Assassination of Julius Caesar

Date: March 15, 44 BCE (the Ides of March)
Location: Rome, Roman Republic
Appears In: Book 2
Jump Type: Historical Jump

What Happened

On the Ides of March in 44 BCE, a group of Roman senators—including Marcus Junius Brutus and Gaius Cassius Longinus—surrounded Julius Caesar at a Senate meeting and stabbed him to death, reportedly delivering 23 wounds. The conspirators, who called themselves the Liberatores, believed Caesar's growing personal power threatened the Roman Republic and acted to stop him from becoming a king in all but name.

Historical Context

Rather than restoring the Republic the conspirators hoped to save, Caesar's assassination triggered over a decade of civil war that ultimately ended the Republic entirely, paving the way for his adopted heir Octavian to become Rome's first emperor as Augustus. The phrase "Beware the Ides of March" endures as one of history's most famous warnings.

Timeline of the Event

Senators fearing Caesar's ambitions form a conspiracy of dozens of members.
Caesar is warned by a soothsayer to "beware the Ides of March," but attends the Senate session regardless.
The conspirators surround Caesar at the Theatre of Pompey and stab him repeatedly.
Caesar dies at the base of a statue of his former rival, Pompey.
Rome descends into civil war, ultimately ending the Republic and beginning the age of the emperors.

The Five Seconds Connection

In Five Seconds Too Soon, the trio lands in a crowded Roman plaza on the day of the assassination, caught in the chaos of the crowd and nearly detained by a Roman soldier before the device pulls them out just in time. It's one of the jumps that leaves Oliver visibly shaken afterward, joking through his fear the way he always does when the horror gets too close.