Square where Julius Caesar was killed will open to public in Rome

Tourists will be able to stroll close to the spot where Julius Caesar met his bloody end, when Rome’s authorities open a new walkway on the ancient site on Tuesday.

The Roman dictator was stabbed to death by a group of aggrieved senators on the Ides of March – 15 March – in 44BC, and the account was embellished by William Shakespeare in his play named after Caesar.

Caesar is supposed to have died in the capital’s central Largo Argentina square, which is home to the remains of four temples. The ruins are all below street level and up until recently could only be viewed from behind barriers close to a busy road junction.

From Tuesday, visitors will be able to move through the site at ground level on the walkway and see the structures up close.

The work was funded by the Italian fashion house Bulgari, at a site that was first discovered and excavated during building work in Rome in the 1920s.

The area – close to where Caesar, according to Shakespeare, exclaimed “Et tu, Brute?” as he saw his friend Brutus among his murderers – is these days also home to a sanctuary for stray cats.

Non-residents will pay €5 to visit it.