In the heart of ancient Rome, there’s a place where history and legend blend seamlessly. Finished in 29 BC, the Temple of Caesar stands as a tribute to one of the most iconic figures in world history. This unassuming ruin marks the very spot where Julius Caesar’s friends and followers gathered after his shocking assassination, igniting events that would shape the course of an empire.
It was here, amidst the tumult of grief and outrage, that Caesar’s body was cremated in an impromptu ceremony. The air must have been heavy with sorrow and tension, as Romans came to pay their last respects to their fallen leader. This was no ordinary funeral—spontaneous and charged with emotion, it captured the collective heart of the city.
The temple is also immortalized by one of history’s most famous speeches. Mark Antony, a loyal friend of Caesar, delivered his stirring funeral address on these very grounds. Shakespeare’s imagined words for Antony—“Friends, Romans, Countrymen, lend me your ears…”—echo through centuries, conjuring the drama and passion that unfolded here. The speech galvanized the crowd and set in motion a series of events that forever altered Rome’s destiny.
Today, visitors can wander through the Roman Forum and pause at the Temple of Caesar, reflecting on the magnitude of what transpired. Though only a few remnants remain, the history embedded in this site is palpable. It’s a powerful reminder of how a single moment can ripple through time, leaving an indelible mark on the world.
Source - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Temple_of_Caesar
A great little cathedral to visit, lovingly looked after by Irish Dominicans. There is an excavated older church below the medieval church you enter and a Mithraeum (temple to Mithras, whose cult was very popular with Roman soldiers from the 1st to 4th century AD) below that. The only place in Rome to hear the underground river that flows beneath the city.
In addition to Santa Maria in Cosmedin there is a lot to be seen around this piazza. Opposite the church is the round temple dedicated to Hercules Invictus (the Unconquered Hercules), and not far from that the rectangular Fortuna Virilis, both constructed in the 1st Century. Opposite, to the back of the piazza is the Arch of Argentari and behind that the church of San Giorgio in Velabro, the front of which was repaired after being damaged by a terrorist bomb in July 1993.
A 1st-century tomb surrounded by two farmhouses from the Middle Ages, one of which used to be a cheese store. Rather hidden behind a high wall, the tomb is rarely open to the public. You might be lucky on a Sunday: on the third Sunday of every month there is a guided tour at 11:00.
Contains the tomb of Pope Hadrian IV, the last non-Italian pope before Pope John Paul I.
A lovely, if somewhat run-down park (parts of it are blocked due to the poor state of the roads) with statues and a great view on the city.
This small museum records the liberation of Rome from German occupation during the Second World War. During the occupation the building was used as a prison. Stair lifts and chair lifts available for wheelchair users (call ahead).
The museum is dedicated to Napoleon Bonaparte and his family. After Napoleon's death in 1821 the Pope gave permission to his family to settle down in Rome. His sister married Prince Camillo Borghese.
A magnificent patrician house with beautiful gardens. It was built by order of Cardinal Alessando Albani in 1743-1763 in order to accommodate his collection of art. The collection was taken care of by the Winkelmann, adviser and friend of the cardinal. In Rome, Winkelmann wrote his "Geschichte der Kunst des Altertumns (HIstory of the Art of Antiquity)", which made him the founder of classical archaeology. The painted ceiling of the great hall depicting Mount Parnassus is by the German painter Anton Raphael Mengs who was considered as the greatest painter in Rome in the 18th century. A permission to visit is to be requested by email or fax from Principi Torlonia's administration where you'd need to indicate date and time desired, your name and number of people in your party (max. 10).
A 19th-century addition to the square, made to balance the Fontana del Moro.
The renamed Rome Zoo, one of the oldest in Europe, founded in 1911. On the edge of the Borghese Gardens, a short, well-signposted walk from the Gallery. They try hard, but San Diego this isn't. If you are a regular zoo-goer you will be disappointed.
The palace was built by the architect Baldassare Peruzzi on behalf of the Massimo family. The former palace was destroyed during the pillage of Rome in 1527. The Massimo family can be traced back to Quintus Fabius Maximus who defeated Hannibal in the 3rd century BC. The building is open to the public on March 16, only in order to commemorate the miraculous reanimation of Paolo Massimo by St. Philip Neri in 1538.