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GaiaCaesari524

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Posts posted by GaiaCaesari524

  1. Caesar certainly is the most famous Roman ever among the general populace, and a gifted man in his own right. But most famous isn't necessarily the greatest. As far as political organization, Augustus and Constantine set the tenor for the early and later empires, respectively. It is hard to think of more far reaching political visionaries.

     

    To be fair to Caesar though, Augustus and Constantine had much a longer time at the top to be able to shape the republic/empire into how they thought it should have been. Caesar had his own idea's and ambitions for the future of Rome but unfortunately he was unable to fulfill them.

     

    As for the greatest Roman figure?? That's debatable, we will always argue the for's and against's of that question, but he is most certainly the greatest known Roman figure. I think that's something that we can all certainly agree on.

     

     

     

     

    I'd have to say Julius Caesar. For me, he is the embodiment of Ancient Rome. He rose up from his humble beginnings, and MADE his name. He embodied drive, dignity, ambition, and the might of the Roman Army. People are mystified by him because he was larger than life. He was loved by all. His infamous murder probably helped too but I think that it was mostly him in it of itself that made him great. He was all about his image and made sure that the public saw him as a great man which is the image that has been passed down to us through history.

  2. I have yet to come across a novel about Julius Caesar that I was thoroughly satisfied with (although McCoullugh's "Memoirs of Cleopatra" was phenomenal!). Has anyone out there read some really great novels about him that would like to share? :)

  3. Also, Octavia is seen feeding species of parrot that will mot be known to Europeans for 1500 years and 1800 years.

     

    I know its less dramatic than lesbianism and murdered husbands but I keep parrots so I noticed this mistake instantly.

     

     

     

    This isn't really related to any of the mentioned questions..but I have a question of my own:

    WHEN IS THERE GOING TO BE A MOVIE?!??!?!?

    I feel as though they rushed through the series..they covered a 15 year civil war in a matter of a few hours! They denied the petition to make a third season but have stated that there will be a movie made out of the series...this was in the beginning of '08! Does anyone know additional info. on this matter?

  4. Caesar was known to have unbridled energy. I get no feeling of this at all from Hinds. Authority, yes. Majesty, too. But no sense of zip or spark similar to the way Harrison, Calhern, and Rains portray him.

     

    Of course, in all fairness, I've only seen the first four episodes.

     

     

    I definitely agree with you! He's commanding, regal, refined, and self-contained but definitely lacks the motivational and energetic aspects that Caesar is known for! Also, according to most accounts, Caesar was blonde, dark eyed and very tall.

  5. I guess Caesar's corpse would have been incinerated for especifically avoiding any political use of it, as it was the case for Alexander Magnus (notoriously from Ptolemy Soter).

     

     

    Seriously, well that is quite baffling. :)

     

    Woops! The above comment wasn't meant for that specific post. It was meant for the post regarding the neo-fascists. :thumbsup:

  6. I guess Caesar's corpse would have been incinerated for especifically avoiding any political use of it, as it was the case for Alexander Magnus (notoriously from Ptolemy Soter).

     

     

    Seriously, well that is quite baffling. :thumbsup:

  7. ...and they sure aren't there anymore.

    In fact, I haven't been able to found where they are (either Caesar's remains or his familiar tomb).

     

    Nothing remains of either. Even the location of the most likely place of burial (the Julian tumulus) is not known with any certainty.

     

     

    Ah, well thank you for letting me know. That is such a shame. :-( I was really looking forward to seeing it. I know that there is a memorial of sorts at the Temple of Divis Julius, yes?

  8. There's no doubt that Cicero had some form of bravery. I was merely commenting on another users comment that said that Cicero didn't act because he only spoke against Caesar, not acted against him. Personally, I find it hard to utter any positives about Cicero or the other conspirators. I am a loyal Ceasarion.

     

     

     

    Caesar wasn't a tyrant. Cicero was a coward.

     

     

     

    Would he have participated if asked?

