Upon his return from Spain, Caesar granted pardon to all who had fought
against him, the most prominent of whom were GAIUS CASSIUS, MARCUS
BRUTUS, and CICERO. He increased the number of the Senate to nine
hundred. He cut off the corn grants, which nursed the city mob in
idleness. He sent out impoverished men to colonize old cities. He
rebuilt Corinth, and settled eighty thousand Italians on the site of
Carthage. As a censor of morals he was very rigid. His own habits were
marked by frugality. The rich young patricians were forbidden to be
carried about in litters, as had been the custom. Libraries were formed.
Eminent physicians and scientists were encouraged to settle in Rome. The
harbor of Ostia was improved, and a road constructed from the Adriatic
to the Tyrrhenian Sea, over the Apennines. A temple to Mars was built,
and an immense amphitheatre was erected at the foot of the Tarpeian
Rock.
In the midst of this useful activity he was basely murdered.
CASSIUS LONGINUS and MARCUS JUNIUS BRUTUS were the leaders in the
conspiracy to effect Caesar's death, Cassius, a former lieutenant of
Crassus, had shown great bravery in the war with the Parthians. At
Pharsalia he fought on the side of Pompey, but was afterwards pardoned
by Caesar. He was married to a sister of Brutus. The latter, a nephew
and son-in-law of Cato, had also fought at Pharsalia against Caesar, and
also been pardoned by him. Cassius, it was said, hated the tyrant, and
Brutus tyranny.
These conspirators were soon joined by persons of all parties; and men
who had fought against each other in the civil war now joined hands.
Cicero was not taken into the plot. He was of advanced years, and all
who knew him must have felt that he would never consent to the taking
the life of one who had been so lenient towards his conquered enemies.
On the morning of the IDES (15th) OF MARCH, 44, as Caesar entered the
Senate and took his seat, he was approached by the conspirators, headed
by Tullius Cimber, who prayed for the pardon of his exiled brother; and
while the rest joined him in the request, he, grasping Caesar's hand,
kissed his head and breast. As Caesar attempted to rise, Cimber dragged
his cloak from his shoulders, and Casca, who was standing behind his
chair, stabbed him in the neck. The first blow was struck, and the whole
pack fell upon their noble victim. Cassius stabbed him in the face, and
Marcus Brutus in the groin. He made no further resistance; but, wrapping
his gown over his head and the lower part of his body, he fell at the
base of POMPEY'S STATUE, which was drenched with the martyr's blood.
Great tumult and commotion followed; and, in their alarm, most of the
Senators fled. It was two days before the Senate met, the conspirators
meanwhile having taken refuge in the Capitol. Public sentiment was
against them. Many of Caesar's old soldiers were in the city, and many
more were flocking there from all directions. The funeral oration of
Mark Antony over the remains produced a deep impression upon the crowd.
They became so excited when the speaker removed the dead man's toga, and
disclosed his wounds, that, instead of allowing the body to be carried
to the Campus Martius for burial, they raised a funeral pile in the
Forum, and there burned it. The crowd then dispersed in troops, broke
into and destroyed the houses of the conspirators. Brutus and Cassius
fled from the city for their lives, followed by the other murderers.
As a general Caesar was probably superior to all others, excepting
possibly Hannibal. He was especially remarkable for the fertility of
his resources. It has been said that Napoleon taught his enemies how
to conquer him; but Caesar's enemies never learned how to conquer him,
because he had not a mere system of tactics, but a new stratagem for
every emergency. He was, however, not only a great general, but a
pre-eminent statesman, and second only to Cicero in eloquence. As
a historian, he wrote in a style that was clear, vigorous, and also
simple. Most of his writings are lost; but of those that remain Cicero
said that fools might try to improve on them, but no wise man would
attempt it.