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Caesar on the best death, as Plutarch tells it

44 BCE, Rome. As Plutarch tells it, over a century later.

Where and when

44 BCERome

2,069 years ago

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Julius Caesar

, RomeAs Plutarch tells it, over a century later

In plain words, ours

At dinner the talk turned to what kind of death is best. Before anyone else could answer, he said: the one you don’t see coming.

Moreover, on the day before, when Marcus Lepidus was entertaining him at supper, Caesar chanced to be signing letters, as his custom was, while reclining at table, and the discourse turned suddenly upon the question what sort of death was the best; before any one else could answer Caesar cried out: That which is unexpected.

Plutarch, Life of Caesar 63.4Translated by Bernadotte Perrin (1919)Read the full passage (Plutarch, Life of Caesar 63.4, opens scaife.perseus.org)

What was going on, our summary

Plutarch, writing over a century later, sets this the day before the Ides of March, 44 BCE, when Caesar was stabbed to death at a Senate meeting. He also passes on a story, told by many, that a seer had warned Caesar about that day. Now Caesar is at supper with Marcus Lepidus, signing letters.

Checked claim by claim against: Caesar is stabbed to death in the Senate, the passage around the quote.

Why it matters

About the event it belongs to: Caesar is stabbed to death in the Senate

The killing failed to restore the Republic. Instead it led to Caesar's deification and a civil war between his supporters and his killers, which became a stage in the Republic's collapse.

Based on Wikipedia: Assassination of Julius Caesar

The assassination failed to achieve its immediate objective of restoring the Republic's institutions.

Instead, it precipitated Caesar's posthumous deification and was followed by the Liberators' civil war (43–42 BC) between his supporters and the conspirators, which became a stage in the collapse of the Republic.

Wikipedia, Assassination of Julius Caesar (opens en.wikipedia.org), as of 2026-09-29. Text CC BY-SA 4.0. Our line is checked against these sentences only.

Related moments

In time order, with this one in its place. Each says why it is here.

  1. c. 50 BCEabout 6 years earlier Cato warns the Senate about Caesar, in Plutarch Also in Rome
  2. 46 BCE2 years earlier Cato kills himself rather than accept Caesar's pardon Same years
  3. 46 BCE2 years earlier Caesar on Cato's death, as Plutarch tells it More from Julius Caesar
  4. 44 BCESame year Caesar is stabbed to death in the Senate The event behind itAlso in RomeAlso about death
  5. 44 BCEThis momentCaesar on the best death, as Plutarch tells it
  6. 44 BCESame year Antony at Caesar's funeral, in Plutarch Also in Rome
  7. 44 BCESame year Caesar and the soothsayer, in Suetonius More from Julius Caesar
  8. 44 BCESame year The stabbing of Caesar, as Suetonius tells it More from Julius Caesar
  9. 44 BCE, written laterSame year Cicero on Cato's choice to die Also about death
  10. 43 BCE1 year later Cicero is killed on Antony's orders Same years
  11. 42 BCE2 years later Antony and Octavian defeat Caesar's killers at Philippi Same years

Just before and after

The text around the quote, word for word from the same translation.

Show the passageHide the passage

The following story, too, is told by many. A certain seer warned Caesar to be on his guard against a great peril on the day of the month of March which the Romans call the Ides; and when the day had come and Caesar was on his way to the senate-house, he greeted the seer with a jest and said: Well, the Ides of March are come, and the seer said to him softly: Aye, they are come, but they are not gone.

The quote: Moreover, on the day before, when Marcus Lepidus was entertaining him at supper, Caesar chanced to be signing letters, as his custom was, while reclining at table, and the discourse turned suddenly upon the question what sort of death was the best; before any one else could answer Caesar cried out: That which is unexpected.

After this, while he was sleeping as usual by the side of his wife, all the windows and doors of the chamber flew open at once, and Caesar, confounded by the noise and the light of the moon shining down upon him, noticed that Calpurnia was in a deep slumber, but was uttering indistinct words and inarticulate groans in her sleep; for she dreamed, as it proved, that she was holding her murdered husband in her arms and bewailing him.

Plutarch, Life of Caesar 63.3–5Translated by Bernadotte Perrin (1919)Read the full passage (opens scaife.perseus.org)

When, and whose words

Date
44 BCE. The evening before the Ides of March, 44 BCE; Plutarch wrote c. 100–120 CE.
Whose words
As Plutarch tells it, over a century later.
How this post was checked
  • The plain-words line was read against the quote alone by a second, independent pass, which found it adds no claim the quote does not make (2026-10-03).
  • Each claim in the summary was checked by an independent pass against only the material it cites.
  • The quote itself is checked by the build: word for word, once, at the cited section of the stored translation.

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