The reign of Caligula. What made the Roman Emperor Caligula a murderer and pervert. Caligula's military campaigns

Rome's most cruel and depraved emperor, Gaius Caesar, also known as Caligula, was assassinated at the age of 29, in his fourth year of reign. He was born into a large family of the outstanding commander and universal favorite Germanicus. Tiberius, the reigning emperor at that time, was the stepfather of Germanicus, and was very afraid of losing the throne. He had to do good deeds that were contrary to his principles, so that his stepson, a more worthy contender for the throne, would not take the imperial place.

Guy often went on hikes with his father and loved to show off in children’s boots that looked like soldiers’ ones—kaligs. That's why he early childhood received the nickname Caligula, which stuck with him in history. The happy family was soon destroyed by order of Tiberius; only little Guy remained alive, who lived with his grandmothers until he came of age.

Being elderly, Tiberius summoned young Guy to Capri. The young man watched with great and undisguised pleasure the numerous tortures and executions carried out by the ferocious emperor, absorbing cruelty and an insatiable thirst for unlimited power. After some time, Caligula became the instigator of numerous conspiracies against his adopted grandfather. And soon Tiberius was dead. The killer could not be identified, but Guy himself, after some time, boasted that with my own hands strangled the "old man".

The jubilant people of Rome greeted the new emperor on the streets with delight, remembering the glory of his late father. At first, Guy lived up to the expectations of his subjects. He had mercy on the condemned, distributed donations, organized all kinds of shows, gladiatorial fights, and persecution of wild animals. Guy himself and high-ranking officials actively took part in the games. Almost daily performances delighted the people, who were yearning for fun during the reign of Tiberius.

However, the collapse of finances in the state treasury was approaching - construction, games, and distribution of money were rapidly emptying it. Guy managed to waste all the huge reserves that Tiberius had accumulated in a year. The people did not yet know or guess what awaited them ahead, so Caligula continued to remain a favorite.

Less than a year of his reign had passed before Caesar fell seriously ill, and upon recovery, he became a completely different person. The disease clouded his mind and manifested itself in everything - appearance and actions. He wanted unlimited power and money, and committed cruelty and debauchery.

There are glaring facts in the history of his life when he went to prisons and selected prisoners with whom he fed the animals, because meat had become more expensive. He fell even more in love with sophisticated torture and cruel executions, when they were burned alive, fed to wild animals, burned with a hot iron, sawed in half with a saw in front of their relatives, who could not turn away or close their eyes.

He loved to disfigure beautiful people, especially men, since he himself was not particularly attractive. During a feast, he could order all the ladies to undress, choose one, take her away to make love, and upon returning tell all the details at the table, thereby humiliating their husbands.

Many relationships of a homosexual nature were present in Caesar's life. He raped with impunity men who could not resist the will of the ruler. But back then sodomy was punishable by death. Even in his early youth, he instilled in himself a love of cruel, perverted sex. Permissiveness brought him to the point of having intimate relationships with his own sisters, whom he lent to his lovers for fun.

His first wife Junia Claudilla died in childbirth, Guy was not even upset. Caesar loved to take married ladies away from their husbands. He took Livia straight from her wedding, and when he got tired of her, he returned her to her husband. To take possession of Lollia Pavlina, Caligula arbitrarily divorced her from her husband and married her. She, too, very soon tired of the sensualist, and the emperor released her with a ban on future sexual relations.

Another of Caligula’s affections was the unattractive and no longer young mother of three children, Caesonia. The voluptuous, dissolute mistress was allowed to ride next to him, leading the army. And in front of his friends, he proudly asked her to undress and show her body. Caesar married Caesonia after she gave birth to his daughter, Julia Drusilla. The child turned out to be just as mentally unstable as the father. She beat and scratched other children until they bled.

In his life, Guy immensely loved only his horse Incitatus, for whom he built a stable of marble and ivory with golden feeders. The blankets were decorated with gold and jewels. Later, a palace was built for the favorite, servants were hired and even invited to feasts on behalf of the horse. The animal itself was first recognized by a Roman, later by a senator.

Since Caligula suffered from delusions of grandeur and dressed himself in the clothes of the gods, considering himself their embodiment, he appointed a horse as the chief priest. Soon it came to the point that he called the horse the incarnation of God, forcing everyone to worship him.

Drusilla, his sister, was the second adored creature. He had sexual intercourse with her while she was still in adolescence. Her grandmother married her off when she found out about this. But Guy took her to the palace as soon as he became emperor, lived as with his wife, without hiding and not paying attention to the opinions of others. When she died, Caligula grieved and declared mourning in the country with strict rules - you couldn’t even wash yourself. He also elevated her to the rank of deity.

Many wanted Caligula dead, and numerous assassination attempts were made. One day, in an underground passage, the conspirators realized their intention. Guy was killed, along with his wife Caesonia and their two-year-old daughter. The city mob sympathized with the emperor, but the conspirators managed to convince them by promising to reduce some taxes.

1. Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus Germanicus was the third of six sons Germanika, Roman military leader and consul. Germanicus took his son on military campaigns, where he wore children's boots like army caligas - a special kind of soldier's footwear. It was then that the nickname “Caligula” appeared, which means “boot”. The emperor himself did not like it, but it haunted him all his life and remained with him forever in history.

2. Caligula's father, Germanicus, was so loved in Rome that when he died (presumably from poison), the Romans angrily burst into the temples and dropped the altars - because the gods allowed the death of the popularly adored consul. Having learned that the son of their beloved Germanicus would rule, the Romans enthusiastically welcomed Caligula, believing that if he inherited at least some of his father’s virtues, he would become an excellent ruler.

3. The emperor appointed Caligula as heir to the empire Tiberius- the “boot” was his great-nephew. It is still unknown how Tiberius died - some sources claim that Caligula personally strangled him, others “sin” on the praetorian prefect (that is, the head of the guard) Quinta Macron. Still others believe that Tiberius died of natural causes.

4. Caligula, the third emperor of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, was 24 years old when he came to power. Despite the fact that he is now one of the most famous Roman emperors, his reign lasted less than four years.

5. One of the most famous stories about Caligula - the appointment of the emperor's favorite horse named Incitat ("Swift-footed") as a senator. This act is explained by Caligula's unlimited power, which he abused, and his madness. However, a number of historians believe that Caligula, who was in conflict with the Senate, took this step in order to demonstrate his attitude towards the senators, who were proud of their position, and to ridicule them.

