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{{WP-REAL|Marcus Junius Brutus the Younger}}
{{WP-REAL|Marcus Junius Brutus the Younger}}
'''Marcus Junius Brutus''' (early June 85 BC – late October 42 BC), often referred to simply as '''Brutus''', was a politician of the late [[Roman Empire|Roman Republic]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood">''[[Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood]]''</ref> and a member of the [[Roman Assassins|Roman Assassin Brotherhood]].<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy">''[[Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy]]''</ref> He took a leading role in the assassination conspiracy against the dictator [[Gaius Julius Caesar|Julius Caesar]].
'''Marcus Junius Brutus''' (early June 85 BC – late October 42 BC), more commonly known simply as '''Brutus''', was a politician of the late [[Roman Empire]], and a member of the [[Roman Assassins|Roman Assassin Brotherhood]].
 
Most notably, Brutus held a leading role in the assassination conspiracy against the dictator [[Gaius Julius Caesar]].


==Biography==
==Biography==
===Early life===
===Early life===
Marcus Junius Brutus the Younger was the son of Marcus Junius Brutus the Elder and Servilia Caepionis. His father was killed by Pompey the Great in dubious circumstances after he had taken part in the rebellion of Lepidus; his mother was the half-sister of Cato the Younger, and later became Julius Caesar's mistress. Some sources refer to the possibility of Caesar being his real father. Brutus' uncle, Quintus Servilius Caepio adopted him in about 59 BC, and Brutus was known officially for a time as '''Quintus Servilius Caepio Brutus''' before he reverted to using his birth-name. However, following Caesar's assassination in 44 BC, Brutus revived his adoptive name in order to illustrate his links to another famous tyrannicide, Servilius Ahala, from whom he was descended.<ref name="Wikipedia: Marcus Junius Brutus">[[wikipedia:Marcus Junius Brutus the Younger|''Wikipedia'': Marcus Junius Brutus]]</ref> He was, at some point, inducted into the Assassin Order.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy" />
[[File:Intervention.png|thumb|250px|left|The Roman Senate.]]
Brutus was born of Marcus Junius Brutus the Elder and Servilia Caepionis. His father was killed by Pompey the Great after having taken part in the rebellion of Lepidus, and his mother would later become Julius Caesar's mistress. Some sources refer to the possibility of Caesar being Brutus' real father.<ref name="Wikipedia">[[wikipedia:Marcus Junius Brutus the Younger|''Wikipedia'': Marcus Junius Brutus]]</ref>
 
Sometime prior to 45 BC, Brutus became a member of the Roman Senate, as well as the [[Assassins|Assassin Order]]. Many of his Assassin brothers also shared his role as both senator and Liberatore.<ref name="Project Legacy - Giovanni Borgia">''[[Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy]]'' - [[Chapter 2 - Giovanni Borgia]]</ref>
 
Around 45 BC, many senators began to fear Caesar's growing power following his appointment as dictator,<ref name="Wikipedia" /> and the Assassins began to plan bringing about his downfall. Around this time, they also discovered that the [[SPQR]] was secretly a [[Templars|Templar]] organization.<ref name="AC2">''[[Assassin's Creed II]]''</ref>
 
===Discovery of the Vault===
{{quote|Dreams of the cavern again! I run my phantom hands along its walls and recognize every flaw. There is writing here, but I cannot read it.|Brutus speaks of his dreams.|Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy}}
 
[[File:Scroll04.jpg|thumb|250px|right|Brutus' drawing of the vault.]]
For some time, Brutus' dreams were haunted by a mysterious cavern that he found himself compelled to find. Eventually, he was led to discover the sealed [[First Civilization]] [[Colosseum Vault|vault]], hidden beneath what would eventually become the [[Santa Maria Aracoeli]].<ref name="Brotherhood">''[[Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood]]''</ref>
 
