Critique Essay In this critique of Julius Caesar’s book, The Gallic War, I will be discussing the purpose and accuracy (or in this case, inaccuracy) over his adventures and military campaign against the Gallic tribes. There is a constant debate between historians: The Myth of Certainty. History is all about interpretation and finding truth out of subjectivity. History can often be lost in time as the firsthand accounts will eventually fade out. Even if firsthand accounts remains intact, it is not completely objective. Every person has their own agenda and is biased in one shape or form, no matter how much they try not to be; Julius Caesar is not an exception. I will start this critique by stating the author’s main purpose for writing his book. Secondly I will attempt to decipher the accuracy and inconsistency of Julius Caesar’s account. Finally, I will express my opinion over his commentaries over the Gallic War. There were many reasons to why Julius Caesar wrote his book over the Gallic War. One of these reasons was to help inspire the people of Rome. Rome had just been sacked by the Gaul, creating tension between the Roman people and the Celtic tribes. The growing resentment towards the Gallic people spread like wildfire as political turmoil rise. Although the Romans were very tenacious and persevering, this did not stop the morale blow that many Romans felt.
Another reason for the commentaries was to justify Caesar’s invasion. The number one goal for any war is to
Utilizing the four steps of battle analysis, this paper sets forth to describe Julius Caesar’s first invasion in Britain in 55 BC, the key players, why Caesar failed and how the outcome could have been in his favor had he collected sufficient intelligence prior to his mission.
In 55BC, Caesar crossed the English Channel to Britain to punish those British tribes, which had supported his Gallic enemies. His crossing to Britain was only an exploit and had no permanent results, but created great curiosity in Rome. Marcus Cicero wrote ‘ I look forward to receiving Britannic letters from you’ to a young friend who was expecting to go on the voyage. Caesar spectacular excursion into unexplored territory, capturing the imagination of the Roman public, who “magnified it to a remarkable degree” according to Cassius Dio. There was excitement amongst the Roman republic to hear the latest news of the campaigns, particularly the crossing to Britain. Gilliver suggest that Caesar felt confident enough to risk gambling his political future and was ready to resort to civil war to obtain the domination he felt was due to
During the the Gallic Wars, Julius Caesar started writing his own memoirs on what is going on in Gaul and the battles taking place,. Since he was away for a long time,he wrote and published his memoirs each year, from 58 to 51 BCE. They helped give the Romans a sense of what’s going on with Julius. Sometimes Caesar encrypted his messages that were sent by substituting Roman letters with Greek letters, for safety purposes if one of the enemies intercepted the writings.. Caesar might have been biased with some of his writings because these memoirs were important perception of his image, while he was away for 8 years. Even though there might have been bias towards him, it tells us a lot about his life and military perspective.
In 49 B.C., Gaius Julius Caesar crossed the Rubicon with his army, declaring civil war on Pompey and his supporters in the Senate. In this paper, I will explore the political and legal issues that pushed Caesar to the brink.
5. The third plebeian’s cry of “Let him be Caesar,” (3.2.52) is ironic because, while the people do not know of the truth being the conspiracy, the goal was to take out Caesar, not replace him. While their quest seems successful, the true hardships have yet to begin.
Who was Julius Caesar? Julius Caesar accomplished many things in his day, which most would consider unbelievable. He has been considered a tyrant or dictator, and some believe he was one of the world’s greatest politician. In this paper we will compare the textbook and documentation that was written around 44 B.C.E the time of his death. The documents are considered to be “primary sources”, because of the timeframe in which they were written. To get a grasp on whom, Julius Caesar really was, we need to not only dive into the primary sources, but we need to view his accomplishments. By analyzing his accomplishments, textbook, and the primary sources we can better understand just how Julius Caesar was portrayed during his reign.
1. Caesar’s description of the Galli (Gaul’s) and their land has long been recognized to contain both valuable evidence deriving from his first-hand experience AND stereotyped material that imitates historians and ethnographers of the past, and that perpetuates badly informed, inaccurate, and biased Roman views of Gallic “barbarians.” Try to deduce which kind of information (accurate first-hand experience or biased stereotyped rumor) you are dealing with as you read, and give examples of each type here. Be sure to mention why you believe each example fits into one or the other category. Caesar describes Gaul’s as being divided into three parts, the Nelgae, the Aquitani and the Celts/Gaul’s
'I came, I saw, I conquered.' These are the words of the man who changed the history of the world. This paper will show how no other man in the history of the world represented military and political power better than Julius Caesar. He became a legend for his military exploits and great leadership ability.
Julius Caesar (100-44 BC) was one of the most outstanding leaders in history. He was the first ruler of the Romano-Hellenic civilization and achieved his goals with great success throughout his life of 56 years. He was assassinated by the conspirators, who accused him for practicing tyranny. This essay will discuss whether it was right for the conspirators to murder Caesar and what its consequences were.
