Caesar. Life of a Colossus (Adrian Goldsworthy) Yale University Press (86 page)

CIVIL WAR AND DICTATORSHIP 49 – 44 BC

father. After Thapsus, Labienus and other refugees joined them. Caesar at first felt the problem was a minor one and hoped that his legates could deal with the Pompeians without requiring him to go to Spain in person. By the end of November 46 BC he judged that this was not sufficient and set out to take charge. As noted earlier, no senior magistrates had been elected and instead he left Rome in the charge of Lepidus as Master of Horse, aided by eight appointed prefects, although much of the day-to-day decision making was in the hands of Oppius and Balbus. In less than four weeks – Suetonius says twenty-four days, but several other sources say twenty-seven – he reached the theatre of operations in Further Spain. To keep himself occupied he not only conducted his normal business from the carriage, but also composed a poem entitled
The Journey
(
Iter
). Cnaeus lacked his father’s talent as a soldier, but he was an extremely determined individual who now found himself at the head of an army consisting of thirteen legions as well as numerous auxiliaries. After Caesar left for Spain there was concern that even after all his victories he might be defeated, for he could muster only eight legions, just two of which – the
Fifth Alaudae
and the
Tenth
minus its timeexpired men – were considered veteran. Amongst the former Pompeians who had come to terms with Caesar there was also much nervousness, for Cnaeus was known to be an irascible man. In January 45 BC Cassius – the brother-in-law of Brutus and future conspirator – wrote to Cicero and expressed his concern:

Now to return to matters affecting the Republic, report what’s happening in Spain. I am really worried by this, and would rather stick with the old clement master than have a new and cruel one. You know how fatuous Cnaeus is; you know how he mistakes cruelty for courage, and how he thinks we always mock him. I am afraid he’ll repay our wit with the sword in peasant fashion.18

An account of the campaign known as the
Spanish War
was written by one of Caesar’s officers, but is by far the least satisfactory of the books added to his
Commentaries
. Many of the details of these operations elude us and a brief summary will suffice. When Caesar reached Spain he learned that the enemy had been besieging the town of Ulia for some months, and that this was the only important community in the immediate area that had remained loyal to him. To relieve the pressure on the town, he immediately marched against Corduba, the capital of the province. It was defended by Sextus Pompeius, and his pleas for help soon drew his older brother and the 482

Dictator, 46–44 bc

main army away from Ulia. Cnaeus shadowed and harassed Caesar’s army as he settled down to a winter siege of Corduba, but he refused to be drawn into a pitched battle. Conditions were difficult and from the very beginning the campaign was fought with extreme savagery by both sides. Deciding that the city was too strong to take and that no useful purpose was served by staying where he was, Caesar withdrew and instead besieged the smaller town of Ategua. Pompey followed, but still declined to fight a battle. Considerable progress was made in the siegeworks and it soon became clear that a substantial part of the population wished to surrender. Subsequently, the commander of the Pompeian garrison had all those suspected of this brought up to the walls and slaughtered along with their families. Even so Cnaeus was unable to aid them and eventually the garrison surrendered on 19 February 45 BC. Defections of provincial communities to Caesar were now becoming common, as were desertions from the Pompeian legions. Cnaeus responded with executions of suspects. Near the end of the month Caesar’s men captured four enemy scouts and crucified three of them because they were slaves. The remaining man, a legionary, was beheaded as befitted a citizen. As Pompeius retreated Caesar followed, and approached the town of Urso (modern Osuna). The enemy camped near the town of Munda some 6 miles away.19

On the morning of 17 March, Cnaeus led his men out of camp and deployed in battle order on the ridge outside Munda. Caesar judged that this was the chance to fight the battle that he had desired since the beginning of the campaign and ordered his own army to take positions on the plain in front of the enemy. He expected the Pompeians to come down and fight on level ground, since they were showing every sign of confidence. However, Cnaeus kept his men on the slope, but Caesar decided to attack anyway, in spite of the disadvantage his troops would face. Numbers were probably also against them, although it is doubtful that all thirteen of the Pompeian legions were present in full strength, given losses earlier in the campaign and the need to detach troops as garrisons. Caesar did have significantly more cavalry than the enemy, but the ground was not immediately favourable for its use. Caesar trusted to his luck, ability and the bravery of his troops, who as at Thapsus expressed their frustration at any delay. As usual the
Tenth
was on the right, the
Fifth
and
Third
–possibly the unit that had served him in Gaul and then been taken over by Pompey – on the left flank, with five more legions forming the centre. Caesar gave the order to advance, but the enemy did not match the movement until the last minute when they launched a counter-attack. The fighting was bitter and for a while seemed 483

