The Decay of Friendship in Rome Looking at the late Roman Republic, one can find many different accounts of how politics worked in Rome. One such account by Polybius gives us insight into the way politics worked in Rome. Polybius believed that “in all politics we observe two sources of decay existing from natural causes, one external, the other internal and self-produced” (Polybius 506). Cicero's second account gives us a picture of how Roman politics plays out, stating that "Application for office resulted in an activity of two kinds, one of which concerns the loyalty of friends, the other the feelings of people". (Cicero 37). Examining these two different views of Roman politics: The Histories of Cicero by Polybius, in giving advice to his brother on how to gain maximum power in the country, (consulship) pulls back the curtain on how Roman politics actually works and on that friendship is essential if you want to become a console. He defines friendship as “anyone who gives you any sign of inclination or comes habitually to your house” (Cicero 37). Cicero believed that friends were people you could use as leverage by building loyalty and bonds to build your social structure and obtain the highest prize of all: the consulate. According to Cicero, friendship creates problems, stating, “Your exalted character has forced many to pretend to be your friends while in reality they are jealous of you” (Cicero 42). What Cicero is implying is that everyone is jealous of everyone else, and by making friends to become consul you also attract enemies who also desire power. Cicero describes three such adversaries: “First, those whom you attacked; second, those who don't like you without a specific reason; third those who are affectionate friends of your competitors” (Cicero 42). You can't please everyone in Rome, Cicero says, and because of this bitter struggle for power and private ambition, friendship is born. Plutarch writes of Caesar's character: "He had the ability to be liked, which was remarkable for a man of his time, and he was very much in the good graces of the common citizen for his easy manners and the friendly way in which he mingled with the people" ( Plutarch 257).By examining Caesar's character, one can understand how he used his love for the people to gain power and maintain it with his military victories which had brought Rome a great deal of wealth and lands Caesar embarked on the creation of Rome's largest debts to make friends. Plutarch points out Caesar's enemies who “thought that this influence of his would soon come to naught, once he stopped spending money, and they stood aside and watched it grow among the common people. It later became too large for anything to be done about it, and was clearly aimed at a complete revolution in the state” (Plutarch 257). Caesar relied on friendship and used his friends tactically to form the First Triumvirate with Pompey and Crassus, managing to gain their followers and at the same time establish their own name. Caesar learned from Sulla's decree to proscribe his enemies and instead pardoned his enemies to make them his friends. This would ultimately prove disastrous for Caesar, as those he had pardoned would change sides at the last minute and stab.