Eli5: Why was it world-changing that Caesar crossed the Rubicon?
In: 1397
There’s an entire [Netflix series dramatizing and retelling the history of Ceasar’s rise from soldier to emperor](https://www.netflix.com/us/title/80096545?s=a&trkid=13747225&t=cp&vlang=en&clip=81014090), so that will probably help clarify with historical context.
But first a few key points to understand the situation:
* Caesar was essentially “exiled” from the Roman Republic by Pompey “gifting” him with a governorship of any province he wanted (essentially forced retirement from politics in Rome itself by forcing Caesar to live in the boonies someplace), which forced Caesar to leave Rome and helped eliminate the threat Pompey felt from Caesar.
* Caesar chose to become governor of a border territory, then took it upon himself to amass an army and start conquering territory and he was so successful that he wound up conquering all of Gaul (modern France) and became massively popular and celebrated in Rome as a direct result of his conquests, stories, and the plunder he sent back to Rome.
* Pompey raised a stink and said that Caesar had committed the crime of raising an army and going to war without the prior approval of the Senate, he demanded that Caesar surrender himself so that he could stand trial for his crimes for which he would likely be found guilty because Pompey had the support of the Senate to convict.
At this point Caesar had a choice to make. He could either:
1. Surrender himself, stand trial, and likely be executed as an enemy of the Republic because the senators had vendettas against him and saw him as a major threat.
2. He could march his army to Rome, technically an act of war against the Republic, and see if he could negotiate, cajole, or fight his way to a resolution.
He chose #2 and in doing so went to war against the Roman Republic (the Senate) and after a long series of events returned to Rome to claim the title of “Dictator” effectively ending the Republic and beginning the Empire.
It was “world changing” because that decision to cross the Rubicon was the moment where Caesar sealed the fate of the Republic and began the long, bloody, and tragic history of Roman Emperors who would wield absolute power over their massive empire in all kinds of ways that impacted the lives of people all over the world.
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