Caligula (12 BCE– 24 CE) is one of the most notorious Roman emperors. Everyone “knows” Caligula’s incestuous relationship with his sisters, or for his cruelty and madness, which culminated in Caligula naming his horse Roman consul or declaring himself a god. Yet, all those salacious stories come from a few ancient sources, written by prominent senators who despised Caligula’s autocratic style of rule. Upon closer examination, Caligula’s brief reign and life turn into a complex and fascinating story of a boy-emperor thoroughly unprepared for the throne, who, in the early years of the Roman Empire, tried to make Rome an absolute monarchy but failed. A spoiled and reckless ruler who, for his transgressions against the traditional order, was tarnished by his enemies, becoming a madman, a tyrant, a pervert – one of worst Roman emperors.
In the following 18 facts, we shall address most of those myths and show that “mad” Caligula was not so mad after all.
1. Emperor Caligula Was a Member of the Revered Imperial Dynasty
Born as Gaius Julius Cesar, the future emperor Caligula was, from his very birth, predestined for greatness. His parents, a popular Roman general and a war hero Germanicus and Agrippina the Elder, were members of the prestigious Julio-Claudian dynasty. While Germanicus was the adoptive son of emperor Tiberius, Agrippina was the daughter of Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa and Julia the Elder, the daughter of the first emperor Augustus.
2. Caligula Was His Nickname
As a son of a war hero, young Gaius spent most of his childhood accompanying his father on military campaigns. The boy soon became a favorite of Germanicus’ legionaries. They dressed the future emperor in the little soldier’s outfit, including miniature boots – caligae. Thus, Gaius became known as Caligula – “little boot.” However, although Caligula had a keen interest in military affairs, he was uncomfortable with the moniker, and after assuming the throne, he insisted on the given name he shared with a famous ancestor – Gaius Julius Caesar.
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3. Caligula Lost His Father Early
It is unclear what exactly transpired, but Caligula’s father, Germanicus, suddenly died in 19 CE, after contracting a lethal dose of malaria during his sojourn in Egypt. On his deathbed in Syria, Germanicus informed his family that he had been poisoned. Interestingly, when the entire population of Rome turned to receive the ashes of the war hero, Emperor Tiberius was not present. If not involved in the murder of his father, Tiberius played a role in the violent end of Caligula’s mother and his older brothers, who, as blood relatives of the emperor Augustus, were potential rivals to Tiberius.
4. He Survived the Game of Thrones
Gaius was the sole member of his family who managed to survive. While Tiberius ordered the imprisonment and execution of Agrippina and her two sons, the main culprit was most probably Sejanus, a powerful praetorian prefect, who convinced Tiberius, Augustus’ adoptive son, that Caligula’s family was his potential rival. Sejanus, however, soon fell victim to his own ambition, and Tiberius, who himself lacked an heir, summoned young Gaius to his grand imperial villa on the island of Capri. Caligula was practically a hostage. The next six years were stressful for the future Roman emperor, who lived under the watchful eye of the paranoid Tiberius.
5. In The Beginning, Emperor Caligula Was Wildly Popular
On 17th March 37 AD, emperor Tiberius died. Literally overnight, Caligula turned from a hostage to a master of Rome. In what could surprise many, the first months of the boy emperor’s reign went very well. A member of the revered family, Caligula was wildly popular. Further, unlike paranoid and secluded Tiberius, Emperor Caligula was a charismatic and benevolent young man. Immediately after taking the throne, he ended treason trials, granted amnesty to the exiled, and abolished unfair taxes. He also organized lavish gladiatorial games and chariot races, much to the delight of the Romans. According to Philo of Alexandria, Caligula was the first emperor admired by everyone in “all the world, from the rising to the setting sun.”
6. New Ruler Had Ambitious Plans
The newly crowned ruler completed several buildings started under emperor Tiberius, rebuilt the temples, began the construction of new aqueducts to ensure the water supply of the rapidly growing Rome, and even built a new amphitheater in Pompeii. Caligula also improved the port infrastructure of the capital, allowing for increased grain imports from Egypt. This was particularly important since famine struck early in his reign. Later, Caligula also embarked on personal lavish construction projects. He expanded the imperial palace and constructed two massive floating pleasure barges for his personal use at Lake Nemi.
7. Things, However, Went Grim Pretty Quickly
Soon after becoming an emperor, Caligula fell seriously ill. It is possible that he had a nervous breakdown. Or he had epilepsy, a condition that plagued both Julius Caesar and Emperor Augustus. While Caligula was bedridden in delirium, the whole of Rome prayed for his recovery, further testifying about the emperor’s early popularity among the people. Yet, if we are to believe Suetonius and other ancient sources when Caligula finally left the sickbed, he was a different man. The rest of the boy-emperor’s brief reign was marked by paranoia and unrest.
8. Caligula’s Feared the Return of the Republic
Caligula is remembered for his tyrannic acts, like executions of the senators and his rival, late emperor Tiberius’ grandson Gemellus. Gemellus might have plotted against Caligula while he was incapacitated, given Rome’s history of court intrigues. But the worst of all, Caligula being out of action did not change anything. Governors governed the provinces, and the Senate met and passed decrees. In the early days of the Empire, Rome could survive without an emperor. Many senators still hoped for the restoration of the Roman Republic.
