All Roads Lead to Rome

A teacher asks a group of students, “Who here can name an information system used during war time?” Seven eager hands shoot up. Alas a number of complex, interesting foreign words are sounded; enigma, C2 Systems, knowbots …
One hand continues to flutter in the air. It’s Jane’s. Her finger tips are reaching for the ceiling, her chair wobbles from side to side as she desperately tries to lock eye contact with her teacher. Jane is bursting with pride and excitement at her unassuming information system. Finally — she is selected. Catching her breath, she mumbles “ a road”. The class stare. Jane turns red. Her teacher smirks.
And with that, the class delve into an interesting discussion on Julius Caesar and his Roman Empire War System .
I’d have to admit — I am certainly no Jane. Yet an admirer of originality I most certainly am. Could a road classify as an information system ? Who knows. And thus, intrigued, I began to research.
Why were roads such a pivotal information system during the Roman Empire, and more importantly, for Julius Caesar?
The Unassuming Information System
Roman roads were cleverly built. Architecturally superior, they were designed to be as straight as possible in order to minimise their span, benefiting their users. They were highest at the centre and tapered downwards; avoiding flooding and ensuring that they could be used at all times. They symbolised power and conquest (Crystalink, 2019)
Roads built during the Roman Empire were not an after-thought. In fact, they were central to its existence. So while on the outskirts they may seem like never-ending slabs of stone and gravel, they embodied craftsmanship, ingenuity and human strategy (Eldridge, 2020).
Roads had numerous functions during the Empire. Mainly built by the military, they served as a primary means of relaying details of the many wars back to the Roman people. ‘Details’ — an interesting choice of words. It almost appears to have a rather seedy undertone — the selective choice of what to include, and more importantly exclude. Yet it seems fitting.
A Puzzle

There is a strange equation that goes as follows: Wartime + Information = ?
Don’t worry you will be put out of your misery shortly , but have a think; how can we ensure that this equation balances?
One word floats to the top of my mind.
Propaganda.
Propaganda is the use of biased or misleading information to persuade an audience to accept a particular idea or cause often by stirring up emptions (Bergstrom, 2019). Its ultimate purpose: to promote a political goal. Like many great leaders, Caesar’s goals were power driven:
o Become the military general
o Form the First Triumvirate
o Dictate Rome. . . for life.
Propaganda aided Julius Caesar in the fulfilment of his political agendas or for a period of time at least (Fields, 2010).
The Deadliest Campaign

Hitler is renowned for leading perhaps the deadliest propaganda campaign in all of our history. It was a pivotal weapon used to mass murder 6 million Jews. In 1924 Hitler wrote that propaganda’s
“task is not to make an objective study of the truth, in so far as it favours the enemy, and then set it before the masses with academic fairness; its task is to serve our own right, always and unflinchingly.” (Hitler, 1925)
Now, I am not comparing Caesar’s propaganda campaign to that of Hitler’s. However it is important to realise that Caesar sowed a seed for the many power hungry leaders who followed. We learn about Hitler in school, we read about him in books, we see his footage in documentaries– perhaps visualising the aftermath and destruction from the Hitler Nazi campaign will enable you all to appreciate the power and influence that propaganda would have had on human vulnerability during Roman times. Caesar may have existed 2060 years ago, but human emotion cannot be confined to a timeline.
“Veni, Vedi Vici” (Caesar, 47 BCE)
With Caesar’s lack of presence in Rome during his military missions, he knew that relaying details of his conquests to the Romans was of huge importance. Caesar wrote. He wrote war memoirs chronicling his exploits in Gaul . He wrote about his battles during the civil war against Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus. These narratives were written for the people of Rome and were important in shaping his public image. Written by Caesar, he depicted himself as a hero. (Fields, 2010)
Caesar wrote of his campaigns in stunning simplicity in the Commentaries of the Gallic War. His simplicity in writing made his writings engaging and more accessible to the less educated. One of the strategies that Caesar elects in these commentaries is that of expressing generosity and clemency towards his enemies. On numerous occasions, Caesar is presented with an opportunity to punish or imprison an enemy commander and force but instead chooses to show mercy and release them. (Olson, 2008)
This acts as a psychological propaganda to those who feared Caesar. During the Gallic war, Caesar’s enemies were growing concerned about his rising power and popularity (Olson, 2008). Would Caesar use his newfound influence to overthrow the Roman Republic and enjoy absolute control?
By depicting himself as a General who displays generosity towards his enemies, Caesar was able to deflect accusations of his bloodthirst intent and prevent the upturn of his power.
A Long Road
However Caesar was not stationed in Rome. So these writings were worthless should they go unread by the Romans. As a result, the roads were of major importance. Caesar employed runners to run along the various roads back to Rome and read his writings in a public arena. So in reality the information system did not end with the roads themselves, but with a speech (Leighton, 1969).
Literacy was not to be taken for granted during the Roman Empire. The majority of Plebians during this time were illiterate. As you can imagine, a booklet of war chronicles was going to do little in terms of spreading news of the heroic conquests of Caesar. As a result, these speeches were a strategic way of ensuring that his writings were exposed to as broad a reach as possible. (Leighton, 1969)
Caesar Today
Now. Imagine. Julius Caesar steps into the 21st century. No longer confined by a road, he has information systems at his finger-tips. What does our strategist do?
Maybe he sets up a twitter account and tweets. An opinionated man, who enjoys the sound of his own voice, there is no better platform. Perhaps he resembles a leader that many of us are familiar with today: President Trump
Now for the setting: A propaganda campaign revolving the Syrian war
It’s unfortunate to say, but little imagination is required to conjure a selection of tweets to depict a propagandistic view of the Syrian war. Look no further than Trump’s twitter account. However, attributable to the widespread dissemination of information is the liability of reliability. Such tweets by the key board warrior, Donald Trump, will be undoubtedly analysed. Misinformation will be highlighted. Reputations will be sullied.

