In about 69 BC, Caesar was elected quaestor, a public official who dealt with financial affairs. Tragically, that same year, his wife Cornelia died. Two years afterward he married Pompeia, a granddaughter of Sulla. Their marriage was fleeting and they soon divorced. Despite these setbacks in his personal life, Caesar continued to rise in popularity. In 60 BC he became the governor of Spain, a Roman province at that time. He also became close allies with Pompey, one of Sulla’s former lieutenants, and achieved many military victories in Spain. In 45 BC, Caesar was given the title …show more content…
However, Pompey began to become jealous of Caesar’s growing power. At the same time, Crassus still did not trust his rival Pompey. In 56 BC the three men overcame their differences. Caesar was granted rule for another five years, and Crassus was given five years to rule Syria, as well as Pompey with Spain. Unfortunately, the peace did not last long. Crassus was killed during a battle in Syria. This time there was no one to stop Pompey from being jealous of Caesar’s accomplishments. Tensions continued to rise until Caesar declared war on Pompey, famously leading his army across the Rubicon river on January 10, 49 BC. The nobility of Rome began to view Caesar as a national threat, and Pompey allied with them. However, Pompey’s armies were no match for Caesar’s military might. Just one year later, Caesar had driven Pompey from Italy into Egypt, where he was killed. While in Egypt, Caesar had a son with Cleopatra, named …show more content…
Even though he only served a year, Caesar greatly reformed the country. He relieved debt from the Senate by increasing the number of senators as well as making it more public to better represent the Roman people. He created a new Roman calendar (naming his birth month July, after himself), and changed the organization of local governments. He also brought the two city-states Carthage and Corinth back to life, since they had been destroyed by previous Roman rulers. In addition, Caesar granted Roman citizenship to many foreigners. Surprisingly, he also allowed some of his defeated rivals to join him in the Roman government.
Caesar took care in making sure he would stay in power. He replaced many members of the Senate with is allies. He was the first one to speak at assembly meetings, and his face was etched into the Roman