Hey folks! Lots of dramatic and Rome-changing events and people to talk about this week. What moments helped you get a handle on the breakdown of the Republic?

I chose to do this mainly because it was my response/presentation for the week but also out of curiosity because throughout my years as an adult there are a lot of references about Pompey, and movies, and shows and all of this on and on about the great Pompey. This letter was overall as I stated in class Pompey asking for help from the Senate. His men along with himself were fighting for a place which was not paying or supporting them.

This document is Pompey's plea to the senate for support. His army is starving and has no means of acquiring their own provisions and the senate isn't providing any. Pompey claims that this is a great injustice upon Rome. Ordering sons of Rome to war only to starve them to death because their senate wouldn't supply them. The reason why Pompey's army had been dispatched was to get them out of Italy. The senate had asked Pompey to get rid of his army from the city. But he refused so this situation works in the Senate's favor. Pompey had engaged with the army of Sertorius at the time. He already pushed enemies back into Spain and recovered many cities. He threatens the senate by saying he'll pull back which would cause enemy forces to advance deeper into their territory once again. This letter was read aloud to the senate and left them alarmed. They feared that Pompey's army now desperate would take drastic measures to acquire wealth.

 I chose the reading Pompey's conquest of the east by Appian because the only prior knowledge I had of Pompey was mainly that he was Caesar's adversary and I expected for this text to help shed some more light on who Pompey was specifically before his problems with Caesar. The reading that jumped out to me was this excerpt, " Pompey himself was borne in a chariot studded with gems, wearing, it is said, the cloak of Alexander the Great, if any one can believe that". This stood out because the author was trying to display the era that Rome was now in. From being a nation that condemned any one man's triumph and from letting any one man gain too much fame or popularity, and now seeing a man be so popular that his triumph lasted days and was to be transported in a lavish chariot while also wearing the cloak of Alexander the Great, a spectacle for sure. This document shows that before Caesar's rise in prominence in Rome Pompey was already incredibly popular in his own right. Through a modern lens we often undermine Pompey due to Caesar's eventual domination and victory over Pompey, but Pompey was a formidable adversary to Caesar and a man who had also been loved by the people showing the Roman populace now fully embracing a new era in Rome in which they supported the rising popularity of individuals. My questions are who did the Roman people prefer more at that point Pompey, or Caesar? And if Pompey had won the civil war against Caesar would the Empire had still evolved the way it did with the transition into a principate format of government?

The passage I decided to read was On Julius Caesar/Suetonius, and the reason why I decided was because Julius Caesar was a strange leader and did things differently from others, and this passage gives me more of an insight into his past. The author probably tried communicating Julius Caesar's rise to power, what he did before earning his power, how he fought in wars, and publicized himself to gain popularity which is his case was very smart like he planned of clever ways to gain people attention and support. The document has a different path compared to other documents regarding the rise of power, as Caesar was exiled and somehow came to have great power. 

My question would be, what was going through Caesar's head when he was fighting wars away from his country? Did he have self-belief they would be secured by themselves? The Senate can handle it all?

I decided to read Pompey’s letter to the Senate since it is very relevant to understanding the impact of the shift in loyalty of Roman soldiers’ from the Republic to individual generals. After complaining about the lack of support him and his legion have received from Rome, he suddenly changes his tone and warns the Senate that “You are our only resource; unless you come to our rescue, against my will, but not without warning from me, our army will pass over into Italy, bringing with it all the war in Spain.” While the legions once consisted of tough yeoman farmers who went to war every Spring to better the Republic, now their ranks were filled with volunteers from the urban poor that served solely for a somewhat livable wage and the prospects of loot in mind, and that ultimately rested on their general paying them. Since this was now the responsibility of each respective general, a legion’s allegiance effectively transferred from the Republic to them. In this sense, Pompei’s threat is indicative of the changing circumstances of those times, and it is telling that the Senate immediately consented to his request. Was Pompei merely faking when he threatened to march on Rome, or was he serious?

For this week I chose the reading The Murder of Clodius/ Asconius. Publius Clodius Pulcher was a populist politician who was known for adopting a plebeian or commoner status to become a Tribune. Cloudius was a skilled political organizer and often used his position as tribune to push populist policies. Clodius also enforced violence and street gangs for his political objectives. In the reading Clodius was killed in a confrontation with the army soldiers of his political rival, Milo. The murder caused an unsteady Republic and led to the destruction of the Curia, the senate house after it had been used as a funeral space. To me this reading shared several perspectives from the author speaking on the impacts on Roman society, Clodius's death and actions, like the burning of the senate house, demonstrated the escalating political violence that the Roman Republic faced. The murder of Clodius also led to Pompey being appointed sole consul to restore oder in Rome. It exposed the deep problems within the Roman political system and accelerated the Republic's decline into autocracy and civil war.

I would like to find out beside Milo, who else wanted Clodius dead and why?

