A 5th Century training manual for the organization, weapons and tactics of the Roman Legions. The mistake wasn't in letting the situation get that far, but in that they believed the Roman and Italian people would rally to defend the Republican system. With the clear support of his men, Caesar added, "Even yet we may draw back; but once across that little bridge, and the whole issue is with the sword." by Andrei nacu (Public Domain) The Justification for expansion. The Roman Empire started in 31 B.C.E. He likely arrived around January 11, and stopped on the northern bank of the small river border, the Rubicon. "Let the die be cast" itself is an expression meaning roughly "let the game begin," and it comes from a play called Arrhephoros ("the Flute Girl"), a comedy written by the Greek playwright Menander in the 4th century B.C.E. Pompey, the Republic's hope, was left without his main army, which was still in Spain, and his support base was in the eastern provinces. But if he didn't bring his troops into Italy, Caesar would be forced to relinquish his command and likely be forced into exile, giving up his military glory and ending his political future. The following day, before the measure could even be brought to Caesar, Consuls Gaius Claudius Marcellus and Lucius Cornelius Lentulus Crus ignored the Senate vote. The Lex Pompeia De Magistratibus that was passed while Pompey was Consul without colleague forced a candidate to be present in Rome to run for office, and of course, one couldn't legally bring their legions to Rome for protection. N.S. The Tribunes attempted to block the measure through the people once again, but this time the Senate was entrenched. Caesar would have to give up his command completely or face war. Suetonius depicts Caesar as undecided as he approached the river, and attributes the crossing to a supernatural apparition. Quickly taking several northern towns, the news reached Rome by January 17. The "Roman Colosseum" page has been re-written and expanded. United and Romanized, through conquest, or absorbed through its culture, Rome still stands today as a legacy to the achievement of mankind, and its failures. The Roman army was no different, and there were a number of different options used to maintain discipline within the ranks. By using ThoughtCo, you accept our, Important Events in the Life of Julius Caesar, The 8 Biggest Military Defeats Suffered by Ancient Rome, The Revolt of the Gauls From Caesar's Gallic Wars, Caesar's Role in the Collapse of the Roman Republic, Winners and Losers of Julius Caesar's Gallic War Battles, A Collection of Articles About Julius Caesar, Who the Roman Consuls Were and How They Ruled Rome. Around a third of a million men policed and protected the Empire, eventually guarding frontiers like Hadrian's Wall. Caesar's original Consulship in 59 BC was one in which he not only thwarted optimate interests, but pushed forward a populares agenda that not only made life miserable for the conservatives, but generally rejected the law and political custom. After Caesar's crossing, the Rubicon was a geographical feature of note until about 42 BC, when Octavian merged the Province of Cisalpine Gaul into Italia and the river ceased to be the extreme northern border of Italy. The situation continued in a virtual stalemate, with neither side willing to budge on their legal standpoints. Caesar's great propaganda campaign, his books "Bellum Gallicum (the Gallic Wars)" endeared the people even more to their almost mythical hero, and the Senate's cause in Italy was lost. What they failed to understand was that the people had little trust in the Senate, and that Caesar had won them over through his popular agenda while in political office. Caesar was left with eight legions, and the legions that he had given up were never sent to Parthia. 13,95 € * Invader-Quad der Primaris. Caesar approached quickly with six legions in an attempt to put an end to the resistance then and there. Caesar attempted to have the great orator join him in Rome to help legitimize his new government. The unprecedented scope and longevity of Roman military success is placed in the context of ordinary soldiers' daily lives, whether spent in the quiet routine of a peaceful garrison or in arduous campaign and violent combat. In early April, Caesar prepared to march for Spain saying, "I go to meet an army without a leader, and I shall return to meet a leader without an army. The distance from today's San Giovanni in Compito and the Fiumicino river is one Roman mile (1.48 km, 0.92 mi). He wanted to enter Rome itself at the head of an army. Caesar's subsequent victory in Caesar's civil war ensured that punishment for the infraction would never be rendered. and then led his troops across the river. Even before the dice land, your future has been foretold. Caesar now faced an important choice. Exploitation of underground waters along the upper course of the Rubicon has reduced its flow—it was a minor river even during Roman times ("parvi Rubiconis ad undas" as Lucan said, "to the waves of [the] tiny Rubicon")—and has since lost its natural