Events relating to greece
Julius Caesar returns to Britain for a second visit, this time reaching north of the Thames into the kingdom of Cassivellaunus
The death of Crassus at Carrhae brings to an end the first triumvirate
The Celtic leader Vercingetorix inflicts an unaccustomed defeat on Julius Caesar, at Gergovia, but is captured later in the year
In his winter quarters Julius Caesar writes The Gallic War, an account of his own achievements in suppressing the Gauls
Gladiators have metal studs on their boxing gloves, and a public bout is expected to go on until the loser dies
Julius Caesar crosses the river Rubicon (the southern boundary of Gaul) with his army – and in doing so launches a civil war
Julius Caesar defeats his rival Pompey at Pharsalus, in Greece, and makes himself master of the Roman world
Vercingetorix is a prize exhibit in Caesar's great triumph in Rome, but the Celtic chieftain is strangled once the procession is over
Julius Caesar's new calendar is introduced, at a time when its predecessor has become out of step with the seasons by three months

On March 15, the Ides of March, Julius Caesar is stabbed to death during a meeting of the senate
Octavian, an 18-year-old student in Apollonia, hears that he has been named by his uncle, Julius Caesar, as his successor and heir
Octavian and Mark Antony defeat the armies of Brutus and Cassius at Philippi, after which Brutus and Cassius commit suicide
Virgil's reputation is established by his ten Eclogues, influenced by the Italian countryside in the region of his birth near Mantua
Maecenas buys a farm for Horace, in the Sabine hills near Tivoli - the most fruitful of his many acts of patronage
Octavian defeats the forces of Antony and Cleopatra (both are at sea with their fleets) in a battle off the Greek coast at Actium

Octavian is given the life-long title of Augustus by the senate in Rome, becoming in effect the first Roman emperor
Livy begins writing and publishing his History of Rome, a task which will occupy him for forty years
The first three books of Horace's Odes are published, written on his Sabine farm
The excellence of the arts, particularly literature, during the reign of Augustus Caesar causes it to be remembered as a golden age of culture
A collection of witty love poems, entitled Amores, brings Ovid an early success
Augustus Caesar puts a team of surveyors to work mapping the empire's 50,000 miles of roads, a task which will take them twenty years
Roman author Vitruvius writes De Architectura, now generally known as The Ten Books of Architecture
Virgil dies just after completing the Aeneid, and imperial command from Augustus Caesar prevents his executor from destroying the epic
The period of stability achieved during the reign of Augustus Caesar has been given the name Pax Romana ('Roman peace')
The death of Augustus introduces half a century of chaos, as the members of his family compete ruthlessly for power