Beware The Ides Of March?
Three months into the new year and you might hear someone say: “Beware the Ides of March”, followed by “Well, you can’t be too careful can you?” But what does it mean and how and when did it originate?
William Shakespeare introduced the phrase as a warning from a soothsayer to Julius Caesar in the play of the same name. The prophesy also gave a date March 15th on which to take special care.
Today, many use it, without really knowing why.
It was from history that Shakespeare drew his inspiration for his famous phrase.
Gaius Julius Caesar was a Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate. He led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey The Great in a civil war, subsequently becoming dictator from 49 BC until his assassination in 44 BC. on the Ides of March. In the Roman calendar this was the middle of the month.
Kalends, Nones and Ides were actually ancient markers used to reference dates in relation to lunar phases. Ides referred to the first full moon of a given month, which usually fell between the 13th and 15th.
The Ides of March once had a totally different connotation, signifying the new year, which meant celebrations and rejoicing.