Karl Theodor von Piloty Murder of Caesar 1865

Publius Servilius Casca Longus (died ) was one of the

assassin Assassination is the willful killing, by a sudden, secret, or planned attack, of a personespecially if prominent or important. It may be prompted by political, ideological, religious, financial, or military motives. Assassinations are orde ...

s of

Julius Caesar Gaius Julius Caesar (12 or 13 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC) was a Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in Caesar's civil wa ...

and plebeian tribune in 43 BC. He and several other senators conspired to kill him, a plan which they carried out on 15 March 44 BC. Afterward, Casca fought with the liberators during the Liberators' civil war. He is believed to have died at the Battle of Phillipi either by suicide or at the hands of Octavian's forces.

Life

Despite his being initially a childhood friend of Caesar, Casca and his brother Titedius joined in the assassination. Casca struck the first blow, attacking Caesar from behind and hitting his bare shoulders, after Tillius Cimber had distracted the dictator by grabbing his toga. Caesar replied "Casca, you villain, what are you doing?" and tussled with him for several seconds. Casca simultaneously shouted to his brother in Greek, "Brother, help me!" The other assassins then joined in. In December 44 BC, Casca assumed office as plebeian tribune. No unrest was associated with his taking office and he allied himself with

Cicero Marcus Tullius Cicero ( ; ; 3 January 106 BC – 7 December 43 BC) was a Roman statesman, lawyer, scholar, philosopher, orator, writer and Academic skeptic, who tried to uphold optimate principles during the political crises tha ...

and Brutus' mother Servilia. However, after Octavian marched on Rome during the War of Mutina, Casca fled the city and joined Marcus Junius Brutus and Gaius Cassius Longinus, the leaders of the assassins, in the Liberators' civil war against the

Second Triumvirate The Second Triumvirate was an extraordinary commission and magistracy created at the end of the Roman republic for Mark Antony, Lepidus, and Octavian to give them practically absolute power. It was formally constituted by law on 27 November ...

of Antony, Lepidus, and Octavian. When he fled the city, his colleague, Publius Titius, had Casca's tribunate abrogated. He seems to have died, probably by suicide, in the aftermath of their defeat at the Battle of Philippi, in October 42 BC. There is no reference to him in any of the sources after this date. Casca is commemorated on a coin along with Brutus, in which a bearded figure is depicted next to his name. However, this appears to be the god

Neptune Neptune is the eighth and farthest known planet from the Sun. It is the List of Solar System objects by size, fourth-largest planet in the Solar System by diameter, the third-most-massive planet, and the densest giant planet. It is 17 t ...

rather than a portrait of Casca. Elmley Lovett in England is the place where a coin hoard was found to include a rare Roman Republican silver denarius of Brutus with Casca Longus struck at a mint moving with Brutus 43-42 BC. A house containing a table inscribed with his name is found in

Pompeii Pompeii ( ; ) was a city in what is now the municipality of Pompei, near Naples, in the Campania region of Italy. Along with Herculaneum, Stabiae, and Villa Boscoreale, many surrounding villas, the city was buried under of volcanic ash and p ...

Dramatic depictions

* He is called "envious Casca" by

Mark Antony Marcus Antonius (14 January 1 August 30 BC), commonly known in English as Mark Antony, was a Roman people, Roman politician and general who played a critical role in the Crisis of the Roman Republic, transformation of the Roman Republic ...

William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 23 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

's play ''

'' (1599). He is also referred to as "dull" and having a "sour fashion". He speaks in prose more frequently than the other characters who usually speak in verse. **"See what a rent the envious Casca made". The two words became the title of a mystery novel by Georgette Heyer. * In the 1934 film ''

Cleopatra Cleopatra VII Thea Philopator (; The name Cleopatra is pronounced , or sometimes in both British and American English, see and respectively. Her name was pronounced in the Greek dialect of Egypt (see Koine Greek phonology). She was ...

'', Casca is portrayed by Edwin Maxwell. * In the 1937–38 Mercury Theatre stage production '' Caesar'', Publius was played by Joseph Cotten. * In the 1953 film of Shakespeare's ''

'', Casca is portrayed by Edmond O'Brien. * In the 1963 film ''

'', Casca is portrayed by Carroll O'Connor. * In the 1970 film of Shakespeare's ''

'', Casca is portrayed by Robert Vaughn. * In the 1999 miniseries ''

'', Casca is portrayed by David Schofield. * In the TV series ''

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

'' (2005–07), Casca is portrayed by Peter Gevisser. * In a 2018 National Theatre production at the Bridge Theatre, Casca is portrayed by Adjoa Andoh

References

External links

*
Appian, ''The Civil Wars,'' Book 2 Chapter 16
from the Perseus Project
Plutarch, ''Lives'', ''Caesar'', Chapter 66
from the Perseus Project
Brutus - Casca coin
{{DEFAULTSORT:Servilius Casca, Publius 42 BC deaths 1st-century BC Romans Ancient Roman politicians Ancient Roman politicians who died by suicide Assassins of Julius Caesar Casca, Publius Suicides in Italy Year of birth unknown Year of death uncertain

Life

Dramatic depictions

See also

References

External links