As he had been assigned by [[Gaius Cassius Longinus]] as the one to come of with the plan of assassinating Caesar, Brutus designated the [[Temples|temple]] preceding the vault as a meeting place for his co-conspirators.<ref name="Project Legacy - Giovanni Borgia" />


Brutus held his uncle in high regard and his political career started when he became an assistant to Cato, during his governorship of [[Cyprus]]. During this time, he enriched himself by lending money at high rates of interest. He returned to [[Rome]] a rich man, where he married Claudia Pulchra. From his first appearance in the Senate, Brutus aligned with the Optimates (the conservative faction) against the First Triumvirate of Marcus Licinius Crassus, Pompey Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus and Gaius Julius Caesar. Around 45 BC, many senators began to fear Caesar's growing power following his appointment as dictator for life.<ref name="Wikipedia: Marcus Junius Brutus" /> Additionally, the Assassins discovered that the [[SPQR]] was secretly a [[Templars|Templar]] organization.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II">''[[Assassin's Creed II]]''</ref> Brutus was appointed to devise the conspiracy against Caesar by the other Assassins.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
Whenever his fellow Assassins left after their council meetings, Brutus would explore the cavern on his own, coming across what had supposedly drawn him to the location, ''"Whispers. Lights flickering through cracks in the earth. A doorway that is also a puzzle."''<ref name="Project Legacy - Giovanni Borgia" />
 
Eventually discovering how to gain entrance to the vault, Brutus was struck to awe by "phantom radiance" of the otherworldly architecture, and found the ''"very pillars of [his] beliefs toppled."'' Upon approaching and activating the vault's pedestal, Brutus was shown [[Rome]] in flames; the aftermath of Caesar's assassination, which ultimately drove him into action.<ref name="Brotherhood" />
 
Brutus would later write several [[Scrolls of Romulus|scrolls]] describing his dreams and discovery of the vault, as well as include drawings of the chamber and [[Vault pedestal|its pedestal]]. Following the assassination of Caesar, Brutus also returned to the temple to store these scrolls, as well as his [[Armor of Brutus|heirloom armor]] and [[Dagger of Brutus|dagger]].<ref name="Brotherhood" />


===Assassination of Julius Caesar===
===Assassination of Julius Caesar===
{{quote|Caesar is dead, stabbed twenty-three times by his own countrymen, many of whom he once considered friends. Dead not for his deeds, but for fear of what he would have become.|Brutus stating Caesar's assassination.|Scrolls of Romulus}}
{{quote|I relay my plan; some details are my own, but others driven by my visions. My contributions are practical: we will attack as a group to prevent escape and to ensure each of us is committed to this task. We will lure him to the Senate, where none of his allies may enter.|Brutus planning Caesar's assassination.|Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy}}
At some point, Brutus discovered and explored the [[Colosseum Vault|vault]] hidden beneath what would eventually become [[Santa Maria Aracoeli]]. He chose the temple concealing the entrance to the vault as a meeting place for the conspirators, and would include a drawing of the chamber itself within his scrolls. Inside the chamber, he was enlightened with visions of what would happen after Caesar's assassination.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />


[[File:Assassination of Julius Caesar.jpg|thumb|left|The Assassins striking at Caesar.]]
[[File:Assassination of Julius Caesar.jpg|thumb|left|250px|The Assassins striking at Caesar.]]
Encouraged by these visions, Brutus devised the plan for the assassination. His wife was the only woman privy to the plot. The conspirators planned to carry out their plot on the Ides of March (March 15) that same year. On that day, Caesar was delayed going to the Senate because his wife, Calpurnia Pisonis, tried to convince him not to go. The Assassins feared the plot had been found out. Brutus persisted, however, waiting for Caesar at the Senate, and allegedly still chose to remain even when a messenger brought him news that would otherwise have caused him to leave. When Caesar finally did come to the Senate, they attacked him. Publius Servilius Casca Longus was allegedly the first to attack Caesar with a blow to the shoulder, which Caesar blocked. However, upon seeing Brutus was with the Assassins, he covered his face with his toga and resigned himself to his fate. The Assassins attacked in such numbers that they even wounded one another. Brutus is said to have been wounded in the hand. Brutus was the last to stab Caesar, in the heart.<ref name="Wikipedia: Marcus Junius Brutus" />
Inspired and encouraged by the visions he had seen in the vault, Brutus devised the plan for the assassination alongside forty of his fellow Assassins and senators.<ref name="Project Legacy - Giovanni Borgia" /> As dictated to him by his visions, Brutus scheduled their attack for the "day of Mars."<ref name="Brotherhood" />


