Today is the Ides of March (Martius), on this day in 44BC Dictator Gaius Julius Caesar was assassinated in the theatre of Pompey Magnus after been warned by a soothsayer previously to beware the Ides.
When they cremated his body in the forum a comet appeared in the sky which they took to be the spirit of Caesar ascending to heaven and so they declared him a god and built a temple to him at his cremation site. There are still flowers laid here to this day (I saw some in Jan earlier this year).
From then on all future emperors were declared divine and most were defied on their death.
Gibbon in “ a bit of history/boring people to death mode “
When they cremated his body in the forum a comet appeared in the sky which they took to be the spirit of Caesar ascending to heaven and so they declared him a god and built a temple to him at his cremation site. There are still flowers laid here to this day (I saw some in Jan earlier this year).
From then on all future emperors were declared divine and most were defied on their death.
Gibbon in “ a bit of history/boring people to death mode “
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