Caligula's sister Julia Drusilla. Source: Public Domain

6. The perception of the emperor’s personality was influenced by the scandalous play “Caligula” Camus and the film of the same name directed by Tinto Brassa With Malcolm McDowell starring. There, the theme of the emperor's sexual adventures was brought to the fore. However, assessments of Caligula's behavior vary widely. Nowadays, it is almost impossible to establish for certain which of the rumors about his promiscuity is true and which is a lie. In particular, Caligula was accused of cohabiting with his three sisters. In any case, one of them Julia Drusilla, he really was incredibly loving. He printed her image on coins and even wanted to make her his heir. And when she died, he ordered her to be deified and for a long time could not come to his senses. Subsequently he named his only daughter Julia Drusilla.

7. A number of Caligula’s decisions do not at all fit with his image of a tyrant, thinking only about how to worsen the lives of his subjects. He repealed the “Lese Majesty Law,” on the basis of which his predecessor Tiberius repressed many of his opponents and simply rich people for the sake of their property. He rehabilitated those previously convicted under this law and returned their rights to property. He even tried to restore the already abolished direct elections of magistrates (government officials) by citizens, and also abolished censorship bans on the works of writers.

8. Many historians note the incredible cruelty of Caligula. It was reported that the emperor always had a servant with him, keeping two “notebooks” in which the names of people subject to persecution, torture or execution were written down. One notebook was called "Dagger", the other - "Sword". But at the same time, Caligula was very afraid of thunder and lightning; during a strong thunderstorm, he even crawled under his bed, not getting out of there until the heavens calmed down.

9. Caligula, despite the brevity of his reign, is remembered as an active builder. Under him, two new aqueducts were laid to improve the water supply of Rome. The emperor paid special attention to the road network - Caligula removed road supervisors from office if the areas entrusted to them were in poor condition. Those caught stealing funds allocated for road construction, were severely punished.

10. Like Julius Caesar, Caligula died from the knives of the conspirators. The leader of the conspiracy is considered to be a praetorian (guards) officer Cassius Chaerea, whom the emperor reportedly mocked in every possible way. On January 24, 41, Caligula was ambushed on the way to the baths and stabbed more than thirty times. His wife was killed along with the emperor Caesonia and the only daughter, Julia Drusilla, who was not even a year old. It is believed that the last words Caligula spoke were “I’m still alive!”

On March 28, 37 he came to power in Rome Emperor Caligula, whose name is surrounded by so many speculations that today it is extremely difficult to get to the bottom of the truth. They say that he forced all those he disliked to commit suicide, organized bisexual orgies, slept with all three of his sisters, and promoted his beloved horse to senator. Which of this is true, and which is slander from political opponents?

Guy Julius Caesar Augustus Germanicus, the third of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, was known by the nickname Caligula - “Boot”: when he was little, his mother put him in a soldier’s costume, including legionnaires’ shoes - “caligas”. According to some historians, Caligula indulged in debauchery from his youth and watched gladiator battles and torture with delight. But not everyone shares this point of view.

The name Caligula became synonymous with debauchery and madness after the release of the scandalous film by Tinto Brass in 1979. In it, the emperor is the embodiment of absolute evil, a sadist, pervert and psychopath. This idea of ​​Caligula developed largely thanks to the works of Roman historians, who were his political opponents.

The historians Tacitus and Josephus were born too late to know Caligula personally, but they communicated with people from his circle. The works of Suetonius and Dion were published 80 and 190 years after his reign. In addition, Suetonius, according to Yu. Yazovskikh, often mixed facts with rumors and outright anecdotes. The works of Suetonius and Dion are considered dubious and based on legends.

Suetonius was the first to claim that Caligula had an incestuous relationship with his sisters. The emperor's contemporaries, Seneca and Philo, make no mention of this, although their works contain open criticism of the tyrant. However, historians are still inclined to believe that Caligula had a sexual relationship with his middle sister Drusilla, with whom he lived as his legal wife.

It is really difficult to call the emperor chaste - he took noble women from their legal husbands and forced them to have intimacy. Those husbands who tried to contradict, as well as unwanted dignitaries, received orders to commit suicide. Caligula squandered the entire impressive inheritance of Tiberius in a year and introduced an incredible amount of various taxes to replenish the treasury.

However, during the first 8 months of his reign, Caligula showed himself in a completely different capacity. When he came to power, he immediately paid off all the debts of the imperial family, including the salaries of officials and legionnaires, reduced taxes, amnestied prisoners, freed exiles, removed all provincial governors who were suspected of embezzlement or bribery, and repealed the “Insult Law.” Majesty", destroyed the lists of traitors to Tiberius, began the construction of two aqueducts, and conducted several successful military campaigns.

However, 8 months after ascending the throne, Caligula fell ill with something - presumably encephalitis, which resulted in brain damage. After recovery, the emperor's behavior changed dramatically. At night he suffered from insomnia and nightmares, and during the day he committed outrages.

Despite the proven facts of brutal reprisals against opponents and dissolute behavior, many historians are confident that Caligula was not the monster he is shown in the Tinto Brass film. French researcher Daniel Noni is confident that most of the atrocities attributed to Caligula are groundless rumors. He calls the story about the appointment of a horse as a senator and the fact that the emperor declared himself a god as fiction. According to the historian, the total number of victims of Caligula for 3 years 10 months in power does not exceed 20, which cannot be compared with the list of victims of Tiberius, Nero or Octavian Augustus.

Caligula was killed as a result of another conspiracy when he was 28 years old. There are still debates about whether he was a victim of political intrigue and slander, an obsessed sadist, a tyrant and rapist, or a person suffering from schizophrenia or psychopathy. Moreover, Caligula's promiscuity was not unprecedented in history:

Every Roman Emperor has several crazy stories about him, but none of them compares with the stories about Caligula. Studying the life of Caligula, you come to the idea of ​​his mental inadequacy.

He invited his horse to drink wine at the dinner table

According to several Roman sources, Caligula treated his beloved horse Incitatus better than most people. Incitatus had his own home - Caligula gave him his own multi-room palace with furniture and slaves who were supposed to look after him.
Caligula invited Incitatus to dinner; the horse and the emperor were served wine in golden glasses.
There is a known case when the emperor noticed that people on the street were making too much noise and did not allow the horse to rest, and ordered the soldiers to pacify everyone so that the horse could rest.

