved.
Golden coins
To make a name for himself Caesar pacified Spain and then Gaul. He acquired the title of Dictator which put him above the law for a brief few years. The Gallic campaign in particular was a genocide for which the Romans, who are not the ‘goodies’ of history, awarded him triumphs.
A little fact that shows this shabby state as it was is that at triumphs you are expected to throw gold coins to the crowds. This is expensive so Caesar had gold coins made up to be thrown to the Patricians and brass coins made up to be thrown to the Plebs. I have seen and held one of these brass coins and it is moving to hold something held by Julius Caesar.
Caesars’ downfall
To outdo Alexander, Caesar invaded Britannia twice first to cut of the Belgaes supplies and second to do something Alexander had never done. His return to Rome was one of tribulation because his Dictatorship was coming to an end and thus his immunity from prosecution. His enemies would use this opportunity to destroy him, so he took that opportunity to roll the dice and take his army into Italy thus starting a civil war, which was eventually, to bring an end to the republic.
Caesars’ alliance was successful, and the war took him across the seas to Egypt where his story becomes entwined with Cleopatra who then becomes entwined with Mark Antony, and this generated tensions and pressures. These combined with a very real fear in the senate that Caesar was going to make himself king so the fateful decision was made to assassinate him.
Shakespeares influence
Caesar gives his name to the month of July, to the operation known as the Caeserian section and to the German and Russian kings, Kaiser and Tzar respectively. And without Julius Caesar we would never have had Shakespeares’ play and by extension never have had Carry on Cleo, thus the line, “Infamy, Infamy they’ve all got it in for me”, would never have been uttered on the silver screen.
Happy birthday Julius Caesar.