Augustus and Roman Emperor Caligula

Hollywood vs. History in the 1979 movie Caligula The third Roman Emperor was Gaius Julius Caesar Germanicus, most commonly known by the nickname Caligula. The nickname Caligula, meaning "Little boots," was given to him as a child while accompanying his father's army on military campaigns. Caligula became Emperor of Rome at the age of 24, after the death of his great-uncle in 37 AD, the second Roman Emperor Tiberius. Throughout his reign, Caligula was famous for his cruelty and bizarre behavior, marked by wild extravagance and brutality. After the death of Caligula in 41 AD, his uncle Claudius was appointed the new Emperor of Rome. The movie Caligula depicts the rise and fall of Caligula from 37-41 AD. This paper will analyze key facts of the movie and compare them to facts in history. The key facts that will be analyzed are: the portrayal of Caligula's sister Drusilla;

Caligula's accession to the throne; the portrayal of Caligula's wife Caesonia; the charge of treason by Gemellus; and the assassination of Caligula. In the movie, Caligula is portrayed as having only one sibling, a sister. The accounts of Caligula and sister Drusilla throughout the movie are that of an unnatural bond between siblings. In the beginning of the movie before the opening credits, Caligula and Drusilla are frolicking in the forest and concluded with an act of incest. Incest does not seem to be an accepted act due to a scene where Macro walks in on him and Drusilla. Drusilla hides as Macro walks in and Caligula pretends to be asleep. This also seems the case when Tiberius asks about the relationship of him and Drusilla and he claims that she is only his sister. Though they did not marry in the movie, Drusilla lived with Caligula as if they were. According to history, Caligula had in fact eight siblings. He had four brothers (Tiberius, Gaius Julius, Nero and Drusus) and three sisters (Drusilla, Agrippina, and Julia Livilla).i Caligula did in