Ad urbem futurum cum exercitu, introiturum quotienscumque vellet: Cicero on Antonius’ Presence Near the City of Rome in 43 BCE (Phil. 3.27; 5.21-22)

In the speeches delivered on 20 December 44 BCE (Phil. 3.27) and 1 January 43 BCE (Phil. 5.21-22), Cicero refers to Antonius’ public statements, according to which the latter planned to stay near Rome with an army and enter the city as he pleased. Cicero must mean the words which concerned Antonius’ plans for 43 BCE, when his consulate would end and he would become a proconsul. The episode can be approached as part of a broader analysis of promagistrates’ intervention in the political processes in the city of Rome (the sphere domi). Cicero’s insinuations are not entirely unfounded, even if, in reality, Antonius never intended to enter the city as a proconsul. As the orator outlines an alleged formal violation of rules, he is able to emphasize the proconsul’s genuine intention to retain control over the political initiative in the Republic despite the end of his term as consul.