Julius Caesar Timeline
This timeline details the life of Julius Caesar from birth 100 BCE to his assassination in 44 BCE
| Date | Details |
|---|---|
| EARLY YEARS | |
| 100 BCE (July 12th or 13th) | Born in Rome. He was of the Julii family |
| 85 BCE (date unknown) | Became head of the family after his father died. Allied with his uncle Gaius Marius against Sulla |
| 84 BCE (date unknown) | Appointed High Priest of Jupiter by Gaius Marius |
| 84 BCE (date unknown) | Married Cornelia Cinna, daughter of Lucius Cornelius Cinnilla. |
| 83 BCE (date unknown) | Daughter Julia was born |
| 82 BCE (December) | Stripped of High Priesthood by Sulla, an enemy of the Julii family, who had become Dictator of Rome following victory at the Battle of the Colline Gate (1st November) |
| 81 BCE (early in year) | Forced into hiding for refusing to divorce his wife. Was pardoned later that year. |
| 81 BCE (from early in year) | Served in the Roman army in Turkey |
| 80 BCE (date unknown) | Was awarded the Civic Crown for bravery during the siege of Mytilene |
| 78 BCE (Spring) | Returned to Rome following Sulla’s death |
| 77 BCE (during the year) | Became a lawyer for two years and gained a name for the way he attacked and defended in court |
| 75 BCE (February) | Captured by pirates and held to ransom while en route to Rhodes to learn the skills of public speaking. He was released after a month. |
| 75 BCE (March or later) | Gathered a fleet and sought out and executed the pirates that had captured him earlier |
| 74 BCE (for two years) | Raised his own army and took part in the Third Mithridatic War |
| POLITICAL LADDER | |
| 72 BCE (for the year) | Served as military tribune |
| 70 BCE (date unknown) | Spoke in favour of a move to grant an amnesty to those who had fought in recent revolutions against Rome |
| 69 BCE (for the year) | Served as quaestor (low ranking magistrate with financial responsibilities) in Spain |
| 67 BCE (date unknown) | Married Pompeia, grand daughter of Sulla |
| 67 BCE (date unknown) | Spoke in favour of a move to clear the Mediterranean of pirates. |
| 66 BCE (for the year) | Served as surveyor for the Appian Way |
| 66 BCE (date unknown) | Spoke in favour of a move to restructure the Eastern Mediterranean |
| 65 BCE (for the year) | Served as aedile – responsibility for temples, buildings and the Games. He staged lavish Games using money loaned from Crassus |
| 63 BCE (date unknown) | Elected Pontifex Maximus – largely due to bribes |
| 62 BCE (date unknown) | Marriage to Pompeia ended in divorce |
| 62 BCE (for the year) | Served as Praetor |
| 61 BCE (for the year) | Served as Governor of Spain |
| FIRST TRIUMVIRATE | |
| 60 BCE (December) | Formed an unofficial alliance (first triumvirate) with Pompey and Crassus. In return for support Caesar would support measures that would benefit them. Cicero was offered a part of the alliance but declined |
| 59 BCE (for the year) | Served as Consul |
| 59 BCE (early) | Passed a measure that required all debates in the Senate to be recorded |
| 59 BCE (early) | Introduced an Agrarian Bill favoured by Pompey that would redistribute wasteland in Italy to Pompey’s soldiers and homeless poor people. |
| 59 BCE (early) | Arrested Cato for speaking against his Agrarian Bill |
| 59 BCE (May) | Pompey married Julius Caesar’s daughter, Julia |
| 59 BCE (After May) | Married Calpurnia Pisonis |
| 58 BCE (For a four year term) | Governor of Roman Gaul – He set about planning to conquer all of Gaul and his subsequent conquest is known as the Gallic Wars |
| 58 BCE (June) | Defeated Swiss at Battle of Arar |
| 58 BCE (July) | Conquers the Swiss after a decisive victory at the Battle of Bibracte |
| 58 BCE (September) | Defeated the Suebi at Battle of Vosges |
| 57 BCE (May) | Defeated Belgians at Battle of Axona |
| 57 BCE (July) | Defeated Nervii tribes at Battle of Sabis |
| 57 BCE (during) | Their was unrest in Rome due to several poor harvests resulting in a grain shortage. Many people blamed Caesar’s Agrarian Law. Also relations between Caesar’s allies Pompey and Crassus were becoming increasingly strained. |
