Julius Caesar
Having a good background and knowledge of the history of Rome is very helpful to understand Shakespeare's play, Julius Caesar. The setting of this play took place hundreds of years ago, so if one knows a little bit of Roman history, it would help very much in understanding what is going on in the play.
It is important to know about the connection, or relationship that there once was between Caesar and Pompey. When Crassus died, Pompey and Caesar were left as twin rulers of Rome. As one could imagine, each wanted to be the only ruler, so a struggle broke out between them. Caesar defeated Pompey and his army in an important battle, and went on later to defeat Pompey's two sons. It is after that fifth and last triumph, at the time they are celebrating, when the play opens. To understand the play even better, one should be aware of Brutus' (one of the conspirators against Caesar) ancestors, the Tarquins.
English: Map of the Roman Republic in 40 BC after ...
English: Modern bronze statue of Julius Caesar, Ri...
Bust of Julius Caesar from the British MuseumNearly five hundred years before Caesar was even born, a cruel, unscrupulous leading family had seized the riens of power and had set themselves up as kings. From that point on, the people of Rome hated kings, and they bounded themselves together by a solemn oath never to tolerate a monarch, and it was formally enacted into law that if any man wish that the monarchy should be restored, he was to be declared a public enemy and be put to death.
Brutus and the rest of the conspirators had killed Caesar, but they made an error, which was letting Mark Antony, one of Caesar's friends live. Antony later united with Bepidus and Octavius, to go against Brutus, Cassius, and the other conspirators. At the battle of Philippi, in Thrace, Brutus and Cassius took their...