route, except in its upper course, between low and woody hills. The river was so named because its waters are colored red by mud deposits. Without the fear of bloodshed and damage to their homes in Italy, the people had little reason to support the Senate. Continuing towards Rome, Caesar arrived at the end of March, 49 BC, for the first time in 9 years. This book covers the complete history of the Roman Army from 753 BC to AD 476, including its successes and failures against Rome's enemies such as Gauls, Carthaginians, Goths and Persians. After Caesar spent 51 BC and the better part of 50 BC touring his newly conquered province of Gaul, political chaos was developing back in Rome. On 1st December 50 BC, Curio proposed a motion that would force both Pompey and Caesar to simultaneously lay down their commands, and the motion was passed 370 votes to 22. He met with and attempted to influence Pompey into working for a compromise, but Pompey refused. Quickly taking several northern towns, the news reached Rome by January 17. What Role Did Gaul Play in Ancient History? When Julius Caesar was about to cross the tiny Rubicon River in 49 B.C.E., he quoted from a play by Menander to say "anerriphtho kybos!" On the north-western side, the border was marked by the river Arno, a much wider and more important waterway, which flows westward from the Apennine Mountains (it and the Rubicon rise not far from each other) into the Tyrrhenian Sea. This took place during the time of the Roman Republic. Prosecuting Caesar, whether the goal was death, exile or just a symbolic limitation of his power, would prevent his re-establishment of the populares agenda that he so masterfully manipulated previously. Caesar definitely debated for a while about what to do. His jealously over Caesar's success and his ultimate goal of acceptance and power within the Senate took him ever further from the alliance with Caesar. This time though, there was great debate and the Senate was divided on the issue. Meaning Behind the Phrase to Cross the Rubicon. "Rubico" redirects here. In fact, many argued that the protection of Cisalpine Gaul and Narbonensis didn't require the war that Caesar conducted in the larger part of Gaul in the first place. It was here, and further east, where Pompey held considerable sway, and where the Senate hoped to raise armies to defeat Caesar. © Copyright 2020 UNRV.com. More optimate officials were elected in 50 BC to take office for 49 BC, but Caesar still managed to hold ground. In a section of the Tabula Peutingeriana, an ancient document showing the network of Roman roads, a river in northeastern Italy labeled "fl. This page was last edited on 12 August 2020, at 11:39. Did Roman Men Dodge Their Military Service? Attempting to box Pompey in, Caesar tried to negotiate peace, but Pompey delayed just long enough to make good his escape. First testing the loyalty of his men, (he only had the XIII legion with him at this point) he gave a stirring speech pointing out the wrongs done to him (and the tribunes). (30 kgs) to over 100 lbs. Caesar decided the best course of action was to settle matters in Rome, then move north to deal with Labienus, and then west to confront Pompey's army in Spain. Persian Fire: The First World Empire and the Battle for the West: The First World Empire, Battle for the West Tom Holland. The authors of this book have gathered a wealth of evidence from all over the Roman Empire's excavated examples as well as pictorial and documentary sources to present a picture of what range of equipment would be available at any given time, what it would look like and how it would function. The optimates despised Caesar and his conquests (viewing much of his campaigning as unwarranted and illegal) and looked for every opportunity to strip him of his command. and lasted until 476 C.E. The decision robbed the Rubicon of its importance, and the name gradually disappeared from the local toponymy. When Julius Caesar led his troops from Gaul in January of 49 B.C.E., he paused on the northern end of a bridge. In what was certainly an illegal action, in an era filled with political illegalities, the consuls ordered Pompey to take up command of the local legions and to raise more in defense of Rome against Caesar. Legions of Rome: The Definitive History of Every Imperial Roman Legion, Roman Military Equipment from the Punic Wars to the Fall of Rome (2nd edition), On Roman Military Matters; A 5th Century Training Manual in Organization, Weapons and Tactics, as Practiced by the Roman Legions. Vegetius's "De Re Militari" was the only major work of Roman military science to survive from classical times. The Rubicon, like other small rivers of the region, often changed its course during this period. Unable to levy armies, or develop a meaningful resistance, the Senate and Pompey had little choice but to take their business out of Rome and into Greece. In 49 BC, perhaps on January 10, Julius Caesar led a single legion, Legio XIII Gemina, south over the Rubicon from Cisalpine Gaul to Italy to make his way to Rome.

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