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Primary sourceBook1921 (translation; text written 49-45 BCE)

The Civil Wars

Julius Caesar · 1921 (translation; text written 49-45 BCE)

Caesar's own account of the civil war against Pompey, presented here in a 1921 English and Latin edition.

Caesar's own account of his civil war against Pompey, a key primary source for his political struggle.

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The Civil WarsPDF · 404 pages
Julius Caesar, The Civil Wars, with English translation by A. G. Peskett, 1921. Loeb Classical Library edition.

About this source

What it is

This is Julius Caesar's own account of the civil war fought against Pompey in 49-45 BC. This edition, from the Loeb Classical Library, was translated into English by A. G. Peskett and printed with the original Latin, first published in 1914 and reprinted in 1921.

Why it matters

Written by Caesar himself, this text is a direct primary source for his version of the conflict with Pompey that ended the Roman Republic's old political order. It shows how Caesar chose to explain and justify his actions to a Roman audience.

Look closer

  • Why might Caesar's own account of a civil war he was fighting present only one side of events?
  • What can comparing Caesar's and Pompey's supposed reasons for fighting reveal about Roman politics?
  • What might this account leave out about the suffering caused by the war?

This book is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Julius Caesar on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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