Caligula

The son of Germanicus. Born in 12 AD. Caligula's real name was Gaius Julius Caesar Germanicus. He was named after his relation, Julius Caesar. "Caligula" is from a Latin nickname "Little Boots," since his mother used to dress him up as a soldier when he was young. Some thought that Germanicus was poisoned by Tiberius. Tiberius also forces Caligula's brothers and mothers to commit suicide. Caligula is likely only spared because he is young. Tiberius had Caligula stay with him in his villa on his island of Capri. This was a sick game, in which Tiberius forced 19-year-old Caligula to stay with the man who killed his family. Here, Caligula witnessed Tiberius' perversion. Tiberius "played" with underage boys and girls, before having them tossed over a cliff to meet their demise. Tiberius grows fond of Caligula. Tiberius is quoted as saying "I am nursing a viper for the Roman people."

After the death of Tiberius, Caligula takes over as emperor in 37 AD. He stops the paranoid treason trials of Tiberius and decreases taxes. He spends a large amount of money on games and buildings, so he quickly becomes widely loved. He gets sick and many people begged the gods for his recovery.

In the early years, there are rumors that Caligula engages in incest with his sister Drusilla, since they were orphans and lacked love and companionship from others. Drusilla dies at the age of 20, and Caligula is devastated, forcing his people to grieve for 2 months. Caligula later has a daughter, which he names Drusilla, in tribute to his sister. Caligula had an enormous sexual appetite. For instance, he enjoyed using other men's wives for his pleasure. He enjoyed abusing his power, and publicly criticized the men of the wives he toyed with by judging their performance or techniques. He would even attend weddings, only to stop the wedding so he could have his way with the bride. He would ditch her soon after, telling her she couldn't marry. His sexual perversion was likely due to his time with Tiberius.

Caligula fell in love with a woman named Milonia Caesonia in 39 AD. This girl was known for her extravagance and promiscuity. She already had three children from another man and was described as "neither beautiful, nor young." Some speculated that Caligula's madness was the result of a love potion administered by Caesonia, since she wasn't the most popular choice for a bride. Caligula loved his bride so much that he would parade her naked in front of his troops and selected friends. In a very weird way of flirting, he told her he could have her throat slit whenever he pleasure, before proceeding to kiss her neck. He would often joke of having her tortured (in a flirty way).

Caligula also forced the relatives to cheer and smile as he executed their children, before executing the relatives themselves. He held parties/gatherings of a joyous nature to watch people be brutally killed. He forced the grieving loved ones to join in the festivities, and act like they were having a good time. Caligula also liked slow executions, starting with minor cuts and abrasions and increasing to more painful methods of torture, keeping the victim alive as long as possible. On one occasion, the victim screamed his innocence before torture. Caligula calls him back, only to have his tongue cut out so his couldn't keep shouting his innocence. The victim was then thrown back in with the wolves.

Caligula recovered from sickness, but after this, people began to notice that he was nuts. Caligula found out his expenditures had drained the treasury, so he increased taxes and created new treason trials, so he could arrest people and confiscate their property. Caligula made preparations to invade the island of Britain, but instead declared war on Neptune, and ordered his men to collect seashells as war spoils. He threatened to put his favorite horse on the Roman council.

Caligula claimed to be a living god. Most emperors were considered gods after death, but Caligula didn't wait. He claimed to seek direct advice from Jupiter and claimed to regularly party with demigod Hercules. Caligula even incorporated a holy temple in his palace. In doing this, Caligula was basically saying "I am living with the gods. I am a god." He also had statues of himself built in every temple. Caligula was 28.

After the death of Nero's father, Nero inherits his father's estate, but Caligula seizes the inheritance.

Caligula was eventually assassinated by his own guardsmen after a sporting event, and chaos erupted in the city as the guards tried to hunt down the assassins. Caligula was left with 30 stab wounds. His wife and daughter Drusilla were also murdered. This occurred in Palatine Hill, Rome, Italy. Along the way, the guards find a man hiding behind a curtain, Caligula's uncle, Claudius, and they declare him emperor. Caligula's statues were taken down in an attempt to purge the memory of him.