I do not believe that Caesar would boast a propaganda campaign in such a distasteful manner.
New Setting: Caesar leading the Communist Party of China
“One Government, Two Systems”, Many Questions

I imagine Caesar following in the footsteps of the Chinese government and conducting a co-ordinated state backed propaganda campaign, loading propaganda rifles in response to the Hong Kong protests — protests initiated in response to an extradition bill. This bill would have allowed for criminal suspects to be extradited to mainland China under certain circumstances (Victor & Yuhas, 2019).
The protests symbolise Hong Kong’s lack of trust in China’s Communist-controlled legal system. While the extradition bill was successfully withdrawn, the protests continued…
Demonstrations against alleged police brutality and against the Chinese government, for its handling of the crisis, prevail. (Victor & Yuhas, 2019)
How does Caesar React?
Caesar perseveres. With access to state controlled media, a propaganda campaign replicating that of president Xi would ensue. While the majority of the Hong Kong protests have been peaceful, decentralised and self-organised marches, China has painted a more obscure version of events. Both in mainland China and abroad, the campaign unleashed portrays alternate versions of what, seen from Hong Kong, is clearly a popular demonstration movement. In China’s version, a small, violent gang of protesters, unsupported by residents and provoked by foreign agents, is running rampant, calling for Hong Kong’s independence and tearing China apart. This is a direct effort to tap into those feelings of territorial integrity (Wong, et al., 2019).
The great Firewall of China has even been broken by the Chinese government in order to ensure international exposure of the campaign, via social media outlets such as Facebook and Twitter. Both sites have taken down more than 1,000 accounts attempting to spread disinformation about the protests. For example, when a projectile struck a Hong Kong woman in the eye earlier this month as protesters clashed with the police, China responded quickly: Its state television network reported that the woman had been injured not by one of the police’s bean bag rounds, but by a protester.

Propaganda has heightened emotions, intensifying nationalism in mainland China. An unknowable but significant number of Chinese citizens both at home and abroad accept the narrative of China’s media that treacherous radicals in Hong Kong are trying to split the motherland. The widespread acceptance of this narrative is a testament to the government’s success in shaping the way its citizens see the world (Meyers, 2019).
What is next for Hong Kong and China? Only time can tell.
However, if it were Caesar in Xi’s shoes, I believe that he would use all information systems within his reach to ensure that history does not find a way of repeating itself, to ensure that his power is not overthrown, to ensure that those ‘closest’ and most ‘loyal’ to him and his Empire do not brutally end his reign.
The Final Stop
So, we have reached the end of our journey. I admire Jane and her unassuming information system. It has led to quite a topical discussion on propaganda. With exponential advances in technology, it can be quite refreshing to take a step back, and look at how history has shaped the future, how the simple construction of a road has led to the multi-network dissemination of information and how Caesar’s strategy has evolved and inspired others.
Everything has to start somewhere. Sometimes, knowing where it all started can help you predict or direct where it will all end.
“Who controls the past, controls the future. Who controls the present controls the past” — George Orwell.
Bibliography
Bergstrom, G., 2019. Understanding the Mechanisms of Propaganda. [Online]
Available at: https://www.thebalancesmb.com/what-is-propaganda-and-how-does-it-work-2295248
Crystalink, 2019. Crystalink. [Online]
Available at: https://www.crystalinks.com/romeroads.html
Eldridge, A., 2020. Roman Road System. [Online]
Available at: https://www.britannica.com/technology/Roman-road-system
Fields, N., 2010. Julius Caesar. Oxford: Osprey Publishing Ltd.
Hitler, A., 1925. Mein Kampf. Germany: Eher Verlag.
Leighton, A., 1969. Secret Communication among the Greeks and Romans. Technology and Culture, 10(2), pp. 139–154.
Meyers, S., 2019. China Is Waging a Disinformation War Against Hong Kong Protesters. The New York TImes, 13 August, pp. 14–16.
Olson, N., 2008. History Extension Prize 2007: Julius Caesar’s ‘Commentarii de Bello Gallico’ as Propaganda. Teaching History, 42(1), pp. 28–32.
Proulx, N., 2019. Lesson of the Day: ‘Why Are People Protesting in Hong Kong?’. The New York Times, 3 October.
Victor, D. & Yuhas, A., 2019. Why Are People Protesting in Hong Kong?. The New York Times, 8 August, pp. 1–2.
Wong, S.-L., Sheperd, C. & Liu, Q., 2019. Old messages, new memes: Beijing’s propaganda playbook on the Hong Kong protests. The Financial Times, 4 September.
