00:01 [Music]
00:06 the world's greatest Empire
00:10 but it wasn't built in a day the rise
00:18 the fall the conquerors
00:24 the conquer
00:27 roll
00:28 [Music]
00:40 hello I'm Joe Mantegna an ancient
00:44 philosopher remarked that all roads lead
00:47 to Rome one time he was right 2,000
00:52 years ago all highways led to the most
00:54 powerful empire known to man the story
00:58 of the Roman Empire begins with the
01:00 tumultuous founding of the city by
01:01 Romulus and Remus it continues with the
01:04 rise of Julius Caesar Anthony and
01:06 Cleopatra Spartacus and others
01:09 larger-than-life figures born into a
01:11 civilization teeming with brilliance
01:14 bravery and sheer brutality
01:18 [Music]
01:33 they were the most gifted men and women
01:36 of their age powerful passionate and
01:39 unyielding for more than a thousand
01:42 years they ruled the Western world
01:44 conquering enemies building opulent
01:46 cities and living lives of decadent
01:49 grandeur
01:52 the Roman Empire has long captured the
01:55 fantasies
01:59 Hollywood has recreated Rome's pagan
02:01 palaces and public revelry its cruel and
02:08 cunning conquests at its insatiable lust
02:12 for life I want you to forget me please
02:17 forget I can never be more far away even
02:22 in the real Roman Empire could never be
02:31 duplicated again the ancient
02:33 civilization stretched across three
02:35 continents from Britain down to North
02:37 Africa across Western Europe to parts of
02:40 Asia the Middle East and beyond it was
02:43 an empire that set the standard for
02:45 architecture law and military might but
02:48 it was the Roman people themselves from
02:51 countless countries and cultures who
02:53 personified the power and glory of the
02:56 once-thriving Empire
03:04 the origins of this lost civilization
03:06 are steeped in myth and legend
03:09 most Romans believed their ancestry
03:11 began along the banks of the Tiber River
03:13 in a region now known as Italy
03:21 in the 8th century BC the daughter of
03:24 the Latin King Numa door for twin sons
03:27 named Romulus and Remus
03:30 but the King's brother feared the
03:33 infant's would cheat him out of the
03:34 royal throne in a fit of rage he tossed
03:38 the twins into the frigid River
03:45 legend says the brothers were eventually
03:47 rescued by a she-wolf
03:49 who suckled them to health
03:51 [Music]
03:55 by 753 BC Romulus and Remus were grown
03:59 men they set the foundation of a new
04:02 city called Rome but the brotherly bond
04:05 didn't last for long
04:07 Romulus killed Remus during a petty
04:10 family court making Romulus the sole
04:13 ruler of Rome the followers of Romulus
04:16 eventually settled on one of the Seven
04:18 Hills that made up the new city we're
04:22 here in the Palatine the edge of the
04:23 Palatine overlooking the river the Tiber
04:26 River with the capital n hill to one
04:30 side in the Aventine behind us and the
04:33 sight of Rome is a function of the
04:36 relationship between the river and
04:38 between the various hills around it the
04:41 river controlled the crossing any trade
04:44 that was going north-south the hills
04:47 provided a naturally fortified place
04:49 where people came together to put their
04:53 communities up here on top of the hill
04:57 in ancient times Italy was a region of
05:00 great cultural diversity various tribes
05:03 such as the Greeks say binds and Latins
05:06 eventually melded together to become one
05:09 race of people the Romans
05:13 [Music]
05:16 the early Romans lived in small
05:18 communities which grew into city-states
05:21 most of these primitive people live
05:24 together in these surviving grass huts
05:26 and were ruled by kings from the
05:28 wealthiest families but 50 years after
05:33 Romulus founded his city a growing tribe
05:36 of people conquered the fractured
05:37 communities and became the ruling
05:39 monarchy these were the Etruscans the
05:44 Etruscans were sophisticated people who
05:46 created exquisite paintings and pottery
05:49 they also built elaborate burial tombs
05:52 for they believed in eternal life after
05:55 death
05:57 but the Etruscans were also brutal
06:00 rulers who rained terror upon the other
06:03 Roman people in 509 BC after over two
06:09 hundred years of hostile oppression a
06:11 group of Roman aristocrats hosted the
06:14 Etruscan monarchy in its place they
06:17 created a new government the Roman
06:19 Republic a republic that would grow
06:22 beyond anyone's wildest dreams
06:29 it was the dawn of a new era gone with
06:33 days of tyrannical kings the power was
06:36 no longer in the hands of one person the
06:38 new government was run by two councils
