Early European History

by Hutton Webster

62. POMPEY AND CAESAR

RISE OF POMPEY

The struggle between Marius and Sulla, decided as it was by the sword, marks a stage in the decline of the Roman Republic. The careers of these two men showed how easily the state could be ruled by a successful commander who had his soldiers behind him. After Sulla's death his friend Pompey became the leading figure in Roman politics. Pompey's first service was in Spain, where the adherents of Marius sought to humble the Senate and the aristocratic party by encouraging the Spaniards to rise against Roman rule. Having crushed this rebellion, Pompey returned to Italy in time to take part in putting down a formidable insurrection of slaves, outlaws, and ruined peasants. He was next intrusted with the war against the pirates, who swarmed in the Mediterranean, preyed on commerce, and plundered wealthy cities near the coast. Brilliant success in clearing the seas of these marauders led to his being sent to the East to end the war with Mithradates, who was once more in arms against Rome. Pompey drove the Pontic monarch from his kingdom and then annexed Syria to the Roman dominions. When Pompey returned to Rome in 62 B.C., he brought with him a reputation as the most successful general of his time.

[Illustration: GNAEUS POMPEIUS MAGNUS (Spada Palace, Rome)]

MARCUS TULLIUS CICERO

We have seen how steadily since the days of the Gracchi the Roman state had been moving toward the rule of one man. Marius, Sulla, and Pompey each represent a step in the direction of monarchy. Yet there were still able and patriotic leaders at Rome who believed in the old order of things and tried their best to uphold the fast-perishing republic. No republican statesman was more devoted to the constitution than Cicero. A native of Arpinum, the same Italian town which had already given birth to Marius, Cicero came to Rome a youth without wealth or family influence. He made his way into Roman society by his social and conversational powers and by his capacity for friendship. His mind had been carefully trained under the influence of Hellenic culture; he had traveled and studied in Greece; and throughout life he loved to steal away from the tumult of the Forum and the law courts and enjoy the companionship of his books. Though the proud nobles were inclined to look down on him as a "new man," Cicero's splendid eloquence soon gave him prominence in politics. He ranks in fame as the second orator of antiquity, inferior only to Demosthenes.

[Illustration: MARCUS TULLIUS CICERO (Vatican Museum, Rome)]

IMPEACHMENT OF VERRES, 70 B.C.

Cicero rose to prominence through his prosecution of Verres, a thieving governor of Sicily. Verres had powerful friends among the nobles at Rome and counted on his influence and wealth to escape punishment. He openly boasted that he had plunder enough to live in luxury, even though he had to surrender two-thirds of it as fees to his lawyers and bribes to the jury. But Verres had not reckoned with the brilliant young advocate who took up the cause of the oppressed provincials. Cicero hurried to Sicily and there collected such an overwhelming mass of evidence that the bare statement of the facts was enough to condemn the criminal. Verres went into exile. Cicero became the head of the Roman bar. Seven years later he was elected consul.

CONSPIRACY OF CATILINE, 63 B.C.

The year of Cicero's consulship was marked by an event which throws a lurid light on the conditions of the time. Lucius Catiline, a young noble of ability, but bankrupt in character and purse, organized a conspiracy to seize Rome, murder the magistrates, and plunder the rich. He gathered about himself outlaws of every description, slaves, and starving peasants —all the discontented and needy classes throughout Italy. He and his associates were desperate anarchists who sought to restore their own broken fortunes by overturning the government. The spread of the insurrection was checked by Cicero's vigorous measures. In a series of famous speeches he exposed Catiline's plans to the astounded Senate. Catiline then fled to his camp in Etruria and shortly afterwards perished in battle, together with three thousand of his followers. Cicero now gained fresh popularity and honor. The grateful citizens called him "Father of his Country" (Pater Patriae).

RISE OF CAESAR

Rome at this time held another prominent leader in politics, namely, Gaius Julius Caesar. He belonged to a noble family, but his father had favored the democratic cause and his aunt had married Marius. After Sulla's death Caesar threw himself with energy into the game of politics at the capital city. In these early years the future statesman seems to have been a demagogue of the usual type, who sought through the favor of the people a rapid rise to power. He won the ear of the multitude by his fiery harangues, his bribes of money, and his gifts of food and public shows. Caesar's expenditures for such purposes were enormous. Before he was twenty-four he had spent all his private fortune. Henceforth he was "financed" by the millionaire Crassus, who lent him the money so necessary for a successful career as a politician.

THE FIRST TRIUMVIRATE, 60 B.C.

