ABSTRACT
We now come to a period in which friendships, families and marriages shattered under the strain of civil war. Pompey broke with his former fatherin-law Caesar. Senators had to decide which side to take. Their conduct was scrutinised by their peers. Families might be split by conflicting loyalties. We shall see the gradual breakdown of Terentia’s long-established marriage. It was not inevitable: the relationship during these difficult years had its ups and downs and the friction we can occasionally observe may not have been the reason for the eventual divorce. Tullia’s marriage, in contrast, showed difficulties within a year. She was exposed to the embarrassing consequences of Dolabella’s reckless extravagance and then (Cicero thought) to a catastrophic drop in her standard of living. There may also have been sexual betrayal.
