Emperor Caligula of Rome (AD 12-41) was Emperor for four years. According to ancient sources, his first two years of rule were normal enough, and he was a thoughtful ruler. In the second year of his reign, Caligula suffered a mysterious illness, and Rome was distraught over his health. He was thought to be dying. However, he recovered in a few months, but was never the same again. The last two, though, were marked by his descent into insanity and depression, which culminated in his eventual assassination by his own bodyguards. Caligula is thought to have had epilepsy, a disorder wherein the victim is subject to seizures induced by flashing lights. Caligula had a daily fear of seizures, and often spoke to the moon. He was also afraid of water. One recorded incident of his insanity was his introdution of his favorite horse into the Senate as a consul. He ordered the senators to treat his horse as their equal. Needless to say, the people were shocked. This kind of behavior continued to grow in intensity and frequency, whereupon his closest took it upon themselves to save the Roman State from his ineptitude. They assassinated him while he watched a play.
In my opinion, Caligula was victim to a cornucopia of diseases including epilepsy. That does not change the fact that he was psychologically insane. His disorder may garner some pity for him, but it garners even more pity for his Roman subjects. When living an emperor with absolute power who is also absolutely insane, a peasant would, and should, get antsy.
Caligula's rule, of course, was pock-marked by his ridiculous behavior. He has, as a matter of course, gone down in history as one of the most insane rulers ever to take the throne. In life, his existence was miserable, and so too is it in death, as he is now nothing more than a laughingstock now that Rome is a thing of the ancient past.
http://www.vroma.org/~bmcmanus/caligula.html
http://www.roman-empire.net/emperors/caligula.html
In my opinion, Caligula was victim to a cornucopia of diseases including epilepsy. That does not change the fact that he was psychologically insane. His disorder may garner some pity for him, but it garners even more pity for his Roman subjects. When living an emperor with absolute power who is also absolutely insane, a peasant would, and should, get antsy.
Caligula's rule, of course, was pock-marked by his ridiculous behavior. He has, as a matter of course, gone down in history as one of the most insane rulers ever to take the throne. In life, his existence was miserable, and so too is it in death, as he is now nothing more than a laughingstock now that Rome is a thing of the ancient past.
http://www.vroma.org/~bmcmanus/caligula.html
http://www.roman-empire.net/emperors/caligula.html
3 comments:
The content of the blog wwas very good and informative, but your word choice is very childish. Antsy? who says that? jk. I think you did a very good job though with explaining his life and how the illness affected his rule.
I have never heard of this emperor until now and I agree that he did have a lot of mental issues. Your blog was good but it still leaves us wondering what was wrong with him. I agree that he probably had epilepsy but I am not sure what other mental disorder could have made him act the way he did.
It's interesting what power can bring to a person's psyche. I believe that many of the "insane" rulers throughout history attribute much of their insanity to ego and power. Also a notable mention should go to the insestuous ways of the royalty much throughout history, but that is for another discussion.
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