Gaius Julius Caesar was born on July 12, 100 BC. He went down in history as a great conqueror and no less successful politician. Like Alexander the Great, he was equated with the gods, praised for his bravery and accused of love for men.
Descendant of the goddess
According to the legend of the Julian family, from which Caesar came, the great politician and commander was a descendant of Aeneas, the ancestor of Romulus and Remus and the main character of the famous Roman epic "Aeneid". Moreover, Aeneas himself was a representative of the royal house of Troy, the nephew of the last ruler of the fallen city - Priam. And according to his mother, Aeneas did belong to the divine family - he was the son of Aphrodite. Thus, Caesar himself had every right to build his genealogies to the gods, which he used more than once to his advantage. In his funeral speech over his aunt, he quite unequivocally placed his family on the same line with the demigods: “The family of my aunt Julia ascends to the kings through her mother, and through her father to the immortal gods: for from Anca Marcius the Marcians-kings originate, whose name was borne by her mother, and from the goddess Venus - the Julian clan, to which our family belongs. That is why our family is clothed with inviolability, like kings who are powerful above all people, and reverence, like gods, who are subject to the kings themselves."
Adventurer
Fleeing from the persecution of the dictator Sulla, young Caesar fled from Rome and hid in Bithynia with the king Nicomedes. He did not stay with him for long, soon went to sea and near the island of Farmakoussa was captured by local pirates. First, they demanded a ransom of one hundred and twenty thousand denarii, to which Caesar laughed and said that they "take little", offering them three hundred thousand denarii. His courage, when dealing with sea robbers, bordered on suicide. When he went to bed, he ordered them to be silent. During the month he spent in captivity, Caesar calmly joked with them and took part in their gymnastic exercises. Sometimes, Plutarch wrote, he entertained himself by writing poems and reading his works to pirates aloud. Those who did not like him, he called ignorant and savages, and even threatened to hang them. By the way,he was quick to carry out his threat. Once free, Caesar hired several ships in the harbor of Miletus and attacked the pirates. He took the money as booty, and threw the prisoners into the Pergamon prison. Subsequently, with his intervention, the robbers were crucified, which Caesar himself often recalled "as if in jest."
Promotional video:
Priest of Jupiter
It was not only a family legend that linked Caesar with the Roman gods. He belonged to the flamines - priests of Jupiter, the supreme god of the Roman pantheon. Moreover, he received this post not without reference to his divine ancestors. Flamin Jupiter had to live within the framework of many prohibitions, restrictions and traditions: he could not ride a horse, the leg of his bed had to be always stained with mud, he was not allowed to touch raw meat and much more. The position, like the restrictions that accompanied it, was for life, but Caesar held it until 89 BC, before the dictator Sulla came to power, whose tyranny forced him to flee Rome. Nevertheless, even after this, Caesar more than once enjoyed the rights of a priest. For example, based on the power given to him by the gods, Julius in 46 BC reformed the calendar, which until that time was the prerogative of only the Flamines. So, with the light hand of a "retired priest", a calendar appeared for the first time, where there were 365 days a year.
Bribe
Everyone who knew Caesar or mentioned him in their works noted one of his main vices - self-interest. No, Caesar was not stingy, in his own interests he could generously scatter funds, but he had no inclination for altruistic charity. “He did not find unselfishness in either civilian or service areas,” wrote Julia Suetonius about this trait. By the way, despite his shrewd mind, unique talent of the commander and subtle political perspicacity, Caesar achieved a considerable part of his goals, as they say, "through pull." To enlist the support of Roman citizens, he erected a forum, the land under which was worth more than a hundred million denarii. He doubled his wages to the Legionnaires for eternal times, sometimes presenting captive slaves as gifts. With the same zeal, he won over kings and provinces to his side:to some he sent thousands of captives as gifts, to others he sent troops to help wherever and whenever he wanted, without the approval of the Senate and the people.
Druid "in service"
For historians, Caesar's writings are one of the main sources on the religion of the ancient Celts - Druidism, about which, contrary to all speculation, very little is known - the Celts knew only oral tradition and did not leave any monuments. Among the ancient sources telling about the Celts, Caesar's Notes on the Gallic War are perhaps the most reliable. Firstly, the commander saw all this with his own eyes, and secondly, he had a good consultant - a good friend Julia, a druid of the Celtic tribe of the Edui Divitiak. As if foreseeing the future of Gaul in alliance with Rome, Divitiac became Caesar's main supporter, and more than once defended his brave, but short-sighted tribe from the reprisals that the war with Rome threatened them with. For several years, Caesar used him as an adviser, soothsayer, commander, ambassador, diplomat, translator, courier and just a companion. The native tribe, especially his blood brother Dumnorig, an ardent enemy of Caesar, saw betrayal in Divitiac's actions, the ability to "maneuver" was provided only by his high priest status. Divitiac completely unexpectedly disappears from Caesar's Notes. Either Julius dismissed him, because of the open opposition of Dumnorig, whom Divitiac desperately defended from the death penalty, or his compatriots took revenge on the druid. Unfortunately, outside of the "Notes on the Gallic War" historians know nothing about the fate of the first and only diplomat druid Divitiac.due to the open opposition of Dumnorig, whom Divitiac desperately defended from the death penalty, or his compatriots got even with the druid. Unfortunately, outside of the "Notes on the Gallic War" historians know nothing about the fate of the first and only diplomat druid Divitiac.because of the open opposition of Dumnorig, whom Divitiak desperately defended from the death penalty, or his compatriots got even with the druid. Unfortunately, outside of the "Notes on the Gallic War" historians know nothing about the fate of the first and only diplomat druid Divitiac.
