Instead of protecting the Roman Republic, the actions of the Liberatores saw Rome descend into yet another civil war, while many involved in the conspiracy were beaten to death by mobs of enraged Romans or else saw their property destroyed, according to Plutarch. The conspirators who until this point had been given the benefit of the doubt for their actions were driven from the city, sparking a great crisis that they had not foreseen. His speech, which was recorded by the historian Appian of Alexandria, according to Livius, praised the man whose reforms had so improved the conditions of Roman life, and drove the mourners into a furious frenzy.

Meanwhile, slaves carried Caesar's body through the streets to his home people wept as it passed,' per the World History Encyclopedia.Īt Caesar's lavish funeral on March 20, the tide turned against the conspirators, when the loyal Caesarean Mark Antony - who, like many other prominent Romans, was well-versed in oratory - addressed the multitude who had come to mourn the murdered dictator. Brutus spoke from a platform at the foot of the hill, trying in vain to calm the crowd.

They 'made their way to Capitoline Hill and the Temple of Jupiter. The conspirators, unprepared for the reaction, attempted to explain themselves to the people of Rome. After political skirmishes in the Senate, Caesar took the decisive action of crossing the Rubicon river (pictured) with some 40,000 of his troops in 49 BC, plunging the Republic into what would become known as Caesar's Civil War. Crassus was killed in battle in 53 BC, after which Pompey and Caesar turned on each other. As the World History Encyclopedia explains, this subversive alliance - which worked to forward the allies' individual interests, rather than any collective ideal - soon fell apart. Rather, he had joined an uneasy alliance with fellow politicians Pompey the Great and Marcus Licinius Crassus, with whom he colluded to ensure domination of the Senate, promising to back each other's policies and ensure each was voted in turn to the position of consul. This, perhaps, is the most important point to keep in mind: today, it is common to think of Caesar as an emperor. But the years before Caesar's assassination were not exactly characterized by political harmony, as Caesar also worked to bulldoze his way through the check and balances that kept Rome a republic.

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