A Study of The Life and Times of The Roman Republic Ruler Julius Caesar

Julius Caesar was a ruler of the Roman Republic, which through his cherished efforts turned it into an empire. He conquered neighboring states to expand Rome. After gathering a few men, he marched to his enemies who he treated with full contempt in seizing them. He was so evil that he let some statesmen go out of water and eventually chopped off their heads (White 345). I believe Caesar was a power-hungry politician contrary to the popular belief of a liberator. The only thing Caesar cares about is power and his reputation. He has just returned from killing Pompey and his sons. His reasoning has only to do with his ambition for power and glory. He would use his power to conquer Gaul and build a bigger military to achieve his goal.

Caesar’s successes include expanding the local government with increased members of the senate. He also resurrected some city states formerly destroyed by the rulers before him. They were ultimately given life because of his ruling. The city states would be in control of Caesar as he rebuilt the city with support from the government. The government would fund the cities so citizens could have a home under his law. Caesar also gave citizenship to new citizens in Rome furthering his good act agenda. These acts, in my opinion were public relations activities just to improve his political and personal agenda of becoming a legend. He also reformed the Roman calendar just to the benefit of Romans (White 348). On a closer look on these actions, Caesar was committing them to further his immortality agenda. To do so, Caesar managed to make the Roman leadership inclusive by expanding the government. Caesar did this to prove he cared for his citizens. First, the manner of acquisition of power demonstrated by Caesar is lethal. Suppose he was a people-oriented leader, he would have embraced diplomacy. But, he was ruthless and did not respect basic people’s rights. He staged coups right from acquiring power in Rome to the time he started expanding Rome to an empire.

Caesar is portrayed to have tried bribing Pompey’s soldiers to fight on his side. Although Pompey was among his most trusted friends, he had the guts of betraying him. With this, he went further to bribe Pompey’s soldiers to stage a coup (Fuller and Fredrick). He however managed to get away in the midst of all this drama. He turned against his longtime friends for personal ambitions. Caesar took Gaul and built a bigger military to overturn the government with intent to strengthen his leadership. During all this drama, Caesar decides to select his most trusted allies to take the leadership positions on his behalf. He did not consider the wants and aspirations of his countrymen but put forth his ambition.

Caesar meets death through assassination due to the lack of compassion for his countrymen. Pompey, who was in the assassination team linked it as a liberation for Rome. This is to show that the country was in a dire situation in the hand of Caesar. This depicts the rule of Caesar as a killing rule. In simple conclusion, Caesar’s reign was a challenge for the people of Rome. Under his rule, he always put himself above the interest of the state. From this position, it can be said that Caesar was not the best leader for Rome. I believe his good deeds are credited to complimenting his image as a politician. He tried in politics but failed in diplomacy. This is because he put himself first as I have illustrated above. Overall, it is my firm belief that Caesar should not be viewed as the best leader Rome could possibly have.