SERVILIA:  “The Aftermath of Caesar’s Death”

RALPH:  (according to the history books…)

SERVILIA:  Killing Caesar was a bold move… but Brutus believed that the Senate would ultimately understand the reasons behind the assassination:

-preventing Caesar from becoming a dictator

-preventing the rise of a hereditary monarchy

-and ensuring that Rome would continue as a Republic

RALPH:  His gamble paid off. The day after Caesar’s death, the Senate voted to grant amnesty to all of the conspirators.  They had been forgiven.

SERVILIA:  But Brutus had underestimated the power of the plebeian mob. Caesar had been very popular with the people of Rome, so Mark Antony had little trouble using his funeral speech to turn the shock and sorrow of the people into a desire for vengeance.  By the time he’d finished his speech, the crowd was ready to hunt down and attack those responsible for Caesar’s death.

RALPH:  Fearing for their lives, Brutus and Cassius fled from Italy and took refuge in the Eastern provinces of the Roman empire.  Meanwhile, in the Senate, a large block of senators led by Cicero were trying to reestablish the ancient laws and customs of the Roman Republic.

SERVILIA:  But two prominent Senators, Mark Antony and Lepidus, tried to seize power for themselves because of two things that had also been important to Caesar’s bid for power:  lots of loyal soldiers and their popularity with the people.

RALPH:  And to everyone’s surprise, there was a third person who made a bid for power: Octavius, Caesar’s nephew, who was named in Caesar’s will as his adopted son and sole heir.

SERVILIA:   Only 20 years old, Octavius had no political experience and very little experience on the battlefield; but he had inherited Caesar’s immense personal wealth, and, as Caesar’s adopted son, he had both instant name recognition and, more importantly, the loyalty of several strong legions of soldiers.

RALPH:   The three contenders jostled in the Senate and on the battlefield for control of the empire. But when none of the three was able to dominate the others, they negotiated an agreement. They would rule Italy together and divide the provinces among themselves.  This system of three-man rule was called a triumvirate.

SERVILIA:  Having worked out the differences between them, they now had to figure out how to defeat their republican opponents, politically in the senate and militarily on the battlefield.