Editing Rubicon (section)

===Caesar's crossing===
{{Further|Crossing the Rubicon}}
[[File: CæSAR PAUSED ON THE BANKS OF THE RUBICON.gif|thumb|[[Julius Caesar]] just before [[crossing the Rubicon]]]]

In 49 BC, perhaps on the 10th of January, [[Julius Caesar]] led a single [[Roman legion|legion]], [[Legio XIII Gemina]], south over the Rubicon from Cisalpine Gaul to Italy to make his way to Rome. In doing so, he deliberately broke the law limiting his {{lang|la|[[imperium]]}}, making armed conflict inevitable. [[Suetonius]] depicts Caesar as undecided as he approached the river, and attributes the crossing to a supernatural apparition. It was reported that Caesar dined with [[Sallust]], [[Hirtius]], [[Gaius Oppius]], [[Lucius Cornelius Balbus (consul)|Lucius Cornelius Balbus]], and [[Servius Sulpicius Rufus]] on the night after his crossing.

According to Suetonius, Caesar uttered the famous phrase {{lang|la|[[alea iacta est]]}} ('the [[dice|die]] is cast') upon crossing the Rubicon, signifying that his action was irreversible.<ref>''[[Lives of the Caesars]]'', "Divus Julius" sect. 32. Suetonius gives the [[Latin]] version, {{lang|la|iacta alea est}}, although, according to [[Plutarch]]'s ''Parallel Lives'', Caesar quoted a line from the playwright [[Menander]]: {{lang|grc|ἀνερρίφθω κύβος}}, {{lang|grc-Latn|anerríphthō kȳbos}}, 'let the die be cast'. Suetonius's subtly different translation is often also quoted as {{lang|la|alea iacta est}}.</ref> The phrase "crossing the Rubicon" is now used to refer to committing irrevocably to a grave course of action, similar to the modern phrase "passing the [[point of no return]]," but with the added connotation of risking danger. The presence of Caesar and his legion in Italy forced [[Pompey]], the [[Roman consul|consuls]], and a large part of the senate to flee Rome. Caesar's victory in the [[Caesar's Civil War|subsequent civil war]] ensured that he would never be punished for his actions.