“Beware the Ides of March” – Sooth Sayer to Julius Caesar
The actual quote is from Shakespeare’s tragedy Julius Caesar (1599). The warning is uttered by a soothsayer who is letting Roman leader Julius Caesar know that his life is in danger, and he should probably stay home and be careful when March 15th, the Ides of March, rolls around.
The Ides of March (/aɪdz/; Latin: Idus Martiae, Late Latin: Idus Martii) was a day in the Roman calendar that corresponds to 15 March. It was marked by several religious observances and was notable for the Romans as a deadline for settling debts.
The Ides of March was certainly unlucky for Caesar, who actually was killed on that day. (Of course these days a psychic making such a death threat would be investigated by the Secret Service.) Since that time the idea stuck that the Ides of March is unlucky or a portent of doom—even if your name isn’t Caesar.
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