Curated playlist
1st century BC in the Roman Republic
- Donations of AlexandriaIn 34 BC, Antony and Cleopatra sat on golden thrones and gave away kingdoms. All of Alexandria watched.
- Constitutional reforms of AugustusIn 27 BC, Augustus offered to return all his powers to the Senate, and senators begged him to reconsider.
- War between Sextus Pompey and the Second TriumvirateSextus Pompey was the last surviving son of Pompey the Great, and by 42 BC he had turned the island of Sicily into a fortress. From that base, he choked off the grain supply to Rome itself, sending the Roman people into riots while the…
- Roman–Gallic warsAround 390 BC, Gallic warriors walked through Rome's gates without a fight. They looted the city and left.
- First TriumvirateNo ancient source ever called Rome's First Triumvirate a triumvirate. The label was first attested in 1681.
- Sulla's civil warSulla told the Senate screams outside were criminals being corrected. In fact 8,000 prisoners were being executed.
- Assassination of Julius CaesarJulius Caesar agreed to skip the Senate on the Ides of March, then changed his mind. Decimus Brutus goaded him.
- Gallic WarsIn the Gallic Wars, Julius Caesar claimed to kill over a million Gauls while losing almost none.
- Battle of ActiumAt the Battle of Actium, Cleopatra's ships sailed away mid-fight. Antony's fleet lost its lead and his army fled.
- War of ActiumA stolen will read aloud in the Roman Senate helped start the War of Actium.
- Cantabrian WarsRome took no prisoners in the Cantabrian Wars, and many trapped fighters chose poison over surrender.
- Crisis of the Roman RepublicIn 133 BC, a Roman priest killed a tribune as a private citizen. That killing began the fall of the Roman Republic.
- Second TriumvirateRome's Second Triumvirate was legally appointed to restore the republic it was dismantling.
- Battle of CarrhaeThe Battle of Carrhae was fought in 53 BC on open desert ground near the town of Carrhae, which is now Harran in Turkey. Seven Roman legions marched into that country under Marcus Licinius Crassus. Most of them never marched out. According…
- Catilinarian conspiracyAfter losing three consular elections, Catiline decided to seize Rome's top office by force.
- Sulla's proscriptionRome's Senate refused Sulla's list of enemies, so he went to the people. More than 520 names went up in the Forum.