The Real Reason Why Julius Caesar was Assassinated?

Gaius Julius Caesar, one of history's most prolific conquerors, the man who would change Rome from Republic to Empire, the genius saw both ends of the world, battling through Gaul, to Germany, to Britannia, only to conquer Egypt, was assassinated on the Ides of March in 44 B.C. Why was he? Generally, most school books will tell you that he was murdered by the Liberatores (the name the Conspirators gave to themselves after assassinating Caesar) headed by Marcus Junius Brutus and Gaius Cassius Longinus because of his brutal policies, his despotic leadership, and their desire to return Rome to the glory days of the Republic.

In truth, Caesar's policies had almost nothing to do with why the Conspirators killed Caesar - who was in fact one of Rome's greatest single leaders, passing a number of historic reforms that saved society from total collapse. From employment reforms that ended the economic stagnation by the influx of slaves to changing the amount of power creditors had over the empire, things were going on the up and up for Rome. Employment in the city was up, security and confidence were up, people were entertained by games, the economy was stimulated with import and export, people were generally simply happy with the way life was going.

Indeed, the claims that Caesar had kingly ambitions were by all accounts laughable - this myth had been disproved during the Lupercalia festival when Marcus Antonius (Marc Antony) offered the dictator a symbolic diadem, the symbol of a king. As was immortalized in William Shakespeare's play about Julius Caesar of the same name, it was offered to him three times and each time he turned it down. While some to this day believe this to be little more than a carefully crafted show on Caesar's part, it was important to understand the value of this. By turning it down thrice in public it would literally be impossible to achieve such a state at a later point. Public opinion was a fickle but all important thing - and the People would remember such a display, and would not forget the show later if it turned out to be a farce.

Furthermore, it is important to understand the cultural significance of such a gesture. While it would be easy to imagine it to be a clever show to rouse public support for the already unfathomably popular Caesar, this acted as less of a campaign display and more of a public testament, a promise almost. Marc Antony, the one time Tribune of the People and now Consul, was attempting to, on the behalf of the Masses (who cheered each time it was offered), trying to bestow the title of king on Caesar, whose refusal of the diadem acted as a promise. Less than a simple display, it was a dialogue manifested in arm motions between the two.

"Will you take this diadem?" asked the People through Marc Antony.

"No," was Caesar's answer. There you had the answer to the Conspirators' question: Caesar did not seek a throne.

Marc Antony, however, was not the display of Roman chivalry and stoicism himself. The author of a book called Am I a Drunk? that examines his own alcoholism, the man was known for his eccentricities, sexual profligacies, and inane, often times insane, behavior. He was utterly loathed by the Optimates and Aristocrats and was in many ways feared by the People, although his gruff exterior and "getting your hands dirty" attitude was enough to generate fanatical support amongst the legions.

He proved to be a disastrous administrator as well - he often did what was in his own personal best interest when not under strict direction by Caesar himself. His steadfast loyalty to the dictator, however, won him the title Magister Equitum, or Master of the Horse, an ancient symbolic title from which we now draw the title Constable (or Count of the Stables). This was an important title to dictators, legally elected or otherwise, acting much as their executors in their absence, speaking with the dictator's authority when not in the dictator's presence. They were even granted the unprecedented honor of being protected by lichtors.

Julius Caesar, it is said, was growing weary of civic life - he had aged considerably in his short years as Dictator for Life and some believe that the excitement of his years was simply catching up to him in his complacency. Perhaps this contributed to his desire to return the Roman Standards and Eagle that were stolen from Marcus Licinius Crassus by the Parthian King. Having already conquered the Pontics after defeating the Egyptians, Caesar now planned an expedition that was thought to keep him away for years to subjugate the Parthians and return the captured Standards. While a simple flag may not seem important today, to an ancient Roman these were symbols of Rome's power, to let them sit for so long in the hands of a foreign power was unheard of.

This meant that the Magister Equitum would be in power for the years of Caesar's absence - and this was something many men would simply not see happen.

While there had been dissent against Caesar before, especially amongst the Patricians, it had never amounted to the same furor that arose when it was learned that Marc Antony would not be accompanying Caesar on his Parthian expedition. A frenzy arose, resulting in the panicked gatherings and manipulations of Marcus Junius Brutus by Gaius Cassius Longinus.

The options to these Liberatones were clear: death to Caesar or face potentially seven years of leadership by Marc Antony.

And their decision was to kill Caesar - the Standards, they felt, could wait.