The reading I chose for this week is Pompey’s Letter to the Senate. In this letter, Pompey expresses his frustration towards the Senate for abandoning him during this war. Through the tone of this letter, Pompey’s frustration is evident and he feels as though he's been subjected to and has seen too much brutality for someone of his young age. As a result of the Senate’s betrayal Pompey and his army are left to their own devices. I think that the Senate did this because they were afraid of his growing power. If he is disregarded and left to fend for himself he won't have a chance to rise and take control of Rome. Pompey had a lot of ambition for someone of his age and the Senate was very aware of this. Despite this ordeal with the Senate Pompey carries out many successful military campaigns across the region, “I recovered Gaul, the Pyrenees, Lacetania, and the Indigetes; with raw soldiers and far inferior numbers I withstood the first onslaught of triumphant Sertorius...” I think that this quote shows that Pompey was a force to be reckoned with. Despite being outnumbered in the regions of Gaul, Pyrenees, and Lacetonia he was victorious further highlighting his abilities as a military leader. In the end, the Senate gives into Pompey’s requests and provides him with the resources he needs, I assume they would've preferred to have Pompey as an ally rather than a foe. 

This letter by Pompey to the Senate in 75 BCE is a powerful plea that highlights the desperation of a military leader caught between the demands of warfare and the scarcity of support from Rome. It reflects his frustrations and the dangerous nature of his position in the conflict against Sertorius in Spain. He expresses the sacrifices made by him and his troops, emphasizing their achievements despite being under-resourced. What makes this letter powerful is how Pompey combines emotion with a warning. He reminds the Senate that if they don’t help him soon, his army might march into Italy, which could create chaos for Rome. This threat adds urgency to his request and shows how important it is for leaders to communicate their needs. One passage that stands out is Pompey's assertion, "Was it with such expectations that the Roman people sent its sons to war? Are these the rewards for wounds and for so often shedding our blood for our country?" This rhetorical question highlights his deep sense of betrayal and frustration with the Senate. It captures the emotional weight of his struggle and emphasizes the sacrifices made by him and his soldiers. The author wanted to illustrate the growing tension between military leaders and political authorities in Rome. By showcasing Pompey's frustrations and warnings, the text underscores the consequences of neglecting military needs, suggesting that political decisions directly impact the safety and effectiveness of the army. This document provides valuable insights into the political and military landscape of ancient Rome. It reveals a time of significant turmoil and conflict, characterized by struggles for power both within the Senate and on the battlefield.

The letter reflects on a time when military commanders were expected to achieve victories but were not always provided with the necessary resources or backing, leading to frustration and tension.

Finally, I’m curious about the implications of Pompey's letter on his relationship with the Senate and how it might have affected his career in the years that followed.

I read Appian's Account of Pompey's Conquest of the East this week. This reading stood out because it emphasizes Pompey's conquest, which intrigued me to look further. Appian goes into detail, glorifying Pompey's impact on acquiring alliances and gaining resources, which stretched Rome's influence to Egypt. Appian paints Pompey as a man of the people by showing Pompey's generosity by stating," Pompey distributed rewards to the army, 1500 Attic drachmas to each soldier, and in like proportion to the officers, the whole, it was said, amounting to 16,000 talents." as well as "When he marched to Ephesus, embarked for Italy, and hastened to Rome, having dismissed his soldiers at Brundisium to their homes, " And then Later shows how merciful Pompey was when speaking about how Pompey didn't execute his royal prisoners only the kings. Simultaneously, Appian compares Pompey's return to Rome with his boatloads of spoils by stating, "Pompey himself was borne in a chariot studded with gems, wearing, it is said, the cloak of Alexander the Great, if anyone can believe that. This was supposed to have been found among the possessions of Mithridates.… His chariot was followed by the officers who had shared the campaigns with him, some on horseback and others on foot. Appain's statement, in many ways, could be interpreted as a great comparison to Alexander The Great or a way of saying he lived up to his nickname, "The Great." Overall, in many ways, Appian displays the changing tide in Rome. Before Rome was all about civic service and not about ambitious individuals, but Appian speaks about the individual and what they brought to Rome.

What causes Pompey's decline?

For this week I read the excerpt from Pompey's Conquest of the East by Appian, I wanted to read it because in the history of Caesar's rise to power he rode the coattails of Pompey until he was in a position to replace him in the eyes of the people of Rome, guess I wished to learn more about the man who Caesar used to gain power. Pompey was a man who loved to please, he wanted to be the man the people of Rome could depend on, and his conquest of the East seems to support this. "He was awarded a triumph exceeding in brilliancy any that had gone before. It occupied two successive days; and many nations were represented in the procession from Pontus, Armenia, Cappadocia, Cilicia, all the peoples of Syria, besides Albanians, Heniochi, Achaeans, Scythians, and Eastern Iberians; 700 complete ships were brought into the harbor; in the triumphal procession were two-horse carriages and litters laden with gold or with other ornaments of various kinds". Pompey was rewarded for his service to Rome, this type of behavior would encourage others to become successful warlords if Rome would allow for this to happen, Caesar definitely wanted to be a Pompey. The document shows the change Rome had during the period of infighting that a society that did not value the individual over the whole of Rome had in a short period of instability had started to value a very individualistic people pleaser like Pompey. The way Pompey is described it makes it feel kind of weird that he didn't notice Caesar taking his place and didn't put a stop to it.