He tried to replace the head on the statue of Zeus with his own


It was not enough for Caligula that he was an emperor, he wanted to be a god and created his own cult, built temples in Rome where people could worship him. He did not stop there; it is known that Caligula planned to cut off the head of the statue of Zeus in Olympia and replace it with his own likeness.
His obsession with declaring himself a god almost caused a rebellion. At one point, frustrated that the Jews did not worship him enough, Caligula ordered Petronius, the ruler of Syria, to create a massive statue of himself inside the Temple in Jerusalem.
The Jews were prepared for unrest, which would likely have turned into a full revolt if Petronius had not convinced Caligula to rescind the order for the statue. In the end, Caligula ordered Petronius' head to be cut off because Caligula changed his mind.

He ordered his army to attack the English Channel


Legend has it that Caligula once declared war on Neptune, the god of the sea, and ordered his men to strike the English Channel.
There are reasons to think that the story is a bit exaggerated. But there is no doubt that Caligula sent an army to the English Channel, and does not show Caligula in the best light.
The version accepted by most historians is that Caligula waged an unsuccessful campaign against the British and his men were on the verge of revolt because he cut their salaries. He led his entire army, including artillery, to the English Channel and told them that they could fill their helmets with as many shells as they wanted and be happy.

He destroyed his enemies


When Caligula took the throne, he invited some of the political enemies of Tiberius, the last emperor, to return to Rome. Caligula even invited one to sit with him personally, and then asked how the man spent his time in exile. “I constantly prayed to the gods for what happened,” the man told him, “that Tiberius might die and you would become emperor.”
He tried to flatter Caligula, but nothing worked. Instead, the man had several thousand people killed.
The conclusion Caligula made was that if people prayed for the death of Tiberius, then those whom he himself expelled can pray for the death of Caligula. Therefore, he issued a decree to kill all his enemies so that they would not pray for his death. This has become a long-term policy.

He built massive floating palaces for orgies


Caligula may have been crazy, but he definitely knew how to throw a party. After he came to power, Caligula
spent a lot of money on orgies, he ordered two giant barges located on Lake Nemi to be rebuilt: to make floors lined with mosaics, to decorate the interior with precious stones and statues.
Even the sails were made of purple silk, a material so rare at the time that it was used exclusively for the emperor's clothing.
Caligula had crazy orgies on these barges, and his favorite guests were his own sisters. But he didn't stop at incest.
Caligula ordered his courtiers to bring their wives. He made them line up in front of him, examined them and chose his favorite to take to his room. Then he returned and forced the husband to listen to all the details about how he had fun with his wife.

He built a bridge across the Bay of Bahia


Caligula's greatest achievement was the construction of a 5-kilometer panton bridge across the Bay of Bahia. At that time, such a bridge was completely unheard of.
Before becoming emperor, an astrologer named Thrasillus predicted that Caligula had "no more chance of becoming emperor than riding a horse across the Bay of Baia." Caligula built a bridge to prove the astrologer was wrong.

Caligula collected all the ships he could find and placed them in two rows along the bay. Earth was poured onto two rows of interlocking vessels and then compacted. Caesar, dressed in the armor of Alexander the Great, rode along this road on horseback.

He executed people out of boredom


During intermission in the games of ancient Rome, criminals were executed for the entertainment of the crowd.
Caligula was a big fan of this spectacle; it is known about cases when there were no criminals, then Caligula ordered the execution of random people.

He threatened to kill God


There are many reasons to think that the emperor was truly mentally ill.
It is known that he rarely slept more than three hours at a time because he was haunted by hallucinations. He talked to the god Jupiter, argued with him and threatened to kill him, in the presence of many people.

Thus, having despised the ancient inhabitants of Thy holy land, who committed the hated deeds of sorcery and unholy sacrifices, and the merciless murderers of children, and at sacrificial feasts who devoured the entrails of human flesh and blood in secret meetings, and the parents who killed helpless souls, You wanted to destroy them with the hands of their fathers. ours, so that the land, most precious of all to You, may receive a worthy population of the children of God...

(Book of the Presence of Solomon 12:1-7)

Real name - Gaius Caesar

Character - cruel

Temperament - choleric

Religion - pagan pantheist

The attitude towards power is greedy

Attitude towards subjects is contemptuous

The attitude towards love is cynical

The attitude towards flattery is enthusiastic

The attitude towards material wealth is acquisitive

Indifferent attitude towards one's own reputation

Gaius Caesar Caligula, Roman Emperor (12-41)

Germanicus, the father of Gaius Caesar, was highly respected by the people. The people loved him. He loved him so much that when Germanicus arrived or left somewhere, entire crowds gathered around him, stretching for many miles. The ancient Roman historian Suetonius wrote about him: “As is known, Germanicus was endowed with all the physical and mental virtues like no other: rare beauty and courage, remarkable abilities in science and eloquence in both languages, unparalleled kindness, ardent desire and amazing ability to win the favor of the people. and earn his love... He defeated the enemy hand-to-hand more than once. He did not stop giving speeches in court even after the triumph. Even Greek comedies remain among the monuments of his learning. Even when traveling, he behaved like a simple citizen; he entered free and allied cities without lictors.”

The same Suetonius gave Gaius Caesar a completely different description: “He was tall, his complexion was very pale, his body was heavy, his neck and legs were very thin, his eyes and temples were sunken, his forehead was wide and frowning, the hair on his head was sparse, with bald patches on the crown of his head.” , and thick throughout the body. Therefore, it was considered a capital crime to look at him from above as he passed by, or to accidentally utter the word “goat.”

He tried to make his face, already naturally bad and repulsive, even more ferocious, giving it a frightening and terrifying expression in front of the mirror. He was not distinguished by his health, either physically or mentally. As a child he suffered from epilepsy; in his youth, although he was resilient, at times from sudden weakness he could hardly walk, stand, hold on, or recover.”

Adopted by Emperor Tiberius, his paternal uncle, Germanicus worked hard for the glory of the empire until he died in the thirty-fourth year of his life. He died suddenly, unexpectedly, while on business in Antioch. It was suspected that he was poisoned on the orders of Tiberius, who saw a dangerous competitor in the people's favorite. The poisoning version was confirmed by blue spots appearing all over Germanicus’ body and foam on his lips.

Germanicus was married to Agrippina, daughter of Marcus Agrippa and Julia. They had six children, two of whom died in infancy. Three girls survived: Agrippina the Younger, Drusilla and Livilla, and three boys: Nero, Drusus and Gaius Caesar. The Roman Senate, on the accusation of Tiberius, declared Nero and Drusus enemies of the state and put them to death.

