The Second and the Age of

I. is Dead… Now What? (44BC)

The cite where historians believe Julius Caesar was assassinated

The Would-Be Heirs of Caesar -Julius Caesar’s death created a power vacuum. A number of different men rushed to fill this void.

The Conspirators (The Liberators)

Marcus Antonius () (83 – 30BC)

Octavius/Octavian/Augustus (63BC – 14AD)

Mark Antony Stirs the Pot

SIDE NOTE: Shakespeare wrote a famous dramatization of this speech in his historical play Julius Caesar. It follows after Brutus makes his speech where he seek to justify his and the other conspirators actions as liberators. Antony’s speech is hailed as one of the greatest speeches and compelling examples of rhetoric today. Pause now and take the time to read Act 3 Scene 2 where the famous exchange of speeches takes place. The scene was posted as a PDF on the Remote Learning section.

Caesar’s Will: Who Got What?

Octavian’s Bold Response

REFLECTION QUESTIONS: (spend 10 minutes and write your thoughts in preparation for a history discussion)

1) Why was Octavian’s adoption such a big deal? What does Octavian’s rise to prominence tell us about Roman society and the politics of the Late Republic?

2) To what extent was the trouble in which the Liberators found themselves following Caesar’s assassination of their own making? What could they have done differently?

II. The Rise of the (43 - 42BC)

The Senate: Stuck in the Middle

The Struggle Begins

Brutus and Cassius (The Liberators)

Antony vs.

Antony vs. Octavian

REFLECTION QUESTION: What do these sides reveal to us about the key players and their motivations?

The Falling Out Between the Senate and Octavian

A Shaky Alliance

The Second Triumvirate Forms (November, 27th 43 BC)

How it Worked

Opposition and

Cicero’s Death

Other Powerplays

The Temple of Julius Caesar in the The End of Another Civil War (September 42 BC)