Veni, vidi, vici is a Latin phrase attributed to Julius Caesar. It translates to, I came, I saw, I conquered. What a power phrase. It’s no surprise that you’ll see this phrase tattooed on men and women alike. The veni, vidi, vici tattoo speaks volumes about the person wearing this ink. A statement that holds this much meaning must have an interesting story behind it. We’ll take a look into the origins of this phrase and come to a better understanding of why people like to get the veni, vidi, vici tattoo.

Veni, vidi, vici is the famous Latin phrase touted by Julius Caesar who was emperor over Rome from 49 BC to 44 BC. When Caesar used this phrase, the braggadocios figure of speech shocked and impressed many writers of the time. He used this phrase when writing a letter to the Roman Senate at around 47 BC and after battle. He had just accomplished dominating victory in the Battle of Zela over Pharnaces II of Pontus. In other words, veni, vidi, vici means he came in, took what he wanted and left.

The story behind the Battle of Zela starts when Caesar left Egypt and was travelling through Syria. This was after the defeat of the Ptolemaic army in the Battle of the Nile.

Pharnaces had just defeated Caesar’s army at the Battle of Nicopolis. Pharnaces then committed war crimes and atrocities against the Roman prisoners and any Romans he found in the area. Once Pharnaces heard that Caesar was on his way to deal with the issue, he sent out a peace seeking envoy. Caesar refused this offer of peace and continued to advance.

Caesar would be outnumbered in this fight. However, of the forces he had with him, they were veterans and battle hardened. He had somewhere around 11,000 soldiers ready to fight while Pharnaces had an army of around 20,000. In contrast to Caesar’s army, Pharnaces forces consisted of many tribal forces and levied infantry. He did have a strong core however, so he was confident. Most wouldn’t walk into a situation like this but Pharnaces had to be dealt with for his actions toward the Roman people.