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Articles
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GAIUS "CALIGULA", GOOD FRIEND OF AGRIPPA I, THE GRANDSON OF HEROD THE GREAT, AND HIS STRATEGIES AND FORTRESS, NOW DEMONSTRATED FROM THE ARCHAEOLOGICAL EVIDENCE
Gaius "Caligula"'s plan to invade Britain was strategically undertaken and involved building a fortress on the grounds of the one built by his father Germanicus and probably continuing with his father's ideas. We now have archaeological evidence for this at Velsen. Gaius' plan was delayed by his having to quel a conspiracy while in Germania. However, when on the shores of Gaul, he received a visit from British nobels asking for a treaty, which would also have delayed his invasion. The weather was no longer suitable either for having his galleys cross the Channel and it is possible that the military mutineed them out of fear and superstition. The seashell incident might have been done to humiliate them afterwards, something in keeping with the Roman military attitude and approach. In his speech to the soldiers, he advised them to "prepare for better times", since he had planned to winter in Rome and then return. When he returned to Rome, he was assassinated and Claudius, connected with the central conspiracy level, immediately took over Gaius "Caligula"'s plans and quickly conquered Britain himself with minimal effort since Gaius had laid the groundwork.
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Having military prowess was considered essential for a Caesar, and Claudius as the brother of Germanicus (Gaius' father) needed to prove that he had this, especially after his involvement in Gaius' assassination (which he did his best to hide by killing the ringleaders: he often applied such manipulative tactics, as also demonstrated with his behaviour toward Messalina) which is why he immediately hijacked Gaius' plans with Britannia.
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You can read more about both Gaius Caligula and Claudius in the books, "Caligula: The Abuse of Power" by Anthony Barrett, and "Claudius" by Barbara Levick.
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Both Gaius Caligula and Claudius were good friends of Agrippa I, the grandson of Herod the Great, who had grown up with the Julio-Claudians in Rome and was highly trained in the running of the Empire. He may have helped Caligula at the start of his reign and he later influenced him to change a plan involving placing his statue in the Jerusalem Temple. Out of expediency, Agrippa I then immediately changed sides when Caligula was assassinated and helped Claudius achieve his coup by negotiating with the Senate in the Curia, thus averting revolution and civil war. Claudius rewarded him for this by extending his kingdom to greater in size than that of Herod the Great. But after assisting Claudius, Agrippa then secretly buried his friend Caligula in the palace grounds. He later informed his sisters of the place when Claudius had them returned from exile so they could bury him properly.
Caligula had been untrained and had abruptly achieved power when he was 24. He only ruled for four years since he had trouble getting along with the Senate and was often outspoken with them. He believed the Senate had been responsible for the deaths of his mother and older brothers: he came to this conclusion after reading over many senatorial documents. Caligula was the rightful heir according to Augustus' will. Augustus had wished Tiberius to rule temporarily but had wished Germanicus and his sons to be his heirs, not Tiberius' son Drusus. Germanicus died under mysterious circumstances while on a diplomatic mission to Syria and Tiberius and Sejanus maltreated and then exiled and put to death Germanicus' widow Agrippina the Elder and older sons (whom Germanicus had sworn to avenge him). Caligula being very young then was spared. Claudius was not the rightful heir: he was Germanicus' brother. He had doubtless built up much resentment from being kept out of the political scene due to his minor disability. Caligula was the first to recognize him by making him consul and giving him other privileges. This gave Claudius ideas on how he could manipulate the situation to acquire rule.
Women's History Month
Outstanding Women
from the Ancient World
By Elizabeth Legge
In celebration of Women's History Month, here are a few outstanding women from the ancient world:
Hypatia was a brilliant woman professor of astronomy, mathematics and neo-platonism at the University of Alexandria, Egypt during the late Roman Empire (4th century AD). She also had political influence due to her close friendship with Orestes, the Roman praefectus, and other prominent politicians. She was the daughter of the university president, the mathematician Theon. She respected all religious perspectives, including both pagan and Christian, and was loved by many people of diverse faiths because of this. Political opponents, perhaps threatened by her influence, mobbed her and dragged her from her chariot as she was driving through Alexandria, then brutally murdered her, shocking the world, especially as philosophers were then considered inviolable.