Gaius Caesar was born in 12 AD. There is conflicting information about the place of his birth.

“Rhymes that circulated shortly after he came to power indicate that he was born in winter camps: He was born in the camp, grew up under his father’s arms: Don’t you know that the highest power was destined for him?” - wrote Suetonius.

Whether Gaius Caesar was born in a military camp or not is a moot point. But it is reliably known that he grew up among soldiers, they dressed him like an ordinary soldier. There he received his nickname Caligula, which translated means “boot” - from stern soldiers devoid of joy family life, a little boy, shod in a small copy of real soldier’s boots, evoked affection.

This upbringing gave Gaius Caesar the love of the entire Roman army. According to contemporaries, by his very appearance he could calm the heated crowd of soldiers who had become disobedient.

Caligula grew up as a cunning and cautious child. The death of his father and two brothers taught him to keep his thoughts to himself and not trust anyone. Without a doubt, this modest-looking young man was an excellent actor. Emperor Tiberius brought him closer to himself and appointed him as his heir when Caligula was nineteen years old. Many of the emperor's associates, by cunning or force, tried to provoke some expression of discontent from young Caligula, but failed. Caligula behaved as if he did not know or had completely forgotten about the fate of his father and brothers.

The future emperor endured all humiliations and insults (Tiberius, who had a very bad disposition and was often unfair to him), skillfully pretending to be humble and meek, “... hiding enormous claims under the guise of modesty, he was so in control of himself that neither his mother’s condemnation nor the death of his brothers did not elicit a single exclamation from him; As Tiberius began the day, he had the same appearance, almost the same speeches. Hence the catchphrase of the orator Passienus, which later became widely known: there has never been a better slave or a worse master,” the ancient Roman historian Tacitus wrote about Caligula.

Caligula could not curb only two qualities of his nature even then - his cruelty and his depravity.

“He was present with greedy curiosity at the torture and execution of the tortured; at night, wearing false hair and a long dress, he wandered through taverns and dens, and danced and sang on stage with great pleasure. Tiberius willingly allowed this, hoping to tame his fierce temper. The insightful old man saw right through him and more than once predicted that Guy was living to the destruction of both himself and everyone, and that in him he was feeding a viper for the Roman people and Phaethon [Phaethon, the son of the Sun, according to a well-known myth, burned the entire earth, unable to control the solar chariot. - A. Sh.] for the entire earthly circle,” wrote Suetonius.

While Tiberius was still alive, Caligula married. His chosen one was a young beauty named Junia Claudilla, the daughter of one of the most noble Romans, Marcus Silanus. Their marriage was short-lived - Junia died in childbirth. Caligula, who did not interrupt his vicious activities with his marriage, did not grieve for her at all.

He was occupied with one single goal - to become the heir of the aging Tiberius, and in the name of this goal, the unprincipled and power-hungry Caligula was ready to make any sacrifice. So, for example, he entered into a relationship with Ennia Naevia, the wife of the noble nobleman Macron, who commanded the Praetorians, and even promised that he would marry her when he became emperor, to which he took an oath and a receipt. However, Tacitus argued that it was the insidious and far-sighted Macron who ordered his wife to seduce Caligula in order to have influence over him.

The commander of the Praetorians (or, otherwise, the Praetorian Guard) was in Ancient Rome a very influential figure. The main support of the power of emperors since the time of Augustus was and remained the army, and above all its best part - the Praetorian Guard, former object close attention and tireless care of all emperors. Praetorians were regularly paid a substantial salary, and upon completion of their service they were given a large “severance” allowance from the treasury. The entire Roman army was professional. By joining its ranks, a Roman citizen took an oath of allegiance to the emperor. Personally to the emperor, not to the senate and not to the people of Rome. Army service lasted about thirty years. At first, only Roman citizens had the right to serve in the Praetorian Guard, but even during the life of Augustus, free residents of the provinces also received this right.

Information about the death of Tiberius is somewhat contradictory. If you believe Tacitus, then one day Tiberius stopped breathing, and everyone decided that he had died. However, when Caligula was already accepting congratulations as the new emperor, he was suddenly informed that Tiberius had woken up and was even asking to bring him food.

The congratulators, frightened by the revenge of the “resurrected” Caesar, immediately fled, and Caligula became very depressed, not expecting anything good for himself. The situation was saved by Macron, who retained both self-control and determination. He ordered his men to strangle Tiberius by throwing a pile of clothes over him, and the seventy-seven-year-old emperor died for real.

Suetonius claims that Caligula poisoned Tiberius, but he could not give up the ghost. Then Caligula ordered the servant to cover the emperor’s head with a pillow, and, to be sure, he squeezed Tiberius’ throat with his strong hands.

Caligula ordered the servant holding the pillow to be crucified on the cross immediately after the murder - as an unnecessary witness.

“Thus he achieved power in fulfillment of the best hopes of the Roman people, or, better said, of the entire human race,” wrote Suetonius. -

He was the most desirable ruler both for most provinces and troops, where many remembered him as an infant, and for the entire Roman crowd, who loved Germanicus and pitied his almost destroyed family. Therefore, when he set out from Misenum, despite the fact that he was in mourning and accompanied the body of Tiberius, the people along the way met him with thick jubilant crowds, with altars, with sacrifices, with lighted torches, bidding him farewell good wishes, calling him “little light”, and “darling”, and “doll”, and “child”.

And when he entered Rome, he was immediately entrusted with the highest and full power by the unanimous verdict of the Senate and the crowd that broke into the curia, contrary to the will of Tiberius, who appointed his minor grandson as his co-heir.”

According to contemporaries, the people's joy was so great that in three months more than one hundred and sixty thousand animals were sacrificed.

The love of the Roman citizens was joined by the affection of foreigners. Thus, the Parthian king Artabanus, who throughout the reign of Tiberius openly expressed hatred and contempt for him, on his own initiative asked the new emperor for friendship and even, having crossed the Euphrates, paid honor to the Roman eagles, legion badges and images of the emperors of Rome.

It should be noted that the calculating Caligula himself did everything possible so that the people would imbue him with even greater love. The murdered Tiberius was buried solemnly, and Caligula himself, bursting into bitter tears, honored the memory of his predecessor with a heartfelt speech.

Wanting to emphasize his filial love, he, despite stormy weather, sailed to the islands to collect the ashes of his mother and brothers in urns, which he solemnly buried in the mausoleum. In memory of them, Caligula established annual memorial rites, and in honor of his mother, in addition, annual circus games, during which the image of Agrippina the Elder was carried around Rome in a special chariot. He did not forget about his father, in memory of him he renamed the month of September Germanicus.

