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Why did Julius Caesar marry Cornelia?

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Statue of Julius Caesar in Roman military attire stands in front of a domed building in Rome, Italy, with a clear blue sky in the background. — Julius Caesar Julius Caesar, bronze sculpture in Rome.

In 84 BCE, Julius Caesar married Cornelia to publicly commit himself to the radical side of Roman politics. Cornelia was the daughter of Lucius Cornelius Cinna, a prominent noble who served as an associate of Gaius Marius during the Roman revolutionary period.1

By aligning himself with this family, Caesar signaled his support for the antinobility faction, despite his own patrician background. This marriage was a significant political statement; when the dictator Lucius Cornelius Sulla later ordered Caesar to divorce her, Caesar’s refusal to do so nearly cost him his life and property.1