Julius Caesar's Accomplishments

Julius Caesar, while he lived an extraordinary life, was not very different from any of the politicians in his day. He may have even been more conventional than some of the great men of his time, like Pompey. While he had a spectacular ending to his career, “he did not have a similarly glorious rise to power.” Caesar was very successful at playing the game of Roman politics. Even in his later years his tactics and accomplishments are equal to those of Pompey, Crassus, and Sulla. He finally moves off the normal path when he receives the title dictator perpetuo, as no one had received this before. Caesar is ambitious even in his early years. While in the province of Asia he raised a small band of auxiliaries and expelled Mithridates’ agents,

Having three provinces under your control is uncommon, but Caesar had the same intensions and plans as Crassus or any other politician did; to extort the province’s resources and gain military glory, which would help any politician get out of the debt he placed himself in getting elected. Both Crassus and Caesar intended on extorting their provinces, and using them as a means for greater military conquest and glory. Caesar planned on a war in Gaul, while Crassus planned on a war against the Parthians. In Rome, politics and warfare were not separate, but considered two sides of the same coin. Caesar’s military glory in Gaul is not different from other politicians in his time. Crassus hoped to achieve military glory by conquering parts of Parthia. Pompey’s military achievements far surpass Caesar’s. He reconquered parts of Spain against Sertorius during Sulla’s reign. He expanded the Republic’s territorial control in the eastern part of the Mediterranean, cleared the entire sea of pirates, and finally conquered Mithridates VI of Pontus. Caesars uncle, Marius, fought wars against Numidia, the Cimbri, and the Teutones. His victories against the Germanic people’s were particularly important as it increased his popularity due to the fear the Romans had for the Germanic peoples. Even Sulla had successful campaigns against Mithridates VI of Pontus, and in the Social