After the dead, it was the turn of the living. In a Senate resolution, Caligula assigned truly great honors to his grandmother Antonia. He took his uncle (and successor) Claudius, who was at that time a Roman equestrian (the aristocratic class, second after the senatorial class), as consul, adopted his brother Tiberius on the day of his majority and gave him the honorary title of “head of the youth,” and in honor of the sisters ordered to add to every oath taken by his subjects: “And let me not love myself and my children more than Guy and his sisters.”

Caligula granted amnesty to all criminals and accused, returned some previously prohibited works to libraries, and allowed officials to freely rule the court without asking him for anything. He even tried to return the election of officials to the people by restoring popular assemblies, but the Senate opposed this, and Caligula did not insist on his own. In his populism, he even went so far as to exempt Italy from a half-percent sales tax and compensate losses to citizens affected by fires. Twice Caligula organized nationwide distributions of money, during which each free Roman received three hundred sesterces. Gifts and treats were often distributed.

The people rejoiced more than ever, and the Senate dedicated a golden shield to the young emperor, which was supposed to be brought to the Capitol every year on a set day with chants and praises.

Caligula was a great fan of gladiatorial battles and fist fights, during which he indulged his cruelty. He often organized theatrical performances and circus competitions. All this contributed to the growth of his popularity, since the people of Rome loved the spectacle.

“In addition, he invented a new and hitherto unheard-of spectacle,” wrote Suetonius. - He built a bridge across the bay between Baia and the Puteolan pier, almost three thousand six hundred steps long. To do this, he collected cargo ships from everywhere, lined them up at anchors in two rows, poured an earthen rampart on them and leveled them according to the model of the Appian Way. He rode back and forth across this bridge for two days in a row: on the first day - on a trimmed horse, wearing an oak wreath, with a small shield, a sword and a gold-woven cloak; the next day - in the clothes of a charioteer, in a chariot drawn by a pair of the best horses, and in front of him rode the boy Darius from the Parthian hostages, and behind him a detachment of praetorians and a retinue in carts.”

There was no meaning to the audience in this spectacle, but the Romans liked it for its novelty. Caligula himself was prompted to take this step by the old prediction of the astrologer Thrasyllus to Tiberius, who was preoccupied with the search for an heir, that Gaius Caesar would rather ride horses across the Gulf of Baia than become emperor.

Caligula did not forget about creation - he completed a number of buildings that were unfinished by Tiberius, began building a water supply system, restored the temple of the gods in Syracuse, which had collapsed from dilapidation, and laid out several new buildings.

He started well, and there was no end in sight to the praise.

One fine day, Caligula experienced what is commonly called “dizziness from success,” Caligula ordered divine honors to be given to himself, dedicated a special temple to his deity, appointed priests and established sacrifices in his honor. Suetonius writes that “the victims were peacocks, flamingos, black grouse, guinea fowl, pheasants - there is a different breed for each day.”

The emperor decided on an unheard-of step - he ordered images of gods, including Zeus himself, to be brought from Greece, their heads removed and replaced with his own.

Considering that he had done enough to strengthen his power, Caligula decided that he had enough of pretending and restraining himself. The change was striking - from a good ruler, loved by the people, he turned into a bloodthirsty libertine. More precisely, the bloodthirsty libertine threw away the mask of a good ruler and showed his true face to the people of Rome.

Caligula subjected his grandmother Antonia, who repeatedly tried to reason with her grandson and therefore asked him to talk in private, to many humiliations, thereby (and according to some, poison) bringing her to the grave, and after death he did not give her any honors. It was said that, having received the old woman in the presence of Macron, Caligula threatened her: “Don’t forget that I can do anything to anyone!”

Caligula executed his brother Tiberius, accusing him of secretly taking an antidote, as if fearing that the emperor would order him to be poisoned. In fact, Tiberius was taking medicine for a constant cough that tormented him.

Caligula forced the father of his late wife to commit suicide. The unfortunate man’s imaginary guilt was that he had never sailed with his son-in-law across the choppy sea for the ashes of Caligula’s mother and sisters, allegedly hoping to take possession of Rome himself in the event of a shipwreck. The real reason for avoiding participation in the voyage was Mark Silan's seasickness.

Caligula had an incestuous love affair with all his sisters. There were rumors that Drusilla, his most beloved sister, was deflowered by Caligula while still a teenager, and the grandmother Antonia, with whom they grew up together, once caught them during sexual intercourse.

Drusilla married Lucius Cassius Longinus, a senator of consular rank, but Caligula, having become emperor, brazenly violated the laws, taking her away from her husband and openly cohabiting with her.

Caligula was deeply attached to Drusilla, who was no doubt as vicious and depraved as he was. However, without hesitation, he gave it to the leaders of the praetorian cohorts for amusement, wanting to win them over even more. The nymphomaniac Drusilla was able to withstand many days of violence, but she could not endure the monstrous humiliation and soon died of grief.

When she died, Caligula established the strictest mourning, during which not only all types of entertainment and laughter for any reason, but even bathing and joint family dinners were punishable by death. Caligula himself henceforth swore only in the name of the deity Drusilla.

Caligula loved his other sisters less passionately and strongly. He more than once gave them away for the amusement of his favorites, and subsequently sent them into exile on charges of debauchery (just think!) and complicity in a conspiracy against him.

According to Suetonius, “it is difficult to say about his marriages what was more obscene in them: conclusion, dissolution, or remaining in marriage.”

Caligula personally came to congratulate the noble Roman Livia Orestilla, who was marrying Gaius Piso, on her marriage and, succumbing to a fit of passion, immediately ordered her to be taken away from her husband. A few days later he got bored with Livia, and he let her go home, but two years later he suddenly sent her into exile because she had the imprudence to get back together with her husband.

He summoned another noble lady, Lollia Pavlina, the wife of a military leader, from the province, having heard about her beauty. The rumors were well-founded, so Caligula, by his edict (decree), divorced Lollia from her husband and took her as his wife, only to soon let her go, forbidding her from allowing anyone to come near him in the future.

