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Interesting Questions, Facts and Information
- There are a total of 40 general entries. We are selecting 30 for display.
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 Interesting Questions, Facts, and Information
 Julius Caesar
Gaius Octavius. Octavius would defeat all of his rivals, including Antony, for the rulership of Rome. He would become the first Emperor of Rome, Caesar Augustus.
Pompey the Great. Pompey was beheaded in Egypt by royal courtiers trying to gain favor with Caesar. Caesar wept when he heard of this, and ordered those responsible for Pompey's death killed.
Alesia. Caesar was crushing an uprising of the conquered people.
Gaul . Ancient Gaul comprised modern France, Belgium and Luxembourg. The quote included in the hint is the first line of Caesar's 'Commentaries on the Gaullic War.'
Pompey and Crassus. These three people pledged to support each other's legislation and policies, and not to support anything which would harm another in the group.
Pontifex Maximus. Pontifex Maximus ('supreme bridge builder') survives to this day as a title of the Pope. Caesar became Flamen Dialis as a child.
Malaria. The Romans called the variety of malaria which Caesar had 'quartain fever' because it operated in a four day cycle. Their word for malaria in general was 'the ague.'
| As a very young man, Caesar was forced to go into hiding because he defied the wishes of which ruler of Rome? | The Life of Julius Caesar
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Cornelius Sulla. Caesar refused to divorce his wife and marry a more politically acceptable one.
Gaius Marius. Caesar's grandfather arranged for his daughter to be married to the wealthy general so that his sons would have enough money for political careers.
Patrician. Though of stellar lineage (they claimed to trace their family line back to the goddess Venus) the Julian clan was not wealthy.
| Caesar named Gaius Octavius (later Augustus) as his heir. How were Caesar and Octavius related? | Julius Caesar
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Great-uncle and great nephew. Octavius was the adopted son of Caesar's sister's daughter, Atia.
| Caesar was assassinated on the Ides of March 44BCE at a meeting of the Roman senate. Beneath which famous general's statue did Caesar fall? | Julius Caesar
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Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus. It is thought that as many as 60 men conspired to rid Rome of the 'tyrant' Caesar. The main conspirators in Caesar's assassination were Cassius, Trebonius, Decimus Brutus and Marcus Brutus. Casca was the first to strike. It is reported that before he fell, Caesar covered his head and legs. The great man was stabbed 23 times.
| Perhaps Caesar's most famous quote "Veni, vidi, vici" ("I came, I saw, I conquered") was said on August 1st 47BC following which battle? | Julius Caesar
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The defeat of Pharneces at Zela. Following Caesar's victory in the civil war, he travelled to Egypt where he placed Cleopatra on the Egyptian throne following the defeat of her brother Ptolemy's army in Alexandria. Prior to his return to Rome to assume the Dictatorship, Caesar defeated Pharnaces II, son of the former troublesome Pontic king Mithridates. The defeat was in retribution for Pharneces defeat of a Roman army led by Domitius Calvinus in Pontus. It was following this four-hour battle that Caesar made this famous quotation.
| What was the name of the award that Caesar won following the capture of Mytilene? | Julius Caesar
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Corona Civica (oak leaf crown). The Corona Civica (the Civic Crown), made of oak leaves, was the second highest honour that could be received by a soldier. Caesar won this crown for saving the lives of his fellow soldiers during the battle of Mytilene.
The Grass Crown was the highest honour that was awarded to a soldier, usually a general who liberated a besieged army. Lucius Cornelius Sulla was awarded such a crown.
The Corona Navalis was awarded to sailors.
The Corona Triumphalis was worn by victorious generals during their triumphal parades through Rome.
| What was distinctive about the horse that Caesar rode during battles? | Julius Caesar
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The horse's hooves were cloven into five parts such that they looked like toes. Caesar was highly superstitious about his luck, insisting that he rode his "toed" horse during battle.
| During his youth, Caesar was one of a number of Roman citizens to be proscribed, a punishment that could result in banishment, seizure of assets and death. Which general (later Dictator) of Rome ordered the proscription of Caesar, but eventually pardoned him? | Julius Caesar
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Lucius Cornelius Sulla. Caesar was proscribed because of his relationship to Gaius Marius, an enemy of Sulla's.