06:41 these magistrates shared power over the
06:44 Republic by making laws and overseeing
06:46 legal cases new councils were elected
06:49 each year by a committee of senators who
06:51 made decisions on government policy
07:02 the roman republic had two classes of
07:05 citizens the plebeians Rome's general
07:08 populace who were merchants craftsmen
07:10 and farmers and the patricians the elite
07:13 class who held political power like so
07:17 much else that the Romans did it was
07:20 largely unplanned there was no
07:24 Constitutional Convention there were no
07:26 Jefferson or Madison or Franklin there
07:29 was no written document they overthrow
07:32 the last Etruscan King meant that Rome
07:35 established a republic but the ironic
07:38 thing about that is that the power of
07:39 the Council of each of the consuls was
07:41 basically modeled on that of the
07:43 Etruscan King whom they'd overthrown the
07:46 difference was and it's a major
07:47 difference in that they were to the
07:51 plebeians complained that the new system
07:53 of government was not much better than
07:55 the old system although plebeians were
07:57 allowed to vote only the patricians were
08:00 allowed to run for political office in
08:04 [Music]
08:05 471 BC the plebeians created a Tribune
08:10 in which 10 men were elected to
08:12 represent their class against any
08:14 political oppression by the councils or
08:16 patricians in 450 BC a system of laws
08:21 called the Twelve Tables was set up to
08:24 protect the rights of every citizen
08:26 over the centuries law became a
08:29 prestigious profession Cicero a man from
08:33 a modestly wealthy family became one of
08:35 Rome's most celebrated lawyers and
08:38 orders his parents were not noble they
08:42 were not in the Senate he's one of the
08:44 few people who manages to obtain that
08:46 all on his own he is the the finest
08:48 orator in Rome he's the lawyer
08:50 everyone wants and in an age when
08:52 everyone is being sued and litigated
08:53 against for various reasons Cicero is
08:56 the man you go to this makes him
08:57 extremely valuable and an ally of all
08:59 sorts of powerful people
09:04 like a modern lawyer Cicero was a crafty
09:07 public defender who played up the drama
09:10 in the courtroom during one of his
09:12 trials he hired orphans off the streets
09:15 to pose as the starving children of a
09:17 woman he was defending against her
09:19 husband Cicero addressed the jury I will
09:25 focus only on my client's innocence
09:27 today and thus I will completely ignore
09:30 the fact that the prosecutor in this
09:32 case is an infamous philanderer who
09:35 beats his wife and steals from innocent
09:37 grandmothers hotshot attorneys
09:42 demonstrated their merits by winning
09:44 legal cases but most Roman men would
09:47 demonstrate their worth of the
09:49 battlefield
09:50 [Music]
09:59 from the fifth to the second century BC
10:02 Rome had expanded its influence beyond
10:05 the borders of Italy each of the two
10:07 councils built up a powerful army
10:09 divided into legions of men from various
10:12 classes the Roman legions evolved into
10:16 the fiercest fighting machines the world
10:18 had yet seen in their initial quest to
10:21 plunder territories of their wealth
10:23 these soldiers of fortune were on their
10:25 way to Roman eyes in the world over time
10:29 the territories they conquered became
10:31 provinces of Rome
10:33 [Music]
10:35 as the Roman Empire expands the
10:38 provinces are always important because
10:40 they bring in more booty the Roman
10:42 system is not early on is not to conquer
10:45 to make people citizens and to tax them
10:48 it's to simply to believe the provinces
10:49 for everything they possibly can and all
10:51 this wealth ends up back in Rome
10:56 by the second century BC the Roman army
10:59 had conquered most of the Mediterranean
11:01 Basin including Greece parts of North
11:04 Africa Spain Asia and the Middle East
11:09 over time the council's elected
11:11 governor's to oversee each province
11:14 eventually most of the people within the
11:16 provinces were allowed to become Roman
11:19 citizens when the Romans conquered an
11:23 area what they would do was let the
11:27 citizens of these conquered areas
11:29 participate in measured ways in further
11:32 Roman conquests what the Romans did not
11:35 do and this sets them apart from other
11:37 peoples in the ancient world was tax the
11:41 italic peoples who they conquered
11:43 instead what they asked these
11:44 communities to give was their sons that
11:48 is the Romans asked for a certain number
11:49 of troops to be provided each year to
11:54 fight along with the Roman army under
11:57 roman command but it also allowed the