Zhenolub
Caesar won victory after victory not only in the military field, but also on the love front. There were legends about his "love for women" in Rome. This is what the couplet sang during the Gaulish triumph:
“Hide your wives, we are leading a bald lecher to the city.
You spent your money borrowed in Rome in Gaul."
Julius had four official wives alone, not to mention noble mistresses, among whom were Cleopatra, Postumia, the wife of his comrade-in-arms Gnaeus Pompey, and even the Moorish queen Evnoya. One of Caesar's favorites was the mother of his future murderer Brutus - Servilia, whose gifts the commander did not skimp on - he gave her pearls of six million, the richest estates. From his undisguised passion, a rumor subsequently spread that Brutus, the son of Mark Junius Brutus and Servilia, was, in fact, the son of Caesar.
The secret of the laurel wreath
Like many representatives of the ancient world, Caesar had a scrupulous attitude towards hygiene, cleanliness and appearance. Suetonius describes Caesar as follows: “He was tall, fair-skinned, well-built, a little full face, eyes black and lively. He looked after his body too thoroughly, and not only cut and shaved, but also plucked his hair, and many reproached him with this. The bald head that disgraced him was unbearable to him, as it often attracted the ridicule of ill-wishers. Therefore, he usually combed his thinned hair from the crown of his forehead. " By the way, according to Suetonius, it was Caesar's bald head that immortalized his image with a laurel wreath on his head, he actively used the right to wear laurels in order to hide such a hated bald head. By the way, Caesar was reproached not only for excessive attention to his appearance. On his chastity,even at the time of his priestly functions, cohabitation with Nicomedes was an indelible stain, rumors of which brought him general reproach. True, for the sake of fairness, it should be noted that the main sources of folk talk were Caesar's enemies, including Cicero. “Cicero described in some of his letters how the royal servants took Caesar to his bedchamber, how he lay down on a golden bed in purple robes, and how the color of youth of this descendant of Venus was corrupted in Bithynia; Moreover, when Caesar spoke before the Senate in defense of Nisa, the daughter of Nicomedes, and listed all the services rendered to him by the king, Cicero interrupted him: "Let us leave it alone, I ask you: everyone knows perfectly well what he gave you and what you gave him!", - Suetonius quoted famous lines from the works of Licinius Calv.rumors of which brought him general reproach. True, for the sake of justice, it should be noted that the main sources of folk talk were Caesar's enemies, including Cicero. “Cicero described in some of his letters how the royal servants took Caesar to the bedchamber, how he lay down on a golden bed in purple robes, and how the flower of youth of this descendant of Venus was corrupted in Bithynia; Moreover, when Caesar spoke before the Senate in defense of Nisa, the daughter of Nicomedes, and listed all the services rendered to him by the king, Cicero interrupted him: "Let us leave it alone, I ask you: everyone knows perfectly well what he gave you and what you gave him!", - Suetonius quoted famous lines from the works of Licinius Calv.rumors of which brought him general reproach. True, for the sake of justice, it should be noted that the main sources of folk talk were Caesar's enemies, including Cicero. “Cicero described in some of his letters how the royal servants took Caesar to his bedchamber, how he lay down on a golden bed in purple robes, and how the color of youth of this descendant of Venus was corrupted in Bithynia; Moreover, when Caesar spoke before the Senate in defense of Nisa, the daughter of Nicomedes, and listed all the services rendered to him by the king, Cicero interrupted him: "Let us leave it alone, I ask you: everyone knows perfectly well what he gave you and what you gave him!", - Suetonius quoted famous lines from the works of Licinius Calv.“Cicero described in some of his letters how the royal servants took Caesar to the bedchamber, how he lay down on a golden bed in purple robes, and how the flower of youth of this descendant of Venus was corrupted in Bithynia; Moreover, when Caesar spoke before the Senate in defense of Nisa, the daughter of Nicomedes, and listed all the services rendered to him by the king, Cicero interrupted him: "Let us leave it alone, I ask you: everyone knows perfectly well what he gave you and what you gave him!", - Suetonius quoted famous lines from the works of Licinius Calv.“Cicero described in some of his letters how the royal servants took Caesar to the bedchamber, how he lay down on a golden bed in purple robes, and how the flower of youth of this descendant of Venus was corrupted in Bithynia; Moreover, when Caesar spoke before the Senate in defense of Nisa, the daughter of Nicomedes, and listed all the services rendered to him by the king, Cicero interrupted him: "Let us leave it alone, I ask you: everyone knows perfectly well what he gave you and what you gave him!", - Suetonius quoted famous lines from the works of Licinius Calv. I ask you: everyone knows perfectly well what he gave you and what you gave him!”Suetonius quoted famous lines from the works of Licinius Calva. I ask you: everyone knows perfectly well what he gave you and what you gave him!”Suetonius quoted famous lines from the works of Licinius Calva.