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Julius Caesar Facts

Julius Caesar Facts
Julius Caesar was born in July, 100 BC in Rome. His parents were Gaius Julius Caesar and Aurelia Cotta. Julius' full name was also Gaius Julius Caesar, like his father. Little is known about Julius' childhood, but it is known that he became head of the family in 85 BC when his father died. Julius became a military general, successfully conquering Gaul (France), and he also invaded Britain twice. Following political turmoil and battles, Julius Caesar gained control over Rome, and became a powerful political dictator. In addition to his military successes, Julius Caesar was known as a prolific writer and a brilliant speaker.
Interesting Julius Caesar Facts:
It is believed that Julius Caesar was born about three days before the Ides of July, in 100 BC.
Julius Caesar's ancestry could be traced to the first king of Rome.
When Julius was young he was kidnapped by pirates on the way to study oratory. They wanted 50 talents (money at the time) ransom. He made friends with the pirates and he was later freed when Caesar's uncle paid the money. Once he was freed he had the pirates executed.
Julius Caesar introduced the Julian calendar.
Julius' face was depicted on Roman coins.
The famous play The Tragedy of Julius Caesar was written by William Shakespeare. It was written mainly about Julius Caesar's assassination and the events that followed.
Julius Caesar married Cornelia, then Pompeia, and finally Calpurnia.
It was rumored that Julius Caesar had girlfriends while was married, including Cleopatra, and Servilia Caepionis.
Some believe that Brutus was Julius Caesar's son because of his relationship with Servilia Caepionis.
Julius' involvement with Cleopatra could not result in marriage because he was Roman and she was Egyptian. Roman law would only allow Roman citizens to marry other Roman citizens.
Although Julius Caesar was the Roman dictator, he never had a crown.
Julius Caesar was assassinated in 44 BC by conspirators who believed he was going to try to become king.
Cesarean sections (also called a C-section) was an option for child birth in Julius Caesar's time, he was not born this way. Some believe that the name for this type of delivery originated with one of Julius Caesar's ancestors.
At one time before becoming involved in the military, Julius Caesar was planning on becoming a priest.
Some believe that Julius Caesar had malaria and possibly tapeworms. It is also strongly believed that he had epilepsy.
There are no living ancestors of Julius Caesar today, even though he married three times and had many girlfriends. All of the children that were born to Julius Caesar's wives or girlfriends died either as infants or before they could have children of their own. Even Marcus Brutus, the possible son he had with Servilia, died before producing any children.
When Julius Caesar was assassinated in 44 BC, Mark Antony (Caesar's loyal supporter) and Augustus Caesar (Julius' heir) fought many civil wars. Augustus Caesar became the first emperor of Rome.
The king of diamonds in a traditional deck of playing cards represents Julius Caesar.


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