FREE ESSAY ON CEASAR

CEASAR

Caesar the Politician
Caesar
Ronald Syme, the author of the assigned passage, is one of the leading ancient historians
of the present. He was an Oxford professor, and wrote the Roman Revolution in the late
1930's. To Syme, one-person rule was not appealing to him. He lived in a time of WWII,
and leaders like Hitler. By the time Syme began to write, there was much more research on
the dismal side of Caesar's monarchy than earlier authors, such as Theodor Mommsen had.
Syme argues that in the "Roman Revolution", Caesar could not control the new social group
he acquired. Caesar surpassed his peers because of his intelligence and luck. His
dictatorship, says Syme, led to his assassination.
History sometimes hinted that Caesar had monarchy on his mind from the beginning. He felt
he could cure the world's problems through armed forces. However, Caesar did not like
war. He repeatedly tried to negotiate with enemies like Pompeius before battling.
Pompeius was afraid that Caesar would take over the government and reform the state,
which is why he was chosen to save the oligarchy. Caesar knew Pompeius had a small army.
Caesar had the majority in the senate, and knew they would back him in any military
decision. 
Caesar was probably not even supposed to stand for the consulate, but his followers
clouded legal matters so he could do so. Caesar was the kind of person that never wanted
anyone to know if his rank, prestige, or honor was in jeopardy. To cast a shadow on these
times, exceptions had always taken place legally for Caesar. Caesar publicly took
interest in defending the tribunes and the liberties of the Roman People, but what he
valued most was his dignitas, or personal honor.
Caesar's enemies had a choice between civil war and trying to evict him politically. They
said his authority was illegitimate and the proconsul was rebellious. Many thought the
people of Italy would come together to throw out Caesar, but he made sure his dignitas
was protected.
He gathered troops and simultaneously confidence, as he mastered Italy by crossing the
Rubicon.
The odds lay against Caesar until his legions joined at Pharsalus. Luck and the loyalty
of his legions brought him to a victory. For the next three years, Caesar "cleaned up"
what was left of Pompeius' armies. These enemies may not have won the war, but they did
stop Caesar from glorifying his aristocracy. They made sure he knew that he was
responsible for killing his peers in war.
Caesar brought it upon himself to establish his dictatorship. This was not wise after
winning a war, because to the Roman people, it was a true sign of monarchy. Caesar
essentially knew that at some point his enemies were going to come after him because
unlike in the triumvirate, as one, he was vulnerable. However, he had the title of
dictator as a shield. With a title such as this, he had much protection and control over
the lives of the people because he could put to death anyone that argued his word.
Caesar's most profound mistake was not rebuilding the ravages from the war, and
regenerating the people socially to ensure their lasting protection and prosperity.
Instead, he set out for war again. In war, Caesar could take pride in his victories, and
disregard the actuality of the problems in Rome. The decisions in war and even some laws
of Caesar were made swiftly, without deliberation, or concern of the consequences of the
future. He did not proclaim any intentions or goals for the Roman Society besides victory
in war. Without these, he could not be an efficient leader, and the citizens started to
realize this.
Caesar quickly became well aware that he had become unpopular with the citizens of Rome
for not paying attention to their needs.
Caesar's enemies wanted him removed from office immediately. As a result, he was
assassinated. After his death, the Caesarian party lived on, and filtered into a national
government in a transformed senate. The assassination of Caesar took place because of the
person that Caesar was not what he might have become. His dictatorship did not allow room
for new laws, forces, or ideas of the people to be put in effect. Making himself first
among his peers, Caesar lost the respect and support of many of his allies. Without this
support, he couldn't be an adequate statesman.
Caesar can be judged only by facts, not intentions, for only Caesar knew what those were.
Factually, we can extract from his writings, and those of the other authors of his time,
that Caesar was a realist and an opportunist. However, his time was cut too short for
Caesar to actually establish a strong form of government, based on his intentions.
Caesar's game plan shall forever remain a mystery, making it difficult for modern
historians to arbitrate the man that Caesar truly was.