Aurelia

Although little is known about Julius Caesar's mother, Aurelia, she nonetheless leaves a strong impression. As British historian W. Warde Fowler put it, "What little we know of her is such as to make us wish for more."

Let's see what we can learn about this remarkable woman from the few scraps of historical record.

 

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1. Aurelia came from a very successful plebian family. Both her father and grandfather were consuls. Her husband was Gaius Julius Caesar (born c. 132 BC). They had three children: Julia Major, Julia Minor, and THE Gaius Julius Caesar (b. 100 BC). The daughters were born c. 110 and 105 BC, respectively. This places Aurelia's year of birth at c. 128 BC.

2. Aurelia was credited with Caesar's upbringing:

"In the good old days, every man's son, born in wedlock, was brought up not in the chamber of some hireling nurse, but in his mother's lap, and at her knee. And that mother could have no higher praise than that she managed the house and gave herself to her children. . . in the presence of such an one no base word could be uttered without grave offence, and no wrong deed done. Religiously and with the utmost delicacy she regulated not only the serious tasks of her youthful charges, but their recreations also and their games. It was in this spirit, we are told, that Cornelia, the mother of the Gracchi, directed their upbringing, Aurelia that of Caesar, Atia of Augustus: thus it was that these mothers trained their princely children." – Tacitus

Atia was Julia Minor's daughter, so it seems like Aurelia set an example for her children and grandchildren to follow.

3. From 88 to 82 BC, Rome had her first civil war. Over the course of six years, the city was stormed by Roman legions three times: by Sulla in 88, by Marius and Cinna in 87, and by Sulla again in 82. Marius happened to be Caesar's uncle by marriage, so their family got a front-row seat to this shitshow.

Caesar was only 15 when his father died, so it fell to Aurelia to guide him through the turbulent years of the 80s BC. She never remarried and lived with her son for the rest of her life.

"On her fell the task of completing his education, and throughout his life she seems to have remained his true friend." – W. Warde Fowler

4. At 16, Caesar married Cinna's daughter, Cornelia (born c. 98 BC). The union was likely decided by Marius and Cinna back in 87 BC.

Given their young age, Aurelia must have been a great support to them. Cornelia would have needed guidance to adjust to her new home and learn how to run the household. In a sense, you could say that Cornelia was also raised by Aurelia.

5. Sulla recaptured Rome in 82 BC. Both Marius and Cinna were already dead by that point. Upon his victory, Sulla ordered Caesar to divorce Cornelia. Other men received similar orders and complied (for example, Marcus Pupius Piso divorced Cinna's widow, Annia). However, Caesar refused:

"...and the dictator Sulla could by no means force him to put away his wife. Therefore besides being punished by the loss of his priesthood, his wife's dowry, and his family inheritances, Caesar was held to be one of the opposite party. He was accordingly forced to go into hiding, and though suffering from a severe attack of quartan ague [malaria], to change from one covert to another almost every night, and save himself from Sulla's detectives by bribes. But at last, through the good offices of the Vestal virgins and of his near kinsmen, Mamercus Aemilius and Aurelius Cotta, he obtained forgiveness." – Suetonius

The last part was most certainly Aurelia's influence. How do we know? First of all, petitioning the Vestals was a woman's prerogative. Second, Mamercus Aemilius and Aurelius Cotta were her relatives (the former being a distant one). It stands to reason that she pleaded with them to help her son.

"In the end Caesar was saved by his mother. Aurelia persuaded the Vestal Virgins, along with some of her relations – most notably her cousin Caius Aurelius Cotta as well as Mamercus Aemilius Lepidus – to plead with the dictator for her son's life. Cotta and Lepidus had both sided with Sulla in the civil war and would each win the consulship in the next few years. The lobbying of such influential men, combined with Caesar's lack of real importance, won a pardon." – Adrian Goldsworthy

6. Caesar returned to Rome after Sulla's death in 78 BC. At some point, Cornelia gave birth to their daughter, Julia. The most popular suggestion is 74, though 82 BC is also possible.

In 73 BC, Caesar was admitted to the college of pontiffs. A vacant spot was created by the death of Aurelius Cotta. Mamercus Aemilius was also a pontiff, so it seems like Caesar's connections on his mother's side helped him get in.

"If Caesar was taking the place of Gaius Cotta, it is reasonable to suppose that his mother Aurelia played a part in the business. Perhaps the original proposal came from Mamercus Aemilius Lepidus Livianus, who in 81 had helped to secure Caesar's pardon." – Matthias Gelzer

7. Since Aurelia lived with her son, she must have been the one to raise Julia after Cornelia's death in 69 BC.

"She had been carefully raised by Caesar's mother Aurelia since the death of her own mother Cornelia in 69, and was much beloved by her father." – Richard A. Billows

8. In 63 BC, Caesar was competing for the post of Pontifex Maximus. He borrowed a lot of money to campaign for it, so it was crucial for him to win this.

