Mohamed Fawaz

Roman emperors were arguably the most powerful figures in history. They ruled, uncontested, with ultimate authority. Similarly, many of the empresses enjoyed such control and power. Some of these rulers, however, took things too far. Caligula, Nero, and Messalina were among the cruelest and most corrupt figures in Roman society. They used their positions to further themselves at the expense of all others, including the Roman people, their own parents, wives, husbands, brothers, sisters, and even their children. These three figures were infamous for adultery, random acts of homicide, excessive spending, and in Nero’s situation, even genocide. They had no regard for human life and in almost every circumstance, they are referred to as cruel, or malicious, or evil. They behaved in lewd and lascivious manners that forever sullied their names. Therefore, in examining Caligula, Nero, and Messalina, it is important first to understand the potential causes for their behaviors, then to look at their seldom known good deeds, and finally to concentrate on their infamous evil actions.

Caligula, born Gaius Caesar, was the first Roman emperor born a prince, having great proportions of both Julian and Claudian blood as well as being a member of the ruling dynasty (Ferrill 26). He was the son of Germanicus, nephew to emperor Tiberius, and Agrippina, the niece of Augustus. From his birth, he seemed to be in the line of succession for the imperial throne. Unfortunately for him, and the people of Rome, Caligula’s childhood was hardly ideal for preparing a young boy for adulthood, much less preparing him to rule a vast empire.

Caligula’s childhood was full of turmoil and psychologically damaging events. At about six months of age, both his parents left for the Rhine, leaving Caligula behind to be taken care of by strangers (Ferrill 34). There is little doubt that such a long separation of an infant from his parents can have some damaging long-term effects. Then as a two year old, he was trapped in the middle of a rebellion along the Rhine. He was whisked from place to place and town-to-town, never really having a home or a secure environment. At the age of seven, his father mysteriously died in Syria. As he grew up, he saw his brothers murdered, his mother exiled, and other relatives starved to death. As Arther Ferrill states in his book, Caligula, Emperor of Rome, "In those first, formative years of his life, he had traveled everywhere with his mother and father and had witnessed events that shook the Roman world. Small wonder then that they also shook him" (33). Within the first seven years of his childhood, he had experienced more grief than most people experience in a lifetime. When he grew up, he experienced even more painful events. Given such circumstances, it is not bizarre that a boy who grew up seeing nothing but violence and earth shaking events would be violent himself.

Although infamous for his evil actions, Caligula was not all cruel when he first took over control of Rome. In the beginning of his reign, people were relieved. He began his reign by going on a pilgrimage. He then gave amnesty to exiled prisoners everywhere and said that the tyranny of Tiberius was over (Ferrill 98). He freely gave away money and won vast support and recognition for his actions. It truly appeared as if the times of awful rulers were over. Unfortunately, Caligula’s benevolent streak did not last long.

Caligula’s kindness did not last, and thus began his infamous reign of terror. First, he used money excessively. He spent double the amount of money needed to handle any situation. He used over 25% of the empire’s annual revenue to restore kings who had been deposed by Tiberius. His spending eventually led to bankruptcy. This excessive use of money was dangerous to the future stability of the empire (Ferrill 101). However, the increased spending was not nearly as bad as his other treacherous behaviors. For no apparent reasons, he began an attack on the senate. He began persecuting the people to whom he had granted amnesty to in the beginning of his reign. His actions were all of a madman. According to Ferrill, "He liked his victims to be tortured to a slow, agonizing death" (114). He would force parents to watch their children’s executions while he made jokes. Some of his other infamous acts included burning a writer alive for writing a line with an ambiguous meaning as well as having people beat just short of death so their suffering was prolonged (Ferrill 114-115). In lieu of all this treachery, the abrupt ending to his reign is not shocking.

Unlike other emperors who reigned until their old age, Caligula’s reign was cut short in 41 AD. His evil acts became so intolerable that plots to kill him were numerous. One, however, was well crafted and well timed. It was expected that there would be a large gathering of people at the theatre, and that his guards would be unable to protect him. As Caligula and his council were leaving through an alternate route, an unguarded route, the conspirators grabbed him, and proceeded to stab him over thirty times (Ferrill 162-163). This event brought an end to his reign of terror. However, Caligula’s fall did not mean peaceful or better times for Rome.