The Civil War, consisting in large part of Caesar’s own account of the conflict between himself and Pompey, explores the origins of the war, the manner in which it was carried out, and most importantly the role of pivotal figures on both sides of the struggle. Prior to his records ending and supplementation by military officers, Caesar makes a case for his involvement in and perhaps triggering of the war, one which would transform the social and political landscape of the Roman empire as battles and campaigns were waged from Spain to Italy, Africa to Asia Minor. Caesar walks a fine line between historian, strategist and orator as he attempts to record historical events, martial decisions, and persuade an audience respectively. Despite his efforts to remain impartial, as evidenced by his admission that “the Pompeians were winning” at Dyrrachium, Caesar consistently presents himself as a charismatic and skilled general and leader, jeopardizing the integrity of the text as objective material and allowing it to be a propagandist account of sorts. Ultimately, Caesar uses anecdotal evidence, the presentation of his personal thoughts, and juxtaposition with his opposition to paint his side of the war in a positive and just light.
Caesar possessed too much power. They said he was becoming a threat to the Roman Republic,
The Trojan War is described as one of histories most legendary battles. This battle is told to have lasted ten years, resulting in the eventual collapse of Troy, under the siege of Greek forces. Modern knowledge of the Trojan War has survived mainly through the account given in Homer’s Illiad, and while having proved to be a rich source of inspiration for other writers, artists, and even filmmakers in recent history, much speculation still exists surrounding his account. I will analyze modern interpretations of the Trojan War and examine both speculation and support for Homer’s account. Concluding with sufficient evidence that has been collected surrounding this epic battle, proving Homer’s account of a massive battle between these two powerful city states to not be just a tale of myth and legend, but actual history.
Barry Strauss, professor of classics at Cornell University attempts to redefine a one of history’s biggest love affairs, the Trojan War. Strauss explains how certain events and characters from Homers “The Odyssey” might have actually existed, but also uses modern discoveries from the Bronze Age to compare Homers account to those of Egypt, the Middle East, and etc. While Homer’s epic should not be read as a historical document which recounts the Trojan War hundred percent accurately, it can still be seen as document which embodies some historical truth. The novel as a whole explains the customs, economic standing, fighting styles and beliefs of the Greeks. Strauss’s writing style allows for the book to be accessible to both students and historians. He argues that just like Franz Ferdinand was the spark which ignited World War 1, Helen on the other hand was just a spark which escalated an existing tension between the Greeks and Trojans. Strauss’s personal input on the war itself gives the novel a different outlook on the Trojan War because, it allows for readers to see beyond the facts and make connections with ideas that Strauss had made with recent discoveries and Homers epic.
One of the first wars Julius Caesar encountered was the Gallic War. The city of Gaul was rising just like Rome. However, one day German troops took back their land forcing one Gaul tribe to retreat back their main city. To do this they would have to cross some Roman territory. Gaul thought that this wouldn’t be a problem as they thought of Romans as understanding people. Julius Caesar soon learned about the Gaul tribe’s plans and took an army to the area in which the Gaul tribe would be crossing. Gaul sent two of their leaders and discuss their problem. The Gaul leaders then left to find out what date they wanted to cross. In that time Julius Caesar wanted to show how much force the Roman army had. He ordered his troops to build a wall across the point in which Gaul wanted to cross. The leaders soon came back and were astonished by the Roman army’s creation. When Julius Caesar and Gaul leaders met this time Julius Caesar said that he wouldn’t allow them to cross. Gaul was not about to give up so easily, from then on they began to check for weak spots in the Roman’s defenses. The Gaul tribe finally gave up as they knew that there were not any weak spots. Gaul decided that they would take a more dangerous route. They would travel through a narrow valley even though enemy could attack from above. Julius Caesar learned of Gauls new plans and was fearful. He thought that if Gaul went back to its main city it would hold a grudge against Rome and come to destroy them. So Julius
There have been many rulers in history who have been betrayed by those they trust, but The Tragedy of Julius Caesar (William Shakespeare,1959) still holds a special place in Western literature as one of the most enigmatic human beings to ever exist. Powerful men like Julius Caesar shaped the life and times of the late Roman Republic, just before Rome would officially become the Roman Empire on the crowning of Augustus as the first Roman emperor. Julius Caesar was a powerful general who expanded Rome's power and who was beloved by the people for his generous charity after his successful conquests. Despite knowing the story of Julius Caesar to some extent, most 16th/17th century English would not have ever visited Rome, nor would know what the Roman Republic was like, which presented a unique opportunity to William Shakespeare to create a play unlike any other he had created before. (Shakespeare Julius Caesar, 1599) Shakespeare's Julius Caesar is a reimagining of Rome from a Elizabethan point of view, and despite some inaccuracies, the play depicts an enlightening view on Roman life, and the life of the Roman general, Julius Caesar.