11:59 conquered peoples to participate in the
12:02 success of war that is soldiers going
12:05 out from these communities came home
12:07 after their victories with booty
12:08 bringing new wealth in the community
12:13 much of this wealth was brought back to
12:15 Rome the capital of the empire among the
12:19 booty were marble statues and reliefs
12:21 used to decorate the forum the civic
12:24 center of the city
12:27 [Music]
12:30 by 100 BC the forum was flowing with
12:33 activity and excitement orator is made
12:36 public speeches in front of the Senate
12:38 building citizens prayed and made
12:40 sacrifices at the many public temples
12:43 dedicated to their pagan gods such as
12:46 Jupiter Minerva and a power the forum
12:50 blossomed into a monumental wonder a
12:53 true symbol of Rome's growing power and
12:57 wealth that she walked through the forum
13:00 you wouldn't have seen and what we often
13:02 see in movies this sort of pristine
13:03 white sober landscape you would have
13:07 seen a riot of color actually we also
13:10 have to remember that Rome is a vertical
13:11 city the Romans invented the skyscraper
13:13 it may have only been four or five
13:15 storeys tall but many people lived in
13:17 tenements that were at least that tall
13:23 to build these powerful cities rome
13:26 needed manpower while many of the people
13:29 from conquered lands became citizens
13:31 many more were auctioned off slaves
13:36 thousands of these slaves were educated
13:39 in secured positions as philosophers
13:41 musicians dancers and teachers but tens
13:45 of thousands more were forced into
13:47 brutal manual labor
13:50 [Music]
13:53 I'm standing in front of the quarry's at
13:55 Syracuse which are one of the largest
13:58 stone quarries from the ancient world
14:00 the quarries were cut by The Strokes of
14:03 human hands and each hand belonged to
14:06 his slave but the jobs that were most
14:08 dangerous and no one else would do were
14:10 the jobs that slaves had to do these
14:13 replaces where people worked and were
14:15 worked to death whenever we think about
14:17 classical antiquity whenever we think
14:19 about what was produced the wonderful
14:22 buildings in literature we must realize
14:24 that all of this was based upon slave
14:27 labor and it's appropriate that in front
14:30 of the quarries we have a capital carved
14:33 from stone so in one sense you can see
14:35 the architectural glory of the classical
14:38 world but we must always remember that
14:40 it was based upon the labor of slaves
14:44 at times these slaves could have the
14:47 whole might of the Roman army focused on
14:49 them of the many slave revolts of the
14:52 time the largest took place on the
14:54 Italian peninsula the rebellion was
14:57 instigated by a slave named Spartacus
14:59 who was forced to fight as a gladiator a
15:02 dangerous sport where slaves fought
15:05 slaves to the death for the public's
15:08 amusement no longer willing to risk his
15:11 life in the gladiatorial arena
15:12 Spartacus escaped and gradually
15:15 assembled tens of thousands of slaves to
15:18 join forces with him
15:20 for two years they held off the Roman
15:23 army and plundered the Italian
15:25 countryside Spartacus is slave revolt I
15:28 think is very important in the way that
15:30 Romans think about slaves it was the
15:34 most dangerous of the slave revolts it
15:37 took two or three Roman legions to
15:40 suppress it and who reminded the Romans
15:43 that those slaves who people their
15:46 household against whom they passed
15:48 rubbed shoulders in the streets could
15:51 and perhaps wanted to murder them in
15:54 their beds the Spartacus slave revolt is
15:59 an enormous trauma for Republican Rome
16:01 this is a enormous embarrassment and
16:03 humiliation because of the idea of a
16:06 slave army beating a Roman army is
16:07 unthinkable in Rome to save face
16:10 Rome's council sent two of their most
16:13 celebrated commanders to hunt down the
16:15 rebels Crassus a wealthy seasoned
16:19 general and Pompey a gifted warrior
16:22 whose military conquests garnered him
16:24 the title pumpy the great I think once
16:28 you've been named the great at the age
16:30 of 25 I think that probably defines your
16:32 character for the rest of your life he
16:34 was not a man who had any patience at
16:36 all with the forms of the Senate
16:38 he didn't come from a noble family so
16:41 that he actually had to have friends
16:42 make cheap books for him as to how the
16:44 Senate worked and the procedure
16:47 in 72 BC Crassus with the help of Pompey
16:51 commanded 40,000 men to hunt down
16:54 Spartacus and his renegade slaves within
