As a result of this work, these rivers started to flow in straight courses, as they do today. Caesar's decision for swift action forced Pompey, the unlawful consuls (C. Claudius Marcellus and L. Cornelius Lentulus Crus), and a large part of the Roman Senate to flee Rome in fear. Caesar had been appointed to a governorship over a region that ranged from southern Gaul to Illyricum (but not Italy). Pignotti R., Ravagli P., Donati G., "Rubico quondam finis Italiae", CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Rubicon&oldid=972500359, Articles containing Italian-language text, Wikipedia articles incorporating a citation from the 1911 Encyclopaedia Britannica with Wikisource reference, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, The locality of San Giovanni in Compito (now a western quarter of Savignano) has to be identified with the old.
In January of 49 BC, Caesar brought the 13th legion across the river, which the Roman government considered insurrection, treason, and a declaration of war on the Roman Senate. As dictator, Caesar presided over the end of the Roman Republic and the start of the Roman Empire. Julius Caesar's crossing the Rubicon river in January 49 BC precipitated the Roman Civil War, which ultimately led to Caesar's becoming dictator and the rise of the imperial era of Rome. In doing so, he deliberately broke the law on imperium and made armed conflict inevitable. Exploitation of underground waters along the upper course of the Rubicon has reduced its flow—it was a minor river even during Roman times ("parvi Rubiconis ad undas" as Lucan said, "to the waves of [the] tiny Rubicon")—and has since lost its natural route, except in its upper course, between low and woody hills. Quickly taking several northern towns, the news reached Rome by January 17. Key elements of their work are: Today there is very little evidence of Caesar's historical passage. Upon Julius Caesar's death, his adopted son Augustus became Rome's first emperor. The governors then served as generals of the Roman army within the territory they ruled. On the north-western side, the border was marked by the river Arno, a much wider and more important waterway, which flows westward from the Apennine Mountains (it and the Rubicon rise not far from each other) into the Tyrrhenian Sea. Updates? The Quattrocento humanist Flavio Biondo was deceived by it;[4] the actual inscription is conserved in the Museo Archeologico, Cesena. In doing so, he deliberately broke the law on imperium and made armed conflict inevitable. According to Suetonius, Caesar uttered the famous phrase ālea iacta est ("the die has been cast"). The Rubicon, like other small rivers of the region, often changed its course during this period. For this reason, and to supply fields with water after the revival of agriculture in the late Middle Ages, during the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, hydraulic works were built to prevent other floods and to regulate streams. Rubicon, Latin Rubico, or Rubicon, small stream that separated Cisalpine Gaul from Italy in the era of the Roman Republic. Attempts to deduce the original course of the Rubicon can be made only by studying written documents and other archaeological evidence such as Roman milestones, which indicate the distance between the ancient river and the nearest Roman towns.

[2] The phrase "crossing the Rubicon" has survived to refer to any individual or group committing itself irrevocably to a risky or revolutionary course of action, similar to the modern phrase "passing the point of no return". On 10 January 49 BC, Roman general Julius Caesar defied an ultimatum set to him by the Senate. They came-up with the name Rubicon, a reference to the idiom “crossing the Rubicon,” which means to pass a point of no return and refers to Julius Caesar’s army crossing the Rubicon River in 49 BC. For other uses, see, A brief account of the controversies favoring rivers of Romagna, between the Pisciatello, called the Rigone in its lowest reaches, the Fiumicino near Savignano and the Uso is in. In doing so, he deliberately broke the law limiting his imperium, making armed conflict inevitable. If a general entered Italy in command of an army, both the general and his soldiers became outlaws and were automatically condemned to death. After Caesar's crossing, the Rubicon was a geographical feature of note until about 42 BC, when Octavian merged the Province of Cisalpine Gaul into Italia and the river ceased to be the extreme northern border of Italy. The crossing of a small stream in northern Italy became one of ancient history's most pivotal events. After the fall of the Western Roman Empire, and during the first centuries of the Middle Ages, the coastal plain between Ravenna and Rimini was flooded many times. On the north-western side, the border was marked by the river Arno, a much wider and more important waterway, which flows westward from the Apennine Mountains (its source is not far from Rubicon's source) into the Tyrrhenian Sea. If he brought his veteran armies across the river Rubicon in northern Italy, the Republic would be in a state of civil war. It is about 500 miles (800 km) long with an average width of 100 miles, a maximum depth of 4,035 feet (1,324 metres), and an…. It is improbable that Caesar deliberately sought monarchical power until after he had crossed the Rubicon in 49 bce, though sufficient power to impose his will, as he was determined to do, proved to mean monarchical power. The distance from today's San Giovanni in Compito and the Fiumicino river is one Roman mile (1.48 km, 0.92 mi). The modern Rubicone (formerly Fiumicino) River is officially identified with the Rubicon that Caesar crossed, but the Pisciatello River to the north and the Uso to the south have also been suggested. Coordinates: 44°05′35″N 12°23′45″E / 44.093029°N 12.395834°E / 44.093029; 12.395834, January 49 BCE event leading to the Roman Civil War; also used as an idiom to mean a point of no return, CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (, Learn how and when to remove this template message, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Crossing_the_Rubicon&oldid=970849597, Short description is different from Wikidata, Articles needing additional references from May 2015, All articles needing additional references, Wikipedia articles incorporating a citation from the 1911 Encyclopaedia Britannica with Wikisource reference, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 2 August 2020, at 19:41. This took place during the time of the Roman Republic. At the war's end, Julius Caesar was declared dictator for life. In 1933, after various efforts that spanned centuries, the Fiumicino, which crossed the town of Savignano di Romagna (now Savignano sul Rubicone), was officially identified as the former Rubicon. In January 49 BC C. Julius Caesar led a single legion, Legio XIII, south over the Rubicon from Cisalpine Gaul to Italy to make his way to Rome. From it sprang the Roman Empire and the genesis of modern European culture. "Rubico" redirects here. In January 49 BC C. Julius Caesar led a single legion, Legio XIII, south over the Rubicon from Cisalpine Gaul to Italy to make his way to Rome.
Exercising imperium when forbidden by the law was a capital offence. The Rubicon was crossed and Caesar officially invaded the legal border from his province into Italy, thus starting the civil war. Today, the phrase "crossing the Rubicon" is a metaphor that means to pass a point of no return. During the late Roman Republic, the river Rubicon marked the boundary between the Roman province of Cisalpine Gaul to the north-east and Italy proper (controlled directly by Rome and its allies) to the south. Omissions? It was reported that Caesar dined with Sallust, Hirtius, Oppius, Lucius Balbus and Sulpicus Rufus on the night after his famous crossing into Italy January 10.[1]. According to Suetonius, Caesar uttered the famous phrase alea iacta est ("the die is cast"). By signing up for this email, you are agreeing to news, offers, and information from Encyclopaedia Britannica. Generals were thus obliged to disband their armies before entering Italy. The Rubicon is a shallow river in northeastern Italy, just south of Ravenna.