"The day of the election came, and Caesar's mother was tearfully seeing him off from the house. He embraced her, and said: 'today, mother, you will see your son either a high-priest or an exile.'" – Plutarch

"Thinking on the enormous debt which he had thus contracted, he is said to have declared to his mother on the morning of his election, as she kissed him when he was starting for the polls, that he would never return except as pontifex. And in fact he so decisively defeated two very strong competitors (for they were greatly his superiors in age and rank), that he polled more votes in their tribes than were cast for both of them in all the tribes." – Suetonius

9. At this time, Caesar was married to Pompeia (born c. 90 BC), daughter of Quintus Pompeius Rufus. Despite being married for five years, they had no children. They honestly seemed mismatched. Aurelia clearly wasn't thrilled about her second daughter-in-law.

"Publius Clodius was a noble, wealthy and articulate, and a man who outdid the most notorious of scoundrels in his arrogance and reckless aggression. He was in love with Caesar's wife Pompeia, and she was herself not unreceptiye. But the women's quarters were closely guarded, and Caesar's mother Aurelia was in constant attendance on his young wife. Aurelia was a most virtuous and respectable woman, and the meetings of Pompeia and Clodius were always most difficult and hazardous." – Plutarch

10. In 62 BC, Clodius disrupted the Bona Dea celebrations held at the residence of the Pontifex Maximus. It was a women-only festival, with no men allowed. When Clodius was caught, Aurelia handled the situation like a boss.

"The attendant of Aurelia at once sprang away with a scream to the lights and the throng, crying out that she had caught a man. The women were panic-stricken, and Aurelia put a stop to the mystic rites of the goddess and covered up the emblems. Then she ordered the doors to be closed and went about the house with torches, searching for Clodius. He was found where he had taken refuge, in the chamber of the girl who had let him into the house; and when they saw who he was, the women drove him out of doors." – Plutarch

Aurelia's composure is very reminiscent of how Caesar acted in times of crisis.

"Aurelia reacted with the calm efficiency that it seems was a hallmark of her own character as well as her son's." – Adrian Goldsworthy

11. Caesar divorced Pompeia, and Clodius was tried for sacrilege. Aurelia and her daughter Julia (most likely the younger one, as Julia Major seems to have died rather young) testified against him in court, but Clodius was acquitted through massive bribing.

 

"When summoned as a witness against Publius Clodius, the paramour of his wife Pompeia, charged on the same count with sacrilege, Caesar declared that he had no evidence, although both his mother Aurelia and his sister Julia had given the same jurors a faithful account of the whole affair; and on being asked why it was then that he had put away his wife, he replied: 'Because I maintain that the members of my family should be free from suspicion, as well as from accusation.'" – Suetonius

 

12. In 59 BC, Caesar attained the highest office in the Roman Republic. Aurelia could proudly say that she raised a son who became a consul.

"As January of the year 59 BCE began, Caesar stood atop the Roman world, at the apex of the Roman politician's career ladder. He was consul, one of the two annual presiding officers of the Roman state, holder of the office that was, for Roman nobles, the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. As he went through the rituals of the first day of the official year, surrounded by the lictors (attendants) carrying the ceremonial rods (fasces) that symbolized his power, he must have felt a deep satisfaction: he had fulfilled his responsibility to his gens, the Julii, to maintain their status at the forefront of the Roman nobility. Whatever happened hereafter, he would never have to feel shame before his ancestors." – Richard A. Billows

13. That same year, Caesar married Calpurnia (born c. 75 BC), daughter of Calpurnius Piso. Meanwhile, his daughter Julia married Pompey. Both marriages were politically motivated, but by all accounts Julia loved Pompey deeply. Caesar and Calpurnia also got along well. As Calpurnia was young, we can assume that Aurelia became a mentor to her too.

14. When Caesar left for Gaul in March of 58 BC, it was the last time Aurelia saw him. It's bittersweet, but she got to see her son become a great commander. This was important to the ancients.

"The Roman electorate and society in general admired military glory above almost everything else." – Adrian Goldsworthy

15. Aurelia died in 54 BC, the same year as her granddaughter Julia. According to Suetonius, Aurelia died first. It's a small mercy that she didn't see the death of her granddaughter or the murder of her son.

"In the year 54 Caesar's great mother Aurelia, and his daughter Julia, Pompey's wife, both died. A child which Julia had borne to Pompey died also, and the powerful if silent influence of two remarkable women, and the joint interest in an infant, who would have been Caesar's heir as well as Pompey's, were swept away together." – James Anthony Froude

On a happier note, she lived to see the birth of several grandchildren and great-grandchildren, including Octavian, the future emperor Augustus.

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For the Romans, raising the next generation to bring glory to their family was a fundamental part of their mentality. Aurelia couldn't have done a more splendid job. The way she raised her son allowed him to realize his full potential. And she was always there for him through thick and thin.

"She was remembered for the care which she took over her son's upbringing, and all her life she had over him that strong maternal influence which more than one other outstanding man in history has experienced." – J. P. V. D. Balsdon