Read these facts about Julius Caesar from history.com and answer the questions below: 1. He was kidnapped by pirates. In 75 B.C., Caesar, then in his mid-20s, set out from Rome for the Aegean island of Rhodes, a noted center of learning where he planned to study. However, along the way to Rhodes, Caesar’s ship was hijacked by pirates off the southwestern coast of Asia Minor. When his captors named a ransom price for his release, Caesar thought the number was insultingly low and insisted a greater sum be demanded. Eventually, the higher figure was raised and Caesar was freed. Soon after, he sought revenge against his former captors by commandeering a group of ships and men to help him hunt down and swiftly capture the buccaneers, who he then had executed. 2. He had a son with Cleopatra. In 48 B.C., Caesar went to Egypt to track down one of his rivals, the Roman general Pompey, and while there he met Cleopatra, who was embroiled in a civil war with her younger brother and co-ruler Ptolemy XIII (per ancient Egyptian custom, the two ruled under the formal title of husband and wife). Caesar, who declared himself executor of the will of the siblings’ late father, ordered the pair to come see him so they could settle their feud. When Ptolemy’s army stopped Cleopatra from traveling to the palace where Caesar was staying, she had herself smuggled in a laundry bag to meet him for the first time, according to some accounts. Caesar and Cleopatra, who was half the Roman general’s age, became romantically involved, and around 47 B.C., she gave birth to a boy, Ptolemy Caesar, who was believed to be Caesar’s child. The Egyptians referred to him as Caesarion, meaning little Caesar. Caesar had no other known sons besides Caesarion. His only known daughter, Julia, died in childbirth in 54 B.C. 3. He’s considered the father of leap year. Before Caesar came to power, the Romans used a calendar system based on the lunar cycle, which dictated that there were 355 days in a year. This system was 10 ¼ days shorter than a solar year, the amount of time required for the Earth to make one complete revolution around the sun. Although Roman officials were supposed to add extra days to the lunar calendar every year at their discretion in order to keep it aligned with the seasons, this didn’t always happen and, as a result, the calendar was confusing, out of whack with the seasons and ripe for abuse by politicians interested in extending their terms in office. After consulting with the astronomer Sosigenes, Caesar implemented a new system, the Julian calendar, which went into effect in 45 B.C. and was made up of 365 days in a year. The calendar was intended to be in sync with the solar cycle; however, because the actual solar year is 365 ¼ days long, Caesar also added an extra day, called a leap day, every four years to make up the difference. 1. Where was Caesar going when he was kidnapped by pirates? 2. What happened to his kidnappers? 3. Who was Caesar's son with Cleopatra? 4. Why did Caesar start leap year? .