LYCOS RETRIEVER 
Caesar: Spain
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Caesar's march to Rome was a triumphal progress. The senate fled to Capua. Caesar proceeded to Brundisium, where he besieged Pompey until Pompey fled (Mar., 49 B.C.) with his fleet to Greece. Caesar set out at once for Spain, which Pompey's legates were holding, and pacified that province. Returning to Rome, Caesar held the dictatorship for 11 days in early December, long enough to get himself elected consul, and then set out for Greece in pursuit of Pompey.
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Caesar discovered a talent for military command which he himself hadn't known he possessed. The experience he gained in Spain would be of great value in his further career. But more so the ability of capturing some spoils of war for himself, to put his personal finances back to right and repay his debt was what rescued his career.
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In 52, a year in which Pompey was elected sole consul and given a five-year provincial command in Spain, Caesar was allowed by a law sponsored by all 10 tribunes to stand for the consulship in absentia. If he were to stand in 49 for the consulship for 48, he would be out of office, and therefore in danger, during the last 10 months of 49.
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It is important to remember that Caesar was not simply a general, but ... a politician. In Rome politics and war were inseparably linked. Success in war promoted a political career, which in turn led to greater opportunities for military command. Up until the year 58, Caesar's career followed the normal pattern for a Roman aristocrat, mixing military with civil posts. He served as a junior officer (tribune) in the east (80-78), being awarded Rome's highest decoration for gallantry, the corona civica, for saving a soldier's life at the siege of Mytilene. His first independent command came with his appointment as governor of Further Spain, where he led a small army in some successful police actions (61-60).
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