By place Roman Republic •
Consuls:
Gaius Julius Caesar and
Publius Servilius Vatia Isauricus. Caesar is named consul for a period of five years. •
Caesar's Civil War: •
January 4 – Julius Caesar lands at
Dyrrhachium (
Durazzo). • March –
Mark Antony joins Julius Caesar. • April – Siege of Dyrrhachium: Julius Caesar builds a fortified line of entrenchments and besieges
Pompey the Great. • The Roman temple to
Bellona on the
Capitolinus outside
Rome is burnt to the ground. • May – Publius Servilius Vatia Isauricus, co-consul with Julius Caesar, destroys
Caelius's
magistrate's chair on his
tribunal. •
July 10 –
Battle of Dyrrhachium: Julius Caesar barely avoids a catastrophic defeat to Pompey in
Macedonia; he retreats to
Thessaly. •
August –
Battle of Pharsalus: Julius Caesar decisively defeats Pompey at
Pharsalus, who flees to
Egypt. Pompey's army by and large is pardoned. • Winter –
Siege of Oricum: Julius Caesar captures the strategic city port of
Oricum in
Epirus (modern
Albania). The garrison opens the town's gate and
Lucius Manlius Torquatus surrenders to Caesar. • December –
Battle of Nicopolis: King
Pharnaces II of Pontus defeats the Roman forces under
Gnaeus Domitius Calvinus, a loyal partisan of Julius Caesar.
Egypt •
September 28 – Pompey the Great is assassinated on the orders of King
Ptolemy XIII, after landing in Egypt (may have occurred
September 29, records unclear). • October – Julius Caesar reaches
Alexandria, a city founded by
Alexander the Great. He is met by an Egyptian delegation from Ptolemy XIII. The Egyptians offer him gifts: the ring of Pompey and his head. • Queen
Cleopatra VII returns to the palace rolled into a
Persian carpet and has it presented to Caesar by her servant. The Egyptian princess, only twenty-one years old, becomes his mistress. • December –
Battle in Alexandria: Forces of Caesar and his ally Cleopatra VII and those of rival King Ptolemy XIII and Queen
Arsinoe IV. The latter two are defeated and flee the city, but during the battle part of the
Library of Alexandria catches fire.
Asia •
Yuan becomes emperor of the
Han Dynasty (until
33 BC). == Births ==