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DURING the seventh and last consulship of Marius, Caesar had been observed by the great man (he was a friend of his uncle’s adopted son) and had been marked out for future advancement.
One of the many victims of the civil war between the Populates and the Optimates had been the noble L. Cornelius Merula, the flamen dialis or priest of Jupiter, who had committed suicide on the victory of the popular party four years before. One of the requirements for filling this office, one of the highest priestly positions in Rome, was patrician birth and the priest must also only marry a patrician; so the decision that Caesar should be flamen dialis may have been part of the reason for the breaking of his engagement to Cossutia, for Cinna’s daughter was patrician. However, the office of priest of Jupiter was very ancient, and hedged around by so many traditions and taboos that the man who accepted it was very much a prisoner of his priestly status. He had to wear traditional old-fashioned heavy garments, be “the man of only one woman,” never be absent for more than two consecutive nights from Rome, and, most important of all, never hold any other public office. It is highly unlikely that the austere, peaceful life of a priest would have suited Caesar, and to be debarred from all forms of political or military activity would have effectively castrated his whole career.
He was saved from this by a volte-face in Roman affairs, when his father-in-law Cinna was murdered by his own soldiers and the Optimates under the leadership of Sulla swept to power after a decisive victory in further civil war. Immediately everything was changed. From being the nephew of the dead Marius, and the son-in-law of the all-powerful Cinna with the expectation of considerable honor, Caesar was now seen as intimately connected with the party that was disgraced and out of power—and Sulla was determined to restore all favors to the aristocrats and the senate. A terrible proscription was organized not only in Rome but throughout Italy. The popular party was to be extirpated, its leading members killed and their property seized. No one, in fact, was safe, as Sulla’s friends were quick to place on the lists of the proscribed the names of their personal enemies. Sulla, appointed dictator so long as he judged necessary, held the whole Roman world in his grasp.
Caesar was soon acquainted with the change of circumstances. His cousin, the young Marius, who had had himself unconstitutionally elected to the consulship in the year of Sulla’s triumph, committed suicide. Caesar, however, had taken no part in politics or the war, being groomed for his future priestly office. But he remained immensely vulnerable, being in the very heart of the Marian-Cinnan network of blood relationships. His youth, his political and military non-involvement, and the very holiness of the office for which he had been intended, may have been the reasons why he was spared when so many others, with no equivalent entanglements, were daily being murdered. Instead of sending orders for Caesar’s execution, the dictator summoned him for an interview, and there seems little doubt that Sulla wished to draw this young patrician into his own party. But there was a condition required for this act of conciliation. He must put away his wife Cornelia and, though this is only guesswork, presumably marry somebody chosen by Sulla.
Few men in Caesar’s position in the Rome of that time would have done anything but renounce their wife and marry any woman that Sulla designated. Caesar’s certainly unexpected reply was to refuse to divorce Cornelia. This may be considered a very brave or a very foolish action, but in any case the effect was the same—he was forced to flee into hiding. At the same time, all the dowry that his wife had brought him and other legacies due to her from her family were confiscated. Caesar became a fugitive in the Sabine country of central Italy. It can hardly have been political wisdom that led to his refusal of the dictator’s offer, and it certainly seems that a young man’s love for his wife put him in such peril. Some evidence of this is that Cornelia was to remain his wife until her death in 69.
Caesar now learned to live as a fugitive. For the first time, in the life of a comfortable, even spoiled young aristocrat, he knew hardship and fear. Suffering from malaria, carried from one hiding place to another, he was captured in the end by one of Sulla’s proscription police, who were combing every district of Italy for those who had been put on the lists of wanted men. As must have happened so many times during that tortured period, he was forced to buy his life from the leader of the patrol who had discovered him with a large bribe. Had he been a poorer man his head would have secured for his captor the bounty hunter’s reward. But Caesar was able to offer more, and resumed his life as a fugitive. No doubt he would have been caught yet again, and this time with no possible redress, but the intercession of his noble relatives at the court of the dictator, and even of the Vestal Virgins, finally prevailed on Sulla to remove him from the death list—although perhaps it was intimated that he would do well to leave Italy. Sulla revealed that he had observed Caesar closely and had disapproved of much that he saw. As Dio Cassius records it, he remarked: “Beware of this youth who wears his girdle so loosely fastened.” This was a comment on the fact that Caesar affected what was considered a rather effeminate style of dressing with a loose belt, and fringed sleeves to his wrists. Then, as always, he paid a great deal of attention to his appearance, having superfluous hair removed with tweezers and the hair on his head elaborately arranged. Possibly apocryphal is Suetonius’ story that Sulla, granting his pardon, remarked to the suppliants: “Keep him since you so wish, but I would have you know that this young man who is so precious to you will one day overthrow the aristocratic party, which you and I have fought so hard to defend. There are many Mariuses in him.”
