| 49 BC Caesar Crosses The Rubicon- Julius Caesar and his army crossed the Rubicon in Northern Italy. Caesar was declared a public enemy by the Roman Senate for refusing to disband his army. By crossing the Rubicon, Caesar broke Roman law and was guilty of treason. Pompey was forced to flee as Roman soldiers flocked to Caesar. Caesar successfully gained control of all Italy. The next year, Caesar achieved complete victory over Pompey in the Battle of Pharsalus. |
| 48 BC Julius Ceasar Puts Down Rebellion In Egypt- Julius Caesar traveled to Egypt in pursuit of Pompey, whom he had earlier defeated. When Caeser arrived, he learned that Pompey had been killed. Caesar then suppressed a rebellion against Cleopatra VII. |
| 45 - BC Caesar Defeats Pompey's Sons - Caesar fought the sons of Gnaeus and Sextus at the Battle of Munda in Southern Spain. Sextus escaped but Gnaeus was caught and executed by Caesar. This put an end to Rome's civil war. Caesar returned to Rome and was made dictator for life. |
| 44 BC Caesar Assassinated- Despite Caesar's many accomplishments and general popularity, there remained a group of disaffected citizens. Most were former Antony supporters who had been pardoned and given positions of responsibility by Caesar.
The ringleader of what became a conspiracy to assassinate Caesar was Longinus Caius Cassius. He was joined by Marcus Junius Brutus.
A meeting of the Senate was called for the 15th (the Ides) of March to discuss the Parthian War. Caesar had been warned not to attend the session, but went anyway. The moment Caesar took his seat, the conspirators surrounded him. They began to petition him to recall from banishment a certain Cimber. When Caesar arose, they attacked him with knives. It is said that Caesar tried to defend himself, but when he saw Brutus among the attackers he cried out 'Et Tu, Brutus' and succumbed.
The death of Caesar was followed by a power struggle between Mark Antony and Julius Octavian. |
| 43 BC Second Triumvirate - The Second Triumvirate was established in 43 B.C. in Rome. It was composed of Mark Antony, Octavian and M Aeumillius Lepidus. This triumvirate was officially recognized by the Senate. |
| 43 BC Cicero Assassinated- Cicero, the greatest Roman orator, denounced Antony. In return Antony ordered the assassination of Cicero. Cicero was subsequently murdered. |
| 42 BC Anthony Defeated Cassius - Mark Antony battled the forces of Cassius at Philippi. Cassius was defeated and committed suicide. Twenty days later, forces under Brutus were also defeated and Brutus, too, committed suicide. |
| 37 BC Herod The Great - Herod the Great was recognized by the Roman senate as King of Judea. The Hasmonean dynasty which had ruled Judea until this period, had allied themselves with the Parthians, who were to be defeated by Mark Antony's forces. |
| 36 BC Romans Under Vispasanius Battle Of Naulochus- The Roman fleet, commanded by Agrippa, defeated a fleet commanded by Pompey the Younger at the Battle of Naulochus. Pompey escaped to Anatolia only to be executed by troops of Mark Antony the next year. |
| 31 BC Battle Of Actium- With the end of the five-year term of the Second Triumvirate, a rivalry broke out between Mark Antony and Octavian. Mark Antony was discredited by Octavian for his marriage to Cleopatra. Octavian successfully convinced the Senate that Mark Antony's actions were a danger to Rome, and they allied with him against Antony. A naval battle broke out at Actium off Epirus in Western Greece. Although the battle results were not decisive, Antony and Cleopatra fled to Egypt, where Antony's army surrendered. Antony and Cleopatra killed themselves soon after. |
27 BC Octavian, First Roman Emperor- Octavian became the first Roman Emperor. His defeat of Mark Antony brought a period of peace to the empire. In 27 B.C., Octavian declared the "restoration of the Republic;" in fact, he retained many powers in his own hands. He directly controlled all the armies of Rome. As army commander, Augustus (as Octavian was now known) received the title Imperator (emperor).
Octavian greatly streamlined the administration of the provinces. He directly appointed the governors of all the provinces that still required military control. He also approved all other appointments.
The Senate continued to meet, but Augustus completely dominated all aspects of Roman society. The peace he brought Rome and the careful way he exercised power ensured his great popularity. |
| 16 BC Tiberius Campaigns Against Germanic Tribes-
Roman Legions commanded by Tiberius initiated a campaign against the Germanic tribes. The campaign extended the Roman Empire to the area of modern-day Switzerland and much of Germany and Hungary.
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| 10 BC Herod Builds Artificial Harbor- Herod the Great built a new city on the Mediterranean coast. He named the city Ceasaria. Ceasaria became the Roman capital for Judea. What was unique about Ceasaria was the harbor that was built. It was the first artificial harbor built in an open sea. |
| 3 BC Herod The Great Dies- Herod the Great, King of Judea, died after a peaceful 33-year reign. He was strongly favored by Rome for bringing stability to Judea, but disliked by many Jewish factions for his lack of religious zeal. He is best known for his building projects. He rebuilt the Temple in Jerusalem and established the city of Caesarea, among many other achievements. |
