How to Win a Civil War: The Case of Caesar (Gaius Iulius Caesar): Part-2

How the civil war started

When Pompeus' one-year term ended, Caesar's man Sulpicius and Pompeus' man Marcellus were elected consuls. Marcellus immediately set to work to have Caesar removed by the Senate and sanctioned. However, Caesar had at least one more year in office and could not be removed from office. Nevertheless, Marcellus continued this effort because of his hatred for him. Those who hated or envied Caesar for what he did during his consulship and for his great military successes in Gaul, adding to his fortune, also supported him underhandedly. Pompeus was among them.  

But it was too late for them to take action against Caesar. Because Caesar had not only won the hearts of the soldiers and the people because of his successes, but he had also acquired a great fortune that would be very useful in the political struggle. While Caesar's enemies continued their attempts, which could have ended in disaster for him, Pompeus was still indecisive and rejected the proposal to recall Caesar. He probably feared that if sanctions were imposed on Caesar, he would be asked to abide by them, since he was in a similar position to Caesar. He therefore avoided taking any overt action that would show that he had broken his alliance with Caesar.

His man Marcellus, on the other hand, continued to show his hostility openly and took new initiatives. For example, he argued that Pompeus' law on the provinces was superior to the law that allowed Caesar to run for consul in his absence. Nevertheless, Pompeus announced that he would not support Caesar's recall before the end of his term. Anti-Caesar senators then urged Pompeus to ask for back the three legions he had given Caesar for the battles in Gaul. Pompeus did not seem willing, but Marcellus got the Senate to agree to discuss the matter. Pompeus accepted this decision but said that Caesar could only be removed from office after March 1, 50 BC. 

Following these developments, Caesar established a colony in the foothills of the Alps under a law passed during his first consulship and granted Latin rights to people of foreign ethnic origin. This meant giving Roman citizenship to foreigners. After that, he started to follow the political developments in the country more closely. Caesar had an intelligence network in Rome that informed him about the developments day by day. Thanks to this network, he knew who was doing what and who was supporting him and who was supporting his rivals.

He learned that Pompeus was also turning against him and he realized that he had to do something. He could not accept losing the legal privileges that prevented him from being removed from office and tried, and becoming a civilian citizen. Because he could be tried for what he had done in the past. But the conditions for him to actually take action were not yet fully in place. Therefore, he had to use all legal means before taking up arms. 

His first move was to convince Curio, one of his greatest enemies, to support him. However, Pompeus had him elected to the People's Assembly so that he could harm Caesar. But Caesar reversed Pompeus' calculation. Curio was deep in debt from extravagance and extravagance. When Caesar gave him a large sum of money that would free him from debt and enable him to live comfortably, Curio immediately joined him. But he did not show it and continued to pretend that he was still an opponent of Caesar. Caesar also bribed the consul Paulus to remain neutral. 

In 50 BC, when one of the consuls said he would bring Caesar's case back to the Senate, Paulus announced that he would not support it. Curio then gradually began to show his side. However, he adopted a strategy that could be called an indirect position. He argued that if Caesar was to be removed from office, it should also be applied to Pompeus, who was in the same position. This would prevent threats to the republic from both sides. Caesar was the father of this strategy. Thanks to this strategy, Roman law and the Senate were officially blocked and the aristocrats' hostile moves against Caesar came to a deadlock.

Curio, who made this move against Pompeus, who was the most powerful person in Rome at the time and with whom there was nothing more dangerous than a conflict, gained great appreciation and support among the people. Pompeus, being a military commander, could not enter Rome and stayed in a mansion in Italy. The Senate began to hold its meetings outside the boundaries of the ban on entering Rome so that he could attend without breaking the law. Nevertheless, Curio continued his opposition, saying that it was unreasonable for either Rome or Caesar for one man (Pompeus) to wield so much power.

Under the influence of these words, the Senate and aristocrats began to doubt Pompeus as well. But they still saw Pompeus as the better republican and had no sympathy for Caesar, who had ignored and bypassed the Senate during his consulship. The senators therefore argued that Pompeus' power should be preserved in order to counter Caesar's power. Curio argued the opposite, namely that Caesar's power should be preserved as a counterbalance to Pompeus' power.

The Senate then asked Pompeus and Caesar to send one legion each to serve on the Parthian border. Pompeus asked Caesar for a legion he had previously given him. Thus, Caesar had to send both legions. The purpose of this move was to weaken Caesar's military power. Caesar knew why the legions were requested, but he did not want to be labeled a rebel from the start, so he sent them. However, he reorganized his army for a possible civil war and accelerated his preparations.

Pompeus, on the other hand, underestimated Caesar's power and therefore made no preparations. Caesar's psychological operation may also have been effective in this comfort. Because those who went to take the two legions to the Parthian border, probably because they were paid by Caesar to spread such a rumor, were telling everyone that Caesar's soldiers were very tired and undisciplined and that they would abandon him at the first clash. In fact, his soldiers were very loyal and disciplined.

The realization that civil war was now imminent caused great anxiety among the older generation, especially in the Senate. For this generation had already experienced the devastating effects of the civil war between Sulla and Marius. But some of the younger generation claimed that they could easily fend off Caesar, who appeared over the Alps with 10 legions. In spite of the young men's bravado, Curio succeeded in breaking their influence. 

