Summary
Highlights
Caesar arrives at the Senate House, dismisses warnings about the Ides of March, and ignores several attempts to warn him about the conspiracy. The conspirators orchestrate Anthony's removal, leaving Caesar vulnerable. Metellus Cimber begs Caesar to pardon his banished brother, creating a diversion. Caesar refuses, and the conspirators, led by Casca, stab him. Caesar's last words, "Et tu, Brute?" express his shock at Brutus's betrayal. Cinna declares tyranny dead, and Brutus controversially suggests they wash their hands in Caesar's blood.
Mark Antony arrives to find Caesar's body. Brutus attempts to justify the assassination as being for the good of Rome. Antony pretends to be convinced, shaking the bloody hands of the conspirators. He requests to take Caesar's body to the marketplace and speak to the crowd, which Brutus agrees to despite Cassius's apprehension. Left alone, Antony mourns Caesar and vows to avenge his death by killing the murderers.
At Caesar's funeral, Brutus addresses the crowd, claiming he killed Caesar for Rome's sake. The crowd is initially swayed until Antony speaks. His famous speech, beginning with "Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears," cunningly praises both Caesar and Brutus while subtly turning public opinion against the conspirators. When he reveals Caesar's will, leaving money to the Roman citizens, the crowd realizes Caesar was not a tyrant. They become enraged and storm off, seeking revenge against the conspirators.
Antony learns that Octavius and Lepidus are waiting for him. Brutus and Cassius have fled Rome. The enraged mob, seeking revenge, brutally kills the poet Cinna, mistaking him for the conspirator Cinna, and then sets off to burn the houses of the conspirators.