Life Under The Last Empire, a Better Analogy for The Times
Maybe even better than Nazi Germany.
I’ve been thinking about Cicero lately.
Cicero’s story takes an interesting turn in 44 BCE, after the assassination of Julius Caesar. The dead dictator’s family made their own armies and started fighting each other for power. In particular, Caesar’s cousin Mark Antony worked against Caesar’s great nephew, Octavian Augustus. Each of them wanted all the power. Eventually, the War of Actium in 32 BCE (12 years later) resulted in Octavian’s triumph. He went on to found the Roman Empire as we know it, the first and perhaps the most brutal autocratic regime in history. Antony and Cleopatra knew what Octavian would do to them when he conquered Egypt, so they killed themselves.
The “Pax Romana” began in 27 BCE, an era of prosperity for Roman citizens after a long and intense era of bloodshed and instability. It was great if you were on the right side of things, not so great if you were the one the Romans built their civilization on. And so in the wake of Caesar’s death, Cicero became an outspoken critic of Mark Antony and Roman imperialism in general. He delivered a series of absolutely scorching speeches to the Senate, urging politicians and the public to limit Antony’s authority and even oust him from power.
Cicero straight up called Antony a public prostitute. If you consider history boring, you should read these speeches.
Here’s a good line:
“You are a drink-sodden, sex-ridden wreck. Never a day passes in that ill-reputed house of yours without the most repulsive orgies.”
Cicero goes on to slam Antony in these speeches for fraud, armed insurrection, corruption, embezzlement, and sodomy. He even calls him out for having a theater mistress—and he actually did. Her name was Cytheris. He took her out in public, which outraged the Roman elite. After all, they were extreme prudes. Back in 43 BCE, you did not want to hurl insults and accusations against a man who had essentially declared martial law and had centurions patrolling the streets for his enemies every day and night. And yet, Cicero persisted.
What happened to Cicero?
Did he get in trouble?