“Caesonia, who was not distinguished by either beauty or youth and had already given birth to three daughters from another husband, he loved most passionately and for the longest time for her voluptuousness and extravagance,” wrote Suetonius, “he often led her to the troops next to him, on horseback, with with a light shield, in a cloak and helmet, and even showed her naked to his friends. He honored her with the name of his wife no sooner than she gave birth to him, and on the same day declared himself her husband and the father of her child. He carried this child, Julia Drusilla, through the temples of all the goddesses and finally laid him on the womb of Minerva, instructing the deity to raise and feed her. He considered her fierce temper to be the best proof that she was the daughter of his flesh: even then she was so furious that she would scratch the faces and eyes of the children playing with her with her nails.” Truly, no better proof of blood relationship with the tyrant was required!

Caligula could put his friends to death for the slightest offense, and without any guilt at all. As they say, if there is a desire, there will always be a reason.

Caligula even dealt with Macron himself and his wife Ennia, who brought him to power. Caligula, contrary to his promise, never married Ennia Naevia; she remained his mistress. When Ennia tired of him, Caligula, accompanied by the executioner, showed up at Macron’s home, entered his bedroom and forced the spouses to make love in front of witnesses. Having seized the right moment, the executioner, at a sign from Caligula, hacked Macron to death with a sword, and strangled Ennia Caligula with his own hand. The executioner himself was killed by the Praetorians who came running to the noise, thinking that he dared to attack their beloved emperor.

Yes - the army and the people continued to love Caligula, despite all his antics, and thanks to this love, the power of the bloodthirsty emperor seemed eternal and indestructible.

Caligula used to take one of the other men's wives into his chambers during a feast, and after enjoying her fully, return her to her husband, accompanying his act with a detailed story about how exactly they made love, and noting both the shortcomings and advantages of the woman .

The emperor's subjects meekly endured his antics, fearing to show the slightest dissatisfaction, lest they be executed.

“He showed just as little respect and meekness towards the senators,” Suetonius testified, “he forced some who occupied the highest positions, dressed in togas, to run for several miles behind his chariot, and at dinner to stand at his bed at the head or in legs, belted with linen [in Ancient Rome slave servants walked around wearing belts. - A. Sh.]. He secretly executed others, but continued to invite them as if they were alive, and only a few days later he falsely announced that they had committed suicide. He deprived the consuls who forgot to issue an edict on his birthday, and for three days the state was left without supreme power. He ordered his quaestor, accused of conspiracy, to be scourged, tearing off his clothes and throwing them at the feet of the soldiers, so that they would have something to lean on when delivering blows.

He treated other classes with the same arrogance and cruelty. Once, disturbed in the middle of the night by the noise of a crowd that was rushing to take seats in the circus, he dispersed them all with sticks: in the confusion, more than twenty Roman horsemen were crushed, as many married women and an uncountable number of other people.”

As soon as the price of cattle, which, among other things, were used to fatten wild animals for spectacles, became more expensive, Caligula ordered that criminals be used for this purpose instead of animals, and he did not hesitate to personally go around prisons and select future victims.

Branding innocent subjects with a hot iron, beating them to death with chains and whips, burning them at the stake, throwing them to wild animals or, for example, sawing them in half with a saw, Caligula forced the relatives of the unfortunate to be present at these monstrous executions. None of those who fell under the wrath or hostility of the emperor could count on an easy death. Simple murder was not enough for Caligula; he certainly wanted to enjoy the torment of the doomed, without which executions would lose all meaning for him.

Caligula always demanded that executions be carried out slowly, with small, frequent blows; at the same time, he sentenced, turning to the executioner: “Beat him so that he feels that he is dying!”

He lived and ruled according to the principle read in one of the tragedies: “Let them hate, as long as they are afraid!” Caligula owns the famous expression: “Oh, if the Roman people only had one neck!” He spoke these words during a chariot race in which he himself took part. Caligula's anger was caused by the fact that the audience dared to applaud one of his competitors.

“There is reason to think that because of the darkness of his mind, the most opposite vices coexisted in him - exorbitant self-confidence and at the same time desperate fear,” suggested Suetonius. -

In fact: he, who so despised the gods themselves, at the slightest thunder and lightning, closed his eyes and covered his head, and if the thunderstorm was stronger, he jumped out of bed and hid under the bed. In Sicily, during his trip, he cruelly mocked all the local shrines, but suddenly fled from Messana in the middle of the night, frightened by the smoke and roar of the crater of Etna.”

Was Caligula mentally normal? Definitely no. It is impossible to establish an exact diagnosis over the years, but there is no doubt that he was either a schizophrenic or a psychopath, and in any case, the course of the disease was aggravated by the unlimited power that Caligula possessed.

“He considered, in his own words, equanimity, that is, shamelessness, to be the best and most commendable feature of his character,” wrote Suetonius.

Caligula, without hesitation, loudly regretted that his reign was not marked by any national disasters and risked being disgraced due to public well-being. He envied the divine Augustus, whose reign was remembered by the terrible defeat of the military leader Quintillius Varus, when the Germans completely destroyed three entire legions, along with the commander, legates and all auxiliary troops. Caligula was also jealous of Tiberius, during whose reign the amphitheater in Fidenae, packed with people, collapsed. He was jealous and passionately dreamed of a great military massacre, of severe famine, of a plague epidemic, of terrible fires or destructive earthquakes.

Caligula could have caused the disaster himself. For example, during the consecration of a bridge in one of the provinces, he gathered a great crowd of people for the celebration and suddenly ordered them to be thrown from the banks into the sea. He himself swam on the ship between the drowning people, enjoying their horror, and with a hook he pushed away those who tried to escape by grabbing the stern.

He was capable of any sacrilege. Thus, one day, during a sacrifice in the temple, Caligula dressed up as a carver’s assistant, and when the sacrificial animal was brought to the altar, he suddenly swung and calmly killed the priest-carver himself with one blow of his hammer.

There was even more envy and anger in Caligula than cruelty. He ordered the destruction of all statues of illustrious men of the past, and also forbade the erection of statues or sculpted portraits of living people without his approval. Of course, only the image of the emperor himself received approval and no one else.

Caligula could have ordered the back of a handsome young man's head to be shaved in order to disfigure him, or he could have simply ordered the death of the impudent man who dared to outshine the emperor himself with his beauty. Suetonius wrote: “There was a certain Aesius Proculus, the son of a senior centurion, who was nicknamed Colossus Eros for his enormous height and handsome appearance. [that is, huge, like a colossus, and beautiful, like Eros, the messenger of love. - A. Sh.]\ During the spectacle, he suddenly ordered him to be driven from his place, taken to the arena, pitted against a lightly armed gladiator, then against a heavily armed one, and when he emerged victorious both times, he was tied up, dressed in rags, paraded through the streets for the amusement of the women, and finally , cut. Truly, there was no person so rootless and so wretched that he would not try to dispossess him.”

