The Ides: Caesar's Murder and the War for Rome

by Stephen Dando-Collins

Unraveling the many mysteries surrounding the murder of Julius CaesarThe assassination of Julius Caesar is one of the most notorious murders in history. Two thousand years after it occurred, many compelling questions remain about his death: Was Brutus the hero and Caesar the villain? Did Caesar bring death on himself by planning to make himself king of Rome? Was Mark Antony aware of the plot, and let it go forward? Who wrote Antony's script after Caesar's death? Using historical evidence to sort out these and other puzzling issues, historian and award-winning author Stephen Dando-Collins takes you to the world of ancient Rome and recaptures the drama of Caesar's demise and the chaotic aftermath as the vicious struggle for power between Antony and Octavian unfolded. For the first time, he shows how the religious festivals and customs of the day impacted on the way the assassination plot unfolded. He shows, too, how the murder was almost avoided at the last moment.

A compelling history that is packed with intrigue and written with the pacing of a first-rate mystery, The Ides will challenge what you think you know about Julius Caesar and the Roman Empire.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Ancient History, Politics, Historical, Roman History, Audiobook

288 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2010

About the author

Stephen Dando-Collins is the multi-award-winning author of 48 books. British reviewer, noted playwright Robin Hawdon, says that Dando-Collins is "the modern age's foremost dramatizer of Greek and Roman history," while American reviewer bestselling military author Lt. Colonel Dave Grossman has described Dando-Collins as "a literary giant." Considered an authority on the legions of ancient Rome, Dando-Collins has written ancient and modern history, children's novels, scientific nonfiction, and biographies. The bulk of his works deal with military history, ranging from Greek, Persian and Roman times to American, British and Australian 19th century history and World I and Word War II.
Many of his books have been translated into foreign languages including Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Polish, Dutch, Russian, Albanian and Korean.
His most acclaimed book on the ancient military, 'LEGIONS OF ROME,' was the culmination of decades of research into Rome's imperial legions.
Dando-Collins aims to travel roads that others have not, unearthing new facts and opening new perspectives on often forgotten or overlooked people and aspects of history.
He has two new books in 2024: 'CAESAR VERSUS POMPEY: Determining Rome's Greatest General, Statesman & Nation-Builder,' (Turner, US), and 'THE BUNA SHOTS: The Amazing Story Behind Two Photographs that Changed the Course of World War Two,' (Australian Scholarly Publishing).

Reviews

[Bill Kerwin · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like short history books that concentrate on specific battles, years, natural disasters, political campaigns, etc., because their clear narrative focus often helps evoke an era or a personality better than a 700 page history or biography--weighed down by its precisely documented minutiae--ever could. Collins "Ides"--on Caesar's assassination and the events surrounding it--is a good example of the form.

Collins is not a scholar, but an historical novelist There may be a few "stretchers" here, but--if Collins may believed--here are some interesting things I learned:

1) At the time of his assassination, Caesar had appointed practically all important government officials and all the senators, and the senate he had packed with his supporters had already declared him to be a god and decreed him dictator for life. He was virtually a king already, and if he hadn't insisted on the name itself, conducting himself with overweening pride, he might have lived to become the first Roman emperor. Why did he insist? No one knows, but some historians speculate that he may have had an extended manic episode verging on megalomania.

2) Casca took the first stab at Caesar, but Caesar caught his wrist and held it before Casca could pierce his flesh. Later, Casca turned traitor on his fellow assassins, and argued he was not responsible for the murder because he of all the conspirators was not technically guilty of having stabbed the dictator. Which--for what it's worth--is true.

3) The real Antony--unlike Shakespeare's Antony--was not a good public speaker, and never made a big fancy speech to the crowd. Instead, he had an official read aloud the oath that all of the senators--including of course Brutus and Cassius and the rest of the conspirators--had taken to support Caesar, to protect him from harm, and to fight against anyone who attacked him. Then Anthony himself waved Caesar's bloody toga at the crowd, and spoke briefly, saying that he--for one--was determined to keep that oath.