Ennigaldi-Nanna, the daughter of King Nabonidus, the first known archaeologist, was a woman archaeologist, professor and museum curator in 6th century BC Babylon (ca. 2500 years ago). She helped her father with excavations and the high quality dating, cleaning and classifcation of artifacts; curated his museum and lectured at a university.
Berenice (Roman Judaean), because of her intelligence and talent, coruled equally with her brother Agrippa II and commissioned many projects in diverse Roman provinces herself or jointly with him. Berenice and Agrippa II were the great-grandchildren of Herod the Great and Mariamne and the children of the last king of Judaea, Agrippa I. Berenice approached Titus alone when he and his father Vespasian were sacking Jerusalem during the first revolt and asked him to spare the Temple, which he agreed to, although a fire later spread into it by accident (according to Josephus). He fell in love with her and would have married her and made her the next Roman empress but he unfortunately died suddenly.
Metrodora was a Roman woman physician of the 4th century AD who wrote a large encyclopedia based on her research and findings which is extremely detailed and observant and is referenced by well known male physicians. In the Roman era, women physicians were respected equally with their male counterparts. Women of all social class levels became physicians.
Antonia Minor was the daughter of Marcus Antonius ("Mark Antony") and the wife of the senior Germanicus. After he died, she refused to be placed in another arranged marriage and Caesar Tiberius respected that. She had tremendous political clout. Because of her many Eastern connections as Marcus Antonius' daughter, she was the patron of many Eastern client kings including Agrippa I and his siblings and was close friends with his mother. It is most probably through these connections (she was close friends with Agrippa I, who was the close friend of Tiberius' son and later heir-to-be Drusus) that she learned of the praetorian prefect Sejanus' conspiracies against Tiberius. Sejanus was Tiberius' right-hand man and next in command. It appears that he was responsible for Drusus' death just after the latter was made heir apparent to Tiberius. Thus, through acquiring this intelligence on Sejanus, Antonia Minor approached Tiberius with the information, a very delicate process, but he listened to her because of his respect for her, and he then arrested Sejanus and had him executed.
Julia Livia was the wife of Augustus the first emperor of Rome. Numerous rumours were spread about her being responsible for the deaths of his heirs which appear to have been from natural causes. She was very intelligent and helped him to rule. According to something Gaius "Caligula" later said, she seems to have been adept at intrigue (he called her "Odysseus in a stola"). But I'm not particularly fond of her.
Agrippina the Elder was the wife of the younger Germanicus. She was close to her husband and he took her and his children with him when he served on the military fronts and was sent on diplomatic missions to the provinces. She also rallied his army in Germania during a crisis and was known to wear military dress and be involved closely with the troops. She was criticized for that. She seems to have had a very strong personality. When Germanicus died suddenly in Syria (possibly assassinated) and she returned to Rome, she gained her own political party of supporters in opposition to Sejanus. However, she was not proficient at negotiating with those she did not agree with which led to tremendous clashes with Tiberius and Sejanus and her exile and death. It seems she was so grief stricken over and suspicious concerning her husband's death that she could not express herself calmly.
Agrippa II and Berenice
By Elizabeth Legge
I don't believe this image is completely accurate, since the brother and sister, Agrippa II and Berenice, coruled equally for a while in a province of Roman Palestine. Thus, they would have both been seated side-by-side on thrones: she would not have been standing off to his side or behind him. It is accurate though in showing the two as having a Roman cultural presentation since that is what they were: Roman. On the many monuments they commissioned, both of their names are inscribed consecutively, sometimes with his ahead of hers and sometimes in the reverse. Berenice also commissioned a few of her own projects and donations, one of which was found in Athens, Greece. Other projects of theirs can be found in Berytus, Syria (present day Beirut, Lebanon). One of the Herods' responsibilities as a Roman family was to present a strong Roman presence in Roman Syria including Berytus and nearby Baalbek. Syria and Judaea were sensitive areas in the Parthian buffer zone bordering on Rome. Parthia (Persia) was the arch-enemy of Rome and the last Maccabean king had earlier invited an invading Parthian force into Syria, threatening Rome's sphere of influence, although this crisis was quelled by Herod I.
