Eduard Meyer (1855–1930) was a distinguished German historian of antiquity whose interests spanned ancient Greece, Rome and Egypt. After his doctoral studies he worked as private tutor for the British consul general in Constantinople. He lectured on ancient history at various German universities and became a professor at Berlin University (1902–23), where he was appointed rector in 1919. This book on the origins of the Roman Empire was first published in 1918; this reissue reproduces the 1922 third printing. It describes the rise of Pompey and his relations with Caesar and Crassus, the rift between Pompey and Caesar, and the civil war. Meyer analyses Caesar's ambitions, the interventions of Sallust and Cicero, and the socio-economic and military situation of the Roman empire under Caesar, before describing the conspiracy that led to his murder. He supports his arguments by close reference to contemporary Latin sources.