WI Brutus & Cassius won at Filippoi?

WI Caesar's assassins were victorius agains Antonius and Octavius in the battle of Filippoi?
Would they transferred the power back to the Senate and restore the Old Republic or another civil war would broke between them just like Caesar and Pompey?
 
They would probably set up some kind of shared dictatorship, even if they really wanted to return power to the Senate.
The problem at this time was that the Senate seriously reduced in influence by the generals with their private armies.

I also have a hard time believing they would refrain from taking their revenge on the Populares faction after their return to Rome. So, just like Sulla did, another round of proscriptions untill the strong man/men fall(s) and the other faction rises to the top.
 
A third triumvirate? Thought of that too... But at that point Roman Republic was exhausted and needed a strong man to guide them...
 
There's always the option of a falling out between Cassius and Brutus, just like happened between Octavian and Mark Anthony.

On the other hand, Cassius and Brutus might make themselves consuls indefinately, figuring the Senate was not exactly making itself heard to the Second Triumvirate. Conveniently forgetting of course that the ones that did ended up proscribed like Cicero.
 
The problem at this stage is, there is not one, but three precedents of pretty much dictatorship in Rome. There is Marius, Sulla, and Caesar. It would be only a matter of time before there is fourth.

First, let's decide on how total the assassins' victory is. Let's presume they win a crushing victory, and Anthony and Octavian are dead or otherwise removed. I presume this is the scenario you are going for, right?

Second, let's decide on if they manage to get along. Let's presume they get along for at least the next ten years. I doubt that either Cassius or Brutus would start another civil war too quickly.

Third, who else remains. Sextus Pompey is still at large, and he might be able to get in legitimately. So, there is your new Triumvirate - Cassius, Brutus, and Pompey. After all, they can become convinced that the Senate is simply allowing the Republic to drift from one catastrophe to another, with predictable consequences.

My end prediction is, by about 35 BC the Republic is fully controlled by the New Triumvirate, with Cassius and Brutus drifting increasingly more suspicious of each other, and Sextus Pompey holding them more or less together. I see Pompey as the most ambitious of the three - Cassius and Brutus are more of demagogues, but they are not as popular in Rome itself, and as such, their control depends largely on their influence on the Senate. Pompey, on the other hand, is charismatic, a proven naval (!) commander, has name recognition thanks to his father, and is the most likely to engage in any kind of foreign adventures (Egypt sounds very likely here). Ultimately, I would imagine that Pompey would somehow take advantage of the situation, and barring extreme bad luck, he might be able to outmaneuver the other two.
 
They might be called Liberators but i guess hunger for power would set in soon... Brutus might be loyal to the Senate but Cassius might wanted to grasp absolute power...
 
Top