Marcus Junius Brutus Iunior

Marcus Junius Brutus (85?-42 BC), Roman political leader, son-in-law of the Roman philosopher Marcus Porcius Cato the Younger, born in Rome, and educated in law. During the civil war between Pompey the Great and Julius Caesar, Brutus supported Pompey. After Caesar's victory at Pharsalus in 48 BC, Brutus was pardoned and taken into Caesar's favor. He became governor of Cisalpine Gaul in 46 BC and praetor of Rome two years later. During the spring of 44 BC, however, he joined the Roman general Gaius Cassius Longinus in a conspiracy against Caesar. Together they were the principal assassins of Caesar. Brutus then fled to Macedonia, raised an army among the Greeks, and joined Cassius in Asia Minor to fight for the Roman Republic. At the First Battle of Philippi (42), he was successful, but Cassius was defeated. Twenty days later his army was defeated by troops led by Mark Antony and Caesar's heir, Octavian, who later became emperor. Brutus committed suicide.

Marcus Junius Brutus born 85 BC died 42, near Philippi, Macedonia [now in Greece] also called Quintus Caepio Brutus a leader of the conspirators who assassinated the Roman dictator Julius Caesar in March 44 BC. The son of Marcus Junius Brutus (d. 77), he acquired the alternative name Quintus Caepio through adoption by his uncle, Quintus Servilius Caepio.

Brutus joined Pompey's army on the outbreak of the Civil War between Pompey and Caesar in 49. He was pardoned by Caesar after Pompey's death the next year, and Caesar appointed him governor of Cisalpine Gaul in 46 and city praetor in 44. Nevertheless, Brutus resented Caesar's autocratic rule and longed for the restoration of republican government. Hence he joined Gaius Cassius Longinus' plot to murder Caesar. Brutus' prestige attracted several dozen other senators to the cause.

Five months after the assassination, Brutus and Cassius were forced by the Caesarian commander Mark Antony to leave Rome for Macedonia, where they raised an army against him. In February 43 the Senate granted them supreme command in the East. Brutus defeated the Caesarians under Octavian (later the emperor Augustus) in the first engagement of the Battle of Philippi, but his army was crushed by Antony and Octavian in a second encounter three weeks later (Oct. 23, 42). Recognizing that the republican cause was lost, he committed suicide.

Although Brutus was admired by his contemporaries for his dignity and idealism, he was extortionate and cruel in his financial dealings with provincials. William Shakespeare's portrayal of Brutus in the play Julius Caesar is flattering. A Stoic, Brutus wrote a number of philosophical treatises and other literary works, none of which has survived. Only two of the nine books of his correspondence with the famed orator Cicero are extant. [Encyclop%C3%A6dia Britannica, online <http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9016814>]

Marcus Junius Brutus

born 85 BC

died 42, near Philippi, Macedonia [now in Greece]

also called Quintus Caepio Brutus a leader of the conspirators who assassinated the Roman dictator Julius Caesar in March 44 BC. The son of Marcus Junius Brutus (d. 77), he acquired the alternative name Quintus Caepio through adoption by his uncle, Quintus Servilius Caepio.

Brutus joined Pompey's army on the outbreak of the Civil War between Pompey and Caesar in 49. He was pardoned by Caesar after Pompey's death the next year, and Caesar appointed him governor of Cisalpine Gaul in 46 and city praetor in 44. Nevertheless, Brutus resented Caesar's autocratic rule and longed for the restoration of republican government. Hence he joined Gaius Cassius Longinus' plot to murder Caesar. Brutus' prestige attracted several dozen other senators to the cause.

Five months after the assassination, Brutus and Cassius were forced by the Caesarian commander Mark Antony to leave Rome for Macedonia, where they raised an army against him. In February 43 the Senate granted them supreme command in the East. Brutus defeated the Caesarians under Octavian (later the emperor Augustus) in the first engagement of the Battle of Philippi, but his army was crushed by Antony and Octavian in a second encounter three weeks later (Oct. 23, 42). Recognizing that the republican cause was lost, he committed suicide.

Although Brutus was admired by his contemporaries for his dignity and idealism, he was extortionate and cruel in his financial dealings with provincials. William Shakespeare's portrayal of Brutus in the play Julius Caesar is flattering. A Stoic, Brutus wrote a number of philosophical treatises and other literary works, none of which has survived. Only two of the nine books of his correspondence with the famed orator Cicero are extant. [Encyclop%C3%A6dia Britannica, online <http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9016814>]

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M. junius brutus, the son of No. 20, by Servilia, was born in the autumn of b. c. 85. He was subsequently adopted by his uncle Q. Servilius Caepio, which must have happened before b. c, 59, and hence he is sometimes called Caepio or Q. Caepio Brutus, especially in public documents, on coins, and inscriptions.

