Beware the Ides of March

Reading time: 3 minutes and 40 seconds

Beware the Ides of March, is a famous line from the Shakespeare play, Julius Ceasar. The Ides of March was, officially March 15th on the Roman calendar. It was a day used by the Romans to settle debts. It is better known in Roman History as the day of Julius Ceasar’s assassination in 44 B.C.

Rome was a Republic. Though it had elections every year, it looked more like an oligarchy instead of a democracy. An oligarchy is when a small number of people essentially run the government. In Rome’s case, a small group of large families ran things. This structure all changed after Julius Ceasar won a civil war. His victory gave him an unrivaled position of power. Ceasar was soon appointed dictator of Rome. This term lasted one year than he was reappointed dictator for 10 years after another military victory. Ceasar introduced many changes to Roman society, the biggest was the creation of the Julian calendar. The old calendar was regulated by the movements of the moon. The Julian (based on the Egyptian calendar) was based on the sun, which was in use till 1582 when it was replaced by the Gregorian calendar.

Caesar was soon named dictator perpetuo (Dictator in perpetuity). Essentially dictator for life which radically changed Ceasar’s reign from an Oligarchy to a Monarchy (king for life). This declaration made many Senators fear that Ceasar wanted to overthrow the Senate in favor of totalitarianism (system of government that is centralized and dictatorial and requires complete subservience to the state… i.e., Modern day North Korea, Nazi Germany, and communist China). The Senators also feared Ceasars Pro plebian manifesto (Plebians were the ordinary or poor folks.)

Brutus (Ceasar’s good friend) soon began conspiring against Ceasar with a group of fellow Senators called the Liberators. The Liberators met in each other’s homes to come up with a plan to permanently get rid of Ceasar. Some of the strategies discussed were to push him off a bridge; another was just to run up and kill him (gangsta!). The liberators finally decided on a plan to kill him while he sat in the Senate. As the Ides of March approached Ceasar was advised by Doctors, friends and his wife Calpurnia not to attend the Senate meeting. Rumors of the planned assassination were swirling around Rome. Calpurnia had dreams where Ceasar was seriously harmed, but Brutus ever the excellent friend told Ceasar not to listen to his wife’s silly dreams and the idle gossip of stupid men and come chop it up with his peeps in the Senate. Ceasar listened to Brutus and proceded to the Senate meeting. As Ceasar was just outside where the Senate meeting was taking place, Lucius Tillius Cimber stopped Ceasar and asked him to recall his exiled brother. The Liberators crowded around Ceasar and Cimber as this discussion took place. Cimber grabbed Ceasar’s shoulders and pulled his toga down (yikes!). At the same time, one of the liberators took out their dagger and made a thrust at Ceasar’s neck. Ceasar grabbed his arm, but within minutes the whole liberator crew was stabbing Ceasar. Ceasar attempted to get away but blinded by blood in his eye he tripped and fell and continued to get struck. According to reports 60 men participated in the attack. Ceasar ended up being stabbed 23 times. He ended up dying from blood loss. The stabbings were so wild that Brutus ended up getting struck twice himself.

Mark Anthony summoned the Senate together after the assassination, and the assassins were pardoned. These pardons enraged the plebians who loved Ceasar and were upset that some aristocrats killed him. The pardons ended up starting another civil war in Rome, also not restoring the Roman Republic and ultimately led to the end of the Roman Republic period. Basically, none of the goals the liberators hoped to achieve with their actions were met.

Mistakes Were Made:

“They smiling in your face, all the time they want to take your place, backstabbers.” If only Ceasar could have listened to some O’Jays while he was strolling to the Senate, he may have lived to see another day. The Liberators took very drastic actions (a stabbing walk by basically) to get what they wanted. Though they weren’t punished for their actions, it did lead to another civil war and ironically the end of the Roman Republic, the very thing they were trying to reestablish (doh!). If only Ceasar had the wise counsel of his future native Italian Vito Corleone ( the Godfather movie) in his ear. Vito told his son Michael Corleone that “Barzini will move against you first. He’ll set up a meeting with someone that you absolutely trust, guaranteeing your safety. And at that meeting, you’ll be assassinated…It’s an old habit.” Is this not the same exact move Brutus pulled on Ceasar? Old habit indeed and it’s still around.

Ceasar had numerous warnings about the planned assassination attempt and ultimately let his good friend and also the leader of the liberators talk him into walking into his own death (cold-blooded). It was the worst kept secret since Lebron James joined the Lakers and yet Ceasar still didn’t heed the warnings. When your wife is having dreams of you being killed, you probably should reassess your movements. If anything Brutus coming to Ceaser and telling him to ignore all these warnings and come to the meeting should have set off a loud alarm to Ceasar that danger was imminent, but alas ignorance was not bliss in Ceasar’s situation. Success brings jealousy and envy. It’s usually the ones closest to you who are the most envious. Brutus was Ceasar good friend, yet he spearheaded a group to coordinate to murder Ceasar. With friends like Brutus who needs enemies?