It was clearly prudent for Caesar to remove himself as far as possible from Rome, and an appointment was found for him on the staff of M. Minucius Thermus, the propraetor of Asia. At that time it was customary for Roman generals stationed away from Italy to have on their staff a number of well-bred young men, without any special military knowledge, who could provide some cultured company while at the same time seeing for themselves something of the world, of action, and the governance of foreign provinces. They were also sometimes used on diplomatic and other missions in connection with the work of Empire. In 81, when Caesar joined his staff, the propraetor was engaged on the task of punishing the citizens of Mitylene, capital of the island of Lesbos, for their rebellion against the Romans in the wars inspired by Mithridates the Great. The aim of this famous king of Pontus, the northeastern district of Asia Minor, was—and was to remain for many years—the expulsion of the Romans from all Asia. (Mithridates was to remain a thorn in the Roman side for much of Caesar’s life.) The young man’s first mission from his general was to travel to the kingdom of Bithynia, part of which bordered on the Black Sea, and ask its ruler to expedite the dispatch of his fleet, which he had promised for the Mitylene blockade.
Nicomedes IV of Bithynia had given his allegiance to Rome when he came to power and remained faithful to his masters during all the intrigues and power struggles initiated by Mithridates. Since his kingdom controlled the Asiatic shores of the Bosphorus, Nicomedes with his powerful fleet had a tight hold on all the traffic and shipping in the Dardanelles. His court was one of extreme luxury, and since he profited by the protection of Rome he had no desire to see any trouble in Asia. He may have poisoned his father, not an uncommon practice in the East when heirs felt they had waited too long for the throne, and he was renowned as a sodomite, again not uncommon in the East.
The propraetor’s aristocratic young messenger was naturally given an effusive welcome by Nicomedes, sensible that he had been dilatory in dispatching the promised fleet and eager to curry favor with his Roman protectors. On learning Caesar’s mission, the King immediately offered him his own sleeping quarters so that he could refresh himself after his tiring journey. There was nothing to this in itself—but Caesar’s enemies were to make much of it in the years to come. “The King’s guards,” Cicero was to say, “escorted him there, and he slept on a bed of gold with a purple covering.” On the following day, while the fleet was being rapidly readied for dispatch southward, an elaborate feast was given in the King’s palace to do honor to the propraetor’s emissary, as well as to a delegation of Roman merchants who happened to be in Bithynia. Caesar, forgetful perhaps of the dignity of his mission, joined in the mood of the moment and performed the role of cup-bearer to Nicomedes during the banquet. In doing so he put himself in the same company as a number of elegant and effeminate youths who formed part of the well-known seraglio of the King. Cicero was later to maintain in several letters that Caesar, “descendant of Venus, lost his virginity in Bithynia.” This accusation was widely repeated by his opponents in years to come, although why so much importance was given to the imputation it is hard to see since homosexuality was hardly unknown in the Rome of that day. It was, however, loosely associated by the old conservative aristocrats (such as Caesar’s own parents), with the degeneracy of Greece and with the effeminacy of the rich and indolent East.
The incident became widely known in Rome, having presumably been reported by the merchants who were present at the banquet, and certainly had a damaging effect on Caesar’s reputation. Years later, on the occasion of his Gallic triumph, his soldiers following his decorated chariot through the city chanted ribald songs, as they were privileged to do on such occasions. One of them, as will be seen, referring to Nicomedes and Caesar, was enough to make him lose his temper.
On this occasion, Caesar protested vigorously and swore that the whole story was false, but he was never allowed to forget it even though he later became known as one of the most notorious womanizers in Rome. Cornelius Dolabella, who had every reason to hate Caesar since the latter had, unsuccessfully, prosecuted him for maladministration in Macedonia, called him “the female rival of Bithynia’s queen,” and “the bottom half of the royal bed.” C. Scribonius Curio, who was consul in 77, called him “Nicomedes’ bride,” “the brothel of Bithynia,” and “every woman’s husband and every man’s wife.” Years later, when Nicomedes was dead, Caesar, speaking in the senate in defense of some dependents of the late King, reminded his audience that he was obligated to Nicomedes, “for numerous favors.” Cicero interrupted him with “Let us pass over that, I pray you, since there is no one who is unaware of what he gave you and what he received in return.” Suetonius quotes two lines from a satirical poem by Licinius Calvus, a well known orator and poet of the time:
The riches of Bithynia’s King
Who Caesar on his couch abused.
The truth of the matter will never be known, and it seems of small relevance in the light of Caesar’s life. Like many a young man he may have passed through a homosexual phase. It bothered nineteenth-century historians but need not trouble us today, although Caesar himself was to suffer from the scandal. He did in fact compound the error that gave rise to it, by returning to Bithynia after seeing the fleet safely to the blockade of Mitylene; “on the pretext of having to deliver a sum to some client of his,” Suetonius writes.
