Roman Civil Wars · War Crimes & Atrocities
The Roman Civil Wars (49–31 BC) produced two categories of mass atrocity: the deliberate political terror of the Proscriptions, in which the Triumvirate condemned thousands of Roman citizens to death to eliminate opponents and seize their property; and the sacking of Roman towns by competing factions, most notoriously the destruction of Perusia by Octavian in 40 BC. These events represented a form of state violence against Roman citizens that had been essentially unknown since Sulla's proscriptions in 82 BC — and the civil wars' repetition of that pattern made clear that the Republic's institutions could no longer protect its citizens from the ambitions of its generals.
2,300+
deaths
Victims: Roman citizens — approximately 300 senators and 2,000 equites (knights); plus their households and supporters
300+
deaths
Victims: The city's population and garrison; specifically, 300 Roman knights and senators reportedly executed at the altar of the Divine Julius
1+
deaths
Victims: Caesarion (Ptolemy XV Caesar), son of Julius Caesar and Cleopatra, approximately 17 years old