He lost his father at the early age of eight years, but his mother, Servilia, assisted by her two brothers, continued to conduct his education with the utmost care, and he acquired an extraordinary love for learning, which he never lost in after-life. M. Porcius Cato became his great political model, though in his moral conduct he did not follow his example. In 59, when J. Caesar was consul and had to silence some young and vehement republi cans, L. Vettius on the instigation of the tribune, P. Vatinius, denounced Brutus as an accomplice in a conspiracy against Pompey"'s life; but as it was well known that Brutus was perfectly in nocent, Caesar put a stop to the prosecution. When it was thought necessary in 58 to remove from Rome some of the leading republicans, Cato was sent to Cyprus, and Brutus accompanied him. After his return to Rome, Brutus seems for some years to have taken no part in public proceedings, and not to have attached himself to any party. In 53 he followed Appius Claudius, whose daughter Claudia he had married, to Cilicia, where he did not indeed, like his father-in-law, plunder the pro­vincials, but could not resist the temptation to lend out money at an exorbitant rate of interest. He probably did not return to Rome till 51. During his absence Cicero had defended Milo, and Brutus also now wrote a speech, in which he en deavoured to show that Milo not only deserved no punishment, but ought to be rewarded for having murdered Clodius. This circumstance, together with Cicero's becoming the successor of Appius Claudius in Cilieia, brought about a sort of con nexion between Cicero and Brutus, though each disliked the sentiments of the other. Cicero, when in Cilicia, took care that the money which Brutus had lent was renaid him, but at the same time endeavoured to prevent his transgressing the laws of usury, at wnich Brutus, who did not re ceive as high a percentage as he had expected, appears to have been greatly oifended. In 50 Brutus defended Appius Claudius, against whom two serious charges were brought, and succeeded in getting him acquitted.

When the civil war broke out in 49 between Caesar and Pompey, it was believed that Brutus would join the party of Caesar; but Brutus, who saw in Pompey the champion of the aristocracy, suppressed his personal feelings towards the murderer of his father, and followed the example of Cato, who de clared for Pompey. Brutus, however, did not accompany Cato, but went with P. Sextius to Cilicia, probably to arrange matters with his debtors in Asia, and to make preparations for the war. In 48, he distinguished himself in the en­gagements in the neighbourhood of Dyrrhachium, and Pompey treated him with great distinction. In the battle of Pharsalia, Caesar gave orders 'iT-to kill Brutus, probably for the sake of Sery^"' who implored Caesar to spare him. (Plut. Brut, o.j After the battle, Brutus escaped to Larissa, but did not follow Pompey any further. Here he wrote a letter to Caesar soliciting his pardon, which was generously granted by the conqueror, who even invited Brutus to come to him. Brutus obeyed, and, if we may believe Plutarch (Brut. 6), he in formed Caesar of Pompey's flight to Egypt. As Caesar did not require Brutus to fight against his former friends, he withdrew from the war, and spent his time either in Greece or at Rome in his favourite literary pursuits. He did not join Cae­sar again till the autumn of 47 at Nicaea in Bithy-nia, on which occasion he endeavoured to interfere with the conqueroron behalf of a friend of kingDeio-tarus, but Caesar refused to comply with the request. In the year following Brutus was made governor of Cisalpine Gaul, though he had been neither praetor nor consul ; and he continued to serve the dictator Caesar, although the latter was making war against Brutus's own relatives in Africa. The provincials in Cisalpine Gaul were delighted with the mild treatment and justice of Brutus, whom they honoured with public monuments : Caesar too afterwards testified his satisfaction with his administration. As his province was far from the scene of war, Brutus as usual devoted his time to study. At this time, Cicero made him one of the speakers in the treatise which bears the name of Brutus, and in 46 he dedicated to him his Orator. In 45, Brutus was succeeded in his pro­vince by C. Vibius Pansa, but did not go to Rome immediately. Before his return, he published his eulogy on Cato, in which Cicero found sentiments that hurt his vanity, as his suppression of the con spiracy of Catiline was not spoken of in the terms he would have liked. Accordingly, upon the ar rival of Brutus at one of his country-seats near Rome, a certain degree of coldness and want of confidence existed between the two, although they wrote letters to each other, and Cicero, on the ad vice of Atticus, even dedicated to him his work De Finibus. About this time, Brutus divorced Claudia, apparently for no other reason than that he wished to marry Portia, the daughter of Cato. After the close of Caesar's war in Spain, Brutus went from Rome to meet him, and, in the begin ning of August, returned to the city with him.

