The Worst Roman Emperor: Caligula

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In the Ancient Roman times which was a very chaotic time period, with many different power struggles that led to some of the best and worst people ruling the Roman Empire Over the ages different emperors made their way to the throne, whether they killed to get there or inherited it from their parents, they all left distinct marks although some left bigger marks than others. The three considered the worst emperors, are Nero, Caligula, and Commodus (Champlin, E, 2003). Out of the three worst Roman emperors, the worst was Caligula because of the hideous crimes he committed compared the Commodus and Nero Although these emperors committed crimes and acts of kindness, they were considered bad; a big part of this came from their personalities. Commodus was a man with a weak character and was easily swayed by pressure; he was prone to cruelty and excessive behavior. This was proven when he had thought his father had died, he then took control and utter chaos broke out (Cavazzi F, n.d.). Nero on the other hand was a passionate music lover, kind, and controlled but over time his loving personality degraded due to obsession of power and some thought lead poisoning, One example of Nero’s good personality was his love for music, people loved his music so much they called him “The New Apollo” (Champlin, E, 2003). On the other hand Caligula was on his own level being self-indulgent, self-absorbed, extravagant, and had a loose temper. This leads him to being easily angered and murdered who had angered him, many lived in fear of his tyranny. Examples of his anger and selfish are stated later. Commodus was the best out of the three worst, although he did acts that made him not so good in the eyes of the Romans The one out of the three emperors prev... ... middle of paper ... ...html Champlin, E. (2003). Nero. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press Dio. C. (1924). Roman History. [VIII] Retrieved from http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Cassius_Dio/59*.html Herodian’s Roman History. (28 June, 2008) Retrieved from http://www.livius.org/he-hg/herodian/hre115.html Malitz, J. (2005). Nero. Italy: Wiley, John & Sons, Incorporated McManus F. B. (June, 1999) Caligula: Historical Background. Retrieved from http://www.vroma.org/~bmcmanus/caligula.html Sandison, A. T. (1958). The Madness of the Emperor Caligula. Retrieved from http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayAbstract?fromPage=online&aid=8611591 Tacticus. C. (66 AD). The Annals. [1-16] Retrieved from http://mcadams.posc.mu.edu/txt/ah/Tacitus/index.htm Tacticus. C.(70 AD). The History. [1-5] Retrieved from http://mcadams.posc.mu.edu/txt/ah/Tacitus/index.htm

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