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Julius Caesar’s Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day
On this day in 44 BC…
On the Ides of March in the Year of the Consulship of Julius Caesar V and Marc Antony, Julius Caesar had a very bad day — the day of his demise.
In those days, the Julian Calendar was just taking effect, so the means by which Romans marked time were a little complicated. It was common for Roman officials to mark their calendar years according to the terms of consulship. This was the fifth year for Julius Caesar as counsul and the first for Marc Antony. That was the date that most of the senators would have had in mind on this fateful day.
Based on the Gregorian Calendar (which adjusted the Julian Calendar), we know the date of Caesar’s demise as March 15, 44 BC — or, as it’s now increasingly said, BCE.
On that day, Julius Caesar strode into the Theatre of Pompey to meet with the Roman Senate. This was a temporary change from the Senate’s normal meeting location, due to ongoing construction and repairs. As Caesar took his seat, the conspirators gathered around him under the pretense of presenting a petition.
The assassination was the result of a conspiracy by several Roman senators, known as the Liberatores, who feared Caesar’s rising power and the potential for monarchy. They were also smarting from some of…
