Julius Caesar (48, r.46-44 BC, cos.59 BC)
On 10 January 49 BC Caesar crossed the Rubicon River, the boundary between Cisalpine Gaul and Italy proper, an action legally forbidden to any army-leading general in order to protect Roman Republic from a coup: thus provoking a civil war (49-45 BC) between himself and Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus (106-48 BC; cos.70, 55, 52 BC).
By spring 49 BC Caesar with his legions was moving down the peninsula and ‘Pompey’ retreated south. Barely eluding Caesar at Brundisium, Pompey crossed to Epirus where he had gathered a large force in Macedonia. In November Caesar crossed over to Epirus and captured Apollonia. Caesar and Pompey had their final confrontation at Pharsalus in 48 BC, and although Pompey was expected to win due to his superior numbers, mistakes by Pompey’s cavalry led to a victory for Caesar. Pompey fled to Egypt where he was killed.
After Sulla’s sack of Athens, many areas were still in disrepair. In 63 BC Pompey had donated fifty talents to help restore the city and Athens had therefore chosen to ally with him during the civil war. Caesar, however, did not now sack the city he instead demanded reparations from all the eastern cities since virtually all of them had also allied with Pompey. After paying Caesar for their mistake, the Athenians had insufficient funds for building projects and Caesar had no desire to help them. In 44 BC however he ordered that Corinth and Carthage, both of which had been devastated by Roman armies in 146 BC, to be refounded by sending Roman colonies there.
Mark Antony (83-30 BC; cos.44, 34 BC
After Caesar was assassinated in Rome on the 15 March 44 BC by Marcus Junius Brutus the Younger (85-42 BC) and Gaius Cassius Longinus (85-42 BC), Antony emerged as one of three leading figures, along with Caesar’s great nephew Marcus Octavianus (63-00-14) the future Augustus, and Marcus Aemilius Lepidus (89/8-13/12 BC). The trio divided the Roman territories between them, with Antony taking the East.
But the East had already come under the control of the so-called ‘Liberators’. During 43-42 BC Cassius had brought all the legions in Syria and Egypt under his control, and Brutus had recruited a number of new units in Macedonia. Early in 42 BC they concentrated their twenty legions at Philippi in Macedonia and waited for Antony, Octavianus and Lepidus to confront them. In October Antony and ‘Octavian’ convoyed twenty legions from Italy to Greece. The First Battle of Philippi resulted in a stalemate, but Cassius was killed. Three weeks later at the Second Battle of Philippi, Brutus’ forces were routed and he committed suicide.
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