| 56 BCE (during) | Julius Caesar faced mounting opposition especially from Clodius, Cicero, Cato, and Bibulus |
| 56 BCE (April) | Luca Conference reaffirmed the First Triumvirate and extended his Governorship of Gaul. |
| 55 BCE (summer) | Began a German campaign pushing Roman territory beyond the Rhine for the first time |
| 55 BCE (late August) | Made an expedition to Britain, landed on the beach at Deal but was unable to progress further inland |
| 54 BCE (July) | Made a second expedition to Britain. He made some gains but then withdrew to return to Rome for winter |
| 54 BCE (September) | His daughter, Julia, died in childbirth |
| 53 BCE (June) | Crassus was killed at the Battle of Carrhae. |
| 53 BCE (June) | Made a raiding expedition across the Rhine and into Germany |
| 53 BCE (after June) | With Crassus dead and the marriage tie between Caesar and Pompey broken, the Triumvirate fell apart |
| 52 BCE (March) | Siege of Avaricum (Gallic War) |
| 52 BCE (April) | Siege of Gergovia (Gallic War |
| 52 BCE (Summer) | Siege of Alesia (Gallic War) |
| 52 BCE (September) | Battle of Alesia – Gauls defeated |
| CIVIL WAR AND RULER OF ROME | |
| 51 BCE (During) | Ordered to return to Rome unarmed by Pompey (now leader of the Senate) because his term as governor or Gaul had ended and he had to face re-election |
| 50 BCE (During) | Caesar requested permission from the Senate to stand for re-election while remaining in Gaul. He was reluctant to return to Rome without magistrate status fearing that he would be attacked. The Senate refused permission and demanded his return. |
| 49 BCE (January) | Crossed the Rubicon river with his thirteenth legion and marched on Rome. The act is taken as a move of aggression taking Rome to Civil War |
| 49 BCE (February) | Pompey and other senators leave Rome and head to Greece. Unfortunately they forgot to take the treasury with them. |
| 49 BCE (March – August) | Defeated forces in Spain that were loyal to Pompey |
| 49 BCE (April – September) | Lay siege to Massilia (Marseille) which was loyal to Pompey. The city fell in September |
| 48 BCE (for the year) | Served as Consul of Rome |
| 48 BCE (10th July) | Battle of Dyrrhachium against Pompey in Macedonia. Caesar forced to retreat to avoid being defeated |
| 48 BCE (9th August) | Battle of Pharsalus. Decisive victory over Pompey who fled to Egypt |
| 48 BCE (October) | Pursued Pompey to Egypt. Upon arrival was presented with Pompey’s head. Pompey had been assassinated late September on the orders of Ptolemy XIII who hoped this action would win the support of Caesar in his Civil War against his sister Cleopatra. |
| 48 BCE (October) | Caesar was horrified at the murder of Pompey and demanded a return of money Egypt owed to Rome. He took the city of Alexandria in Egypt for his headquarters. He also decided to back Cleopatra rather than her brother |
| 48 BCE (late Autumn) | Cleopatra joined Caesar in Alexandria and they became lovers. Ptolemy lay siege to Alexandria. |
| 47 BCE (Spring) | The siege of Alexandria was lifted when a large force under Mithridates of Pergamum arrived in Egypt from the North Eastern region of the Empire |
| 47 BCE (Spring) | Battle of the Nile. Julius Caesar was victorious against the forces of Ptolemy XIII. Ptolemy drowned in the Nile. |
| 47 BCE (date unknown) | Cleopatra may have given birth to his son who was named Caesarion |
| 46 BCE (for ten years) | Appointed Dictator of Rome for ten years |
| 46 BCE (April) | Battle of Thapsus. Julius Caesar defeated Pompey loyalists under Metellus Scipio |
| 45 BCE (January) | Introduced the Julian Calendar which set the year at 365.25 days divided into 12 months. It remained in effect until the 16th century. |
| 45 BCE (date unknown) | Announced that his nephew Octavian would be his heir |
| 45 BCE (17th March) | Battle of Munda. Forces loyal to Pompey’s sons were defeated and the elder son killed. |
| 44 BCE (February) | Appointed Dictator of Rome for life |
| ASSASSINATED | |
| 44 BCE (15th March) | Stabbed 23 times by a group of disgruntled senators. |
| 44BCE (20th March) | Funeral in Rome |
