10 Ways to Commemorate the Ides of March

“Beware the Ides of March,” is a line from Shakespearean tragedy Julius Caesar, which itself is based on the assassination of Gaius Julius Caesar, the Ancient Roman general and statesman. A soothsayer foresees Caesar’s death at the hands of sixty Roman senators and utters this phrase to warn him. Not heeding the warning, Caesar goes to a session of the Senate and is fatally stabbed by his peers. Sounds grim, but to be fair, Caesar was stabbed because he had just been appointed dictator for life, a pretty ominous designation.
If you’re a history buff, a Shakespeare enthusiast, or a fan of political intrigue, here are some memorable ways to mark the Ides of March on your calendar!
1. Throw a toga party
Clearly, the Ides of March is the perfect occasion to throw a toga party. Make it a classy one that pays homage to the Roman Empire, rather than the collegiate Greek system.
2. Wish everyone a “Happy Roman Republic New Year”
During the late Roman Republic, the Ides of March marked the start of the new year and the feast of the goddess Anna Perenna. Romans celebrated by eating and drinking copiously, engaging in widespread debauchery, and making sacrifices. You’re welcome to do the same, but maybe skip the sacrifices.
3. Act out Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare.
Gather your most theatrical friends and stage William Shakespeare’s tragedy about the doomed Roman statesman. Everyone will jump at the chance to cry, “Et tu, Brute?”
4. Host a Julius Caesar movie marathon
Multiple film adaptations have been based on William Shakespeare’s historical play, and it’s the perfect occasion for you and your film buff friends to sit down and compare them.
5. Read The Ides of March, by Thornton Wilder
Gather your friends, Romans, book club members and mark the occasion by reading this inventive, epistolary novel about the events leading up to Caesar’s assassination. Thornton Wilder fleshes out historical Roman characters through their imagined correspondences and crafts a scintillating, witty story.
6. Check out the Ancient Roman exhibits at a museum
It’s the most befitting time of year to visit a museum and see what Julius Caesar might have looked like. You might also see what some of his contemporaries looked like, including some of the 60 senators who conspired against him.
7. Partake in a wine-tasting
Wine is perhaps one of the greatest legacies of Ancient Rome. Back in the day, it flowed at every meal for Romans of every social class and status; everyone from slaves to aristocrats drank wine daily. Why not gather a few friends and live like Ancient Romans on this historically significant day?
8. Host an Ancient Rome Trivia Night
Gather your smartest friends and pit them against each other for a night of fun facts about Ancient Rome. Stump them with questions about Roman mythology by pulling from The Metamorphoses of Ovid, or see how much they know about Ancient Rome’s great leaders by crafting questions out of Plutarch’s Lives.
9. Prepare a historically accurate Roman feast
Curious about what they ate back in the day? Sate your curiosity and your appetite this March 15th by preparing any of the 200 recipes in A Taste of Ancient Rome, by Ilaria Gozzini Giacosa. Giacosa reproduced these recipes from the records of classic Roman writers, so you can rest assured the dishes are as authentic as it gets.
10. Binge-watch House of Cards
Politics haven’t changed all that much since the days of Julius Caesar, and it looks like rampant conniving and backstabbing is still a huge part of the game. Watch Frank Underwood claw his way to the top and see if you think the Roman statesmen of 44 B.C. would be proud.
What’s your annual Ides of March tradition?