16:57 a year most of the slaves were cornered
16:59 and killed but Spartacus and 6,000
17:03 slaves were taken prisoner and crucified
17:05 the crosses stretched for miles along
17:08 the Appian Way
17:09 Rome's major thoroughfare crucifixion
17:13 was a fairly common form of execution in
17:16 antiquity and it's quite clear that
17:18 people would indeed live some
17:19 considerable time in this excruciating
17:22 agony until eventually they effectively
17:25 died of suffocation because it was more
17:28 difficult for them to make the necessary
17:30 movements to keep breathing so
17:31 eventually they would suffocate and the
17:33 bodies would be left there to decay by
17:35 the roadside as a warning to others
17:39 the Spartacus revolt marked the last
17:42 epic slave war of the ancient world
17:44 Crassus and Pompey were made councils in
17:47 Rome their victory gave them enormous
17:50 control over the Senate but in time
17:52 Pompey and Crassus would eventually lose
17:55 their power to a man who would rule the
17:58 entire Roman world
18:01 [Music]
18:03 in the first century BC the Roman Empire
18:07 would witness the rise of one of
18:09 history's greatest leaders it was said
18:12 that in war no one surpassed him in love
18:16 no one matched him and in time his name
18:20 would come to symbolize absolute power
18:29 his birth name was Gaius Julius Caesar
18:33 but he would eventually be known as
18:35 dictator of the Mediterranean world he
18:38 was born into a patrician family in 100
18:41 BC his parents were harsh disciplinarian
18:44 who beat their son frequently as a way
18:47 of whipping him into manhood
18:50 Caesar grew up to be tall and muscular
18:52 with nerves of steel
18:54 his physical vanity was openly expressed
18:57 as well as his insatiable drive to
19:00 succeed at age 18 Caesar enlisted in the
19:04 army and quickly rose to the rank of
19:06 military commander he was determined to
19:10 make his mark on Rome and the world
19:14 Julie Caesar is driven by ambition pure
19:18 and simple this is a quest for power
19:20 this is a quest to out Alexander the
19:23 Great
19:23 Alexander the Great of course had
19:25 conquered most of the known world by the
19:27 time he was 30 there's a famous story of
19:29 Julius Caesar in Spain seeing a statue
19:32 of Alexander the Great and bursting into
19:35 tears saying I am only 25 and I have not
19:39 yet conquered anything and I think it
19:41 was this burning ambition not only to be
19:44 as powerful as possible but also in
19:47 memory in history to stand above
19:50 Alexander the Great
19:55 Julius Caesar demanded unwavering
19:58 loyalty from his soldiers who were paid
20:00 handsomely for their services
20:02 Caesars first military conquest was
20:04 capturing Spain in 61 BC his brutal
20:09 tactics on the battlefield made him a
20:11 dangerous threat at the Senate back in
20:13 Rome
20:16 the Republican senators reluctantly
20:19 rewarded Caesar by electing him as one
20:21 of Rome's co-counsels but even this
20:25 position didn't satisfy him Caesar
20:28 wanted even more control over the Senate
20:30 who considered him a power-hungry
20:32 warlord in 60 BC Caesar petitioned
20:38 Rome's former co-counsels
20:40 Pompey and Crassus to form a three-way
20:42 leadership within the Republic with
20:45 Crassus as money and pomp ease military
20:47 influence Caesar was able to overthrow
20:50 all senatorial opposition the three men
20:53 created Rome's first triumvirate Caesar
20:58 sealed the deal by allowing Pompey to
21:00 marry his daughter Julia Caesar proved
21:05 to be as shrewd in the political arena
21:07 as he had been on the battlefield he
21:10 positioned himself as man of the people
21:13 going into the slum neighborhoods of
21:15 Rome to support the poor this was less a
21:18 virtuous act and more a political tool
21:21 used against the conservative senators
21:24 who still treated him as an outsider
21:25 driven by his own self interests and not
21:29 the interests of the Republic
21:32 the citizens of Rome I think played an
21:34 important part in Caesars political
21:37 ambitions they along with the army were
21:39 a significant element in formation of
21:42 his power base he was always sure and
21:45 certain that he wanted the support of
21:48 the Roman people and that he was always
21:50 going to make sure that they were on his
21:53 side he spent some considerable effort
21:56 often through the organization of mob
21:58 violence to make sure that the city of
22:00 Rome was always backing him
22:07 the three rulers split up the empire
22:09 equally after their one-year term in
22:12 office Crassus and Pompey went their
22:15 separate ways but Caesar now used his
22:18 political clout to do as he pleased he
