2. Background
• Marcus Tullius Cicero was a Roman philosopher, politician,
lawyer, orator, political theorist, consul and constitutionalist.
– His works rank among the most influential in European culture, and
today still constitute one of the most important bodies of primary
material for the writing and revision of Roman history, especially the
last days of the Roman Republic.
• He is widely considered one of Rome's greatest orators.
• He served as a consul and later during the civil wars of the
Triumvirates.
– Du to his rivalry with Caesar and Mark Anthony, he was later
proscribed*
and murdered.
– *public identification and official condemnation of enemies of the
state.
3. Early Years
• Cicero was born in 106 BC, from a noble father with
connections in Rome.
• He was born semi-invalid, and in order to
compensate, he studied as much as he possibly
could.
– He learned Greek and educated in the thoughts of many
Greek philosophers, poets and historians.
– He studied law and later went into politics before actually
becoming a lawyer.
– He served under the command of Sulla and had no taste for
military life.
– His first case, was defending a man accused of murder, and
he himself accused one of Sulla’s associates of having
committed the crime. He won the trial, which gave him a
reputation as a good orator and fearless lawyer.
• He moved to Athens to pursue further education.
4. Early Political Career
• Cicero served in a public post in Sicily. Due to his honesty and integrity,
he was asked by the inhabitants to prosecute a former governor.
– He was successful, he proved himself an able speaker, crushed his opponents
(the best lawyer in Rome at the time) and established a reputation.
• He kept rising through political ranks and by age 43 he was elected
consul!
5. Consulship
• In the year 63, he was elected consul
along with Hybrida.
– During his year as consul, he crushed a
conspiracy which centered on
assassinating him and overthrowing the
Republic.
– This conspiracy was called the Catilinarian
Conspiracy, named after its leader Sergius
Caitilina.
– He and the senate sentenced them to
death, which was not in their power. This
would later come back and get Cicero in
trouble.
6. Exile
• He was approached by Caesar to
ally with him, Crassus and Pompeii,
but Cicero refused.
• Many years later, he had to go into
exile.
– A new law was passed by the Tribune
Pulcher, in which anyone who executed
Romans without trial, would be exiled.
• He came back, and during the civil
war of Caesar and Pompeii, he
switched sides.
7. After Caesar
• When Caesar was murdered, Cicero was a
happy man. He saw a chance for the Republic
to be reestablished.
– He openly opposed Mark Anthony and quickly
became a powerful force in the Senate.
– In this way, he played Octavian against Anthony, by
praising him in public.
• This move however, did not work. When Lepidus,
Anthony and Octavian formed the Second
Triumvirate, he was proscribed as enemy of the
state.
– He was hunted down, but due to his personal
popularity, people hid him.
8. Death
• He was caught on a road, hoping to
escape to Macedonia.
– When a Centurion was about to kill him, he
leaned towards him, stretched out his neck and
said:
– "There is nothing proper about what you are
doing, soldier, but do try to kill me properly.”
• He was killed, then his head cut off and
posted at the Forum
– Mark Anthony had his hands cut off, and his
wife, stabbed his tongue several times. This was
because of his oratorial skills.
9. Legacy
• Cicero, as a humanist helped establish Latin as a language with
enough power to transmit more elaborate ideas. He created
new words and wrote many many works that are still read today.
• The republican Cicero, helped inspire The Founding Fathers of
the US and the French Revolutionaries.
But what was his role in the final fall of the Roman
Republic?
10. Cicero’s view on morals
He was also in touch with Stoic philosophy, but took the same
approach as other Romans took on it.
11. Ask Yourself
• Identify:
– Who was Caitilina?
– Who were part of the Second Triumvirate?
• Analyze:
– For what reasons did Cicero advance so much in politics at such a yuoung
age?
– Why would the tribune Pulcher mke a law exiling those who execute Romans
without trial?
– Cicero defeated the best lawyer in Rome and incarcerated one of Sulla’s
friends. What does this tell you about his character?
• Describe:
– Describe Cicero’s fall from power and death.
• Infer:
– As a politician, what might have been the reasons for Cicero’s actions?
