Interesting Facts

1.)Julius Caesar was born in Subura, Rome on July 13, 100 BCE.

2.) The medical term "Caesarian section", is often attributed to an ancient story, told in the first century A.D. by Pliny the Elder, which claims that an ancestor of Caesar was delivered in this manner.

3.)His complete name is Gauis Julius Caesar.

4.)He belonged to the prestigious Julian (Julii) clan.

5.)Marius Gauis, 7 times Consul, was his uncle by marriage.

6.)In 86 BCE, at age 14, he was appointed ’flamen dialis’, one of an archaic priesthood with no       power.

7.)In 84 BCE, he married Cornelia, daughter of Cinna, a close associate of Marius.

8.)He was ordered by Lucius Cornelius Sulla, Marius enemy, who was made dictator in 82 BCE, to divorce Cornelia. Julius refused and had to leave Rome and returned only in 78 BCE after Sulla’s resignation.

9.)In 69 BCE, Julius Caesar was elected ‘quaestor’ and in 65 BCE as ‘curule aedile’.

10.)He was Governor of Spain for 3 years from 63-60 BCE.

11.)In 60 BCE, the First Triumvirate (alliance of three) was formed in the persons of Pompey, Crassus and Cesar.

12.)Caesar gave his daughter Julia to Pompey in marriage to strengthen the alliance.

13.)In 59 BCE, Julius Caesar was elected Consul.

14.)In 58 BCE, he was appointed Governor of Roman Gaul and defeated the Helvetii, the Germans and others.

15.)His daughter Julia died in 54 BCE.

16.)He was reelected Consul in 48 BCE and was made Consul for life in 45 BCE.

17.)The Senate declared Julius Caesar ‘Dictator’ for life. After which, he started wearing robe, crown and scepter and used the title imperator.

18.)Julius Caesar was also declared as Pontifex maximus or head of the state religion.

19.)Julius Caesar was also in total command of the armies.

20.)When Julius was a young man, he was awarded the Corona Civica (civic crown) for valor while fighting in Asia Minor.

21.)He was also awarded the title of Pater Patriae (Father of the Fatherland).

22.)Mark Anthony had been appointed as flamen (priest) to Caesar shortly before the latter’s assassination.

23.)Divus Iuliusor Divus Julius (the divine Julius or the deified Julius) was the official title that was given to Caesar posthumously by decree of the Roman Senate on 1 January 42 BCE.

24.)Julius Caesar was the first historical Roman to be officially deified. The cult of Divus Iulius was promoted by both Octavian and Mark Antony.

25.) After the death of Antony, Octavianus, as the adoptive son of Caesar, assumed the title of Divi Filius (son of a god).

26.)Caesar's cognomen would itself become a title; it was greatly promulgated by the Bible, by the famous verse "Render unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's, and unto God the things that are God's".

27.)Caesar became the German Kaiser and Slavic Tsar/Czar. The last tsar in nominal power was Simeon II of Bulgaria whose reign ended in 1946; for two thousand years after Julius Caesar's assassination, there was at least one head of state bearing his name.

28.)Pompeia, his second wife, was a granddaughter of Sulla. He divorced her.

29.)Julius Caesar married Calpurnia in 59 BCE for political motives.

30.)Julius Caesar married 3 times. His first marriage was to Cornelia Cinnilla, from 83 BCE until her death in childbirth in 69 or 68 BCE. His second marriage was to Pompeia, from 67 BC until he divorced her around 61 BCE. His third marriage was to Calpurnia Pisonis, from 59 BC until Caesar's death.

31.)He is known to have been romantically involved with 3 women namely; Cleopatra VII of Egypt who bore him a son- Caesarion, Servilla Caepiones the mother of Brutus (one of his assassins), and Eunoe – queen of Mauretania the wife of Bogudes.

32.)Caesar and Cleopatra VII (Queen of Egypt) were romantically involved for 14 years but could not marry, because under the Roman law, marriage was only allowed between two Roman citizens.

33.)Julius Caesar have two children; Julia with Cornelia (his first wife) who was born in 83 BCE, Caesarion with Cleopatra VII who was born in 47 BCE

34.)Caesarion was killed at age 17 by Octavianus during the battle between the latter and Mark Anthony. By that time, Cleopatra and Mark Anthony were allies and romantically involved to each other.

35.)Marcus Junius Brutus, one of Julius Caesar’s assassins, was believed to be Julius Caesar’s illegitimate son with Servilla because they were lovers when they were young.

36.)Gaius Julius Caesar Octavianus was his adopted son, his great-nephew by blood, who later became Emperor Augustus.

37.)He was a gifted writer with a clear and simple style. His book ‘Commentaries’ is a major source of information about the early Celtic and Germanic tribes.

 38.)Julius Caesar is one of the best orators during his lifetime.

39.)Among ancient military commanders, he is considered next to Alexander the Great.

40.) In 44 BCE, Julius Caesar changed the name of the month Quintilis to Julius (July).

41.)In 45 BCE, he changed the old Roman calendar, known as Julian Calendar; fixed the normal year at 365 days and the leap year every 4^th year at 366 days.

42.)Julius Caesar was the first to print his own bust on a Roman minted coin

43.)In a deck of cards, Julius Caesar is the King of Diamonds. The King of Spades is the biblical King David, the King of Clubs is Alexander the Great and the King of Hearts is Charlemagne.

44.)In physical appearance, Julius Cesar was tall. His eyes are black and his complexion is fair.

45.)It was thought that the reason why Julius Caesar started wearing a crown after his declaration as dictator for life was to cover his receding hairline which was becoming very evident.

46.)He is sometimes thought to have suffered from epilepsy but other scholars it is more certain that he was plagued by malaria.

47.)Julius Caesar invented the first recorded encryption technique known now as the Caesar cipher. It was a code technique to send military messages. This simple and effective code involved letter shifting of 2 to the right, A becomes C, B becomes D, etc…so "CAESAR" would read ‘ECGUCT’.

48.)There were no sufficient evidence to prove that Julius Caesar have had same sex relationships. Accusations like this during those days were common as a form of character assassination.

49.)Julius Caesar was assassinated by Brutus and others in Theatre of Pompey, Rome on March 15, 44 BCE inside the senate receiving 23 fatal stabs. He was 55 years of age.

50.)Julius Caesar’s successor was his adopted son – his great nephew, Octavian, who took the name Augustus Caesar and was the first Roman Emperor.