Julius Caesar: Who Was He Really?

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Who was Julius Caesar? Julius Caesar accomplished many things in his day, which most would consider unbelievable. He has been considered a tyrant or dictator, and some believe he was one of the world’s greatest politician. In this paper we will compare the textbook and documentation that was written around 44 B.C.E the time of his death. The documents are considered to be “primary sources”, because of the timeframe in which they were written. To get a grasp on whom, Julius Caesar really was, we need to not only dive into the primary sources, but we need to view his accomplishments. By analyzing his accomplishments, textbook, and the primary sources we can better understand just how Julius Caesar was portrayed during his reign.
Julius Caesar was born into a political family where his father expected him to take a career in the lower part of politics. When Caesar’s father dies he realizes that money runs the political machine in Rome. He then seeks to gain political power by acquiring relationships with political figures that were against the current Roman Dictator Sulla. This gets Caesar caught, eventually pardoned, and set free. He then went into exile.
During his exile he joins the army, but it’s uncertain whether he served as a soldier or as an assistant. Many believe due to his family line he served as an assistant to the governor (Roman-Empire.net). Either way after his first assignment it is said that he was in the ranks of the army that defeated the Spartacus rebellion. After the rebellion was crushed he deemed his career over, and once he left the army he went out to seek further education.
Caesar sought his furthered education in the form of public speaking. This is noticed by Cicero when he stated
“Do you know any man...

... middle of paper ...

...y. (2004). The Assassination of Julius Caesar, 44 B.C. Retrieved From: http://www.eyewitnesstohistory.com/caesar2.htm (accessed 21 February 2014).
-Tranquillus, Gaius Suetonius. (Reproduced by Livius: Articles on Ancient History). Lives of the 12 Caesars. Joseph Gavorse. Retrieved From: http://www.livius.org/caa-can/caesar/caesar_t09.html (accessed 21 February 2014).
-Plutarch. (Reproduced by Internet Ancient History Sourcebook, Aug 2000). The Assassination of Julius Caesar, from Marcus Brutus (excerpts). John Dryden. Retrieved From: http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/ancient/plutarch-caesar.asp (accessed 21 February 2014).
-Athens. (2013). Making of the West, Volume I: To 1750, 4th Edition. Retrieved from: VitalSource Bookshelf Downloaded E-Book.
-Roman-Empire.net. (n.d). Gaius Julius Caesar (100-44BC). Retrieved From: http://www.roman-empire.net/republic/caesar.html

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