Caesar and Crassus, the two leaders of the democratic party at Rome, now joined with Pompey in what is called the First Triumvirate. To this "ring" Pompey contributed his military reputation, Crassus, his wealth, and Caesar, his influence over the Roman mob. Supported both by the people and by the army, these three men were really masters of Rome. An immediate result of the First Triumvirate was the appointment of Caesar as governor of Cisalpine and Transalpine Gaul.

[Illustration: GAIUS JULIUS CAESAR (British Museum, London)]

CAESAR'S CAMPAIGNS IN GAUL, 58-50 B.C.

The story of his career in Gaul has been related by Caesar himself in the famous Commentaries. This book describes a series of military successes which have given the author a place among the world's generals. Caesar overran Transalpine Gaul, twice bridged the Rhine and invaded Germany, made two expeditions to Britain, and brought within the Roman dominions all the territory bounded by the Pyrenees, the Alps, the Rhine, and the Atlantic Ocean.

ROMANIZATION OF GAUL

Caesar's conquests in Gaul are more than a chapter in the history of the art of war. They belong to the history of civilization. Henceforth the frontier of prehistoric Europe retreated rapidly to the north. The map of the ancient civilized world widened from the Mediterranean basin to the shores of the Atlantic. Into the conquered lands came the Latin language, the Roman law, and the customs and institutions of Rome. Gaul speedily became one of the most flourishing parts of the Roman world. "Let the Alps sink," exclaimed Cicero, "the gods raised them to shelter Italy from the barbarians, but now they are no longer needed."

DEFEAT AND DEATH OF CRASSUS, 53 B.C.

During Caesar's long absence in Gaul the First Triumvirate was suddenly ended by the death of one of its members. It had been a part of their bargain in dividing the Roman world that Crassus should have the government of Syria. But this unlucky general, while aspiring to rival Caesar's exploits by new conquests beyond the Euphrates, lost his army and his life in battle with the Parthians. Besides checking the extension of the Roman arms in the remote East, the disaster had its effect on Roman politics. It dissolved the triumvirate and prepared the way for that rivalry between Caesar and Pompey which formed the next step in the downward course of the republic.

GROWING OPPOSITION BETWEEN POMPEY AND CAESAR

The two men were now rapidly drawing apart. Pompey grew more and more jealous of Caesar and more and more fearful that the latter was aiming at despotic power. He himself had no desire to be king or dictator. He was equally determined that Caesar should not gain such a position. In this attitude he had the full support of Cicero and the other members of the Senate. They saw clearly that the real danger to the state was Caesar, not Pompey.

CAESAR DECLARES WAR IN THE REPUBLIC, 49 B.C.

Caesar's command in Gaul was to expire in 49 B.C. The senatorial party desired that he should return to Rome without an army. His opponents intended to prosecute him when he became a private citizen. Caesar had no inclination to trust himself to their tender mercies and refused to disband his legions unless his rival did the same. Finally the Senate, conscious of Pompey's support, ordered him to lay down his arms on pain of outlawry. Caesar replied to this challenge of the Senate by leading his troops across the Rubicon, the little stream that separated Cisalpine Gaul from Italy. As he plunged into the river, he exclaimed, "The die is cast." [24] He had now declared war on the republic.

CAESAR MASTER OF THE WEST

Caesar's bold movement caught the senatorial party unawares. Pompey could not gather his legions before his audacious foe reached Rome. Finding it impossible to make a stand in Italy, Pompey, with the consuls and many senators, withdrew to Greece. Caesar did not follow him at once. He hurried to Spain and, after a brilliant campaign only six weeks in length, broke down the republican resistance in that peninsula. Having now secured Italy and Spain, Caesar was free to turn his forces against Pompey in the East.

[Illustration: Map, THE EXPANSION OF ROMAN DOMINIONS 133-31 B.C.]

BATTLE OF PHARSALUS, 48 B.C.

The final battle took place on the plain of Pharsalus in Thessaly. Pompey's troops, though nearly twice as numerous as Caesar's, were defeated after a severe struggle. Their great leader then fled to Egypt, only to be foully murdered. Pompey's head was sent to Caesar, but he turned from it with horror. Such was the end of an able general and an honest man, one who should have lived two hundred years earlier, when Rome was still a free state.

CAESAR IN EGYPT, ASIA MINOR, AND AFRICA, 48-46 B.C.

After Pharsalus there still remained several years of fighting before Caesar's victory was complete. He made Cleopatra, the beautiful queen of Egypt, secure in the possession of the throne and brought that country into dependence on Rome. He passed through Asia Minor and in one swift campaign crushed a revolt headed by the son of Mithridates. The conqueror sent tidings of his victory in a laconic dispatch: "I came, I saw, I conquered." [25] After subduing the remnants of the senatorial party in Africa, Caesar returned home to crown his exploits by a series of splendid triumphs and to enjoy less than two years of untrammeled power.