In 49 BC Julius Caesar led his army across the Rubicon river — a direct act of treason against the Roman Republic that triggered a civil war. The phrase crossing the Rubicon has since become a metaphor for any irreversible decision made with full knowledge of its consequences. Caesar knew what he was doing. He defeated Pompey, became dictator of Rome and was assassinated three years later. His crossing transformed the Roman Republic into what became the Roman Empire. Was Caesar right to cross the Rubicon — or did his ambition destroy the greatest republic in history?