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These two rulers so-depicted were the eldest son and daughter of Marcus Julius Agrippa I, the grandson of Herod the Great and the last king of Roman Judaea who ruled a province larger than that of his grandfather's and was a very adept politician and negotiator, highly skilled at diplomacy and intrigue, who seems to have acquired the closest ability of all the Herods to his grandfather unaccompanied by the harsher approach the latter took later in his life. He was also very loved by the Jewish people and is mentioned by various ancient Jewish contemporary and near-contemporary sources (Philo Judaeus and Flavius Josephus) as well as the Talmud. The Herods were a Roman family (Roman Judaean) and Agrippa I felt both Roman and Jewish. Thus, his presentation was Roman rather than Eastern (belying silly media presentations) and this also applies to his son and daughter (and to the other Herods as well). He was very ambitious and his reign ended abruptly, mysteriously and prematurely, and the emperor Claudius withheld Agrippa II's inheritance, although he did make him ruler of a small Palestinian client kingdom.
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Agrippa II seems not to have inherited his father's higher political and diplomatic acumen, although he also treated the Jewish people fairly. When his sister Berenice finished an arranged marriage, she went to stay with her brother and began to corule equally with him. Both children and their younger sisters had travelled with their parents while growing up when their father had needed to flee from Rome under possibly political circumstances before acquiring his kingship. They thus spent time in parts of Palestine, Egypt and Syria. They might have been close to their father and in that way, Berenice seems likely to have acquired some of her father's knack. This together with their closeness growing up (Agrippa II was only a year older than her) could have influenced their decision to corule: it seems she was useful to him as a partner politician. Later, when the first Jewish revolt broke out (whose seeds were sown when their father died so abruptly, causing widespread mourning, and Judaea reverted to the status of Roman province) she approached Titus the son of Vespasian alone to attempt to persuade him not to destroy the Jerusalem Temple. This demonstrates her following her father's expertise in diplomacy. Titus was so impressed with her intelligence that he agreed, but the fire supposedly occurred by accident.
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The book of Acts tells also how Berenice and Agrippa II tried Paul (Paulus/Paulinus) together as equals and discussed together their legal decision on how to deal with his case following the trial, also demonstrating their corule. Since they were well educated and saw his approach as philosphical rather than political, they would have released him had he not already appealed to Caesar (the Supreme Court) on his arrest.
Titus fell in love with Berenice and would have married her, making her the next empress of Rome, but it is believed that his sudden death rather than anything else precluded this plan.
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Agrippa II's closeness to Berenice as his sister and great respect for her political ability such that he coruled with her as an equal sparked rumours and scandal. The Romans and Romanised people loved scandals and would often accuse politicians of whom they were suspicious or who went about things differently of incestuous behaviour, affairs and so on, most of which are not taken seriously by modern scholars. Thus, in fact, any gossip repeated in the sources regarding such things can be assumed to be politically connected. Rome was very conservative, so a variety of behaviour would have shocked and intrigued them as potentially interesting gossip. The Herods sometimes married their first cousins as was allowed under Jewish Law -- and Antipas had married his neice, Herodias, Agrippa I's sister -- and these things were allowed by Judaic Law, but sibling marriages were considered incestuous. The Herods but even more so Agrippa I and his family made effort to follow the Mosaic laws. Agrippa I and his wife Cypros were part Hasmonaean/Maccabee through Herod's queen, Mariamne, and apart from his personality and choices, Agrippa I was also popular for the effort he made to follow the basic laws (even going out of his way to show them respect), and he made sure his family did the same. For this reason, both he and Agrippa II are mentioned in the Torah. Agrippa I's great popularity with the people kept the region extremely peaceful despite its diverse factions (Judaea was very multicultural, yet there is no record of Zealot activity occurring under his reign). Agrippa II and Berenice attempted to follow in their father's footsteps and often associate themselves with him on their dedications, so they would not have been involved romantically. But the gossip about Agrippa II allowing his sister (a woman) to corule became so pronounced that they eventually needed to live in separate locations.