22:21 bribed the new co councils of Rome to
22:24 provide him with an army big enough to
22:26 conquer the massive region of Gaul now
22:29 modern France for nine years between 58
22:34 and 50 BC Caesar led several legions
22:37 into Gaul crushing the opposition along
22:41 the way Caesar and his army became
22:43 extremely wealthy plundering Gaul of its
22:47 riches but the toll in human suffering
22:51 was enormous Caesar was responsible for
22:54 the death enslavement of over a million
22:55 persons the Romans had never been easy
22:58 undefeated enemies but Caesar took it to
23:00 a new scale so if we look at Caesar as
23:02 one of the great men of history we must
23:04 also consider him one of the great
23:06 killers of this
23:08 [Music]
23:12 Caesars conquest of Gaul was another
23:14 pivotal moment in Roman history he now
23:17 had the army and wealth from the spoils
23:19 of war to defeat anyone opposing him
23:22 including his former partners Crassus
23:24 and Pompey who both envied his success
23:27 Crassus was eventually killed in the
23:30 Battle of car ride fighting the
23:32 Parthians his head was subsequently used
23:36 in a Greek play put on by the Parthian
23:38 king
23:43 back in Rome the two new co-counsels for
23:46 the year 50 BC were hostile to Caesar
23:50 Pompey even distanced himself from
23:53 Caesar by supporting his opponents in
23:55 the Senate the crisis came about in 49
23:59 when Caesar wished to return to Rome to
24:02 run for office once again his opponents
24:05 would not let him run for office in
24:07 absentia he claimed this was a negation
24:12 of his rights and in 49 he invaded Italy
24:17 Caesar declared civil war on Rome he
24:21 rode with his legions to the Rubicon the
24:24 river that separated Italy from Gaul
24:26 there
24:27 Caesar addressed his men let us accept
24:31 this as a sign from the gods and follow
24:34 her they call in vengeance on our
24:36 treacherous enemies the die is cast
24:47 in 49 BC Caesar crossed the rubicon and
24:51 seized control of Italy Pompey had fled
24:55 Rome and mobilized his men in far solice
24:58 Greece Caesar hunted down his former
25:01 partner and waged a decisive attack
25:04 Pompey's men many of whom were
25:06 intimidated by Caesars seasoned troops
25:09 deserted him in droves after a vicious
25:12 clash Caesar was victorious
25:17 [Music]
25:23 Pompey who survived the bloodbath
25:26 quickly fled to Egypt with Caesar in
25:29 pursuit upon his arrival in the seaport
25:32 city of Alexandria Egypt Caesar was
25:35 greeted by the ten-year-old Egyptian
25:37 King Ptolemy xiii who presented him with
25:41 a gift the head of Pompey a goodwill
25:45 gesture from the citizens of Egypt to
25:48 the hero of Rome Egypt was an enormous
25:52 ly wealthy place very very much worth
25:55 having but in political anarchy for many
25:58 many years the Romans left it that way
26:00 they left it that way because they
26:02 didn't trust any particular room an
26:04 aristocrat to go out there and deal with
26:07 Egypt it was too rich and too dangerous
26:10 Caesar when he got there so what the
26:12 situation was and decided that he would
26:15 stabilize the country Egypt was looking
26:19 for military support from Rome but
26:21 Caesar was more interested in another
26:24 kind of alliance he would soon find
26:26 himself in partnership with King Ptolemy
26:29 sister her name was Cleopatra
26:33 [Music]
26:38 in 51 BC Julius Caesar found himself in
26:43 the middle of a family feud the Egyptian
26:45 King Ptolemy the 12th had willed his
26:49 throne to his ten-year-old son Ptolemy
26:51 the 13th and his 18 year old daughter
26:54 Cleopatra of Egypt Co rulers Cleopatra
26:58 was the gifted one she was a witty and a
27:01 highly educated woman for her time who
27:03 felt comfortable in the company of
27:05 powerful men but deceit and deception
27:09 loomed inside the palace walls Ptolemy
27:13 eventually had Cleopatra exiled from the
27:15 city in an attempt to seize total power
27:18 when Cleopatra heard that Caesar was in
27:22 Alexandria she was determined to meet
27:24 with him the city was still in the
27:27 hostile hands of her brother's
27:28 supporters so the Queen smuggled herself
27:32 back into Alexandria wrapped up in an
27:35 oriental carpet the 50 year old Caesar
27:39 was impressed by the sly and intelligent
27:41 eighteen-year-old queen who unraveled
27:44 before him the two formed an alliance
27:47 and subsequently crushed Ptolemy and his
27:50 supporters Caesar and Cleopatra began a
27:54 toward love affair
27:55 they spent weeks taking romantic sunset
27:58 cruises down the Nile Cleopatra soon
28:01 became pregnant with Caesars son
28:04 Caesar was eventually forced to leave
