According to Suetonius, Julius Caesar was taller than the average Roman. Therefore, Julius Caesar’s height was most likely between 5’7.3″ and 5’9.3″ (1.71 and 1.76 m). To find out how tall Julius Caesar was, you can take into account the average height of a male Roman throughout the Republican and Imperial periods in Rome. The average height of a male Roman was roughly 5 feet 5.4 inches (1.66 m) at Caesar’s time. This is taller than about 9% of men and 61% of women in the USA today.
The Average Height of a Roman at the Time of Julius Caesar
To determine the height of Julius Caesar, one can look to the typical height of a male Roman during both the Republican and Imperial eras in Rome, which was around 5 feet, 5.4 inches, or 1.66 meters, with a range of between 5’4″ and 5’7″ (1.63–1.70 m). The average height of a female Roman was 5 feet, or 1.53 meters, with a range of 4’11.5″ to 5’1″ (1.51–1.55 m).
This data is taken from the measurements of skeletons from the ancient Roman cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum. According to contemporary historians of Julius Caesar’s time, the dictator for life was “tall of stature.”
The Average Height of a Roman Soldier
The Imperial Roman regulations state that a Roman soldier had to be at least 5 feet, 5 inches tall (165 cm). It is believed by experts that soldiers typically ranged in height from 5 feet 5 inches to 5 feet 9 inches (165–175 cm) during the Roman Empire, with an average height of approximately 5 feet 7 inches (170 cm).
The Height of Julius Caesar Based on the Findings
According to the Roman historian Gaius Suetonius Tranquillus (AD 69–122), Julius Caesar “stood tall, had a fair complexion, limbs that were in good shape, a slightly full face, and sharp black eyes.” While the exact height of Caesar is uncertain, Suetonius and other sources indicate that the Roman general was tall. Based on the average height of a Roman male at the time of 5’5″ (1.66 m) and a Roman soldier of 5’7″ (1.70 m), Julius Caesar’s height was most likely between 5’7.3″ and 5’9.3″ (1.71 and 1.76 m).
The estimates regarding how tall Julius Caesar was will always be speculative. However, his “charismatic height” was immense, which has made him one of the most popular characters in history.
The Physical Description of Julius Caesar
The historian Suetonius, who lived between 69 and 122 AD, described Caesar in his book “The Lives of the Caesars.” According to him, Caesar was a tall individual with a pale complexion and strong limbs. His face was full, and he had black and lively eyes. Although he was generally healthy, he experienced fainting spells and nightmares in his old age and had two episodes of epilepsy during his service.
Caesar paid close attention to his appearance, including shaving his hair and body, which drew criticism from some. He was particularly sensitive about baldness and would comb his hair forward to cover his forehead. Among the many honors Julius Caesar received from the Senate and the public, he was particularly fond of wearing a laurel wreath, probably to cover his baldness.
When it came to combat, politics, and writing, Julius Caesar was equally impressive. His military successes greatly enlarged Rome’s territory and served as an example for subsequent rulers and historians of the Roman military. His climb through the ranks of politics was an example of how one individual may become a state’s chief executive. Caesar paved the way for Rome to go from a republic to an empire by gaining the support of the ordinary people, whom he shielded, misled, and manipulated for his own objectives anyway.