CIVIL WAR AND DICTATORSHIP 49 – 44 BC

Munda

Cavalry

Cavalry

Legio V

Legio III

Legio X

Cavalry

Cavalry

Alaudae

Battle of Munda

to be going Cnaeus’ way. At one point some of the Caesareans began to waver and there was a danger that his line might collapse. As at the Sambre years before, Caesar was a match for the crisis and rushed to the spot. He is said to have advanced to within 10 paces of the enemy line. At first he was alone, dodging the missiles or catching them in his shield, but he was then joined by the nearest officers, and finally by the legionaries. The tale is not included in the
Spanish War
, and doubtless grew in the telling, but gives some indication of the desperate struggle at Munda. According to Plutarch Caesar later said that he had often fought for victory, but that this was the first time he had fought for his very life. The
Tenth
were the first to break through, punching a hole in the enemy left and exploiting it in spite of their small numbers. Cnaeus ordered Labienus to take a legion and plug the gap, but Caesar’s cavalry were already enveloping the Pompeians’ other flank. As they struggled to meet this crisis the whole army swiftly collapsed into 484

Dictator, 46–44 bc

flight. The toughness of the fighting was shown by the fact that Caesar lost around 1,000 men, more than at Pharsalus, and a high proportion from an army that is unlikely to have numbered much more than 25,000–30,000. Pompeian casualties are said to have numbered over 33,000, although this was probably an exaggeration. Caesar’s legionaries erected a grisly trophy topped with severed heads outside Munda, which resisted siege for some time. Labienus was killed in the battle. Cnaeus Pompeius was wounded, but escaped only to be caught some weeks later. He was beheaded and the head sent to Caesar. Sextus escaped in command of a small squadron of ships, but for the foreseeable future he was in no position to pose any significant threat. Although a few Pompeians still kept on fighting, the Civil War was effectively over.20

News of the victory reached Rome about a month later, and prompted the Senate to decree fifty days of thanksgiving. Caesar was also granted the title of ‘Liberator’, and a Temple of Liberty was to be set up. In addition he was given the title
Imperator
permanently – in the past a general had only been hailed in this way by his soldiers immediately after a victory. He remained in Spain for some time, mopping up the last strongholds that remained loyal to the Pompeians and also resettling the province. However, he still found time for his usual flood of correspondence, and we know that near the end of April he wrote to Cicero to offer condolences at the death of his beloved daughter Tullia. Cicero was an important public figure whose political friendship Caesar greatly desired to encourage, but in this case it may have been more than just a question of formality since he knew what it meant to lose a daughter. Cicero was far fonder of Tullia than of either his wife or son, and he never truly recovered from the loss. In Spain, Caesar was busy re-forming a number of towns as colonies, which included existing inhabitants as well as parties of discharged veterans or other settlers. He was eager to reward the loyalty of both soldiers and civilians, provincials and citizens. During his return journey he paused for several weeks in Transalpine Gaul, carrying out similar administrative tasks and looking at the progress of veteran settlement at Narbo and Arelate (Arles). The Gaulish towns of the province were granted Latin status, which meant that their magistrates automatically received full Roman citizenship after their term of office. Mark Antony met him in Gaul and the rift between the two was clearly healed.

