In the unstable period after Caesar’s death, Cicero greatly opposed Mark Antony, believing he was a threat to the Roman Republic’s restoration and survival, and he encouraged the Roman Senate to support Antony’s rival Octavian instead. “Since the whole of our poorer class is being oppressed by the hand of recklessness and crime, and groaning under the infamy of our law-courts, I declare myself to these criminals as their enemy and their accuser, as their pertinacious, bitter, and unrelenting adversary… I here issue this warning, this public notice, this preliminary proclamation: To all those who are in the habit of depositing or receiving deposits for bribery, of undertaking to offer or offering bribes, or of acting as agents or go-betweens for the corruption of judges in our courts, and to all those who have offered to make use of their power or their shamelessness for these purposes: in this present trial, take care that your hands and your minds are kept clear of this vile crime.” Some critics accused Cicero of violating the rights of Roman citizens, since he put the revolutionaries to death without a trial, and as he later fell out of favor among political elites, the decision became a weapon for his enemies.
Author: Austin Harvey
Published at: 2025-09-29 23:00:00
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