Commentarii de Bello Civili Commentarii de Bello Civili " ( Commentaries on the Civil War ) " , or Bellum Civile , is an account written by Julius Caesar of his war against Gnaeus Pompeius and the Senate . Shorter than its counterpart on the Gallic War , only three books long , and possibly unfinished , it covers the events of 49 - 48 BC , from shortly before Caesar ' s invasion of Italy to Pompey ' s defeat at the Battle of Pharsalus and flight to Egypt with Caesar in pursuit . It closes with Pompey assassinated , Caesar attempting to mediate rival claims to the Egyptian throne , and the beginning of the Alexandrian War . Caesar ' s authorship of the " Commentarii de Bello Civili " is not disputed . However , its continuations on the Alexandrian , African and Hispanic wars are believed to have been written by others : the 2nd - century historian Suetonius suggested Aulus Hirtius and Gaius Oppius as possible authors . Title . The Latin title Commentarii de Bello Civili is often retained as the title of the book in English translations of the work . The title itself is Latin for " Commentaries on the Civil War " . It is sometimes shortened to just " Civil Wars " , " About the Civil Wars " , and " The Civil War " , in English translations . Contents . Caesar organized his commentaries into three separate books , at that time written on individual scroll s . Each book is subdivided into numbered paragraphs . The books covers a two - year period discussing the Roman Civil War during 49 and 48 BC . As governor of Gaul , Caesar presents himself as the victim of a conspiracy occurring in Rome led by his political enemies , including Gnaeus Pompeius , Scipio , and Marcus Cicero . Throughout the commentaries he presents his cause as a noble one to restore order and return peace to the Roman people , while showing how his actions were justified . He also commonly presents himself as a humane liberal on the epicurean model . Caesar omits many details of the military campaigns , focusing in large part on the larger strategic situation and the reasoning behind the actions occurring . Written as a narrative , the book begins with the expiration of Caesar ' s term as governor of Gaul and the party dominating the Roman Senate ordering him to return to the city to face charges of misconduct and possible execution . Caesar explains how he was wronged by Pompeius and his cohorts , who refused to permit him the triumph that was traditionally permitted to victorious generals . He proceeds with his army to invade Italy from Gaul . Pompeius attempts to raise an army in southern Italy , but is forced to retreat with the army to Greece . Caesar continually points to his efforts to reach an accommodation with Pompeius , and attempts to portray Pompeius as a jealous man only interested in perpetuating a rule in which he and his inner circle control the Republic . Caesar and his army follow Pompeius across the Adriatic Sea to Greece after a mop up operation in Italy and in Spain . In Greece Pompeius initially has the stronger position , with more troops , controlling many of the strategic areas . Caesar writes a lengthy monologue about the superiority of his army of elite veterans of the pacification of Gaul , and dismisses Pompeius ' tactics and the strength of his army . He points out that Pompeius ' army was drawn largely from the provinces and was poorly trained . After Caesar successfully outmanoeuvred Pompeius ' s army in the eastern Balkans , Pompeius and his army gradually fall back into Macedonia . Caesar then writes another monologue portraying Pompeius as a coward because of his refusal to make a stand against Caesar , whose army was beginning to have supply problems , and pointed to Scipio as the primary obstacle to peace . Caesar describes Scipio as a maniacal and untrustworthy but weak villain concerned only with destroying Caesar . Scipio raises a personal army of his own from his provinces in Asia Minor and moves to reinforce Pompeius . The book climaxes with the Battle of Pharsalus in June 48 . The lengthy battle and siege resulted in a decisive victory by Caesar ' s army . Pompeius and his cohorts flee to other areas of the Republic in an attempt to reverse their fortunes . Caesar then leads his army across the Mediterranean Sea in pursuit of Pompeius , who had landed in Egypt . There Pompeius was murdered , according to Caesar , by the Egyptians . Caesar ends the book with an epilogue on the Egyptians ' lack of justification for killing Pompeius . He then proceeds to explain his reasoning for occupying Egypt with his army , using a succession crisis among the Egyptian royal family as his pretence . The Egyptians resisted and Caesar seized the Pharos . The book ended with the line " Haec initia belli Alexandrini fuerunt . " ( " These things were the beginning of the Alexandrian war " ) . The events of the book were followed by the books Alexandrian , African and Hispanic wars , written most likely by officers of Caesar ' s armies . Criticism and revival . Modern historians lament the fact that Caesar omits many important details about the military events , primarily because the book is the only source known to exist for many of the events that occurred in it , but also because it was written from the unique perspective of the most powerful figure in the Republic and one of the most notable generals in human history . Caesar also does not present a neutral picture and at every opportunity distorts the goals and positions of his enemies in favour of his own position , but does so in a subtle manner sometimes difficult to detect . The book was for a time lost , but was rediscovered in Italian city archives in the Middle Ages . The oldest known manuscripts of the commentaries date to the tenth century AD . Parts of the book have remained lost though , with at least sixteen passages known to be missing . Given its much shorter length when compared to Caesar ' s other works , and its abrupt ending , it is possible that he never finished the work , or that a significant part may still be missing . In 1469 the commentaries were republished in Rome , from which edition most modern copies are now derived . In 1809 Napoleon I , Emperor of the French , ordered a detailed look at the works of Caesar . The " Commentarii de Bello Civili " , along with his other works , were compiled into the " Histoire de Jules Cesar " , and served as an important history that renewed interest in Caesar . The " Commentarii de Bello Civili " , along with Caesar ' s other literary works , became staple reading for Latin studies around the world because of the quality and excellent grammar employed by Caesar in his writings .