Happy 2,115th Birthday to Julius Caesar

Posted by Barry Strauss under on July 12, 2015

Caesar's Birthday 2015 - ppt

 

Julius Caesar was born in Rome on July 13, 100 B.C. That makes him 2115 years old today. To paraphrase the musical Hair, “Happy Birthday, Julie baby, happy birthday to you!”

Everybody knows the day of Caesar’s assassination, the Ides of March, March 15, 44 B.C. but few knew the day of his birth. That deserves a change!

 

Top Ten Reasons to Celebrate Julius Caesar’s Birthday

 

  1. Thanks to Julius it’s July, not Quincty — the month’s original Roman name was Quinctilis.
  2. Caesar wasn’t delivered by caesarean section.
  3. His mother, Aurelia, was a helicopter mom before flight.
  4. His father’s name is easy to remember: also Julius Caesar.
  5. It’s a great warm-up for Bastille Day on July 14.
  6. And even a two-day warm-up, since the Romans marked Caesar’s birthday on July 12 so as not to conflict with the Games of Apollo on July 13.
  7. The Romans celebrated Caesar’s Birthday by wearing laurel wreaths and making merry.
  8. Any excuse for a toga party on the beach!
  9. The birthday of Cleopatra, Caesar’s mistress, is unknown, so celebrate it too today!
  10. Caesar’s birth was the start of 55 years of blood, drama, sex, and rhetoric that changed the world.

 

Barry Strauss © 2024