the southeastern Britons, Cassivellaunus. Caesar had avoided recall to Rome at the end of the five years of command voted to him by coming to a fresh agreement with Pompey andCrassus at Luca. The optimates in control of the senate, now awake tothe immense increase in Caesar’s personal power, wealth, and prestige,kept Pompey in Italy, allowing him to govern his Spanish provinces bydeputies. Pompey’s own attachment to Caesar was broken when Caesar’sdaughter Julia to whom Pompey had been happily married since 59 BC died in 54 BC Crassus was killed by the Parthians at Carrhae inMesopotamia. In planning Caesar’s return to civil life in Rome he could assume that as soon as he lost the immunity from prosecution which his military command conferred, his political enemies would endeavor to secure his exile by prosecuting him in the courts either for bribery or for the use of force in politics. In Rome there was support in the senate for a negotiated compromise when Curio put forth the proposal by which Caesar would give up his military command and stand in person at the consular election on condition that Pompey abandon his military command at the same time. On January 7, 49 BC Antony and one of his fellow tribunes were warned that their lives would be in danger if they sustained their veto and the proclamation of military law was passed. Caesar was told to leave his troops behind and cross the Rubicon into Rome alone. Caesar knew that this was a death sentence for him so he did not leave his troops but marched into the city and caused a civil war. He defeated Pompey’s troops in many battles and became the dictator of Rome. From the time that he had first faced battle in Gaul and discovered his own military genius, Caesar was evidently fascinated and obsessed by military and imperial problems. He gave them an absolute priority over the more delicate by no less fundamental task of revising ...
