Because of the assassination of Julius Caesar and the soothsayer's exchange about it with Julius Caesar, in Shakespeare's Julius Caesar tragedy, the Ides of March now signifies a fateful day.
Before the assassination of Julius Caesar, the Ides of March was simply a division of the calendar based on the phases of the moon. In some months, the Ides is on the 15th, and in others, it is the 13th. [See Roman Calendar.] Additionally, March's Ides marked the beginning of the consular year, since the two annually elected Roman consuls took office on the Ides from c. 220 B.C. to 153, when they began to take office on the Kalends of January (what we call New Year's Day).
Already in the days following the assassination, the Ides of March held a special significance. Instead of writing "the assassination of Caesar", Cicero could assume he would be understood when he alluded to it by reference to the Ides of March:
Idus Martiae consolantur.Like the conspirators, Cicero believed killing Julius Caesar was an act of liberation. His opponents claimed Julius Caesar was trying to reinstate the monarchy. The conspirators have been criticized for lack of foresight in not planning what would come next. Cicero, who although he sympathized with the plot against Caesar had not been not one of the knife-wielding assassins, went on to support Julius Caesar's heir, Octavian, the first emperor of Rome.
The Ides of March are encouraging.
Cicero Letters to Atticus.14.4 (April 19, 44 B.C.)
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a | b | c | d | e | f | g | h | i | j | k | l | m | n | o | p | q | r | s | t | u | v | wxyzCaesar:
Who is it in the press that calls on me?
I hear a tongue shriller than all the music
Cry "Caesar!" Speak, Caesar is turn'd to hear.Soothsayer:
Beware the ides of March.Caesar:
What man is that?Brutus:
A soothsayer bids you beware the ides of March.
Julius Caesar Act 1, scene 2, 15–19