[[File:BrutusArmor.png|thumb|Brutus' armor.]]
That day, however, Caesar's wife attempted to convince him not to attend the Senate, delaying his arrival and leading the Assassins to fear that the plot had been found out. Brutus persisted nevertheless, waiting for Caesar at the Senate, and upon his eventual arrival, they attacked him.<ref name="Wikipedia" />
Following the assassination, he returned to the temple where the Assassins held their meetings and left his heirloom [[Armor of Brutus|armor]] and [[Dagger of Brutus|dagger]] there, to be found by the next person to stumble across it.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
 
Caesar resisted at first, but resigned himself to his fate upon recognizing Brutus, and was eventually killed, ''"stabbed twenty-three times by his own countrymen, many of whom he once considered friends."'' Driven to severe guilt from his actions, Brutus later returned to the [[Colosseo|Colosseum]], and abandoned the dagger he had used to strike down Caesar within the vault.<ref name="Brotherhood" />


===Death===
===Death===
After the assassination, the Senate passed an amnesty on the Assassins. This amnesty was proposed by Caesar's friend and co-consul [[wikipedia:Mark Antony|Marcus Antonius]]. Nonetheless, uproar among the population caused Brutus and the other Assassins to leave Rome. Brutus settled in Crete from 44 to 42 BC, but was later defeated in battle and upon fleeing, committed suicide. His last words were ''"By all means must we fly; not with our feet, however, but with our hands."'' Brutus also uttered the well-known verse calling down a curse upon Antonius (Plutarch repeats this from the memoirs of Publius Volumnius): ''"Forget not, Zeus, the author of these crimes."''<ref name="Wikipedia: Marcus Junius Brutus" />
{{quote|Whatever power lies within this artifact, it has not returned our Brother to us. We close his eyes again. There is no sign that he had ever moved.|The attempted resurrection of Brutus.|Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy}}
After the assassination, the Senate passed an amnesty on the Assassins, which was proposed by Caesar's friend and co-consul [[wikipedia:Mark Antony|Marcus Antonius]]. Nonetheless, uproar among the population caused Brutus and the other Assassins to leave Rome. Brutus settled in Crete from 44 to 42 BC, but was later defeated in battle and upon fleeing, committed suicide.<ref name="Wikipedia" />
 
[[File:Philippi, Macedonia.png|thumb|right|250px|The Shroud being used on Brutus' corpse.]]
After Brutus' death, his followers gathered in Philippi, Macedonia, and tried to use the [[Shroud of Eden]] to bring him back. However, the Shroud was not capable of such restoration, and though Brutus opened his eyes and moved, he did not appear to breathe, and eventually fell still in a seeming second death.<ref name="Project Legacy - Ghosts of Christmas Past">''[[Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy]]'' - [[Chapter 1 - Ghosts of Christmas Past]]</ref>


[[File:Philippi, Macedonia.png|thumb|left|The Shroud being used on Brutus' corpse.]]
Some time prior to 1500, the [[Followers of Romulus]] discovered the temple, and found Brutus' armor and dagger within. They took the artifacts, hiding them in a chamber in the tunnels beneath [[Colle Palatino]]. The chamber was to only be opened with six keys, spread across various landmarks throughout Rome, hidden alongside the scroll Brutus had written.<ref name="Brotherhood" />
After Brutus' death, his followers tried to use [[the Shroud]] to bring him back. Brutus returned to life for a very brief moment, before inevitably dying once again. The attempt failed because the Shroud can reanimate a body, but it cannot recreate life.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy" />


