Transcript Julius Caesar Background Info

• monarchy—absolute rule by a single person
(hereditary chief)
• republic—a government in which supreme
power resides in a body of citizens entitled to
vote and is exercised by elected offers and
representatives responsible to them and
governing according to law (indirect
democracy)
• democracy—a government in which the
supreme power is vested in the people and
exercised by them either directly or indirectly
through a system of periodically held free
elections
• dictatorship—a form of government in which
absolute power is concentrated in a dictator
(absolute and unlimited rule)
•Rome began as a
Monarchy
•Remained this way for
250 years
•People felt oppressed
and revolted
Think about...
Why might Roman citizen
feel oppressed in a
monarchy?
500 B.C—Roman Republic was
established—ruled for over 500 years
The new government is made up three
parts:
Two consuls, a senate, and tribunes.
• Duties
 controlled the army
 could declare war
 controlled taxes, and
 established laws
• The Catch—they got advice from the
senate, so basically they did what the
senate told them to do.
The tribunes were elected officials.
These people could be from any
walk of life—noble or common.
The citizens of Rome voted them into
office and they represented of the
people.
• upper class, wealthy
• have to be born into
to (ancestor must
be traced from the
beginning of Rome)
• once you were on
the senate, you
stayed on the
senate
Julius Caesar got into politics during a time
in which the Senate was having problems.
In this time of instability and arguing, he
became an outspoken leader who looked
to gain support from the citizens of Rome.
In 60 BC the first triumvirate (unofficial
political alliance) was formed.
• Caesar (Gaius Julius Caesar)
• Powerful and loved by the people
• Crassus (Marcus Licinius Crassus)
• Old and getting ready to die
• Pompey (Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus)
• Smart and powerful
• Supported by the senate
Crassus died, and Pompey began to fear
that Caesar was growing too powerful and
popular.
Crassus
Pompey
Caesar
•Caesar and his
army were far
away from Rome,
conquering many
lands for the
Roman Empire.
•Pompey ordered
him back to Rome.
As he returned,
Caesar attacked
Pompey, defeating
his forces and
killing him in the
midst.
Caesar returned to Rome and was accepted by the
people for his military abilities. He was loved for all
of the goods he brought back from his conquests, and
he was elected Dictator for Life. This meant that he
would rule Rome until his death, and the next leader
would have to be elected.
We Love Ceasar!!!
Many believed that Caesar wanted to be
EMPEROR instead of just Dictator for
Life. If he was Emperor, Julius
Caesar’s son would inherit the throne
after his death.
To prevent Caesar becoming a monarchy
again, some members of the senate
carried out a deceitful plan . . .
1. Julius Caesar dared to claim he was a descendant
from whom?
• As a child, he claimed he was a descendant of the
goddess Venus.
2. In 63 B.C. how many gladiators fought to the
death?
•
640 fought to the death at his first public games.
3. According to Julius Caesar, what are the 2 secrets
to gaining power?
• 1. playing to the people
• 2. commanding a successful army
4. Who did Caesar fall in love with?
•
Cleopatra
5. What was Caesar’s motto when he conquered
Rome?
• Veni, Vidi, Vici
1. What did the Roman people voluntarily vote for?
Why?
• They voluntarily voted Caesar the absolute powers of a
dictator.
• He gave the Roman poor what they wanted—no Roman
citizen went hungry. Grain to the poor and land to his
soldiers—paid for by his own money.
2. What did Caesar ask the people to do that
infuriated the Senate?
• He asked them to elect him dictator for life.
3. How many times was Caesar stabbed?
• He was stabbed 35 times.
4. After his death, what did the Roman people declare
Julius Caesar to be?
• They declared him to be a god because a comet blazed
across the sky.
The Romans were a superstitious
people. They believed that future
events could be seen in dreams, the
stars, and unnatural occurrences.
Many Romans believed that fate
controlled one’s life.
• The Feast of Lupercal—the festival of
fertility (wards off evil spirits)
• A race where young aristocrats run dressed
in a girdle of goat’s skin and carry a leather
throng and hit woman who are considered
sterile. By hitting the women, it wards off
evil spirits and the women are able to
reproduce.
• On the eve of the feast, February 14th, the
boys were to pick the name of a woman who
will be his “sweetheart” for the remainder
of the year.


Shakespeare compresses the actual historical
time of 3 years into a period of 6 days
The play broken down:
• Act One: Caesar returns from defeating Pompey’s
son and the Feast of Lupercal
• Act Two: March 15th, beware of the ides of March
• Act Three: Days after death of Julius Caesar
• Acts Four and Five: battle and a fight for power
• law and order; effective road
systems; military system
unparalleled; at its height the
Roman Empire covered all of
the Mediterranean area from
Gibraltar to Egypt and up into
Europe.
1. Chaos results when the prescribed social order is overturned.
2. Good intentions do not always yield a positive result.
3. Language is a powerful weapon, and in the hands of a skilled
person it can be used to manipulate others.
4. Violence and bloodshed can never have morally good results.
5. Pride is the harbinger of destruction.
6. Great political ambition breeds great political enmity.
7. Deceit wears the garb of innocence.
8. Recognize and heed warnings.
9. One man’s hero is another man’s villain.
10.Actions often have unforeseen consequences.