Crossing the Rubicon: Caesar's Decision and the Fate of Rome

by Luca Fezzi

Overview

A dramatic account of the fateful year leading to the ultimate crisis of the Roman Republic and the rise of Caesar’s autocracy

When the Senate ordered Julius Caesar, conqueror of Gaul, to disband his troops, he instead marched his soldiers across the Rubicon River, in violation of Roman law. The Senate turned to its proconsul, Pompey the Great, for help. But Pompey’s response was unexpected: he commanded magistrates and senators to abandon Rome—a city that, until then, had always been defended. The consequences were the ultimate crisis of the Roman Republic and the rise of Caesar’s autocracy.

In this new history, Luca Fezzi argues that Pompey’s actions sealed the Republic’s fate. Drawing on a wide range of primary sources, including Cicero’s extensive letters, Fezzi shows how Pompey’s decision shocked the Roman people, severely weakened the city, and set in motion a chain of events that allowed Caesar to take power. Seamlessly translated by Richard Dixon, this book casts fresh light on the dramatic events of this crucial moment in ancient Roman history.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780300249026
Publisher:	Yale University Press
Publication date:	01/07/2020
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	384
File size:	4 MB

About the Author

Luca Fezzi is professor of Roman history at the University of Padua and author of numerous books in Italian, including most recently, The Corrupt: An Inquiry by Marcus Tullius Cicero.

Table of Contents

List of Maps vii

A Note on the Text viii

Translator's Note ix

A Note on Sources x

Prologue xvi

Part I Background

1 The Stage and Its Main Characters 3

2 Plots and Scandals 39

3 The Arrival of the 'First Triumvirate' 53

4 Caesar, Gaul and Rome 67

Part II Rome In Chaos

5 From the Death of Clodius to a Sole Consul 89

6 Winner in a Tight Corner 107

7 Winds of Civil War 127

Part III From The Rubicon To The Surrender of Rome

8 The Rubicon 149

9 The Escape from Rome 166

10 Caesar's 'Long March' and Pompey's Flight to Brundisium 194

11 In Caesar's Hands 224

12 The Battle Fought, the Res Publica, and the City 245

Glossary 279

Chapter Notes 285

Bibliography and Further Notes 301

Acknowledgements 330

Index 331

Editorial Reviews

A fascinating re-examination of an event that is treated as settled history.”—Mark Lardas, The Galveston County News

“A gripping account of the primal political crisis in Western history, fusing deep scholarship with expertly paced narrative.”—Tom Holland, author of Rubicon 

"Charts with pinpoint precision the chess-like movements of Julius Caesar and Pompey the Great as they inched towards one of the most climactic moments in Roman history. Fezzi powerfully captures the tension of the times. Thrilling.“—Daisy Dunn, author of In the Shadow of Vesuvius

“Shows with astonishing clarity and drama the how, why, and what came next of one of the most pivotal gambles in world history.”—Paul Chrystal, author of Rome: Republic into Empire

“A brilliant intertwining of the ancient sources for the dramatic and violent years of the civil war between Caesar and Pompey that brought the Roman Republic crashing down. Fascinating in its detail, poignant in its quotations, and provocative in its approach.”—Thomas R. Martin, author of Ancient Rome

“Fezzi presents the leaders of the Roman civil war in a balanced, rigorous way, and without undue bias or moralism.”—Carlo Franco, Alias - Il Manifesto

From the Publisher

2019-10-19
An academic study centered on the events of 49 B.C.E., when Julius Caesar marched his army into Rome and destroyed the republic.

Fezzi (Roman History/Univ. of Padua) begins with more than most readers want to know about Roman governmental structure. Although a republic (a nation without a king), it barely qualified as a democracy. Every citizen could vote, but in its complex, corrupt electoral system, only the very wealthy could win high-level positions, which were unpaid. Being a victorious general has been a vote-getter throughout history, and Caesar took full advantage. By the first century B.C.E., murderous generals dominated the republic, which was on its last legs. Fezzi examines the period after 60 B.C.E., an era that featured three strong men: Caesar, then engaged in conquering Gaul; Pompey, an older general already famous for his victories; and the fabulously wealthy Crassus. They cooperated only as far as it served their interests. Fezzi's favorite source, Cicero, was a senator and lawyer who sometimes opposed Caesar. As a lawyer, he often prosecuted or defended and then wrote about it. Trials in ancient Rome were often open-air spectacles where crowds occasionally rioted and killed participants. Aiming to leave no stone unturned, the author recounts so many of Cicero's legal actions that readers may lose track and likely interest. Matters came to a head in 49 B.C.E., with Crassus dead and Pompey and the Senate scheming against Caesar, still occupied in Gaul. Ordered to return, he was obligated to come alone because no general could bring his army into Italy—at that time bounded on the north by the river Rubicon. Apparently fearing for his life, he brought his army, beginning a vicious civil war that ended with his victory and, a year later, assassination. General readers take note: This is a dense, bookish history; Tom Holland's Rubicon delivers a far more lucid but still intelligent account of this period.

For scholars of ancient history.

Kirkus Reviews