Julius Caesar was born on July 12 or 13, 100 BC. and was the son of a noble family. When Caesar was growing up, the Roman Republic was very troubled and poorly governed.

Governor

Julius Caesar entered politics and was for a short time governor of Spain, which at that time was a Roman province.

Gaius Julius Caesar became a very good military leader who rose to prominence until he could proclaim himself ruler of Rome. Julius Caesar first became a politician and then a Roman general that later appointed himself dictator of the Roman Empire.

After his time as governor in Spain, he returned to Rome and made contact with other politicians. His political alliances helped him become governor of Gaul. Gaul consisted of what today is France and Belgium. He was governor for eight years, during which time his military power increased, and his plundered assets from Gaul grew.

Return to Rome

When he returned to Rome, he used his wealth to support his army, with which he marched home. Civil war broke out between Caesar and his rival Pompey. Caesar and his forces won, and when he was back in Rome he proclaimed himself dictator.

Under his rule, he expanded the Senate, created new forms of government, and paid off much of Rome’s national debt.

Caesar rebuilt two city-states, Carthage and Corinth. He also ensured that those who migrated to the Roman Republic were granted citizenship. Caesar’s growing power and influence troubled many senators. They were afraid he would want to be king and take power away from the Senate.

Assassination

On March 15, 44 BC, Caesar’s wife Calpurnia begged her husband not to go to the Senate that day. She had had horrible nightmares and was worried that something would happen to him if he left the house.

Caesar took his wife’s worry lightly but to reassure her, he asked his priests to slaughter an animal and foretell the signs from the entrails of the animal. Even there, only bad signs were seen, and he agreed to stay at home that day. Someone from the Senate persuaded him, and he went to his important meeting anyway. At that time, the Senate consisted of 900 members who ruled the Roman Empire. They were worried that Caesar would accept the crown he had been offered a few times before. Caesar was happy with being a dictator and did not want to be a king.

As Caesar entered the building, a group of senators stood waiting for him. One of them asked something, and when Caesar turned around to answer, the man pulled out a dagger and stabbed him. The other senators pulled out their daggers and gathered around Caesar. Caesar recognized Brutus and uttered the famous words
– Et tu Brute! (Even you Brutus)
before they stabbed him to death with 23 stabs.

Julius Caesar was assassinated by a group of senators, among them Marcus Junius Brutus, Caesar’s second-choice heir, and Gaius Cassius Longinus.

He ruled for less than a year before being assassinated by political rivals in 44 BC.