Caligula did not shy away from sodomy, which in Ancient Rome, unlike Ancient Greece, was condemned and punished very severely - even the death penalty.

A certain Valerius Catullus, a young man from a noble Roman family, complained without hesitation to his friends that his lower back hurt from tireless love affairs with the voluptuous emperor. Caligula also had many other male lovers.

He was so loving that he did not make any difference between men and women, and, while quenching his passion, he certainly tried to cause pain to the victim. Rough sex was widespread in ancient Rome, where it was believed that victory in the battlefield was inseparable from violence, but Caligula left all his contemporaries far behind.

Having grown up among soldiers and seemingly not accustomed to luxury, Caligula, having become emperor, outdid the most desperate spenders among his predecessors with his exorbitant waste. Let us listen to Suetonius, who left us very detailed records about the lives of the twelve Roman Caesars, starting with the divine Julius: “He (Caligula. - A. Sh.) invented unheard-of ablutions, outlandish dishes and feasts - he bathed in fragrant oils, hot and cold, drank precious pearls dissolved in vinegar, distributed bread and snacks made of pure gold to the table diners. “You have to live either as a modest person or as a Caesar!” - he said. He even threw considerable amounts of money at the people from the roof of the Julian Basilica for several days in a row. He built the Liburnian galleys with ten rows of oars, with pearl sterns, with multi-colored sails, with huge baths, porticoes, banquet chambers, even vineyards and orchards of all kinds: feasting in them in broad daylight, he sailed along the coast of Campania to music and singing. Constructing villas and country houses, he forgot about all common sense, trying only to build what seemed impossible to build. And therefore dams were raised in the deep and stormy sea, passages were cut through flint cliffs, valleys rose in embankments to the mountains, and mountains, dug up, were leveled to the ground - and all this with incredible speed, because they paid for delay with their lives.”

Tiberius left two billion seven hundred million sesterces in the treasury - a gigantic sum at that time. Caligula managed to get it down in less than a year.

Left without money, the young emperor began to get it with his characteristic shamelessness.

He forced people whose grandfathers and great-grandfathers bought Roman citizenship for themselves and their descendants to pay again, extending the concept of “descendants” only to the sons of the acquirer. He sought to become a co-heir to almost every inheritance in Rome. He did not hesitate to impose exorbitant taxes on his subjects. He organized a wide variety of auctions, personally setting and inflating prices for them. Of course, all income from the auction went to the imperial treasury. Noble people Those who wanted to dine with the emperor had to shell out a lot, and in general his subjects were accustomed to paying Caligula for everything, literally for every sneeze or every breath. The emperor did not disdain banal usury, lending money at fabulous interest rates and ruthlessly collecting what was due (and often more) from debtors.

Overwhelmed by the mania of acquisitiveness and not at all ashamed of his subjects, who were frightened to the point of trembling, Caligula set up a luxurious and huge brothel (in ancient Roman - lupanar), where, under his compulsion, respectable married matrons, as well as boys and girls from noble families, offered themselves to everyone for money. , going straight to Caligula.

As soon as Caligula’s daughter was born, he immediately began to demand offerings from his subjects for her upbringing and dowry.

His passion for gold went so far that Caligula ordered his servants to scatter gold coins on the floor so that they completely covered it, and began to walk on the gold with bare feet or even roll on it with his whole body. The benefits that were purchased for money were not enough for him - he sought to derive pleasure directly from contact with gold coins.

For all his cruelty and bloodthirstiness, Caligula was not a warrior, much less a commander. During his entire reign, he only once became concerned about war, and even then by pure chance. One day the emperor was reminded that his detachment of German bodyguards should be replenished, and he suddenly decided to go to war against Germany.

Caligula had long ago taught the Romans that all his desires, even the most extravagant ones, should be fulfilled immediately and exactly. Soon the army was assembled and set off on a campaign, led by the emperor himself.

Caligula tried to play the role of a wise and strict commander, but his idea failed, which, however, did not prevent the emperor from returning to Rome in triumph.

“And he wrote to his treasurers to prepare a triumph such as no one had seen, but to spend as little as possible on it: after all, they have at their disposal the property of the entire population,” wrote Suetonius.

Many atrocities could not pass without a trace - according to contemporaries, Caligula was tormented by insomnia. At night he could not sleep for a long time, and when sleep finally came to him, he was very restless and the emperor slept for no more than three hours at a time. Caligula was troubled by strange visions, and sometimes ghosts appeared to him. Without a doubt, there were among them those who fell victims to the ferocious and bloodthirsty emperor. Instilling fear in his subjects, he wandered, waiting for the long-awaited dawn, through the endless passages of his palace, looking for someone to take out his evil on.

The imperial style of dressing amazed the Romans. Without thinking at all about the impression his outfit made on others, Caligula could appear in public in clothes unworthy not only of an emperor, but also of an ordinary man. “He often went out to the people in colored capes embroidered with pearls, with sleeves and wrists, sometimes in silks (at that time only women wore silk clothes. - A. Sh.) and women's blankets, shod either in sandals or buskins [special boots with high soles, in which tragic actors performed, so that the public could see them better. -A. Sh. ], sometimes in soldier’s boots, sometimes even in women’s shoes; many times he appeared with a gilded beard, holding in his hand a lightning bolt, or a trident, or a staff - the signs of the gods, or even in the vestments of Venus. He always wore the triumphal robe even before his campaign, and sometimes he wore the armor of Alexander the Great, obtained from his tomb,” wrote Suetonius.

Caligula was an excellent orator - eloquent, resourceful, and did not reach into his pocket for a well-aimed word. Loving to show off, he was always ready to make a speech in front of any audience, finding special joy in this activity if the speech was accusatory. His acting abilities were beyond praise - he skillfully controlled his voice, giving it expressiveness appropriate to the moment, and supported it with thoughtful, polished gestures and facial expressions that looked completely natural and sincere. For all that, Caligula, more accustomed to speaking before soldiers and the mob than before patricians and educated people in general, despised elegant style and was never distinguished by the softness of his colorful expressions. Of course, Caligula was passionately jealous of the success of other speakers. Poor, poor speakers... Their supreme envy must have cost them dearly!

Caligula's talents were versatile and multifaceted. “A gladiator and a driver, a singer and a dancer, he fought with military weapons, acted as a driver in circuses built everywhere, and he enjoyed singing and dancing so much that even at national spectacles he could not resist singing along with the tragic actor and echoing in front of everyone movements of the dancer, approving them and correcting them...