Some time prior to 1500 AD, the [[Followers of Romulus]] discovered the temple, and found the armor and dagger within. They took the artifacts, hiding them in a chamber in the tunnels beneath [[Colle Palatino]]. The chamber was to only be opened with six keys, spread across various landmarks throughout Rome, hidden in some of the scrolls that Brutus had written concerning his involvement in the conspiracy to kill Caesar. In 1503, the [[Italian Assassins|Italian Assassin]] [[Ezio Auditore da Firenze]] managed to obtain all six keys and retrieved the armor from its chamber.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
In 1503, the [[Italian Assassins|Italian Assassin]] [[Ezio Auditore da Firenze]] managed to obtain all six keys and retrieved the armor from its chamber.<ref name="Brotherhood" />


==Trivia==
==Trivia==
* In 1503, [[Giovanni Borgia]] relived some of Brutus' memories just like with his father [[Perotto Calderon]]'s memories, indicating that Perotto and Giovanni are Brutus' descendants.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy" />
* In 1503, [[Giovanni Borgia]] relived some of Brutus' memories, due to them both having been exposed to the Shroud of Eden.
* The poet [[Dante Alighieri]] wrote in ''Inferno'', the first part of ''The Divine Comedy'', that Brutus, along with [[Gaius Cassius Longinus]], were condemned to the 9th Circle because of their act against Julius Caesar,<ref name="Wikipedia: Marcus Junius Brutus" /> despite the fact that he was also a member of the Assassin Order.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> It is possible that he disagrees with the methods used, or that he simply wasn't aware that Brutus and Caesar were part of any secret organizations.
*Brutus' ability to activate the vault pedestal suggests that he is a descendant of the First Civilization.
* The poet [[Dante Alighieri]] wrote in ''Inferno'', the first part of ''The Divine Comedy'', that Brutus, along with Cassius, were condemned to the lowest circle of hell because of their act against Julius Caesar, despite the fact that Dante was also a member of the Assassin Order.


==References==
==References==

Revision as of 14:26, 11 January 2012

Template:WPAssassins

Marcus Junius Brutus (early June 85 BC – late October 42 BC), more commonly known simply as Brutus, was a politician of the late Roman Empire, and a member of the Roman Assassin Brotherhood.

Most notably, Brutus held a leading role in the assassination conspiracy against the dictator Gaius Julius Caesar.

Biography

Early life

The Roman Senate.

Brutus was born of Marcus Junius Brutus the Elder and Servilia Caepionis. His father was killed by Pompey the Great after having taken part in the rebellion of Lepidus, and his mother would later become Julius Caesar's mistress. Some sources refer to the possibility of Caesar being Brutus' real father.[1]

Sometime prior to 45 BC, Brutus became a member of the Roman Senate, as well as the Assassin Order. Many of his Assassin brothers also shared his role as both senator and Liberatore.[2]

Around 45 BC, many senators began to fear Caesar's growing power following his appointment as dictator,[1] and the Assassins began to plan bringing about his downfall. Around this time, they also discovered that the SPQR was secretly a Templar organization.[3]

Discovery of the Vault

"Dreams of the cavern again! I run my phantom hands along its walls and recognize every flaw. There is writing here, but I cannot read it."
―Brutus speaks of his dreams.[src]
File:Scroll04.jpg
Brutus' drawing of the vault.

