Beware the Ides of March
During the Roman Republic, the Ides were the time of the month when the full moon appeared, usually around the 15th. It was the date traditionally used to settle debts.[1]
In Shakespeare’s play, Julius Caesar (1599), one of the characters said to Caesar, “beware the Ides of March.” Caesar was assassinated in the Senate on the Ides of March, 44 BC (709 AUC).
Considering his meteoric rise to power as Dictator, perhaps he had some personal debts?[2]
According to Jean Andreau, writing for the Committee for the Abolition of Illegitimate Debt states,[3]
“From the beginning of the first century BC to the end of the first century Comon Era. There were four major debt and repayment crises in Italy. The first between 91 and 81 BC, then another around 60 BC, which provoked the Conjuration of Catalina, a third from 49 to 46 BC during the civil war between Caesar and Pompeii and the Pompeiiens. There was another in 33.”
Steven Fife, writing for the World History Encyclopedia, writes,[4]
“One of the initial crises with which Caesar had to deal was widespread debt in Rome, especially after the outbreak of civil war when lenders demanded repayment of loans and real estate values collapsed. The result was a serious shortage of coinage in circulation as people hoarded whatever they had. Realizing the seriousness of the situation, Caesar ordered that property must be accepted for repayment at its pre-war value.
[…]
Caesar later cancelled all interest payments due since the beginning of 49 BC and permitted tenants to pay no rent for one year.
[…]
In addition to debt, Caesar had to deal with widespread unemployment in Rome. As a way to reduce the unemployment, the poor were offered a new life in Rome's overseas colonies.
[…]
The construction of new public buildings also served as a method of reducing unemployment in the city…”
Unpaid debts? Property values needing to be propped up by the government? Tax funded employment and welfare? Sound familiar?
Maybe the creditors were less enthused with debt defaults than their debtors. In a situation like that, Caesar could not please everyone.
Luckily, human nature has evolved. What is $28 trillion between friends?
Next come the necessary taxes to kill us by 1000 cuts.[5][6]
Source: History of the World: Part 1 (1981).
Pay your debts or beware the Ides.
[1]https://nationaltoday.com/ides-of-march/
[2]https://publicseminar.org/essays/what-julius-caesar-and-his-debts-can-teach-us-about-donald-trump/
[3]https://www.cadtm.org/Personal-endebtment-and-debt#nb8
[4]https://www.ancient.eu/article/112/caesar-as-dictator-his-impact-on-the-city-of-rome/
[5]https://www.hamiltonmobley.com/blog/guztul12vkm6b2rsgt8m4p49sxgfol