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There were similar rumours just a little earlier than this time regarding Agrippa I's friend, Caesar Gaius "Caligula", and his close relationship with his sisters. These siblings had lost their parents and older brothers growing up, mostly for political reasons and had only had one another, and Gaius as a young ruler in his 20s was untrained, sarcastic, impatient and outspoken and managed to get on the wrong side of the Senate. It was the senatorial class which wrote these histories, not to mention that records concerning him were also subject to a double smear campaign from both his successor (probably involved in his assassination), his uncle Claudius, and the succeeding Flavian dynasty. As well, the objective Roman source at the time is missing a large section that had covered his life, so we must rely on the inferior source by Suetonius, who specialised in writing tabloids. So we have some consequently juicy but defamatory writings about him as well.
NOTE: My main historical novel trilogy concerns someone in the Herodian family and his relationship with the Julio-Claudian dynasty, and my completed and published thesis and a few related articles regard the same topic.
(Image by Pinterest, obtained 2024)
A ROMAN FAIRY TALE: THE LACUS CURTIUS
By Elizabeth Legge
Here is a tale that had strong moral implications for Romans and symbolizes one of the most important areas of Roman thinking. And it is not bedtime reading.
However, my mother did tell it to me when I was growing up for the lessons it imparts.
In other posts, we have been discussing a couple of historical legal accounts from the records of Marcus Livius (“Livy”), who lived at the time of Caesar Augustus and his client ruler Herod the Great. The following legend was also recorded by Livy.
One day, during the Roman Republic, a crack suddenly appeared in the Roman Forum. Not only did it appear so suddenly, but it rapidly began to widen, spreading and swallowing everything in its path! The people were terrified, and so they consulted an oracle in great trepidation. The oracle stated that the gods of Hades were displeased and needed to be placated or the chasm would soon swallow the whole of Rome. The only thing that would make them happy would be a voluntary gift of the thing most valued to the Roman people.
Therefore, the people eagerly sought out their most valued possessions to throw into the growing void. They threw gold, expensive jewellery and even babies into the terrible chasm, but to no avail, since the crevice continued to widen most menacingly. What could they do?
Just then, Marcus Curtius, a very handsome and brave young warrior, came to a realization of the only thing that would satisfy the gods. So what did he do? He dressed himself in his full armour, and mounted his beautiful white horse. And courageously he rode his horse without flinching directly towards the mouth of the great void, while the people, in awe, parted for him along his way.
Once he had reached the edge of the crevice, he did not pull back on his horse’s reigns at all. No, to everyone’s utter astonishment and shock, he continued to ride his beautiful horse right into the chasm, and then, lo and behold, the walls of the abyss closed up right over his head, and the gap was sealed, never to open again.
What was the gap? It was the entrance to the Underworld of Hades. Hades had demanded appeasement. And what had Marcus Curtius realized? That the thing that Rome valued above all else was neither wealth nor the sacrifice of another, but arms and personal courage.
And to this very day, a stone marks the spot of the Lacus Curtius in the Roman Forum, the very place where the gap had opened up and into which the brave and handsome Marcus Curtius had ridden his horse. The Gateway to the Underworld. And we can see it for our very selves.
And what is symbolized here? The true Roman was to show no fear, not even of his/her own death. Suicide in ancient Rome was not normally something a Roman did to escape from current problems, but a way of honour. A Roman accused of a crime punishable by death had the option of taking his or her own life, and this was very honourable. We have many instances of this happening throughout Roman history. Examples relevant to the Herodian times include when the Syrian governor Piso was accused of assassinating Germanicus, Tiberius’ popular heir, as we have mentioned before; he took his own life when awaiting the verdict from the trial in Rome. When Julia Livilla the daughter of Antonia Minor the patroness of Herods and members of other client kings’ families was accused of helping her supposed lover at the time, Tiberius’ praetorian prefect Sejanus, to poison her husband, Tiberius’ son and heir apparent Drusus, as we have also mentioned, she might have taken her own life.