For some time, Brutus' dreams were haunted by a mysterious cavern that he found himself compelled to find. Eventually, he was led to discover the sealed First Civilization vault, hidden beneath what would eventually become the Santa Maria Aracoeli.[4]

As he had been assigned by Gaius Cassius Longinus as the one to come of with the plan of assassinating Caesar, Brutus designated the temple preceding the vault as a meeting place for his co-conspirators.[2]

Whenever his fellow Assassins left after their council meetings, Brutus would explore the cavern on his own, coming across what had supposedly drawn him to the location, "Whispers. Lights flickering through cracks in the earth. A doorway that is also a puzzle."[2]

Eventually discovering how to gain entrance to the vault, Brutus was struck to awe by "phantom radiance" of the otherworldly architecture, and found the "very pillars of [his] beliefs toppled." Upon approaching and activating the vault's pedestal, Brutus was shown Rome in flames; the aftermath of Caesar's assassination, which ultimately drove him into action.[4]

Brutus would later write several scrolls describing his dreams and discovery of the vault, as well as include drawings of the chamber and its pedestal. Following the assassination of Caesar, Brutus also returned to the temple to store these scrolls, as well as his heirloom armor and dagger.[4]

Assassination of Julius Caesar

"I relay my plan; some details are my own, but others driven by my visions. My contributions are practical: we will attack as a group to prevent escape and to ensure each of us is committed to this task. We will lure him to the Senate, where none of his allies may enter."
―Brutus planning Caesar's assassination.[src]
File:Assassination of Julius Caesar.jpg
The Assassins striking at Caesar.

Inspired and encouraged by the visions he had seen in the vault, Brutus devised the plan for the assassination alongside forty of his fellow Assassins and senators.[2] As dictated to him by his visions, Brutus scheduled their attack for the "day of Mars."[4]

That day, however, Caesar's wife attempted to convince him not to attend the Senate, delaying his arrival and leading the Assassins to fear that the plot had been found out. Brutus persisted nevertheless, waiting for Caesar at the Senate, and upon his eventual arrival, they attacked him.[1]

Caesar resisted at first, but resigned himself to his fate upon recognizing Brutus, and was eventually killed, "stabbed twenty-three times by his own countrymen, many of whom he once considered friends." Driven to severe guilt from his actions, Brutus later returned to the Colosseum, and abandoned the dagger he had used to strike down Caesar within the vault.[4]

Death

"Whatever power lies within this artifact, it has not returned our Brother to us. We close his eyes again. There is no sign that he had ever moved."
―The attempted resurrection of Brutus.[src]

After the assassination, the Senate passed an amnesty on the Assassins, which was proposed by Caesar's friend and co-consul Marcus Antonius. Nonetheless, uproar among the population caused Brutus and the other Assassins to leave Rome. Brutus settled in Crete from 44 to 42 BC, but was later defeated in battle and upon fleeing, committed suicide.[1]

The Shroud being used on Brutus' corpse.

After Brutus' death, his followers gathered in Philippi, Macedonia, and tried to use the Shroud of Eden to bring him back. However, the Shroud was not capable of such restoration, and though Brutus opened his eyes and moved, he did not appear to breathe, and eventually fell still in a seeming second death.[5]

Some time prior to 1500, the Followers of Romulus discovered the temple, and found Brutus' armor and dagger within. They took the artifacts, hiding them in a chamber in the tunnels beneath Colle Palatino. The chamber was to only be opened with six keys, spread across various landmarks throughout Rome, hidden alongside the scroll Brutus had written.[4]

In 1503, the Italian Assassin Ezio Auditore da Firenze managed to obtain all six keys and retrieved the armor from its chamber.[4]

Trivia

  • In 1503, Giovanni Borgia relived some of Brutus' memories, due to them both having been exposed to the Shroud of Eden.
  • Brutus' ability to activate the vault pedestal suggests that he is a descendant of the First Civilization.
  • The poet Dante Alighieri wrote in Inferno, the first part of The Divine Comedy, that Brutus, along with Cassius, were condemned to the lowest circle of hell because of their act against Julius Caesar, despite the fact that Dante was also a member of the Assassin Order.

References


es:Marco Junio Bruto