The Fall of Julius Caesar
Written by William Shakespeare Retold by John Dougherty Illustrated by Nicolas Aznarez
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Cast of characters Julius Caesar:
Brutus:
ruler of Rome
Caesar’s ally
Calpurnia:
The soothsayer:
Caesar’s wife
a fortune-teller
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Mark Antony:
Cassius:
Caesar’s closest
a noble Roman
friend
Casca:
Cinna:
Decius:
an important
a noble Roman
a noble Roman
official
and Cassius’s friend 3
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Foreword Caesar and Pompey were friends, once. Both were generals in the Roman army. In those days, there was no Roman Empire and no emperor. Rome was a republic, a country without a king. Caesar, Pompey and a third general – Crassus – worked together to become the most powerful men in the Roman Republic. But when Crassus died, the friendship broke. No longer happy to share the power they had, each of the other two decided that he alone should rule. They fought – first with words, and then with soldiers and swords. The Roman Republic was plunged into war.
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Before the war was over, Pompey was dead and Julius Caesar was declared ruler of Rome – ruler, but not emperor. Pompey’s sons carried on the fight. But three years after Pompey’s death, Caesar defeated them, too, and brought the Great Roman Civil War to an end. He returned to Rome in triumph, the most powerful man in the world. Parades were held, and he was cheered by the crowds. But not everyone was happy.
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1 Celebrations “Caesar!” yelled the crowds. “Caesar! Caesar! Caesar!” The common people filled the streets as if it was a holiday. They decorated the statues of Julius Caesar with scarves, with flowers and with crowns made of leaves and branches. They sang and cheered and laughed. “Look at them, Marullus,” grumbled Flavius. “They shouldn’t be behaving like this. Hey! You! Why aren’t you at work?” “Why, your honour,” the man answered cheerfully, yet respectfully – for he could see that Flavius and Marullus were tribunes, important officials – “we’re going to see Caesar’s victory parade!”
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“Victory parade!” snapped Marullus. He glared at the man and his friends. “Victory parades are for generals who defeat the enemies of Rome! Has Caesar brought back treasure from conquered lands? Has he brought a captured king, to show how great Rome is? Has he brought slaves to work for us?” The men listened, for they loved a good speech almost as much as they loved a parade. “Who has Caesar defeated?” Marullus continued. “Not some foreign emperor! Not some savage tribe! He’s defeated Romans! Romans, like us! You like a good victory parade, do you?” The listeners nodded.
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“Well, have you forgotten Pompey’s victory parades? Remember how he used to come back to Rome in triumph? Remember how you used to line the streets to cheer him? How you’d climb up to the roof tops to catch a glimpse of his chariot? He was a Roman hero! And now you want to celebrate his death, and the defeat of his sons? Shame on you!” “Yes,” agreed Flavius, “you should be ashamed! Go home, all of you!” The crowd waited for a moment, to see if anything more would be said. But Marullus had finished, and stood glaring at them. “Go on!” Flavius said. “Be off with you!” He aimed a bad-tempered slap at one of the men, who dodged it and followed the rest of the small crowd on their way. 8
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“Look at them,” Flavius said angrily. “They don’t care about Pompey.” Marullus nodded in thoughtful agreement. “You know, Marullus,” Flavius went on, “I’m worried about Caesar. If this goes on, he’s going to start thinking he’s better than the rest of us. And when someone has as much power as Caesar does, that’s dangerous. The last thing Rome needs is a ruler who thinks he can treat the rest of us like slaves.”
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Julius Caesar was in a good mood. The war was over; the crowds were cheering him; the senators – the most important men in Rome – were hanging on his every word. But in the noise of the crowd, something caught his attention. It was a shrill voice, shouting his name – “Caesar! Caesar!” – and then something he couldn’t quite make out. “Who’s that?” he said. “What’s he saying?” Casca, one of the most important tribunes, held up his hands and called for silence. The crowd, thinking Caesar was about to speak, quietened. The voice came again – “Caesar! Caesar!” – and now the words that followed were clearer. “Beware the Ides of March!”
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