Upon Caligula’s murder, Claudius was made emperor, along with his wife, Messalina. Messalina was not a very intelligent, but very beautiful woman. She was able to control Claudius by any means she felt necessary. She was deceptive, treacherous, and unworthy of the empress title. Her greatest love was money. According to Guglielmo Ferrero in The Women of the Caesars, "Messalina . . . thought only of acquiring wealth, that she might dissipate it in luxury and pleasures" (254). In acquiring such wealth, she would go to any lengths; she used everything from corruption, to stealing, to blackmail. The majority of the people hated her, and her future actions would further anger people, as well as disgrace the imperial throne.

Messalina’s treacherous behavior was so blatant that her downfall was inevitable. Her adultery and behavior had people so angry, they were blaming Claudius for not controlling her. They felt his weakness as a ruler allowed her to disgrace the empire freely. For seven years, she was one of the greatest flaws in the government. Her final and most daring act occurred when she married another man, in Rome. This move was monumental. For a man to commit bigamy was outrageous. For a woman to commit such an offense, especially against the emperor of Rome, is shocking beyond belief. Some argue that her actions are those of an insane woman, although no real evidence exists. Her actions, however, were sacrilegious and a disgrace to the emperor. Claudius proceeded to divorce her, and later had her executed. Again, the reign of a horrendous figure came to an end, but Rome was yet to see peaceful times under Claudius’s successor.

Nero’s childhood was one of instability with uncaring parents. Nero was the last of the Julio-Claudians. Nero’s father was corrupt and evil. According to Gilbert Charles Picard in Augustus and Nero, he had " . . . a sadistic brutality and a lust that even the court of Tiberius was amazed at, and he was covetous to the point of being dishonest" (87). Such paternal influence could not have been good for a young boy. His mother was also a dishonest and self-serving woman. She wished to rule and wanted to ensure her son’s succession to the throne. In controlling him, she was even willing to let him covet her, and helped lead him on in hopes of having better control over him (Picard 88). His parents were hardly role models. They were cruel people with evil intentions. It is not surprising that with their kind of influence, the majority of Nero’s reign was considered horrifying.

The beginning of Nero’s reign was very welcomed. He appeared to be a very benevolent ruler. He refused to sign death warrants. He made the gladiator games more civilized, so they were more like fencing events. He held the theatre, music, and art in high regard. However, all his good deeds did not last. His behavior drastically changed, and acted in dangerous and cruel ways.

Nero was not interested in ruling and his excessive spending and evil behavior was a threat to everyone. According to Picard, "Tacitus and Suetonius [two very famous Roman historians] rightly regarded his inordinate spending as a chief cause of his downfall" (108). He was more interested in art and a great deal of his "inordinate spending" went towards art and theatre. Although this was a virtue at first, his lack of interest in ruling, and his increased interest in performing made this a vice. His squandering of money upset many members of the aristocracy, which eventually led to his downfall. However, his cruel actions and insane like behaviors played a big part as well. During one threat in Gaul, he felt he could stop the armies if he went by himself and started to weep (Picard 149). Such actions had become far too common for Nero and far too dangerous for the empire. His final great threat to the people occurred in 64 AD, when he blamed the Christians for a great fire, and began persecuting them. Because of these random acts, people began fearing for their own lives. These actions, combined with his lack of competency, caused him to flee for his life in 68 AD. Following that, he committed suicide out of fear (Picard 13). With his death, came the end of the Julian-Claudian dynasty, as well as the end of years of malicious and self-serving leaders.

Caligula, Nero, and Messalina were three of the most self-serving and cruel leaders of any time. They used their positions to further themselves and harm anyone that came in their way. It is argued by many that all three of these figures were mentally unstable based on their actions. However, no concrete evidence of such claims exists. There are several things, however, that are known about all three. Clearly, they all loved to spend an excessive amount of money, committed numerous acts of adultery, and would hurt anyone to obtain what they wanted. Most importantly, Caligula, Messalina, and Nero will forever be infamous as three of the most ruthless figures in Roman history.
 
 

Works Cited

Ferrero, Guglielmo. The Women of the Caesars. New York: Knickerbocker P, 1925.

Ferrill, Arther. Caligula: Emperor of Rome. New York: Thames, 1991.

Picard, Gilbert Charles. Augustus and Nero. New York: Crowell, 1965.