In 44 Brutus was praetor urbanus,and C. Cassius, who had been disappointed in his hope of obtain ing the praetorship, was as much enraged against Brutus as against the dictator. Caesar promised Brutus the province of Macedonia, and also held out to him hopes of the consulship. Up to this time Brutus had borne Caesar's dictatorship with out expressing the least displeasure; he had served, the dictator and paid homage to him, nor had he thought it contrary to his republican principles to. accept favours and offices from him. His change of mind which took place at this time was not the result of his reflections or principles, but of the influence which Cassius exercised over him. He was persuaded by Cassius to join the conspirators who. murdered Caesar on the 15th of March, 44. After the deed was perpetrated he went to the forum to address the people, but found no favour. The senate, indeed, pardoned the murderers, but this was only a farce played by M. Antony to ob-"oin their sanction of the Julian laws. The mur-'erers then assembled the people on the capitol, ctiid Brutus in his speech promised that they should receive all that Caesar had destined for them. All parties were apparently reconciled. But the arrangements which Antony made for the funeral of Caesar, and in consequence of which the people made an assault upon the houses of the conspira tors, shewed them clearly the intentions of Antony. Brutus withdrew into the country, and during his stay there he gave, in the month of July, most splendid Ludi Apollinares, hoping thereby to turn the disposition of the people in his favour. But in this he was disappointed, and as Antony as sumed a threatening position, he sailed in Sep tember to Athens with the intention of taking possession of the province of Macedonia, which Caesar had assigned him, and of repelling force by force. After staying at Athens a short time in the company of philosophers and several young Romans who attached themselves to his cause, and after receiving a very large sum of money from the quaestor M. Appuleius, who brought it from Asia, Brutus intended to proceed to Macedonia. But the senate had now assigned this province to Antony, who, however, towards the end of the year, transferred it to his brother, the praetor C. Antonius. Before, however, the latter arrived, Brutus, who had been joined by the scattered troops of Pompey, marched into Macedonia, where he was received by Q. Hortensius, the son of the orator, as his legitimate successor. Brutus found an abundance of arms, and the troops stationed in Illyricum, as well as several other legions, joined him. C. Antonius, who also arrived in the mean time, was unable to advance beyond the coast of Illyricum, and at the beginning of 43 was besieged in Apollonia and compelled to surrender. Brutus disregarded all the decrees of the senate, and re solved to act for himself. While Octavianus in the month 'of August 43 obtained the condemnation of Caesar's murderers, Brutus was engaged in a war against some Thracian tribes to procure money for himself and booty for his soldiers. About this time he assumed the title imperator, which, to gether with his portrait, appear on many of his coins. The things which were going on mean time in Italy seemed to affect neither Brutus nor Cassius, but after the triumvirate was establish ed, Brutus began to prepare for war. Instead, however, of endeavouring to prevent the enemy from landing on the coast of the Ionian sea, Brutus and Cassius separated their forces and ravaged Rhodes and Lycia. Loaded with booty, Brutus and Cassius met again at Sardis in the beginning of 42, but it was only the fear of the triumvirs that prevented them from falling out with each other. Their carelessness was indeed so great, that only a small fleet was sent to the Ionian sea under the command of Statius Murcus. Before leaving Asia, Brutus had a dream which foreboded his ruin at Philippi, and in the autumn of 42 the battle of Philippi was fought. In the first engage­ment Brutus conquered the army of Octavianus, while Cassius was defeated by Antony. But in a second battle, about twenty days later, Brutus was defeated and fell upon his own sword.

