- On March 15 (The Ides of March) 44. B.C. Caesar appeared in the Senate house, unarmed and unguarded , according to the custom, and a crowd of senators struck him with their daggers and killed him.
- Caesar's murder did not restore the Republic; instead, his death produced yet another crop of warlords and yet more bouts of civil war. The main contenders were Mark Antony, once a commander under Caesar and now a consul; the leading assassins, Brutus and Cassius; and Caesar's grandnephew and adopted son, the youthful Octavian Caesar.
- Then however, they joined forces against Caesar's assassins; formed another triumvirate together with a lesser warlord, Marcus Lepidus; eliminated opponents in a new reign of terror in Rome; and defeated Cassius and Brutus in battle in Greece.
- The triumvirs declared that they intended to "restore the Republic", but they also had the Senate proclaim Julius Caesar a "divine being"- not quite like Jupiter, but far above the ordinary mortal. The murdered dictator had become a founding hero, whose memory would inspire all future supreme rulers of Rome.
- Octavian pushed Lepidus out of power
- Octavian became powerful and defeated those of Antony and Cleopatra in a decisive naval battle.
- Antony and Cleopatra committed suicide.
- Octavian was now the supreme warlord - the third to rule Rome, and the one who finally managed to turn military dictatorship into legitimate and permanent monarchy.
Rome was the start off to a new pattern of western civilization
The rule of the emperors
- Octavian got a new name which was, Augustus.
- by arrangement w/ the Senate, Augustus was confirmed as commander in chief of the armed forces, which included civil and military control of all provinces with garrisons.
- On his way to surpreme power, he had proscribed and put to death mant opponents in the Senate and replaced them w/ his friends and allies.
- The people's assembly's lost what remained of their power to elect magistrates and make laws.
- The people trusted Augustus to rule in their interests as they had trusted Caesar before him.
- He was worshiped
- 1st, Augustus brought the system of government appointments under his personal control.
- 2nd, he showed respect for local institutions and encouraged provincial leaders to fulfill their responsibilities.
- 3rd, the reorganized the army to unsure the loyalty of the rank-and-file soldiers.
- 4th, he gradually brought about his single most drastic reform.
- in this way, Augustus and his successors broke w/ the Roman tradition to citizen-soldiers to create the world's first professional standing army.
- Tiberius was Augustus's son (adopted)
- passed power down to Tiberius
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