Was Julius Caesar A Tyrant?

Julius Caesar was not a tyrant. A tyrant is a cruel ruler who seizes power without a right to. Caesar, however, ruled for the good of his people, and for the preservation of his empire. In fact, he even took measures to win the affections of his citizens, and fought to make Rome a better place, especially for the lower class plebeians. Unfortunately, Caesar was killed by his “friends” in the Senate, who killed him because of his strong ambitions and rising popularity before he could do much.

Before he was killed, Caesar formed a number of projects, some including grand theaters and great temples. Suetonius Tranquillus, a Roman historian, describes these actions in The Lives of 12 Caesars: “... also for the protection and extension of the empire, he formed more projects: First of all, to rear a temple of Mars… and to build a theater of vast size.” This excerpt provides two of the things Caesar did for his empire and for the good graces of the people. More importantly, it supports the idea that Caesar was not a tyrant. …show more content…
The plebeians were, in fact, known to be strong supporters of Caesar during his rule. Even so, Caesar made many plans as dictator of Rome, but they were abruptly cut off due to his sudden death. In The Lives of 12 Caesars, Suetonius lists Caesars goals: “...to reduce the civil code… to include only the best and most essential laws; to open to the public the greatest possible libraries of Greek and Latin books, to drain the Pomptine marshes, to make a highway across the summit of the Apennines as far as the Tiber…” Tranquillus continues on in his writing to describe the many intentions of Caesar. This is a good example of why Caesar wasn’t a tyrant. If he was, he wouldn’t attempt to modify the law, or open up great libraries to the