From his first visit to Asia, Brutus appears as a man of considerable wealth, and he afterwards increased it by lending money upon interest. He possessed an extraordinary memory and a still more extraordinary imagination, which led him into superstitions differing only from those of the multi tude by a strange admixture of philosophy. He was deficient in knowledge of mankind and the world, whence he was never able to foresee the course of things, and was ever surprised at the results. Hence also his want of independent judgment. The quan tity of his varied knowledge, which he had acquired by extensive reading and his intercourse with philo­sophers, was beyond his control, and was rather an encumberance to him than anything else. Nothing had such charms for him as study, which he prose cuted by day and night,, at home and abroad. He made abridgements of the historical works of C. Fan-niusandCaelius Antipater, and on the eve of the bat tle of Pharsalus he is said to have been engaged in making an abridgement of Polybius. He also wrote several philosophical treatises, among which we have mention of those On Duties, On Patience, and On Virtue. The best of his literary productions, how ever, appear to have been his orations, though they are censured as having been too dry and serious, and deficient in animation. Nothing would enable us so much to form a clear notion of liia character as his letters, but we unfortunately pos­sess only a few (among those of Cicero), the authenticity of which is acknowledged, and a few passages of others quoted by Plutarch. (Brut. 2, 22, Cic. 45.) Even in the time of Plutarch (Brut. 53) there seem to have existed forged letters of Brutus; and the two books of " Epistolae ad Bru-tum," usually printed among the works of Cicero, are unquestionably the fabrications of a later time. The name of Brutus, his fatal deed, his fortunes and personal character, offered great temptations for the forgery of such documents ; but these let ters contain gross blunders in history and chrono­logy, to which attention was first drawn by Erasmus of Rotterdam. (Eirist. i. 1.) Brutus is also said to have attempted to write poetry, which does not seem to have possessed much merit. (Cicero, in the passages collected in Orelli's Onomast. Tull. ii. pp. 319—324 ; Plut. Life of Brutus; Appian, B. C. ii. 11—iv. 132 ; Dion Cass. lib. xli.—xlviii. Re specting his oratory and the extant fragments of it, see Meyer, Oral. Rom. Fragm. p. 443, &c.? 2nd edit. ; comp. Weichert, Poet. Lat. Reliq. p. 125 ; Drumann, Gesch. Roms^ iv. pp. ] 8—44.) [Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology I:512-513]

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Marcus Junius Brutus the Younger From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 (Redirected from Marcus Junius Brutus) Marcus Junius Brutus Iunior (early June 85 BC – late October 42 BC), often referred to simply as Brutus, was a politician of the late Roman Republic. He is best known in modern times for taking a leading role in the assassination conspiracy against Julius Caesar.[1] Early life Marcus Junius Brutus was the son of Marcus Junius Brutus the Elder and Servilia Caepionis. His father was killed by Pompey the Great in dubious circumstances after he had taken part in the rebellion of Lepidus; his mother was the half-sister of Cato the Younger, and later became Julius Caesar's mistress.[2] Some sources refer to the possibility of Caesar being his real father.[3] Brutus' uncle, Quintus Servilius Caepio, adopted him in about 59 BC, and Brutus was known officially for a time as Quintus Servilius Caepio Brutus before he reverted to using his birth-name. However, following Caesar's assassination in 44 BC, Brutus revived his adoptive name in order to illustrate his links to another famous tyrannicide, Gaius Servilius Ahala, from whom he was descended.[4][5]

Brutus held his uncle in high regard[6] and his political career started when he became an assistant to Cato, during his governorship of Cyprus.[7] During this time, he enriched himself by lending money at high rates of interest. He returned to Rome a rich man, where he married Claudia Pulchra.[8] From his first appearance in the Senate, Brutus aligned with the Optimates (the conservative faction) against the First Triumvirate of Marcus Licinius Crassus, Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus and Gaius Julius Caesar.

[edit] Senate career When civil war broke out in 49 BC between Pompey and Caesar, Brutus followed his old enemy and present leader of the Optimates, Pompey. When the Battle of Pharsalus began, Caesar ordered his officers to take him prisoner if he gave himself up voluntarily, and if he persisted in fighting against capture, to let him alone and do him no violence.[9] After the disaster of the battle of Pharsalus, Brutus wrote to Caesar with apologies and Caesar immediately forgave him. In his letter Brutus declared he was a strong supporter of democracy and continually pushed it throughout the letter.[citation needed] Caesar accepted him into his inner circle and made him governor of Gaul when he left for Africa in pursuit of Cato and Metellus Scipio. In 45 BC, Caesar nominated Brutus to serve as urban praetor for the following year.

Also, in June 45 BC, Brutus divorced his wife and married his first cousin, Porcia Catonis, Cato's daughter.[10][11] According to Cicero the marriage caused a semi-scandal as Brutus failed to state a valid reason for his divorce from Claudia other than he wished to marry Porcia.[12] The marriage also caused a rift between Brutus and his mother, who resented the affection Brutus had for Porcia.[13] [edit] Conspiracy to kill Caesar Main article: Assassination of Julius Caesar Around this time, many senators began to fear Caesar's growing power following his appointment as dictator for life.[14] Brutus was persuaded into joining the conspiracy against Caesar by the other senators.[15] (In William Shakespeare's play Julius Caesar, he also discovers messages written on the busts of his ancestors, which have been forged by Cassius to make Brutus feel as if he were doing the right thing for Rome. This, however, may just be dramatic license on the part of Shakespeare. There is no real evidence that Cassius ever planted phony notes.)

