Before Caesar, There Was the Powerful Pompey the Great
Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus, better known as Pompey or Pompey the Great (106 – 48 BC) was one of the most powerful statesmen and generals of the Roman Republic’s final decades. He was eventually by eclipsed by Julius Caesar, whose son in law and partner in a scheme to divvy up Rome known as the First Triumvirate, Pompey became. The fell out though, and became rivals, and finally enemies, in the civil war that tore apart the Roman Republic after Caesar crossed the Rubicon into Italy with an army in 49 BC.
Pompey was born into a family that had only recently joined the senatorial ranks. It was nonetheless a powerful and incredibly wealthy family, with vast holdings in Picenum in central Italy. His father was a general who became consul in 89 BC, and had a reputation for double dealing, greed, and ruthlessness. An ally of the dictator Sulla, he was killed in 87 BC in a civil war against the supporters of Gaius Marius, Sulla’s rival. Nineteen-year-old Pompey inherited his father’s vast wealth and, more importantly, his legions. When Sulla returned to Italy from a war against Pontus, Pompey joined him with three legions in his march on and seizure of Rome. As seen below, it was the start of a rapid rise that saw Pompey become Rome’s most powerful figure.