28:07 his Egyptian mistress duty called him to
28:10 command another war in Asia Minor
28:13 in 47 BC Caesars armies sacked the
28:17 pharma keys at the Battle of gsella it
28:20 was there he cried out his famous Creed
28:22 vini vidi vici I came I saw I conquered
28:28 in 46 BC Julius Caesar rode back to Rome
28:33 in a triangle Cleopatra and their infant
28:37 son she named cesarean accompanied him
28:40 the Roman people made the 54 year old
28:43 war hero dictator of Rome a position
28:47 citizens voted on only in times of civil
28:49 war or other political crises but while
28:53 Caesar was being honored his new
28:56 mistress Cleopatra was being looked upon
28:59 with suspicion Cleopatra was viewed as a
29:02 threat to Roman society because she
29:05 opposed all the decent Roman womanhood
29:08 stood for she was renowned for her
29:11 sexual license and her sexual practices
29:13 it was as though the Roman matron
29:16 solidly in her domestic setting in Rome
29:19 was threatened by this Eastern siren
29:22 Cleopatra was bad news
29:24 [Music]
29:26 this had not been the first time Caesar
29:29 had taken up a mistress although he was
29:32 married to his third wife Calpurnia
29:34 adultery was legal for men as long as
29:37 the woman wasn't married and Caesar took
29:39 full advantage of his liberties
29:45 Julius Caesar apart from being a great
29:48 politician a great military man a great
29:51 administrator seems also to have been a
29:54 very great womanizer Caesars reputation
29:58 for his affairs with women for being a
30:01 real ladies man was so great that in his
30:04 last years there was a proposal that
30:06 Caesar be given the rights the privilege
30:09 the possibility of having a sexual
30:11 relationship with any woman he chose as
30:14 many women as he chose and this surely
30:17 even if the story isn't true is a
30:19 reflection on the reputation Caesar had
30:22 I think Caesar must have been a very
30:25 sexy man that there there are stories
30:28 when he was on campaign that the
30:30 soldiers would sing a song as he was
30:32 going into a town and they would say men
30:35 lock up your wives because Caesar is on
30:37 his way I think a man who had such
30:40 extraordinary power as Caesar is an
30:43 attractive proposition for many women
30:48 more than his love for women Caesar had
30:52 an unyielding drive to show off his
30:54 power by passing Senate approval he
30:57 launched numerous reform programs
30:59 including the cancellation of farmers
31:02 debts an intellect and visionary he also
31:05 instituted the Julian calendar of 365
31:09 and one-fourth days the month of July
31:13 was even named in honor of his first
31:15 name
31:15 Julius Rome's lower classes applauded
31:20 his efforts to improve their lives to
31:22 them he could do no wrong in 45 BC in an
31:27 unprecedented show of gratitude the
31:30 Roman citizens voted the 54 year old
31:32 Caesar dictator for life
31:35 he was now an even bigger threat to the
31:38 old Roman establishment namely the
31:41 Senators who feared he was wielding too
31:44 much power
31:46 once he's become dictator I think there
31:49 is probably a change in in his
31:51 personality in a way I think when a man
31:53 attains that kind of glory and magnitude
31:56 I think he began to sort of look down on
31:58 institutions like a Senate and a
32:01 republic and thinking perhaps he does
32:03 know best
32:06 Ceaser's reckless use of power would
32:09 eventually do him in a group of senators
32:12 led by Cassius and Caesars close friend
32:15 Brutus plotted his demise
32:19 Caesars wife Calpurnia warned him about
32:22 a dream she had that he would be
32:24 assassinated but he disregarded her
32:27 warnings on the Ides of March and 44 BC
32:32 Caesar strolled to the Senate building
32:35 he casually entered the Senate chambers
32:37 unaware of his impending doom then
32:41 suddenly the assassins attacked a mob of
32:45 senators repeatedly stabbed Caesar with
32:47 their daggers the violent act was
32:50 frenzied abusive after enduring 27 fatal
32:54 blows Caesar finally covered his face
32:57 with his toga so no one could see him
32:59 die
33:04 news of Caesar's assassination roused
33:06 chaos in the streets of Rome the
33:09 assassins came out of the Senate
33:10 chambers crying Liberty but many of
33:13 Caesars supporters were angered by his
33:15 murder mark antony caesar's deputy at
33:19 the time made it an emotional plea
33:21 before the roman people to give their
33:23 fallen leader a public burial Marc
33:28 Anthony's speech was such that the crowd
33:31 when they saw Caesars body rioted
33:34 grabbed his body and decided to cremate
33:37 it themselves so they took it down here