Eventually, Brutus decided to move against Caesar after Caesar's king-like behavior prompted him to take action.[16][17] His wife was the only woman privy to the plot.[18][19]

The conspirators planned to carry out their plot on the Ides of March (March 15) that same year. On that day, Caesar was delayed going to the Senate because his wife, Calpurnia Pisonis, tried to convince him not to go.[20] The conspirators feared the plot had been found out.[21] Brutus persisted, however, waiting for Caesar at the Senate, and allegedly still chose to remain even when a messenger brought him news that would otherwise have caused him to leave.[22] When Caesar finally did come to the Senate, they attacked him. Publius Servilius Casca was allegedly the first to attack Caesar with a blow to the shoulder, which Caesar blocked.[23] However, upon seeing Brutus was with the conspirators, he covered his face with his toga and resigned himself to his fate.[24] The conspirators attacked in such numbers that they even wounded one another. Brutus is said to have been wounded in the hand.[25][26] [edit] After Caesar's assassination After the assassination, the Senate passed an amnesty on the assassins. This amnesty was proposed by Caesar's friend and co-consul Marcus Antonius. Nonetheless, uproar among the population caused Brutus and the conspirators to leave Rome. Brutus settled in Crete from 44 to 42 BC.[citation needed]

In 43 BC, after Octavian received his consulship from the Roman Senate, one of his first actions was to have the people that had assassinated Julius Caesar declared murderers and enemies of the state.[27] Marcus Tullius Cicero, angry at Octavian, wrote a letter to Brutus explaining that the forces of Octavian and Marcus Antonius were divided. Antonius had laid siege to the province of Gaul, where he wanted a governorship. In response to this siege, Octavian rallied his troops and fought a series of battles in which Antonius was defeated.[28] Upon hearing that neither Antonius nor Octavian had an army big enough to defend Rome, Brutus rallied his troops, which totaled about 17 legions. When Octavian heard that Brutus was on his way to Rome, he made peace with Antonius.[29] Their armies, which together totaled about 19 legions, marched to meet Brutus and Gaius Cassius Longinus. The two sides met in two engagements known as the Battle of Philippi. The first was fought on October 3, 42 BC, in which Brutus defeated Octavian's forces, although Cassius was defeated by Antonius' forces. The second engagement was fought on October 23, 42 BC and ended in Brutus' defeat.

After the defeat, he fled into the nearby hills with only about four legions. Knowing his army had been defeated and that he would be captured, Brutus committed suicide. Among his last words were, according to Plutarch, "By all means must we fly; not with our feet, however, but with our hands." Brutus also uttered the well-known verse calling down a curse upon Antonius (Plutarch repeats this from the memoirs of Publius Volumnius): Forget not, Zeus, the author of these crimes (in the Dryden translation this passage is given as Punish, great Jove, the author of these ills).[30] Plutarch wrote that, according to Volumnius, Brutus repeated two verses, but Volumnius was only able to recall the one quoted.

Antonius, as a show of great respect, ordered Brutus' body to be wrapped in Antonius' most expensive purple mantle (this was later stolen and Antonius had the thief executed). Brutus was cremated, and his ashes were sent to his mother, Servilia Caepionis.[31] His wife Porcia was reported to have committed suicide upon hearing of her husband's death, although, according to Plutarch (Brutus 53 para 2), there is some dispute as to whether this is the case: Plutarch states that there is a letter in existence that was allegedly written by Brutus mourning the manner of her death.[32][32][33][34]

[edit] Chronology 85 BC: Brutus was born in Rome to Marcus Junius Brutus The Elder and Servilia Caepionis. 58 BC: He was made assistant to Cato, governor of Cyprus which helped him start his political career. 53 BC: He was given the quaestorship in Cilicia. 49 BC: Brutus followed Pompey to Greece during the civil war against Caesar. 48 BC: Brutus was pardoned by Caesar. 46 BC: He was made governor of Gaul. 45 BC: He was made Praetor. 44 BC: Murdered Caesar with other liberatores; went to Athens and then to Crete. 42 BC: Battle with Marcus Antonius's forces.

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