Commentaries of Julius Caesar

Commentaries of Julius Caesar are the memoirs of Julius Caesar on the Gallic War (58-51 BC) and Civil Wars (49-45 BC). These are reckoned the most perfect model of narration that in such circumstances was ever written, and a masterpiece. We know a great deal about the Gallic War and the Civil War mainly because of his own account of it, which is considered to be the best account of warfare ever written by any Roman. The commentaries retained their supremacy for at least another four centuries.

Caesar's memoirs under the title 'commentaries' started appearing in 58 BC in the Roman news bulletins - Acta Diurna, Acta Senatus, and Acta Publica - which he had got started.

Michael Grant said in his "History of Rome":

"the works were ... 'commentaries', a term which intentionally falls short of 'Histories', denoting rather a commander's dispatches or memoranda, amplified by informative material and speeches (intended, as always in antiquity, to covey background rather than the actual words employed). Caesar's formidable intellect and lucid, concise Latin transform these ostensibly modest works into masterpieces. His unique inside knowledge carries extraordinary authority, though at the same time the prescribed literary form, as well as his own inclination, encouraged an egotistic approach, allowing little credit to the immense, efficient staff-work behind each of his operations, or to the subordinates who conducted it and commanded his legions. Moreover, Caesar's desire to refute his political enemies at Rome leads to a good deal of distortion, not so much of the actual historical facts, which Caesar, being an excellent propagandist, prefers not to falsify, but of motives, impressions and implications."

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