33:39 to the other end of the forum and
33:41 cremated the body right on this spot
33:43 soon afterwards a popular cult grew up
33:48 around the spot where the body was
33:51 cremated a monument was raised and if he
33:55 walk in
33:57 [Music]
33:59 we can see the remains of the altar
34:01 which to this day is venerated by Romans
34:06 only some Romans flowers are placed in
34:09 the grave particularly celebrating the
34:11 Ides of March by monarchists who revered
34:15 the memory of Caesar the dictator in
34:19 death Julius Caesar became a Roman icon
34:23 despite his detractors temples were
34:26 built in his name where he remained
34:27 chief priest or pontiff Maximus he was
34:31 even declared by some to be a God Caesar
34:37 symbolizes I think one good thing and
34:39 one bad thing he symbolizes the new
34:42 political state of the Roman Empire the
34:45 idea of an empire ruled by an emperor
34:47 and after all all Emperor's through to
34:50 Justinian will call themselves Caesar
34:52 and Julius Caesar become something that
34:55 is also very threatening to all
34:56 subsequent Roman emperors they remember
34:59 that in that drive to become a monarch
35:02 Julius Caesar was brutally assassinated
35:04 that image hung like a dark cloud over
35:08 emperors for the next six centuries
35:11 Caesar helped to romanize the world but
35:14 he also left the Roman Republic in turn
35:17 the infighting within the Senate brought
35:20 the government to a standstill
35:22 there was also the problem of how to
35:25 handle the ever-growing population of
35:27 people the Republic was in desperate
35:30 need of duty
35:33 [Music]
35:38 amidst the chaos following Julius
35:40 Caesar's assassination in 44 BC all of
35:44 Rome was anxious to find out who would
35:46 become his successor Cleopatra had bore
35:50 Caesar his only son
35:52 Caesarion
35:55 Mark Antony Caesars deputy had
35:58 positioned himself as rightful heir but
36:01 even in death Caesar had his way on
36:04 Roman politics in his will he had
36:07 posthumously adopted his sister's
36:09 grandson the unknown 19 year old Gaius
36:13 Octavius was to become heir to Caesars
36:16 estate and Rome he only found about his
36:22 adoption that when Caesar was
36:23 assassinated because it is in the will
36:26 it took considerable courage to come to
36:29 Rome to claim his inheritance but come
36:31 to Rome II did and he immediately began
36:33 politicking insinuating himself with the
36:36 troops playing a double game against
36:38 Mark Antony in the one hand and against
36:40 the Conservatives and the other so you
36:42 have a fellow in the person of Octavius
36:45 who began his career as a young
36:47 demagogue managed through a name alone
36:49 to gain control of an army Octavius
36:54 better known as Octavian was a
36:57 physically weak and spoiled adolescent
36:59 who was inexperienced when it came to
37:02 matters of government he faced immediate
37:04 opposition from Mark Antony a brash
37:07 military commander who had proven his
37:09 loyalty to Caesar in several key battles
37:12 but Antony also had a reckless side
37:17 Antony had a tremendous reputation for
37:20 very very wild living wild orgies
37:24 drinking parties all-night rebels sexual
37:27 activities with both men and women we
37:30 have a very violent attack against all
37:34 aspects of Antony's private life as well
37:37 as his public life by the great orator
37:39 and politician Cicero who calls Antony a
37:43 drink sodden sex ridden wreck one
37:47 particular incident where Antony had a
37:50 meeting political meeting in the morning
37:52 he was so hung over by the extraordinary
37:55 excesses of the night before that he
37:58 actually attended the meeting still
38:01 drunk still hungover and vomited up into
38:04 his toga in the middle of the meeting
38:07 Octavian would one day use Antony's
38:10 unruly behavior to his advantage the
38:13 teenager was ambitious and cunning he
38:16 realized he needed to form an alliance
38:18 with Mark Antony in order to seize total
38:21 power over the Empire Octavian plotted
38:26 his future he created Rome's second
38:29 triumvirate sharing the power with Mark
38:32 Antony and Marcus emelius Lepidus who
38:35 had been a provincial governor Lepidus
38:38 soon fell out of the three-way coalition
38:40 which left Octavian and Antony to divide
38:44 up the Empire Octavian took charge of
38:47 the provinces of the West which included
38:49 Spain Italy in Gaul
38:52 Mark Antony commanded the eastern
38:55 provinces of North Africa and Asia
38:58 following in Cesar's footsteps Antony
39:01 eventually formed an alliance with the
39:03 Egyptian queen Cleopatra the first great
39:08 meeting between Antony and Cleopatra is
