Caesar Falls: Senators End the Roman Republic
The conspirators cornered Julius Caesar in the portico of Pompey's Theatre on March 15, 44 BC, with Tillius Cimber presenting a petition as the signal to attack. Servilius Casca struck first, stabbing Caesar in the neck, but the wound was not fatal. Caesar grabbed Casca's arm and stabbed him with his stylus, shouting 'Casca, you villain, what are you doing?' The other conspirators rushed in. Caesar fought back initially but collapsed at the base of Pompey's statue after receiving twenty-three stab wounds. He reportedly pulled his toga over his face as he fell. The ancient historian Suetonius recorded that a physician found only one wound, between the ribs, to be mortal. Massive blood loss killed him. The Senate fled in panic. Brutus attempted to address the crowd but found the Forum empty. Caesar's body lay where it fell for three hours before his slaves carried it home on a litter. Mark Antony's funeral oration three days later turned the Roman mob against the conspirators and launched the civil wars that ended the Republic.
March 15, 44
1982 years ago
Key Figures & Places
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