While it took only one man to murder another, Brutus believed that for the assassination of Caesar to be considered a legitimate removal of a tyrant, done for the sake of their country, it must include a large number of Rome's leading men. The two men then began to recruit others. The conspiracy to assassinate Julius Caesar began with a meeting between Cassius Longinus and his brother-in-law Marcus Brutus in the evening of 22 February 44 BC, when after some discussion the two agreed that something had to be done to prevent Caesar from becoming king of the Romans. By February, the conspiracy that caused his assassination was being born.
In just a few months, Caesar had disrespected the Senate, removed People's Tribunes, and toyed with monarchy. These concerns were exacerbated by the "three last straws" of 45 and 44 BC. Īccording to Suetonius, Caesar's assassination ultimately occurred primarily due to concerns that he wished to crown himself the king of Rome. At the time, many believed that Caesar's rejection of the diadem was a way for him to see if there was enough support for him to become king, and despised him for it. "Jupiter alone of the Romans is king", Caesar said, which received an enthusiastic response from the crowd. Finally, Caesar put it aside to use as a sacrifice to Jupiter Optimus Maximus. Caesar removed the diadem from his head Antony again placed it on him, only to get the same response from the crowd. Mark Antony, who had been elected co-consul with Caesar, climbed onto the Rostra and placed a diadem on Caesar's head, saying "The People give this to you through me." While a few members of the crowd applauded, most responded with silence. The third incident took place at the festival of the Lupercalia, on 15 February 44 BC. The Roman plebs took their tribunes seriously as the representatives of the common people Caesar's actions against the tribunes put him on the wrong side of public opinion. In a later senate meeting, Caesar accused the tribunes of attempting to create opposition to him, and had them removed from office and membership in the Senate. Marullus and Flavus, the aforementioned tribunes, were not amused, and ordered the man who first cried "Rex" arrested. This was wordplay "Rex" was a family name as well as a Latin title. A few members of the crowd greeted him as rex ("king"), to which Caesar replied, "I am not Rex, but Caesar" ("Non sum Rex, sed Caesar"). Matters escalated shortly after on the 26th, when Caesar was riding on horseback to Rome on the Appian Way. Nobody knew who had placed the diadem, but Caesar suspected that the tribunes had arranged for it to appear so that they could have the honour of removing it. According to Suetonius, the tribunes ordered that the wreath be removed as it was a symbol of Jupiter and royalty. One day in January, the tribunes Gaius Epidius Marullus and Lucius Caesetius Flavus discovered a diadem on the head of the statue of Caesar on the Rostra in the Roman Forum. Regardless of the reasoning, by practically rejecting a senatorial gift and not acknowledging the delegation's presence with proper etiquette, Caesar gave the strong impression that he no longer cared about the Senate. Roman historian Suetonius wrote (almost 150 years later) that Caesar failed to rise in the temple, either because he was restrained by the consul Lucius Cornelius Balbus or that he balked at the suggestion he should rise. He also joked about their news, saying that his honours needed to be cut back instead of increased. When they arrived, etiquette called for Caesar to stand up to greet the senators, but he did not rise. According to Roman historian Cassius Dio, after the Senate had voted to bestow a large group of honours upon Caesar, they decided to present them to him formally, and marched as a senatorial delegation to the Temple of Venus Genetrix. The first incident took place in December 45 BC or possibly early 44 BC. Roman historian Titus Livius describes three incidents that occurred from 45 to 44 BC as the final causes of Caesar's assassination – the "three last straws" as far as some Romans were concerned. After defeating the last of the opposition, Caesar was appointed dictator perpetuo ("dictator in perpetuity") in early 44 BC. After the Roman Senate demanded Caesar to disband his army and return home as a civilian, he refused, crossing the Rubicon with his army and plunging Rome into Caesar's Civil War in 49 BC. Possible bust of Julius Caesar, posthumous portrait in marble, 44–30 BC, Museo Pio-Clementino, Vatican Museums.Ĭaesar had served the Republic for eight years in the Gallic Wars, fully conquering the region of Gaul (roughly equivalent to modern-day France).
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