Venus. Julius Caesar claimed descent from the goddess Venus via Aeneas (Iulius) her son.
Aurelia Cotta. Julia, or a derivation thereof, was generally the name given to females born to a Julian father. Caesar's daughter, sister and aunt were all named Julia. Servilia, the mother of Marcus Brutus was his mistress and Cornelia his first wife.
44 BC. Caesar was never emperor, yet he is widely regarded as the greatest Roman ever and a truly fine military tactician. His manipulation of people in order to gain power has always and will always be admired.
She was the queen of Egypt. Roman law stated that two people could only marry if they were both Roman and as Cleopatra was the queen of Egypt, she was not Roman.
| Caesar had only one known son, he was of the Egyptian royal line and also the son of Cleopatra, what was his name? | The Life of Julius Caesar
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Ptolemy XV. Ptolemy XV was also known as Caesarion.
| Julius Caesar was very close to his nephew Octavian. Octavian was a good fighter and extremely loyal to his uncle, Caesar made him a general of one of his famed legions. After Caesar's assasination and the war that followed, he was made imperator and was and still is regarded as one of Rome's greatest emperors. What was his name while emperor? | The Life of Julius Caesar
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Augustus. The first emperor Augustus made sure that the boundaries of the Roman Empire never collapsed. He ruled for 40 years and his rule is well regarded as the change from Rome as a republic to Rome as an empire.
Julia. Julia, the daughter of Caesar and the wife of Pompey died in childbirth leaving both men heartbroken.
| Where did Julius Caesar beat the Gallic warlord, Vercingetorix and ensure that the Gauls remained loyal to the Roman Empire until its fall? | The Life of Julius Caesar
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Alesia. While Caesar was away in Britain with some of his legions, he left a single legion to guard Gaul, when in Britain it was rumoured that a Gallic warlord called Vercingetorix was trying to unite all the tribes of Gaul with aim of ridding Gaul of Roman rule. He was unsucessful, however, and in 52 BC was defeated at Alesia by the experienced and well trained legions under the command of Gaius Julius Caesar.
| The first triumvirate consisted of three men - Julius Caesar, Pompey the Great and Marcus Crassus. Why was Marcus Crassus part of this extremely powerful trio? | The Life of Julius Caesar
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He was probably the wealthiest man in the Roman world. Crassus was the general who supressed Spartacus' slave rebellion, he was not as good general as Caesar or Pompey, and his place in the first Triumvirate was the result of his money and his popular support in the senate.
| After Caesar's election to the post of Praetor in 62 BC, he was alloted a province in the then expanding Roman republic. Which was it? | The Life of Julius Caesar
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Hispania Ulterior. Many historians say that Caesar was alloted a province in modern day Spain because of the threat that he posed in Rome. He was popular with the people and highly ambitious. His posting in Hispania Ulterior was very sucessful as he managed to bring both military and economic stability to the region. On his return to Rome he demanded a Triumph, usually an event reserved for successful Roman generals. He was given two options: either he could have a Triumph or he could become senior Roman consul.
Gaius Marius. Gaius Marius was elected to the post of Consul seven times in his lifetime, this being highly unusual as one man could only be consul for one term every 10 years. His reformations of the Roman legions meant that each legion was seperated into different cohorts, usually consisting of 500 men each.
| When did Caesar lead his legions across the Rubicon, thus causing a civil war that would ensure his place as the master of the Roman world? | The Life of Julius Caesar
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49 BC. On crossing the Rubicon Julius Caesar famously said "iacta alea est", which translates as "the die is cast."
Parthia. Caesar wanted revenge for his old friend Crassus who died at the Battle at Carrahae in 52BC and had been brutally tortutred and executed.
| While in Egypt Caesar wanted to restore Cleopatra to the throne and supported her in a cvil war against her brother. In 47BC he was besieged in Alexandria for how long?
| The Military Career of Julius Caesar
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9 months. After the battle Caesar gave Cleopatra the island of Cyprus as a gift.
| The Battle at Munda was the last battle of the civil war and was nearly a defeat for Caesar. As his troops did the the unthinkable and began to retreat, Caesar with a squadron of cavalry plunged himself into the battle in an attempt to raise morale. This worked and again Caesar won the day. In which region was this battle fought? | The Military Career of Julius Caesar
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Spain. Caesar almost lost his life in this battle.
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