     

    His behavior afterwards suggests so. In a letter to Trebonius (one of those friends of Caesar who were so disgusted by the dictator's behavior that they joined the assassination), Cicero expressed regret that he hadn't been "invited to that superb banquet." Moreover, he worked tirelessly on behalf of the liberators, convincing the Senate to defend Decimus Brutus at Mutina, lobbying to get the Roman senate to recall Brutus and Cassius to Rome after they had left for Greece, and denouncing his son-in-law Dolabella for the murder of Trebonius.

     

    On the other hand, it's a lot easier to talk about tyrannicide than to actually risk your life committing it. Yes, Cicero was as disgusted by Caesar as any other sane and decent human being, but he nonetheless showed very little actual fortitude when Caesar was waging his war on Rome. While Cato was tearing his guts out lest he share the same air as that bald darling of Venus, Cicero was at home fretting over how his ex-wife and current one were getting along.

    Whether Caesar was a tyrant or not is a subject for debate. However, I fail to understand how Cicero can be described as a coward so unequivocally!

    Can't agree more; if facing a Catilina or a Clodius were not risky enough, Cicero's fiery Philippics were given against the most powerful Roman general of the time; guts were definitively needed for that.

     

    And, the manner in which he died according to all sources, was overwhelmingly brave!

  9. Caesar wasn't a tyrant. Cicero was a coward.

     

     

     

    Would he have participated if asked?

     

    His behavior afterwards suggests so. In a letter to Trebonius (one of those friends of Caesar who were so disgusted by the dictator's behavior that they joined the assassination), Cicero expressed regret that he hadn't been "invited to that superb banquet." Moreover, he worked tirelessly on behalf of the liberators, convincing the Senate to defend Decimus Brutus at Mutina, lobbying to get the Roman senate to recall Brutus and Cassius to Rome after they had left for Greece, and denouncing his son-in-law Dolabella for the murder of Trebonius.

     

    On the other hand, it's a lot easier to talk about tyrannicide than to actually risk your life committing it. Yes, Cicero was as disgusted by Caesar as any other sane and decent human being, but he nonetheless showed very little actual fortitude when Caesar was waging his war on Rome. While Cato was tearing his guts out lest he share the same air as that bald darling of Venus, Cicero was at home fretting over how his ex-wife and current one were getting along.

  10. Ooo, what's BBC Caecar? Is that a tv show? I am absolutely fascinated by him and would love to delve into another show about him :)

     

     

    We know that Antonius was Caesar's most trusted ally/friened/officer etc', he became consul and magister equitum under him so Caesar must have "liked" him . We have a detailed narrative for their political relationship .

    I saw BBC' Caecar the other day and was surprised again to see Caesar's attitude towards Antonius, "he" talked to him with bitterness, ignored his advices and actually behave like someone who hated him . It was the same as in HBO's Rome and the same as in other shows about the couple since shakespeare .

     

    Why ? I can't remember Plutarchus', Cicero's, Sallustius' and the others words about their personal relationship (my bad memory) .

     

    What do you think ?

  11. I was wondering if anyone knew what happened to Caesar's remains? I thought they were placed at his temple, but I'm not sure. Is that the case? Are his ashes placed at the altar still?

     

     

     

     

     

     

    This thread seems to be a grab bag of random topics about Caesar, so just a few thoughts:

     

    (1) Parenti's book is terrible. He really doesn't have much of any background on ancient Rome, and the book is Michael Moore-ish in its cartoonish treatment of historical events. Clodius mentioned the socialist tone of the bio, but I don't even think Parenti is even competent at that. Presumably a consistent Marxist would celebrate Spartacus rather than the guy who bragged he enslaved a million Gallic men, women, and children... but then Marxists have always had a funny way of tolerating real slavery while shaking their fists at capitalist 'exploiters' ...

     

    (2) PP and I had a long discussion of Caesar's birth date in a previous thread (HERE and HERE), and we came to the conclusion that 102 is more likely. Specialists on the late republic who wrote on the topic came to a similar conclusion as well.

     

    (3) On the ides itself, I still highly recommend Nicolaus of Damascus' treatment. Of all the ancient historians, he comes closest to providing an eyewitness account.

     

    (EDIT: included links to previous discussions.)

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