15 March 44 BCE
The assassination took place on the traditional Ides of March.
The killing of Julius Caesar by a group of Roman senators that transformed the political future of the Roman Republic.
EXPLORE THE EVENT ↓The essential details of one of ancient Rome's most consequential political events.
The assassination took place on the traditional Ides of March.
Caesar was attacked during a Senate meeting held at the Theatre of Pompey.
Dictator of Rome whose growing political authority alarmed many senators.
Caesar's death failed to restore stability and instead accelerated another civil war.
During the final decades of the Roman Republic, political competition, social tensions and military conflicts increasingly destabilized Roman government.
Julius Caesar rose to extraordinary influence through military victories, political alliances and his role in the civil war against Pompey.
After defeating his opponents, Caesar accumulated unprecedented political authority. Some senators feared that his position threatened the traditional republican system.
A group of conspirators therefore planned to kill Caesar, believing that his death could prevent the emergence of permanent one-man rule.
Marcus Junius Brutus and Gaius Cassius Longinus became two of the best-known figures associated with the conspiracy.
Caesar had become the most powerful political figure in Rome after years of military success and civil conflict.
On 15 March 44 BCE, Caesar arrived at a meeting of the Senate. The conspirators surrounded him and attacked him during the session.
A simplified sequence of the major developments.
Despite warnings and concerns surrounding him, Caesar proceeded with his plans to attend the Senate meeting.
The conspirators approached Caesar during the Senate session and presented a petition concerning the return of an exile.
The conspirators attacked Caesar with concealed weapons, killing him during the Senate gathering.
The conspirators expected Caesar's death to restore the Republic, but political instability quickly intensified.
Caesar's death was followed by further political and military conflict that eventually brought Octavian to power.
The conspirators intended Caesar's death to protect republican government. Instead, it created a new struggle for political control.
Mark Antony, Caesar's supporters and the conspirators became involved in the power struggle that followed.
Caesar's death became a turning point in Roman history.
Caesar's assassination creates a power vacuum at the center of Roman politics.
Political alliances and military conflicts determine who will control Rome.
Octavian eventually defeats his rivals and establishes a new political order that becomes the Roman Empire.
Caesar's assassination is one of the most famous political killings in history because it occurred at a crucial moment in the transformation of Rome.
The conspirators hoped to preserve the Republic, but their actions instead contributed to another series of civil wars.
Within a generation, the Roman Republic had been replaced by an imperial system dominated by Augustus, Caesar's adopted heir.
Caesar's death became a symbol of political betrayal, ambition and the dangers surrounding struggles for power.
More importantly, it marked a decisive moment in Rome's transition from Republic to Empire.
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