He sometimes danced even in the middle of the night: once, after midnight, he called three senators of consular rank to the palace, seated them on the stage, trembling in anticipation of the worst, and then suddenly ran out to them to the sounds of flutes and rattles in a woman’s veil and a tunic to his toes, and danced dance and left.

However, for all his dexterity, he did not know how to swim,” says Suetonius.

Without a doubt, such a monster as Caligula could not help but make a great many enemies. Many of those to whom he caused grief wanted to take revenge on him, intending to put an end to him in one way or another, but up to a certain point all the conspiracies failed, and the conspirators paid with their lives for their intentions.

Finally the cup of anger overflowed. There were two brave men, two noble Romans, whose names were Cassius Chaerea and Cornelius Sabinus. With good reason we can assume that almost the entire Senate and almost all the patricians of Rome stood behind them, because while Caligula was in power, no one, regardless of nobility of origin, position in society, wealth and past merits, could feel in security. In addition, the bloody millstones spun by Caligula were gaining momentum, and no one believed that they could stop without outside participation...

Cassius Chaerea and Cornelius Sabinus developed a plan to assassinate Caligula and managed to carry it out. In case of failure, the conspirators did not lose anything - their own lives were literally hanging by a thread, because the emperor already suspected them of malicious intent against his sacred person. Caligula was generally characterized by groundless, or, more precisely, unsubstantiated, unfounded suspicions.

According to the plan, it was necessary to attack Caligula during the Palatine Games (three-day games established in honor of Emperor Augustus after his death), exactly at noon, when the emperor was supposed to leave the performance.

Cassius Chaerea voluntarily took on the leading role. He was an honored and respected man of venerable age in Rome, who held the high position of tribune of the praetorian cohort. All these circumstances did not prevent Caligula from constantly (and very sophisticatedly - the emperor did not like to repeat himself, finding it humiliating) to mock Cassius. A favorite area for the highest ridicule was everything connected with love affairs. Caligula teased Cassius as a womanizer, not without a second thought assigned him the words “Priapus” or “Venus” as a password, publicly showed obscene gestures to the tribune... The arsenal was large, and just as great was the hatred of the offended Cassius, in addition to everything aware that sooner or later, the emperor will become bored with his mental torment and the time will come for physical torment, which will inevitably end in death.

The ancient Romans loved all kinds of fortune telling, predictions and signs. Of course, such a grandiose matter as the death of the tyrant Caligula could not do without signs. They said that shortly before his murder, the statue of Jupiter, which Caligula ordered to be dismantled and transported from Olympia to Rome, suddenly burst into a thunderous peal of laughter, which scared all the witnesses almost half to death. They said that in Capua lightning struck the Capitol, and in Rome it chose the temple of Apollo as its target, and interpreted what happened as signs foretelling the danger to the emperor from his servants.

The astrologer Sulla, in response to Caligula's question about his horoscope, allegedly announced to the emperor that his death was inevitably approaching. The fact is controversial, since Sulla got away with such a statement (he outlived Caligula by many years), which, knowing Caligula’s tough temperament, is impossible to believe. There is also a legend that says that the oracles of Fortuna of Actia advised Caligula to beware of the machinations of Cassius, which is why he immediately sent the assassins to a certain Cassius Longinus, who was then proconsul of Asia, not remembering that Chaereus, whom he hated, was also called Cassius.

Caligula, according to his own story, the night before his death had a dream in which he stood in heaven at the foot of the throne of Jupiter, who threw him from heaven to earth with a kick. On the very day of the murder, Caligula was allegedly splashed with the blood of a flamingo during a sacrifice, which was clearly interpreted as a bad sign...

About the murder of Caligula itself, which took place on January 24, 1941, two versions have reached us. According to the first of them, when Caligula was talking with boys from among the Roman nobility, Cassius Chaerea approached him from behind, suddenly cut the back of his head deeply with a precise blow of his sword and shouted: “Do your job!”, calling his partner Cornelius Sabinus to action, too. tribune. He did not make a mistake - he quickly grabbed the sword from its sheath and plunged it into the tyrant’s chest up to the hilt.

According to another version, it all started when the centurions from the emperor’s guard, privy to the conspiracy, pushed the crowd of his companions away from Caligula. Then Cassius Chaerea shouted: “Get yours!” - and when Caligula turned around at the cry, he cut his chin with his sword. The Emperor fell to the ground, writhing in pain and shouting: “I’m alive! I'm alive!" - after which the rest of the conspirators finished him off with many blows (according to Suetonius, about thirty). The imperial German bodyguards came running at the noise, and a bloody brawl ensued, which would undoubtedly have pleased Caligula if he had been alive.

After the death of the emperor, his wife Caesonia was hacked to death, the same one “not distinguished by either beauty or youth,” and the conspirators killed Caligula’s daughter, Julia Drusilla, by taking her by the legs and smashing her head against the wall.

The conspirators first tried to burn Caligula's body on a funeral pyre, but it did not burn entirely and was hastily buried. Subsequently, the remains of Caligula were dug up, burned to the end and properly buried by his sisters - Agrippina the Younger and Livilla, who returned from exile after the death of their brother.

The people of Rome did not immediately believe in the death of Caligula. Many initially suspected that the emperor himself ordered the rumor of his own murder to be spread in order to find out how his subjects really felt about him.

Caligula’s successor was Claudius, already mentioned here, about whom Antonia’s own mother said that her son, among other people, looked like a real freak, that nature began him and did not end him, and intending to convict someone of lack of intelligence, she said: “He is stupider than my Claudius.” " The people of Rome were again unlucky, although the divine Claudius, in terms of the atrocities he committed, could not be compared with either his predecessor Caligula or his successor Nero.

Gaius Caesar, nicknamed Caligula, lived twenty-nine years, of which he reigned for only three years, ten months and eight days, but managed to leave a monstrous memory of himself as a bloodthirsty and utterly licentious creature, unworthy of the name of man.

In the entire history of mankind, few rulers managed to surpass Caligula in atrocities.

When speaking about his unbridled voluptuousness, one must not use the lofty word “love” so as not to desecrate it. Caligula never knew any love - he was tormented only by passions, base and vicious passions. His example convinces us that the high honor of ruling over their fellow men is not always awarded to the best of people. And it is unlikely that any story, any book, any film that talks about Caligula can convey the horror that his unfortunate subjects experienced during the reign of the tyrant.