Caligula: Was He Really Mad?

[@restishistorypod]

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[@lylaclark3977]

@@restishistorypod just did become a Member 😁😁👍

[@damonmoney4474]

Why couldn't Caligula get anything passed in the Roman Senate? His horse kept casting too many neigh votes.

[@hellohellohellohellohello-h5l]

God damn you. Have a thumbs up.

[@therealinformalmusic]

You forget that Incitatus provided a stable influence.

[@nigelmcconnell1909]

And after Caligula's demise did this particular senator hoof it?

[@nikbear]

And for that you can get your cloak 😅

[@restishistorypod]

Excellent

[@HollyJ211]

The way I BURST out laughing at 44:17 at Dominic’s face and the slow zoom 😂 The lovely humor and rapport of the two hosts make these podcasts so delightfully engaging.

[@karlkarlos3545]

Fun fact: John Gielgud, of all thespians, didn't feel embarrassed at all for starring in Caligula. He even remarked with some kind of pride that he had just made his "first pornographic film."

[@adamokolicsanyi4774]

When Dominic looks at the camera with a mischevious smile in the intro, I cannot help but snicker like a child.

[@rtaj247]

Good to see Tom’s wicked smile when Dom mentions ‘depravity, cruelty etc’

[@austinscott893]

North American here. I feel like the 3 of us could sit down for coffee, tea and biscuits of something, and enjoy each others company. I picked up on Dom's Churchill impression right away in another video. I'm amused by 2 Brits talking about someone like US general George Custer. I love the War of 1812 and American Revolution from British perspectives. God save the Knights Who Say Ni.

[@Roarsta88]

👌

[@johndaniels1120]

I’ve been binging this podcast for the past month. Another great episode 👍

[@bearhustler]

The episode where Theo summons the praetorians to end Tom's insane despotism is going to be amazing. Does that make Dom Nero ?

[@lanaengel2988]

Love your channel! As a clinical psychologist, I find it very plausible that the anecdotes about his nasty behaviour could be true. With his childhood experiences I can imagine he develop something we nowadays call complex trauma, and what is a sort of personality disorder with sometimes symptoms as sadisme, unstable identity, paranoid ideas etc.

[@militant_daisies]

such a delightful podcast. so happy for your success.

[@sparkleypegs8350]

I really love you guys. This is great stuff.

[@Habdabi]

These emperor's need a part 2 each!

[@Dr_DeeDee]

The poor guy who vowed to fight a gladiator if Caligula recovered, I couldn't help but picture Tom fighting in the arena while he was recounting this. 😂

[@AndriaBieberDesigns]

Thank you for your videos ❤

[@jameswebb4593]

I wonder what Suetonius would have written about Keir Starmer , a Monster of our times.

[@CharlesTheInnocent-s9s]

14:30 The Pisos were a well known patrician or aristocratic family in Rome who played prominent roles in Roman politics through the centuries or ages. One in particular gained infamy in AD 65 when he was implicated in a plot to overthrow Nero and kill him. Other prominent Romans such as the philosopher, Seneca and Nero's director of Elegance, Petronius also got corralled.

[@Calighoula]

Sounds like a perfectly sane man.

[@awonoto]

Would there be a chance to invite Mary Beard to talk about the Roman Emperors? She made an interesting observation that all assassinated Emperors are conventionally told to be bad Emperors - tyrannical perhaps. But even the good Emperors can be tyrannical too; Tiberius, Augustus, etc. The one thing that makes the difference is that the following Emperors had to somehow justify the assassination of the previous Emperors, so there might be tendencies to portray the assassinated Emperors as "Bad Emperors." Well, they may have been really bad, but it's interesting to consider just how differently "bad" they are compared to the other "Good" Emperors.

[@ManuTheGreat79]

I wonder if normal people would even notice mad emperors like Calligula, Nero, Comodus... They're dangerous to hus own family and friends, to senators, palace people... But as far as I understand they didn't cause famines, no barbatian invasions, no plague (which can happen to the best emperors)... So to normal people everything just keeps rolling pretty normally, right?

[@sta8807]

After listening to your Tiberius cast I re read the Suetonius, and I agree unlike your opinions on how WW1 started.

[@AkilaJayasekera]

Listening to this makes me think that an episode on Donald Trump is in the making

[@Aaron-kg9rf]

It’s hard to discount stories of depraved emperors when we know what some rich and powerful people get up to in the modern world. Imagine them with absolute power in a society where violence and slavery is commonplace. My guess would be that it can be embellished, but the depravity of the “good emperors” is just under reported

[@eshaibraheem4218]

Many thanks.

[@restishistorypod]

You're welcome

[@barbararice6650]

Thought Macro strangled Tiberius 👀 If we didn't have suetonius we'd just have the edifice of civic reports on stone and we'd think it odd that Guius only lasted four years with no idea why.... Tonight's watch word is "kiss me dear" 😑

[@CharlesTheInnocent-s9s]

0:10 Caligula did NOT actually make his horse, Incitatus a consul although he did threaten many times to do so. It is true that he slept with, and prostituted out his sisters, but other emperors who ruled before or after him did similar or worse things. Nero committed incest with his mother, Agrippina the Younger and Augustus had an "unhealthy" relationship with his sister, Octavia. Caracalla slept with his aunt and procreated Elagabalus. Strains of madness ran through the DNA or genes of most Emperors who ruled Rome, so Caligula was not an exception.

[@henghistbluetooth7882]

Except that we have so few sources for all of the emperors because of the passage of time and the necessary brevity of the books given they were on scrolls. Plus many sources were biased because everyone had an agenda. I’m not sure we can have a totally certain ‘truth’ about any of these people except for then;internal dates of battles, or official proclamations that have stood the test of time on monuments (and even then a lot are PR such as the Arc Pacis).

