Expert: Irulan Serena - 1/4/2008

Question
Hello Francesco Marchesani,

I am a ninth grade student attending Liverpool High School and  I am doing a National History Day project about the life of Julius Caesar and I was just wondering, Why did Julius Caesar go to the Senate-house when his friends alarmed him of rumors of senators wanting to assassinate him? What is your opinion on what you think of him disregarding all of the alerts that he received? Your help is greatly appreciated
                          Sincerely,
                             Waseem

Answer
Caesar summoned the Senate to meet in the Theatre of Pompey on the Ides of March. A certain seer warned Caesar to be on his guard against a great peril on the day of the month of March which the Romans call the Ides; that is on the 15 of March, and when the day had come and Caesar was on his way to the senate-house, he greeted the seer with a jest and said: "The Ides of March has come," and the seer said to him softly: "Yes, the Ides of March has come, but it has not past."

His wife Calpurnia begged him not to go, but he ignored the warning of his wife as well as the seers.

Foolish pride caused Caesar to ignore the warnings ...he felt that if he did not appear after at the meeting he himself had called his honor as a political leader would be lost and at that time honor was extremely important.