It is clear though that Caesar, unlike many of the young nobles who hung around the courts of generals and propraetors, took his military duties seriously. After the successful storming of Mitylene in 80 he was decorated with the civic crown by Minucius Thermus. The corona civica was a wreath of oak leaves awarded to those who had saved the life of a fellow soldier in battle, and although some commanders gave them away too freely, it is doubtful if Caesar’s was anything other than a genuine award, since Minucius Thermus was a supporter of Sulla and the Optimates. The holder of this highly honored decoration, which might be worn on all festive occasions, was entitled to sit next to the senators at the public games, and when he appeared on the scene all the spectators, senators included, rose to their feet. It had long been established that the award in the case of senators’ sons gave them a preferential position in the “Honors List,” which may explain (something which has puzzled many commentators) why Caesar was able to become consul in 59 at the age of forty, when forty-two was usually the minimum age for the consulate.
The Mitylene campaign was soon over and the troops of Minucius Thermus were to be dismissed. Hearing that the governor of Cilicia, the southeasternmost corner of Asia Minor, was about to embark on a campaign against the pirates who haunted the creeks and river-mouths of the area, Caesar went to offer him his services. He was already with the Governor’s forces when, in 78, the news reached him that Sulla was dead and Caesar left immediately for Italy. He hoped no doubt to take advantage of the confusion that would follow the dictator’s death, but he arrived to find that, as Suetonius put it, “the political atmosphere was less favorable than he had been led to believe.” An insurrection had begun, led by one of the consuls, Marcus Aemilius Lepidus, who had assumed the leadership of the Populares. This might have seemed to appeal to Caesar, especially when he was earnestly asked to join it and “magnificent offers” were made to him. However, with remarkably cool judgment for a young man of twenty-two, he appraised the situation carefully—and correctly. The Sullans still had a large majority in the senate while Lepidus did not have the strength of character or capabilities to achieve success. When the whole enterprise collapsed in ruins Caesar’s judgment was confirmed and he himself emerged completely unscathed.
Caesar had been away from Rome for three years and now was his first chance to renew his acquaintanceship with public affairs and to cast around for the direction in which his ambitions might find fulfilment. It is clear that he had no desire for the career for which he had early been trained, the priesthood, and he was neither rich enough, nor temperamentally inclined, to idle away his days as did many young upper-class Romans. He needed first of all to get himself known, and inevitably turned toward the Forum. One path to a political career, the one which Cicero adopted, was that of rhetoric and the law. Caesar had received an excellent education, and his acute mind, coupled with his training in
Greek and Latin rhetoric, made him look for a cause where he could acquire the most publicity, as well as laying the foundation of a solid reputation. He made his start by prosecuting Gnaeus Cornelius Dolabella (the same who, inflamed with hatred, would accuse him of homosexual relations with Nicomedes). Dolabella was one of the leading Sullans—the dictator had nominated him for the consulship in 81—and had recently been accorded a triumph in Rome for some rather obscure military exploits. Subsequently he had been governor of Macedonia where he had exceeded in his rapacity even the limits normally extended to governors of provinces, who were expected to make their fortunes during this summer period of their lives. The only action that could be taken to redress the complaints of the governed and overtaxed (robbed, would be more accurate) was for a Roman citizen to come forward as prosecutor. A complaint was formally laid before the tribunal outlining the intended form of the indictment and backed by evidence from the complainants. In the event, the wealthy Dolabella secured the services of two of the greatest lawyers of the day, one of whom, Aurelius Cotta, was a kinsman of Caesar, and managed with their help to get acquitted. Caesar had lost his first case, but he had achieved his main object: he had won great credit as an orator, and the very fact that the accused had felt himself in need of such eminent men to secure his acquittal added luster to Caesar’s reputation.
It is clear that his Greek clients were also impressed by his performance (his speeches survived in document and were regarded in Rome as a literary masterpiece), and the following year he was entrusted with the case against another Sullan. This was Gaius Antonius Hybrida, who, during Sulla’s campaign in Greece, had looted and pillaged a great number of Greek cities. So skillfully did Caesar work up his case and deliver his indictment that Antonius was forced to appeal to the people’s tribunes over the head of the judging praetors who had considered the complaint well-founded. He was acquitted, but the acquittal in itself caused a scandal. Again, Caesar had not won, but his reputation was now made and he became recognized as one of the greatest orators of his time and second only to Cicero. He had won many friends in Greece, many friends in Rome (as well as enemies), and he had established his position, by his attacks on two notorious Sullans, as a follower of his uncle Marius and an up-and-coming man in the popular party. By these two actions Caesar had laid the foundations of his political career.