[@cyclonasaurusrex1525]

Claudius next?

[@restishistorypod]

Tune in on Thursday (or join the Club and see it right away :) )

[@michaelcooley66]

Isn't the fundamental question here...John Hurt or Malcolm MacDowell?

[@CharlesTheInnocent-s9s]

33:00 Deifying oneself isn't exactly a symptom of insanity. All Roman Emperors were considered to be living gods. Domitian styled himself during his lifetime as Master and God or Dominus et Deus. He was the son of Minerva. Even Suetonius's boss, Hadrian deified his lover and page, Antinous and built many temples and statues for him. Yet not a squeak or a single word of criticism from Suetonius about this. Double standards, if you ask me.

[@rutheglin-pugh2320]

Could it be that Tbs , conflicted about his respect for the republic, yet made Princeps, allowed " all the poisons that lurk in the mud hatch out", including nurturing a viper....as Claudius also perhaps did after his attempts at being a "good" emperor..another perhaps massively conflicted individual. Sometimes it might seem to be a valid , at least for a while, reaction to the worst aspects of human endeavour, to let it actually come right out and reveal itself rather than limping on puttiing yet another finger in the dike holes appearing over extended time. There must be medical metaphors for this approach too. Just wondering, as one does.

[@CharlesTheInnocent-s9s]

History is a bit too harsh on Caligula. A psychiatrist would have sympathised with him and given him a free pass. Let us not forget that this was a fellow who suffered from childhood trauma, (his father, Germanicus was poisoned or died in suspicious circumstances) and there is also the possibility that Caligula may have been sexually molested by Tiberius when he was a captive in Capri. Caligula's reign began well and he was liked by the hoi polloi. His problems began after he fell sick with a fever and suspected poison. After he recovered, he became paranoid and trusted no one anymore.

[@therealinformalmusic]

Ti. Julius Caesar Nero, aka Gemellus, was born on 10 October, 19, so he was seventeen when the Divine Tiberius died on 16 March, 37, not eight or nine (20:07). You neglect to mention that Gaius was great-grandson of M. Antonius as well as the great-grandson of the Divine Augustus.

[@PaxAlotin]

*Caligula was a Mad Lad* --- but he bought his old mum --- flowers ----

[@angmid9210]

Well this is topical. Commodus, Nero, Caligula, I’d like to know who topped the list at incinerating Imperial soft power.

[@countdowntorevolution9986]

Whoah! Big Mandela effect re Otonius. I clearly remember him promising to commit suicide, not fight in the arena.

[@tommonk7651]

Caligula - famous? Or infamous?

[@geeboom]

Tom may be ripped but he doesn't have a feminine voice. He does have a lithp though. Lisp or not, I enjoy the series tremendously!

[@Megametalwolf-g9w]

I can see a modern parallel

[@bearhustler]

I only have one thing to add - Give us a kiss 😃

[@ropeburnsrussell]

Is Tom due in court today?

[@elsenorloco84]

Damn so your saying claudius women ( sister in perticular) would get stuck in washing machines “ helppp claduis brother im stuuuck “ on god for real

[@danielferguson3784]

The Suetonius life of Caligula is virtually all propaganda against the Emperor. Suetonius is displaying a bias against the Emperorship altogether, as the Roman Senators & gentry allowed themselves to be overawed by the whims of a single individual. No doubt Caligula had an ironic whit, & loved a joke at the expense of the supine Senate. He & they knew that it was his control of the Army that permitted him total domination over the Roman state. The fact that Caligula, & the whole Julio-Claudian was extinct, & had been replaced by a 'more worthy' clan of 'good Emperors', permitted Suetonius & others to portray them in the worst possible light. Such literary exercises were little more than that. Displays of forensic writing like schoolboy exercises, bearing little resemblance to the truth.

[@pauljermyn5909]

Only complete narcassistic bellends feel the need to bring their personal political views into every conversation, these guys worked hard to produce this interesting and entertaining discussion about Caligula, what are the comments about? Trump and Biden, whichever side you are on, grow up....

[@docastrov9013]

Imagine an old leader having a depraved son he stops the state prosecuting for his debauchery.

[@rtaj247]

Caligula sounds like a cool dude

[@jillysimmonds8545]

He sounds like an absolute prick.

[@tropics8407]

So easily killed ? 🤦‍♂️

[@johncarroll772]

Tom thunder thighs Holland

[@deanrwatson]

This seems, oddly well timed, in view of transatlantic news. "You might very well think that; I couldn't possibly comment" - say RIH

[@lylaclark3977]

I tuned into you Guys 😁☕ to get away from Trump, this Spring 🌱 St Brigid's Bank Holiday morning in Ireland here 💚 😁, but with that opening Dominic .... you have me thinking he, Trump, may not have given a Govt position to a Horse (yet!) ...but he has given Govt positions to so many an Ass already..........🙄🙄🙄 Anyway I'm all ears and coffee ☕😁🌱💚...

[@roman..leave.me.to.my.circles]

Pontifex maximus means the Greatest bridge-builder. Pontoon bridge tracks.

[@wandab3843]

Timely

[@RecycledBikes-jj]

Trump? Coincidence??

[@DenethordeSade.90]

Yes. The actual definition of coincidence, really

[@jonnybyrne989]

Yeh the United States in 2025 is exactly the same society when Caligula was roman emperor 🤦

[@RecycledBikes-jj]

@jonnybyrne989 BOTH were the ends of a huge empire! How similar do they have to be for you to recognise what is happening?

[@rtaj247]

This is The Rest is History. Not The Rest is Politics.

[@jonnybyrne989]

​@@rtaj247exactly! Some people out there have an unhealthy obsession about trump, and comparing him to infamous leaders an emperor's of the past.... It's ridiculous