A History of Rome to 565 A. D.

by Arthur E. R. Boak

The banishment of Cicero, 58 B. C. Caesar’s consulship had been an open defiance of constitutional precedent, and had revealed the fact that the triumvirate was stronger than the established organs of government, and that the Roman Empire was really controlled by [pg 167]three men. Well might Cato say that the coalition was the beginning of the end of the Republic. Within the triumvirate itself Pompey was the dominant figure owing to his military renown and the influence of his veterans. Caesar appeared as his agent, yet displayed far greater political insight and succeeded in creating for himself a position which would enable him to play a more independent rôle in the future. The coalition did not break up at the end of Caesar’s consulship; its members determined to retain their control of the state policy, and to this end secured for 58 B. C. the election of two consuls in whom they had confidence. To cement the alliance Pompey married Caesar’s daughter Julia, and Caesar married the daughter of Piso, one of the consuls-elect. To secure themselves from attack they felt it necessary to remove from the city their two ablest opponents, Cato and Cicero. The latter had refused all proposals to join their side, and had sharply criticized them on several public occasions. His banishment was secured through the agency of the tribune Clodius, whose transfer from patrician to plebeian status Caesar had facilitated. Clodius was a man of ill repute who hated Cicero because the latter had testified against him when he was on trial for sacrilege. Early in 58 B. C. Clodius carried a bill which outlawed any person who had put to death Roman citizens without regular judicial proceedings. This law was aimed at Cicero for his share in the execution of the Catalinarian conspirators. Finding that he could not rely upon the support of his friends, Cicero went into exile without awaiting trial. He was formally banished, his property was confiscated, and he himself sought refuge in Thessalonica, where the governor of Macedonia offered him protection. Cato was entrusted with a special mission to accomplish the incorporation of Cyprus, then ruled by one of the Egyptian Ptolemies, into the Roman Empire, and his Stoic conception of duty prevented him from refusing the appointment. Caesar remained with his army in the vicinity of Rome until after Cicero’s banishment and then set out for his province.

II. Caesar’s Conquest of Gaul: 58–51 b. c.

The defeat of the Helvetii and Ariovistus: 58 B. C. In 58 B. C., when Caesar entered upon his Gallic command, the Roman province in Transalpine Gaul (Gallia Narbonensis) embraced the coast districts from the Alps to the borders of Spain and the land between the [pg 168]Alps and the Rhone as far north as Lake Geneva. The country which stretched from the Pyrenees to the Rhine, and from the Rhone to the ocean was called Gallia comata or “long-haired Gaul,” and was occupied by a large number of peoples of varying importance. These were usually regarded as falling into three groups, (1) those of Aquitania, between the Pyrenees and the Loire, where there was a large Iberian element, (2) those called Celts, in a narrow sense of the word, stretching from the Loire to the Seine and the Marne, and (3) the Belgian Gauls, dwelling between these rivers and the Rhine. Among the latter were peoples of Germanic origin. Although conscious of a general unity of language, race and customs, the Gauls had not developed a national state, owing to the mutual jealousy of the individual peoples, and each tribe was perpetually divided into rival factions supporting different chiefs. Rome had sought to protect the province of Narbonensis by establishing friendly relations with some of these Gallic peoples and had long before (c. 121 B. C.) made an alliance with the Aedui. About 70 B. C. conditions in Gallia comata had been disturbed by an invasion of Germanic Suevi, from across the Rhine, under their King Ariovistus. He united with the rivals of the Aedui, the Sequani, and after a number of years reduced the former to submission. In 59 B. C. he reached an agreement with Rome, became a “friend” of the Roman people, and, while abstaining from further aggression, remained firmly established in what is now Alsace. For some time the Roman province had been alarmed by the threat of a migration of the Helvetii, then settled in western Switzerland, and in March, 58 B. C., this people started in search of new abodes. Caesar reached Gaul in time to prevent their crossing the upper Rhone, and followed them as they turned westward into the lands of the Sequani and Aedui. Defeated in two battles, they were forced to return to their home and to become allies of Rome. The movement of the Helvetii had given Caesar the opportunity for intervention in Gallia comata, and a pretext for extending his influence there was found in the hostility of some of the Gauls to Ariovistus, and the knowledge that a band of Suevi was expected soon to cross the Rhine to reinforce the latter. To frustrate a German occupation of Gaul now became Caesar’s object. Ariovistus rejected the demands of Caesar, who thereupon attacked him, defeated him in the vicinity of Strassburg and drove him across the Rhine. Caesar was now the dominant power in Gaul, and many of the leading tribes en[pg 169]tered into alliance with Rome. Of the Belgae, however, only the Remi came over to the side of Rome.

