Comparison Between Julius Caesar and Abraham Lincoln Essay

Julius Caesar and Abraham Lincoln are considered among the great men who contributed to the world's history, judging by their leadership escapades on their respective countries. These two are still considered icons in our today's society and people even look up to them as prominent heroes; they were very influential during their time. Lives of these two heroes portrayed some unique similarities as well as differences.

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To start, both Caesar and Lincoln were in command of their people. They each ruled a nation and happened to possess enormous amounts of power. Julius Caesar served as Roman general and dictator in the Roman Empire whereas Abraham Lincoln served as a civil rights activist; then as a lawyer, and finally became the 16th president of the United States of America. It was a struggle for both to rise to the peak of leadership (Steers, 2005). Caesar rose through the ranks and ended up as consul of Rome in 59BC.

On the other hand, Lincoln rose from the position of a legislator to the rank of a president. This shows that the two leaders had the capability of being great. Apparently; both Julius Caesar and Abraham Lincoln were assassinated.

During their times of service, the two were involved in many wars, each of them being the brains behind these wars. These two initiated necessary tactical skills to the military and to the governors of their time which greatly assisted them to outshine their enemies at large. Caesar served as one of the soldiers and ultimately as a commander in numerous wars; one of his greatest achievement being the conquest of Gaul whereas Lincoln took part in the civil war where he fought endlessly to preserve the union.

Both men came during different periods of time; Julius Caesar was born on 12th July 100BC in Rome, son of Gaius and Aurelia while Abraham Lincoln was born on 12th February 1809 in Kentucky, USA. By the time Caesar was born, Rome had not yet become an empire as it was still a republic (julius caesar biography, 2016).

Over the years, Julius Caesar gained more power; increasing praetorship by 62BC. Majority of the senate members in the Roman council felt that Caesar was a dangerous man and would become a tyrant if tolerated. Caesar wanted total control over everything unlike Abraham Lincoln, though he wanted peace to prevail in Rome. Just like Lincoln, Caesar began having more foes as he became stronger and more powerful.

Much like Lincoln, Caesar began a war to fight for change. Lincoln joined politics where he made his way to the position of a Whig to the legislature. Unlike Caesar, who always applied dictatorial enforcements, Lincoln had a challenge of debating his opponent, Stephen Douglas. Lincoln and Douglas agreed to almost everything except the issue of slavery. This disagreement led to the eventual rise of the Lincoln-Douglas debates. Lincoln resulted in the issue concerning the Emancipation Proclamation in September 1862 which allowed slaves in the southern states to be freed. As a result of this, most of the southerners weren't pleased with Lincoln's move, and this made him acquire more enemies from the southern states. On the other hand, Julius Caesar started his quest for more power; he got himself into a civil war with the state and Pompei.This is a very similar case to Lincoln's case because he also had declared war on the southerners.

Caesar became the king in all but the title. He began a campaign against the Parthian empire which was not to be. A few months after Caesar's arrival in Rome, Caesar was assassinated at the hands of a group of senators who were former Pompeians whom Caesar had pardoned after the battle of Pharsalus. Caesar was lured into one of the back room of the Pompeii's theater where his conspirators attacked him, stabbing him 23times. Similarly; Abraham Lincoln was assassinated at a theater. However, the method of the assassination of these two great leaders was different. Abraham Lincoln was shot dead whereas, for Julius Caesar, he was stabbed. Lincoln got into the books of history as being the first president to be assassinated on a Good Friday, 14th April 1865 while attending a play at a theater, just like Julius Caesar (Editors, 2009). Both Caesar and Lincoln won their wars which had lasted for five years. By the time they were assassinated, they each had a child.

Conclusion

In conclusion, both Julius Caesar and Abraham Lincoln were two of the most remarkable leaders, and eminent leaders reminisced in history. They both fought for what they believed in even if it meant war; in the end, they emerged triumphant even though it led to their precocious deaths.

References

BIBLIOGRAPHY julius caesar biography. (2016, january 25). (A. T. Networks, Producer) Retrieved september 30, 2018, from https://www.biography.com/people/julius-caesar-9192504

Editors, H. (2009). ohn Wilkes Booth shoots Abraham Lincoln.

Steers, E. (2005). The Assassination of Abraham Lincoln. Kentucky.