Caesar did not return to Italy until late in the summer, and then seems to have remained outside Rome until he celebrated another triumph at the beginning of October. This time there was no doubt that he was 485

CIVIL WAR AND DICTATORSHIP 49 – 44 BC

commemorating a victory over a Roman foe. In an unprecedented act he also permitted two of his legates, Quintus Pedius and the Fabius whom he would shortly make consul for the remainder of the year, to celebrate triumphs for the Spanish campaign. None of this was popular with critics in the Senate. During his own triumph Caesar was annoyed when the tribune Pontius Aquila, alone of the college of ten, refused to stand as he passed. Aquila was a former Pompeian who had suffered the confiscation of some of his property, but had evidently been permitted to pursue a public career. The sight so angered Caesar that he lost his temper and called out mockingly,

‘Come on, Tribune Aquila, take the Republic back from me!’ Unwilling to let the matter drop easily, for the next few days he is said to have not made a promise to anyone without adding the sarcastic caveat, ‘That is, as long as Pontius Aquila lets me.’21

Caesar’s honours were now exceptional. He was made dictator for ten years and all magistrates were formally subordinate to him. To this he added the consulship, for as much of each year as he chose to retain it. Soon this was extended to the formal right to hold the office for ten years. According to Dio he was also given the powers and rights of a tribune of the plebs, although this is not mentioned in other sources. In addition, he controlled the entire Roman army, as well as the Republic’s Treasury. The honours accepted by him – which Dio tells us represented a small fraction of those awarded him by a sycophantic Senate, being merely the ones he chose to take – were staggering. At formal meetings in the Senate or Forum he sat on a special chair of office between the two consuls. An ivory statue of him was included with the statues of the gods and carried in a special carriage at the ceremonies opening the games. There was also a statue of him set up on the Capitol near those of the kings, and one in the Temple of Quirinus, another name for Rome’s mythical founder Romulus. This amused Cicero, since there was a story that Romulus had been torn to pieces by senators and he joked that he was happier to see Caesar with Quirinus than with Salus, the personification of good health and safety. By this time he had become less optimistic than he had been a year before when Caesar had pardoned Marcellus and other leading opponents. It was clear that Caesar held supreme power and showed no sign of returning complete freedom of action to the Senate. Most key decisions were made privately, by men like Oppius and Balbus when the dictator himself was absent. It was not that the decisions themselves were bad, but what bothered him was how and by whom they were taken. For a senator, especially one who had held high office and was used to a prominent role in its debates, 486

Dictator, 46–44 bc

important matters should only ever be dealt with in the proper manner by the Senate. The Senate should in turn be guided by its best and most distinguished members, composed primarily of the established aristocracy, joined – so he had always desired – by a handful of talented new men like himself. That was the tradition, and Caesar’s position was a clear violation of this senatorial ideal.22

Many senators were willing to tolerate Caesar’s exceptional power as long as the crisis and the threat of renewed civil war remained, but as soon as this was removed were desperate for a return to normality and the prominence of their own class. Brutus met Caesar as the latter passed through Cisalpine Gaul on his way back to Italy and felt that he ‘was going over to the good men’ – one of those expressions like ‘best men’, which always meant those allied and of like mind to the speaker. Cicero thought the view absurdly naive. It is probable that Caesar had at the same meeting promised Brutus the praetorship for 44 BC and the consulship as soon as he was old enough in 41 BC, which may have contributed to his enthusiasm. Brutus had always shown great respect for his uncle Cato, but this had grown markedly since his uncle had chosen to die rather than accept clemency like his nephew. He divorced his wife, who was a daughter of Appius Claudius – the man himself had died of natural causes early on in the Macedonian campaign – and instead married Cato’s daughter Porcia. Marriage between cousins was not that uncommon amongst Rome’s elite. Porcia was the widow of Bibulus and thus had an even greater association with Caesar’s most bitter opponents. In 46 BC Brutus wrote a book entitled
Cato
, which was a fiercely eulogistic work in praise of his uncle. Cicero claimed it was sloppily researched and was annoyed that Cato’s role in the debate over the Catilinarian rebels was exaggerated and his own part played down. Nevertheless, at Brutus’ urging, Cicero was persuaded to write his own
Cato
, which focused on the latter’s personal virtue and steadfastness rather than his political career, for he was eager not to cause Caesar too much offence. This was also easier in other respects, since in the past Cicero had often doubted Cato’s judgement in public life. He was subsequently delighted when he was shown a letter from Caesar in which the latter declared that through studying Cicero’s book he had improved his own literary style. In contrast he said that reading Brutus’
Cato
made him feel like a better writer himself.23