There is a very early pre-Republican historical account as well, which took place by tradition a little prior to 509 BC, when Rome revolted against its Etruscan kings and initiated its Republic (hence, as mentioned, Rome’s strong innate dislike for kings, and Augustus’ needing to create a “farce” in which Caesars -- really, emperors -- were voted in by the Senate). In this story, Lucretia, the beautiful wife of Lucius Tarquinius Collatinus, was raped by the evil Sextus Tarquinius, son of Lucius Tarquinius Superbus, the tyrannical Etruscan king of Rome. Although Lucretia’s husband was convinced of her innocence and insisted to her that she did not need to do anything to make amends, Lucretia voluntarily took her own life, demonstrating that her honour was far more important than her life. She therefore became a great Roman heroine. And this terrible tragedy was what sparked the Roman revolt against the Etruscans and ushered in the Republic. Thus, women also practiced such similarly courageous deeds and were equally honoured for doing so.
When applying this information to my research on the Roman Herodian family of Roman Judaea, Josephus tells of how Agrippa I, when he had to flee from Rome and hide on an old family property in Idumea (southern Judea, the Negev area), was so depressed that he tried to take his own life until his wife Cypros helped him find a solution -- while there may have been an element of honour involved here with the Romanized Marcus Agrippa, it seems from what Josephus says that he had contemplated suicide out of depression. And there is no record of any of the Herods, despite many of them feeling Roman and growing up in Rome, taking their own lives. So perhaps in a few elements the Herods were more Semitic. Taking one’s life goes against the Ten Commandments (since it is still considered taking a life), and this could be a contributing factor. The Herods were after all Edomite (the “brothers” of the Jews according to Jewish Law).
In any event, being strong, logical and courageous under all circumstances was very Roman. During the Roman Republic, these qualities were even more strongly apparent.
The Marcus Curtius legend is also considered by historians to be the prototype for a ritualized form of Roman self-sacrifice that was practiced in the earlier Roman Republican era during warfare emergencies. In the event of the Romans discovering that they were irreparably losing a battle with an enemy, their military leader would then willingly and courageously sacrifice himself to the gods to earn their appeasement by riding in full armour directly into the thick of the battle to be cut down by the enemy. The gods would then show their gratitude for such sheer bravery by immediately turning the tables of the battle and allowing the Romans to win the conflict. Such self-sacrifice of a military leader during war was called "devotio": sacrificing one's own life in battle along with the enemy to honour the chthonic gods. Devotio was an extreme form of "volum": an offering in fulfilment of an advance promise ("voluntary" arises from the same root). It actually worked very effectively since once the Romans had seen their leader do this, their confidence would become so great that they would then effectively “wipe out” the enemy even at very extreme odds. The practice had stopped though by the later period of the Republic.
Livy also mentions an example of such brave self-sacrifice in which a brave and heroic consul, Publius Decius Mus, completely reversed the situation in a very serious battle by doing this very thing, and saved the winning side for Rome. Obviously, no one should be taking a leaf out of this book at all, but this merely relates some early Roman practices along with an idea of what constitutes Roman honour. The true Roman was very emotionally strong and somewhat hard. Under the Empire though, there was a small degree of softening but the essentials remained the same. This is one of the reasons why more sensitive, fun loving, plebian pleasing, and less warmongering Roman leaders, such as Caligula and Nero, were somewhat disparaged in the sources. But courage and seriousness is also the reason that Rome itself was so strong and logical, and this contributed towards the Pax Romanum.
As for the real Marcus Curtius: He did exist, and there is an account of him and his horse somehow falling into a bog. Bogs in some ancient cultures were considered entrances to the Underworld. And Rome had originally built its forum on drained marshland.
Should anyone have anything else to add here, you are very welcome to do so, since due to lack of available time, although I have studied the legend and period much more extensively in the past both independently and in university classes on the topic, I’m summarizing most of the situation from memory. So anyone wishing to add more details or clarify any element of this is welcome to do so politely and respectfully.
But as I’d promised you guys a Roman “fairy tale” for a while now, here it is. A number of Roman legends involve such rather harsher scenarios which is also a reflection of the strong Roman psyche and culture.
© By Elizabeth Legge