Thus, he revealed that the Senate did not want war and that Pompeus was unable to effectively defend his cause. Influential figures such as the famous orator Cicero also did not want civil war and blamed Pompeus, saying that he was the reason why Caesar had become so powerful. For them, there seemed to be no other way to save the Republic than to accept Caesar's wishes.

As a result, the Senate decided to disband both Caesar's and Pompeus' armies. But in the meantime, news came that Caesar was advancing with his army to invade Rome. It was then proposed that everyone unite to fight Caesar, but this proposal was rejected. After this rejection, the opponents of Caesar went to Pompeus and gave him the task of protecting the republic and the authority to raise troops for this purpose. But this authorization was not legal as it was not a decision of the Senate. Nevertheless, Pompeus accepted this mission and said he would fight Caesar. But tensions eased when news that Caesar was marching on Rome turned out to be false.

Nevertheless, opponents of Caesar urged Pompeus and the Senate to take action. Curio tried to persuade the Senate to prevent Pompeus from gathering troops. Meanwhile, Caesar, in order not to be seen as the initiator of the war, wrote letters and sent representatives to the Senate, asking for a peaceful and equitable solution. In fact, neither side wanted to be the one who started the war. For this reason, Pompeus kept saying that he did not want to shed Roman blood. However, these words were nothing more than dry propaganda. Because both sides were preparing for a possible civil war that had become inevitable. 

Caesar, though, seemed to be more sincere about not shedding blood. For during and after the civil war, he spared many of his captured opponents and enemies (even though it was customary at the time to kill captured rivals) out of the mercy and kindness that he himself constantly emphasized. Nevertheless, this was nothing more than a tactic employed by a clever soldier and politician like Caesar. Because there were many people on the other side who were not very happy with his position and who were still neutral, and it seemed possible to win them over to his side. Compassion, on the other hand, was a highly effective tactic to win supporters before and during the war, as well as during the elections.

With tensions at their peak, Caesar marched on January 1, 49 BC with 5000 infantry and 300 cavalry. When he crossed the Alps to Revenna, Curio, whose term of office had expired, approached him and told him to march on Rome. But Caesar still thought it was an option to try to resolve matters through negotiations. He wrote a letter and sent it to Curio and Rome. In his letter, he described the sacrifices he had made for his country and said that if he was asked to give up command of his troops, Pompeus should do the same, otherwise he would come with his army and right the wrongs. 

When this letter was read, the Senate was confused. It was a threat of war. Some senators proposed that Caesar be declared a traitor, but this proposal was rejected due to vetoes. Then negotiations with Caesar began, but the negotiations came to nothing. Because, in these days when Caesar was making his last efforts to solve the problem without using weapons, Pompeus, who worked for the aristocrats who saw Caesar as a traitor and himself as a savior, wanted war. 

When the negotiations came to nothing, the Senate announced a resolution officially declaring civil war on January 7, 49. Caesar was declared a traitor and Pompeus the savior of Rome. Thus the country was divided into two camps, the Caesarites and the Pompeians. Only the Caesarians had been on his side for a long time, while the Pompeians had been hesitant to take his side until recently. In other words, the Caesarists were more determined and loyal. Indeed, upon the Senate's decision, the Caesarians immediately left Rome and went to his side.

The civil war is starting: Crossing the Rubicon

Caesar was in the city of Ravenna at this time. Four of his legions were at Piacenza, south of the Alps. Some of his legions were deployed against Pompeus' troops in Spain. He had also left troops there to prevent a revolt in Gaul. In other words, he did not concentrate his whole army in one place. This was because he believed that he did not need a large army to achieve victory. Because he thought that speed and deception, not violence, would bring victory. 

So he ordered his officers to capture Ariminum immediately, without using heavy weapons and with as little violence as possible. That evening he left without telling anyone where he was going and returned some time later. Possibly he met secretly with his allies who had brought him news from Rome, or he engaged in reconnaissance. Or he had gone to a quiet place away from everyone so that he could make his final decision with a clear head. 

The Rubicon, a small river between the cities of Ravenna and Ariminum, was considered the border between Italy and Gaul. Caesar crossing this river armed with his men meant a declaration of war. Despite all the developments, Caesar's failure to cross this river was still a small ray of hope that war would not break out. Crossing this river was a very difficult decision for Caesar. If he did, he would be remembered badly, even if he was right in his cause, as he would be the one who started the war.

Also, if he crossed the small bridge over the river, he would now have to decide everything with a gun. So he hesitated for a long time before crossing the river. But on January 11, he decided to cross the river. He made a speech to his men, saying, "Forward! The signs from God are that we must resist the injustices of our enemies. The dice are cast." Now the civil war was beginning. 

Note: In the preparation of this article, the following sources were used: Caesar's Notes on the Civil War published by Doğubatı Publishing House, Montesquieu's The Rise and Fall of the Romans published by Köprü Publishing House, Caesar's Battle of Gallia published by Hourglass Publishing House, and internet sources such as Wikipedia.