39:12 the famous one that took place in what
39:14 is now the south coast of Turkey
39:17 Cleopatra obviously by now a much more
39:19 experienced woman not as when she first
39:22 met Caesar sailing up the river in a in
39:26 a great boat that was decorated with
39:28 gold and purple drapes she herself was
39:31 supposed to have been dressed as the
39:33 goddess Venus there were musicians there
39:36 were perfumes and that she sailed along
39:39 the river to meet Antony a great
39:41 spectacle her rowers caressed the water
39:46 with oars of silver which dipped in time
39:49 to the music of the flute Plutarch
39:54 Cleopatra was no longer grieving over
39:57 the loss of Julius Caesar the Egyptian
39:59 queen fell madly in love with the
40:02 ambitious Mark Antony with her
40:05 relationship with Julius Caesar
40:07 Cleopatra not only learnt about love but
40:10 also learned how to manipulate powerful
40:13 Roman generals she learned a catalogue
40:16 of exercises sexual and political which
40:19 enabled her to ensnare Mark Antony of
40:23 course these things go both ways the
40:25 important thing about Julius Caesar Mark
40:28 Antony and Cleopatra is that they all
40:30 knew precisely what they were doing if
40:32 they fell in love if they went to bed
40:34 together
40:35 they all did it knowingly this was a
40:38 relationship between powerful
40:40 individuals who all knew what the game
40:42 was well they liaison between Antony and
40:47 Cleopatra of course is one of the most
40:48 celebrated relationships in all of
40:52 history but what's more interesting is
40:54 that Antony left Egypt after that did
40:59 not see Cleopatra again for four years
41:01 obviously he wasn't planning a way for
41:04 her
41:04 franki got married during that time to
41:06 Octavian sister Octavia
41:09 Mark Antony had hoped that his marriage
41:12 to Octavia would assure loyalty from
41:15 Octavian but Antony eventually left his
41:18 wife and returned to Alexandria to seal
41:20 a political deal with Cleopatra the two
41:24 lovers plan to oust the young Octavian
41:27 and rule the Western world together
41:30 however their partnership provided
41:33 Octavian with the opportunity he had
41:35 been looking for Octavian spearheaded a
41:42 ruthless propaganda campaign he told the
41:45 Roman people that Cleopatra had cast a
41:47 spell over Antony that the two lovers
41:50 spent their time having lavish banquets
41:52 and orgies that Antony was willing to
41:55 give her half the Roman world
41:59 Octavian's smear campaign worked the
42:03 Roman citizens supported Octavian's
42:05 decision to declare war on Antony and
42:08 Cleopatra in the Battle of Actium in 31
42:11 BC Octavian's military defeated
42:14 Anthony's and Cleopatra ships on the
42:16 Mediterranean Sea
42:20 [Music]
42:23 the two lovers managed to escape the
42:25 naval battle unharmed and retreated to
42:28 Egypt
42:30 [Music]
42:38 Antony and Cleopatra knew Octavian's
42:41 meth would come after them in his final
42:44 act
42:45 Antony retired to his chambers drew his
42:47 sword and stabbed himself in the chest
42:50 his suicidal death was slow painful when
42:56 Cleopatra learned that Anthony had taken
42:58 his life she decided to end hers the
43:02 Egyptian queen wrapped the poisonous
43:04 snake around her arm and received a
43:07 lethal bite in a sense both Mark Antony
43:12 and Cleopatra commit suicide in order to
43:14 preserve their reputations it would have
43:17 been much worse for them if for example
43:19 they had appeared in Octavian's triumph
43:22 in Rome they both make the most decent
43:25 the most noble exit from the political
43:27 stage that they possibly can under the
43:29 circumstances with Antony and Cleopatra
43:33 dead
43:34 Octavian's henchmen murdered Caesars
43:36 only son Caesarion now no one stood in
43:41 Octavian's way the Roman Republic had
43:44 crumbled in its place Octavian helped
43:47 establish a new government the Imperial
43:50 Roman Empire
43:54 Octavian saw his dream come to fruition
43:56 he became Rome's first emperor and sole
44:00 ruler of the most powerful nation the
44:03 ancient world had ever known
44:08 [Music]
44:13 Octavian's ascension to the imperial
44:16 throne was a dramatic turning point he
44:18 was given a new title Augustus which
44:21 meant semi-divine to the Roman people
44:25 Augustus became the closest thing to God
44:28 on earth his power and prestige would
44:31 transform the Empire into a golden age a
44:34 time of endless possibilities when being
44:37 Roman meant everything for the History
44:42 Channel I'm Joe Mantegna
44:45 [Music]
44:50 [Music]
45:14 [Music]
45:41 [Music]
45:43 you
45:45 [Music]
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