4) What was probably Antony's most important speech was not the one he made to the crowd but to the senate. Some of the senators who were sympathetic to the "Liberators" (Caesar's assassins)introduced a motion proposing that Caesar be declared a tyrant. Anthony remarked that anyone who voted for the resolution should consider one thing: if Caesar were deemed a tyrant, all his appointments would as a consequence be illegal and therefore null and void. Since almost all the senators--and their friends and relatives--owed their positions to Caesar, they quickly dropped their support for the resolution.

This book gives a day-by-day account of many of these events, and one of the enjoyable things about it is Dandon-Cook's detailed descriptions of the various feasts, such as Lupercal, that were celebrated during the time. His descriptions helped me understand more precisely than before the ritual pleasures of being a Roman.

[Erik Graff · Rating 3 out of 5]

Picked this up at the Evanston Library booksale room.

Dando-Collins appears to have primarily worked as a Roman military historian. This, however, is a chronology centred on the assassination of Julius Caesar, running from 1/26/44 through 10/21/42 BCE. Though the classical sources for these events are many, accounts vary, requiring judicious handling by the historian. In so sifting, the author corrects common errors while describing what he takes to be the most plausible sequence of events.

Clearly written, I wish I'd read this before watching the abortive 'Rome' miniseries.

[max theodore · Rating 4 out of 5]

this was EXACTLY what i wanted it to be, hell yes. packed with interesting information & play-by-plays of major events leading up to, during, & after caesar's assassination; i also really appreciated the short chapters & the inclusion of direct quotes (well, as direct as we have), which made the whole thing feel much more narrative-based than purely history-based, and thus easier for me personally to read! there WAS a weird line in the last, like, three pages that seemed to lightly imply caesar's potential mental illness partially justifies the ides, which, like. dude what. but otherwise this fucked

[Mayar Mahdy · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5/5

This book was great. It was so entertaining but also quite informative. It's my third time trying to read about Roman history and by far the best book I picked up.

I feel oddly validated that Caeser's actual name is pronounced exactly as we say it in Arabic. I always get so confused when I switch languages while reading history because of names so this time I was very happy about the names being transcribed.


My only problem is that the book said it would not paint Caeser as a martyr but it sort of did. I was so sympathetic towards him and I felt like the assassins didn't get their motives explained sufficiently so the reader didn't feel for them.

All in all, this book is so good and the style is simple and smooth.

[Alex · Rating 2 out of 5]

Easy to read, even if it does not present anything new. Would get a higher rating, but the author can't help calling Cleopatra a slut and excuse slavery. Also, he does not think powerful women existed, so it's a clasical, male centric wiev of history. Why not read something by Mary Beard instead?

[cameron b · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Jim Mann · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dando-Collins does a fine job of telling the story of Caesar's assassination, from the events leading up to it through the Civil War that follows. It's based on the ancient sources, with some speculation -- though he's usually pretty good at saying what's speculation -- and presents what's often a day to day build up of what happened.

The assassination is a pivotal moment in history, and it's also a picture of what can go wrong. The Liberators, as they came to be called, don't seem to have thought through what would happend next, believing that somehow the Republic would just return. And they continue to make mistakes -- not also taking out Antony, allowing Antony to speak publicly and gain influence and power -- as did both their friends and enemies. But in the end, this is the culmination of the downward spiral of the Republic, leading to the rise of Octavian, the first Emperor (know usually to history as simply Augustus),

[Bernice · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a really good book and gave a different perspective on Gaius Julius Caesar and the civil wars in Rome. I like how it took into account his negatives as well as the positives. Most texts and other sources usually portray him usually in the positive light only. It also took into account his opponents such as Pompey the Great, and Brutus. I like how it told of Brutus' side of the story, and also mentioned Portia, Brutus' wife, whereas most text fall silent in that direction. It also mentions a lot about Cicero who was a key player within this incident. It was overall a good read, especially for mid-March.