Suetonius depicts Caesar as undecided as he approached the river, and attributes the crossing to a supernatural apparition. Pompey, the Republic's hope, was left without his main army, which was still in Spain, and his support base was in the eastern provinces. It was reported that Caesar dined with Sallust, Hirtius, Gaius Oppius, Lucius Cornelius Balbus and Servius Sulpicius Rufus on the night after his crossing. We will now be performing system maintenance in Augustus from Saturday May 31 2017 4:00 PM to May 31 2017 11:00 PM (EST). It was reported that Caesar dined with Sallust, Hirtius, Oppius, Lucius Balbus and Sulpicus Rufus on the night after his famous crossing into Italy January 10. Caesar's subsequent victory in Caesar's civil war ensured that punishment for the infraction would never be rendered. It was known as Fiumicino prior to 1933, when it was identified with the ancient river Rubicon, famously crossed by Julius Caesar in 49 BC. The mile zero of a Roman road, from which distances were counted, was always the crossing between the Cardo and the Decumanus, the two principal streets in every Roman town, running north–south and east–west respectively. The movement of Julius Caesar’s forces over the Rubicon into Italy in 49 bc violated the law (the Lex Cornelia Majestatis) that forbade a general to lead an army out of the province to which he was assigned. Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree.... Adriatic Sea, arm of the Mediterranean Sea, lying between the Italian and Balkan peninsulas. Any promagistrate who entered Italy at the head of his troops forfeited his imperium and was therefore no longer legally allowed to command troops.

Savignano sul Rubicone is an industrial town and the river has become one of the most polluted in the Emilia-Romagna region. Furthermore, obeying the commands of a general who did not legally possess imperium was a capital offence. The decision robbed the Rubicon of its importance, and the name gradually disappeared from the local toponymy. The movement of Julius Caesar’s forces over the Rubicon into Italy in 49 bc violated the law (the Lex Cornelia Majestatis) that forbade a general to lead an army out of the province to which he was assigned.

As his term of governorship ended, the Roman Senate ordered Caesar to disband his army and return to Rome. The Via Aemilia (modern SS 9) still follows its original Roman course as it runs between the hills and the plain; it would have been the obvious course to follow as it was the only major Roman road east of the Apennine Mountains leading to and from the Po Valley. It was known as Fiumicino prior to 1933, when it was identified with the ancient river Rubicon, famously crossed by Julius Caesar in 49 BC. [2] The phrase "crossing the Rubicon" has survived to refer to any individual or group committing itself irrevocably to a risky or revolutionary course of action, similar to the modern phrase "passing the point of no return". [3] To support the claim of the Pisciatello, a spurious inscription forbidding the passage of an army in the name of the Roman people and Senate, the so-called Sanctio, was placed by a bridge on that river. Rubicon, Latin Rubico, or Rubicon, small stream that separated Cisalpine Gaul from Italy in the era of the Roman Republic. Be on the lookout for your Britannica newsletter to get trusted stories delivered right to your inbox. The Latin word Rubico comes from the adjective rubeus, meaning "red". Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). With this humble start, but grand ambition, Rubicon was born. Governors of Roman provinces were appointed promagistrates with imperium (roughly, "right to command") in one or more provinces.