The
Assassination of Cicero
Today marks the anniversary of
Cicero in 43 B.C. A lawyer, politician,
writer and orator, his letters serve as both a source for the goings-on in a
tumultuous period in Rome and as guidance for the art of letter writing.
Thinking Marc Antony to be little more than a thug, Cicero
took the additional step of detailing his views in a series of speeches, hoping
to reduce Antony’s influence for the benefit of Octavian, Caesar’s heir. When, however, Octavian and Antony joined
forces in the Second Triumvirate, Cicero’s days were numbered, and he was
“proscribed” (i.e., ordered executed
and his property seized). While the
depiction of his execution as portrayed in the HBO series Rome was true to his
character, it in fact took place on a road with Cicero riding in a litter; he
did not resist.
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