The conquest of the Belgae, Veneti, and Aquitanians, 57–56 B. C. In the next year, 57 B. C., Caesar marched against the united forces of the Belgae, defeated them, and subdued many tribes, chief of whom were the Nervii. At the same time his legates received the submission of the peoples of Normandy and Brittany. In the course of the following winter some of these, led by the Veneti, broke off their alliance and attacked Caesar’s garrisons. Thereupon he set to work to build a fleet, with which in the course of the next summer the fleet of the Veneti was destroyed and their strongholds on the coast taken (56 B. C.). The same year witnessed the submission of the Aquitanians, which brought practically the whole of Gaul under Roman sway.

Events in Rome, 58–55 B. C. Meanwhile important changes had taken place in the situation at Rome. Pompey had broken with Clodius, and supported the tribune Titus Annius Milo who pressed for Cicero’s recall. A law of the Assembly withdrew his sentence of outlawry, his property was restored, and the orator returned in September, 57 B. C., to enjoy a warm reception both in the municipal towns and at the capital. For the moment Pompey and the Optimates were on friendly terms, and the former made use of a grain famine in the city to secure for himself an appointment as curator of the grain supply (curator annonae) for a period of five years. This appointment carried with it proconsular imperium within and without Italy, and the control of the ports, markets and traffic in grain within the Roman dominions. It was really an extraordinary military command. Pompey relieved the situation but could do nothing to allay the disorders in Rome, where Clodius and Milo with their armed gangs set law and order at defiance. The news of Caesar’s victories and the influence which he was acquiring in the city by a judicious distribution of the spoils of war fired the ambitions of Pompey and Crassus who were no longer on good terms with one another. Furthermore, the return of Cato in 56 B. C. had again given the Optimates an energetic leader. Consequently Caesar felt it necessary for the coalition to reach a new agreement. Accordingly while spending the winter in Cisalpine Gaul he arranged a conference at Luca in April, 56, where the three settled their differences and laid plans for the future. They agreed that Pompey and Crassus should [pg 170]be consuls in 55 B. C., that the former should be given the Spanish provinces and Libya for five years, that Crassus should have Syria for an equal period, and that Caesar’s command in Gaul should be prolonged for another five year term to run from 1 March, 54.[12]

These arrangements were duly carried out. Since it was too late for Pompey and Crassus to be candidates at the regular elections in 56 B. C., they forcibly prevented any elections being held that year. The following January, after forcing the other candidates to withdraw, they secured their election. Thereupon a law of the tribune Gaius Trebonius made effective the assignment of provinces agreed upon at Luca. Once more it was made plain that the coalition actually ruled the empire. Cicero, who was indebted to Pompey for his recall, was forced to support the triumvirate, and the Optimates found their boldest leader in Cato, who had returned to Rome early in 56 B. C.

Caesar’s crossing of the Rhine and invasion of Britain: 55–54 B. C. During the winter following the subjugation of the Veneti, two Germanic tribes, the Usipetes and the Tencteri, crossed the lower Rhine into Gaul. In the next summer, 55 B. C., Caesar attacked and annihilated their forces, only a few escaping across the river. As a warning against future invasion, Caesar bridged the Rhine and made a demonstration upon the right bank, destroying his bridge when he withdrew. Towards the close of the summer he crossed the Straits of Dover to Britain, to punish the Britons for aiding his enemies in Gaul. But owing to the lateness of the season and the smallness of his force he returned to Gaul after a brief reconnaissance.

In the following year, after gathering a larger fleet, he again landed on the island with a force of almost 30,000 men. This time he forced his way across the Thames and received the submission of Cassivellaunus, the chief who led the British tribes against the invaders. After taking hostages, and receiving promises of tribute, Caesar returned to Gaul. Britain was in no sense subdued, but the island had felt the power of Rome, and, besides enlarging the geographical knowledge of the time, Caesar had brought back numbers of captives. In Rome the exploit produced great excitement and enthusiasm.

Revolts in Gaul: 54–53 B. C. Although the Gauls had submitted to Caesar, they were not yet reconciled to Roman rule, which put an [pg 171]end to their inter-tribal wars and to the feuds among the nobility. Consequently, many of the tribes were restive and not inclined to surrender all hopes of freedom without another struggle. In the course of the winter 54–53 B. C. the Nervii, Treveri and Eburones in Belgian Gaul attacked the Roman detachments stationed in their territories. One of these was cut to pieces but the rest held their ground until relieved by Caesar, who stamped out the rebellion.