9. Caligula Waged War with the Senate
Unsurprisingly, Caligula, the ruler of Rome, despised the Senate. Determined to show who is the true power, the emperor jettisoned the policy of his predecessors, starting with Augustus, who carefully pretended to be a mere princeps – the “first citizen.” He went so far as to slaughter individual senators he perceived as threats to his rule. Ironically, Caligula could find the justification in his own family history, as his revered ancestor, Julius Caesar, had also been a victim of a senatorial plot. Moreover, both Augustus and Tiberius imprisoned and even executed senators and other potentates they deemed dangerous.
10. Caligula Never Made His Horse A Consul
The emperor’s hatred of the Senate put him on a collision course with some of the most powerful men in Rome. Caligula, however, was determined to show the senators that he was running the show. The tale of Incitatus, Caligula’s beloved race horse, being named as a consul is often cited as an prime example of his madness. However, our main source for this incident, Suetonius, lived decades after Caligula’s death and was himself – a senator. Instead, the story of Incitatus should be seen as the emperor’s prank – intended to show the senators how meaningless their job was, as even a horse could do it better. Above all else, it was a demonstration of Caligula’s supreme power.
11. He Did Not Declare War on the Sea
Suetonius reports that after his failed invasion of Britain, Caligula declared war on Neptune, god of the sea, and had the waves whipped. He also ordered legionaries to collect seashells as prizes of war. “Act of insanity” or punishment for disobedience? Collecting seashells was certainly degrading but more lenient than decimation (killing one in every ten men). Or the soldiers never had to collect shells but were ordered to build tents instead? The Latin term muscula used for the shells also described engineering tents. The tents could refer to the construction of a military camp on the French side of the Channel, used by Caligula’s successor Claudius as a staging ground for the conquest of Britain in 43 CE.
12. Caligula Had Special Relationship with His Sisters
Another infamous report by Seutonius described Caligula’s lavish banquets, where the boy-emperor enjoyed sex with his sisters while appalled guests looked on. His favorite was Drusilla, whom Caligula loved so much that he named her his heir and, upon her early death, proclaimed her a goddess. However, according to the historian Tacitus, born fifteen years after Caligula’s death, the incestual relationship was a mere rumor. Philo of Alexandria, a guest on one of those banquets, failed to mention any kind of scandalous incidents. It is very probable that the senators used Caligula’s close bond with his three sisters against the emperor whom they despised.
13. He Admired Hellenistic Kings
If true, it is possible that Caligula’s intimate relationship with his sisters was a part of Caligula’s growing obsession with the East. The Hellenistic rulers, the Ptolemaic kings in particular, ‘preserved’ their bloodlines via incestuous marriages. Caligula’s alleged relationship with Drusilla could be motivated by the emperor’s desire to keep the Julio-Claudian lineage pure. The Roman elites, however, saw the emperor’s obsession with Hellenistic East as thoroughly un-Roman, an absolutist style of rule that went against the Roman tradition.
14. The Emperor Declared Himself a God
Caligula’s fascination with the Hellenistic East led to one of the most infamous moments of his brief reign. According to Suetonius, the crazed emperor declared himself a God. Starting with Alexander the Great, the Hellenistic kings, whom Caligula perceived as a model, were almost routinely deified. However, Caligula awarding himself the same status in Rome could only backfire, as the senators used such an act as clear and definite proof of the emperor’s madness. It did not help that Caligula also declared his intention to move the capital of the Roman empire to Alexandria, the city that the senators could not access without the emperor’s permission.
15. Caligula Was Ahead of His Time
Caligula’s admiration of the Hellenistic East and his attempts to establish autocratic rule played a major part in his downfall. However, by the end of the century, the situation profoundly changed. When emperor Domitian declared himself Master and God, few objected. And as the centuries passed, the Republican traditions faded away, replaced by a rule of the emperors for whom Caligula would be too lenient. Emperor Aurelian ruled with an iron fist, while Diocletian made Rome an openly absolutist monarchy, establishing Dominate, where the emperor was a godlike king, and the Senate had a ceremonial role.
16. Boy-Emperor Caused His Own Downfall
Caligula, “the Living God,” had the support of the people and the army, but was too young, inexperienced, and reckless to fight the Senate. Senators had connections, and while Caligula sat on the throne, the senators had a hidden grip on all levels of power. The Senate, however, could do nothing as long Caligula was protected by the Praetorian Guard. Thus, when Caligula insulted one of the Praetorians, an experienced officer named Cassius Chaerea, the Senate got a rare opportunity to strike.
17. Caligula Death Changed Nothing
On January 24th, 41 CE, following his favorite pastime, the games, Caligula was attacked by his own guards. Chaerea was said to have been the first to stab the surprised emperor, with others following. The plotters also murdered Caligula’s wife and daughter to prevent any possibility of a legitimate successor. With the emperor lying dead, the senators briefly considered the abolition of the monarchy and the restoration of the Republic. But then, one of the Praetorians found Caligula’s uncle Claudius cowering behind a curtain and hailed him the new emperor. The Roman Empire was there to stay.
18. Emperor Caligula’s Name Was Tarnished for Posterity
The Senate’s plan to abolish the Roman monarchy failed, and to make things even worse, the new emperor Claudius prevented “damnatio memoriae” of his predecessor. After all, Caligula enjoyed popularity among the army and the soldiers. Yet, the Senate had the final say in their conflict with the young, brash monarch. As in the case of Caligula’s nephew, Emperor Nero, the senators were the ones who wrote history and who used their power to tarnish the name of ill-fated rulers to justify their removal and to strengthen the legitimacy of later imperial dynasties. Thus Gaius Caesar, an average and misunderstood autocrat, turned into an epic villain, a madman, a tyrant, and one of the worst, if not the worst, of Roman emperors.
