Italy, Massilia and Hispania, 49 BCE. Caesar crosses the Rubicon and turns a constitutional crisis into civil war. Pompey and the consuls abandon Rome, leaving officers such as Fronto to decide whether loyalty to a commander now means taking arms against the Republic they once served.
The campaign divides families, friendships and former comrades as Caesar races through Italy and towards the Pompeian armies in Spain. The siege of Massilia gives Fronto a particularly painful role against a city tied to his personal life. Swift victories cannot settle the moral question at the centre of the war: whether Caesar is rescuing Rome from corrupt enemies or destroying its remaining freedom.
Alex Gough
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