[Kate McLaughlin · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed how events were presented as a detailed narrative, and I particularly enjoyed the added context of the holidays and festivals that might have influenced these famous events. However, I found a lot of the information presented without the additional context required for non-fiction. The author claims in his introduction to have 'invented nothing', and then goes on to invent quite a bit. That jarred me a little. But still, an enjoyable read, and if you are not already overly familiar with this period, you won't notice what's missing.

[Ariel · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is an excellent overview of the both the downfall of Caesar and the aftermath following. I really enjoyed the unbiased stance that the author took towards Julius, Octavian, Antony, and the liberators of Rome. He really tried to capture the moving political realities and ideals at work. I also personally enjoyed that the author did not blame Cleopatra for the murder and instead put Caesar's death squarely on the actions of Caesar.

[Thomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the seventh Dando-Collins book on Rome and it is just as solid as his other six. Good bibliography with lots of notes, in this book he uses the works of Seutonius, Plutarch,Appian, and Dio to put together an intense time line, even though you know what is going to happen, you need to turn the page. All seven are worth the time, check them out.

[Jamie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really didn’t know that much about Caesar and found this narrative interesting.

[Jeremy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well paced, nice and thorough without getting bogged down.

[Raymond Ozuna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Vive la Republique!

[Angela Hopkins · Rating 4 out of 5]

Definitely an interesting book. I learned more about Caesar’s killers and about the aftermath of his death than I had known before. Would recommend for sure.

[Ryk Stanton · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed this very much and feel that I learned things I can use when I next teach Shakespeare’s play.

[Cameron · Rating 4 out of 5]

After the series ended, I got really into HBO's Rome. Like, really into it. I watched a couple of seasons on OnDemand in somewhere around a week's time. I watched the final season through Netflix discs, waiting by my mailbox like a fiend. Not only have I always been intrigued by the history of the era, but the characters of all the major players of the era were so perfectly depicted that I was hooked. Of course I knew there had to be some artistic liberties taken, but I was cool with that.

Reading The Ides felt like I was reading not just the source material, but the script itself for the television series. I was consistently impressed with the little intricacies of each of the historical figures and how it matched my image of them created from the series Rome. And, little events that I had assumed were created with artistic license were actual events that actually happened.

The book was very grounded, outlining all of the important details leading up to Caesar's murder, his actual assassination, and the fallout from it. It is very chronological and sticks to the point without inserting opinion or external details to the story. Very interesting and very entertaining.

The one fault I found with the book was in, of all things, the author's foreword. Technically, that shouldn't count in a review like this. It is almost like a pre-season football game. Still, in the foreword, the author talks about how terrible every other book about Rome that has ever been written is. Except his, which is good. He mentions that history has so corrupted the ACTUAL story of Caesar that we don't even use his real name. It is pretty trite and condescending and almost made me want to stop the book right there. But, I realized that if someone devoted 30 years of their life to the study of just one subject as this author did, they are allowed a free pass to be kind of a dick to everyone else. So, I am glad I didn't stop.

[Jen · Rating 4 out of 5]

First off, this was an audio book--READ BY BRONSON PINCHOT.

Freakin' Balki was reading me Roman history. Best. Audio. Book. Ever.

Okay, it wasn't that, but it was pretty good. Dando-Collins, hereafter Dando, goes through the months leading up to Caesar's assassination through the eventual killing of the lead conspirator, Brutus.

The detail was impressive. And although detailed, it also wasn't boring--which can always happen when something is just knee deep in facts. Dando used letters and records to fill in blanks, and related the events to the public holidays common in Roman life. Honestly, that was pretty interesting on its own.

The lead up to the assassination was especially interesting as, as much as we tend to see Caesar as a hero, the "liberators" kind of had a point. Caesar did want to be sole ruler of Rome, probably intended to be named king, and for all intents and purposes already was (he was named "Dictator for Life" weeks prior to be killed). It's ironic that the resulting civil wars set up the eventual creation of a Roman monarchy led by the emperor and his successors.

Dando also compared/contrasted his main chroniclers of the age, pointing out deficiencies as well as "well that doesn't fit the evidence." He's careful to tell you where he got information (which is nice since audio books don't have footnotes or citations).

Definitely worth the read and I know way way more about Caesar than I did before.

[Tony Laplume · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fascinating to a point, as Dando-Collins attempts to reconstruct the sequence of events surrounding the assassination based on the historical record. Except his personal bias keeps getting in the way. He makes his allegiances explicit right off the bat, and then implicit throughout the remainder of the book. The thing is, it's very clear throughout that what Rome suffered from most was self-serving politicians who said one thing but did whatever was in their best interests. But the worst thing about the book is that there's so little effort at contextualizing, other than giving the reader tidbits about festivals and such, that if you only knew Julius Caesar from this, you'd probably agree right along the writer that he deserved to die.

If that's the sort of thing you like reading, then this is exactly your kind of book. Me, I was hoping for better.

[Colin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another in a series of books by Dando-Collins about the Romans - the initial books were the histories of specific Roman legions, then one about the murder of Germanicus and the consequences for the Roman empire, and now "The Ides" about - of course - the assassination of Julius Caesar on the Ides of March, 44 B.C.E. This book seemed far inferior to others in the series, at least to me - but then, the others all offered material I had never before seen, or new conjectures about old problems ("Blood of the Caesars" makes a fairly plausible and compelling case for the identity of Germanicus' murderer). "The Ides," however, told me nothing I did not already know. Still, well-written on an excellent topic . . .

[Christan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Closer to 3 1/2 stars than 4 stars. Interesting read for the lover of superficial historical overviews. I generally prefer a meatier read - this clocks in at about 230 pages. Regardless, not a bad, fairly accurate account of one of my favorite historical figures.

Two points (no pun intended) - 23 stab wounds were inflicted on Caesar and only one of them was fatal. Second, it was never determined (in the classical sources) whether Brutus actually stabbed the man who could very well have been his own father.

Food for thought.

[Brian]

I thought I was in the mood for this, but having just finished Shakespeare's Julius Caesar and an excerpt of Plutarch's Life of Caesar with my 10th grade class, I find of Caesar'ed out. I didn't think it possible since I love this time period. Dando-Collins does a wonderful job though bringing things to life more than either Shakespeare of Plutarch. I'll pick it up later. Stopped on Chapter 3 (page 28ish).

[James · Rating 3 out of 5]

A much more detailed story of the death of Julius Caesar that I did find very fascinating. What actually I liked the best was how Mark Anthony worked the system to finally go after Caesar's killers with the backing of Rome. This took a significant amount of effort and political cunning that I just didn't realized Anthony had. Dando-Collins is a good author and I have purchased many more of his books to read in the future.

[Sophia Whisnant · Rating 4 out of 5]

I didn't take any classes about Roman history prior to the spread of Christianity in college despite my classics minors, so I've taken it upon myself to start filling in the huge gap in my knowledge. This book was very helpful in filling in part of that gap. Dando-Collins isn't a historian, it's important to remember that, but I think he does a very impressive job researching and then putting together a narrative that interesting and easy to follow.

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was a great short history of Caesar's assassination and the aftermath. It tells how the Republic finally came apart. It doesn't really talk about how Caesar got into power, or the war between Antony and Octavian. I really liked that it was succinct and easy to follow.

[Scott Van · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very informative, but a bit slow

[Daniel · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to love this book as it covers one of the most fascinating periods in Roman history. I credit the writer for his solid research, but the style leaves much to be desired.

[Richard · Rating 3 out of 5]

His research and interpretation of the assassination helped me put the transition between republic and empire in a logical progression.

[Dale · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you enjoyed the HBO series Rome, this will clarify the details. Interesting details of the political wrangling after his death.

[Louise · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very interesting. Learned much I did not know before. More than Shakespeare.