Lepidus and the Power Clique

After Macro’s death, Caligula reverted to appointing two prefects to command the Praetorians. There is no indication that the three forced suicides caused any popular resentment (Leg. 67-71). Although Caligula consulted with a consilium princeps on occasion, he had no statesman to guide him as Macro had, so his tendency toward autocracy came to the fore. The closest friend of Caligula was Marcus Aemilius Lepidus, who was the husband of his favorite sister, Drusilla, and rumored to be his lover. Drusilla had been married to Lucius Cassius Longinus in 33 and at some point was divorced, at her brother’s insistence, and married Lepidus. This suited the emperor’s dynastic plans. Since Caligula had no children, Lepidus was publicly marked to succeed him and was allowed to stand for office five years early (Dio 59.11.1). Suetonius says that Drusilla was designated as Caligula’s heir to his estate and the empire during his illness. In doing this, Caligula’s motive appears to have been to circumvent any attempts to make Gemellus emperor (Cal. 24.1-2). [1] An indication of Lepidus’ importance is his inclusion in a statue group of the imperial family that was found at Aphrodisias. [2]

Caligula made significant use of freedmen, and it is from his reign that the power and influence of imperial freedmen began. One of them, Callistus, amassed a fortune and was greatly feared. He may have offered his daughter, Nymphidires, to the emperor since there were rumors that Caligula had a son by her. At Nero’s death, he was considered as a contender for the throne (Galba 9.1; AJ 19.64-9). Callistus had a hand in the final conspiracy against Caligula and went on to be promoted by Claudius. [3]   Another powerful figure was Helicon, who is known from Philo’s account of the Jewish delegation and noted for his biting wit. He was the leader of a large group of Alexandrian Greeks that were part of Caligula’s household. Helicon saw the chance for advancement under the new emperor and became one of his companions. Before long, he was constantly with the emperor: while exercising and bathing, taking meals with him and remaining with Caligula when he retired. Helicon was appointed chamberlain, supervising the palace guards. Philo says he was prejudiced against the Jews and encouraged Caligula to set up his statue in the Temple at Jerusalem. Claudius executed Helicon for unspecified charges. A much-feared freedman was Protgenes, who became the agent in Caligula’s campaign against the Senate, and was also executed by Claudius. The full extent of the influence of the freedmen is hard to quantify but as a group, seeking their own power, they would have urged the emperor to excesses and not a harmonious relationship with the Senate (Leg. 166-77, 181, 203, 206).

Family Matters

The honorific roles that Caligula assigned to his sisters were a public version of the roles of women within a Roman family, with emphasis on their reproductive function to provide for the succession. [4]  Stories of incest with his sisters are dubious at best (AJ 19.204; Cal. 24.1; Dio 59.22.6; Eutrop. 7.12.3; Caes 3.10). Suetonius reports that Caligula was actually caught with Drusilla by Antonia but adds that the story is hearsay. Tacitus speaks of Agrippina’s incestuous designs on her son Nero but says nothing of Caligula, attributing her moral corruption to Lepidus (Ann. 14.2.4). Passienus Crispus, a noted wit, who accompanied the emperor on a journey was asked by him if he had been intimate with his sister. This drew the remark "Not yet." This encounter was supposed to have been private but nevertheless was reported and appears to suggest that rumors of his incest may have sprung from Caligula’s own remarks. [5]

Caligula was particularly devoted to Drusilla and he suffered yet another family tragedy when she died on June 10, 38, possibly from childbirth (she certainly was not killed by Caligula, an idea that has no historical basis). Caligula was devistated by her death. She was given a public funeral which Caligula was too overwhelmed to attend. Lepidus read the eulogy, composed by the emperor. Caligula left Rome for his villa at Alba, then moved on to Campania and Sicily, refusing to cut his beard and hair. A period of public mourning (iustitium) was proclaimed during which all business and public entertainment ceased (Sen. Polybius 17.4-5). This was observed in other parts of the empire (Flacc. 56). Despite the mourning for Drusilla, celebrations to mark the anniversary of Caligula’s first consulship (July 1) and his birthday when ahead. When a man was executed for selling hot water Caligula was acting strictly within the law. While a iustitium was being observed (until the deceased was buried) drinking was forbidden, and hot water was sold for mixing with wine (Dio 57.14.10).

The honors granted to Drusilla were formally voted in the Senate and were unusual in that they were given to a member of the imperial family of little significance. The distinctions voted to Livia at her death were given to Drusilla (a period of mourning and the erection of an arch) but Caligula’s sister was deified, something Tiberius forbade for his mother. Thus, Drusilla became the first woman to be deified by the Romans and was an innovation followed by Caligula’s immediate successors (Dio 58.2.2-3).

Drusilla’s consecration took place on September 23, the birthday of Augustus. Livius Geminus, who claimed he saw her soul ascend to heaven, provided proof of divinity. He was rewarded, as was the case with Augustus’ witness, with a million sesterces (Dio 56.46.2). A golden effigy of the new goddess was ordered for the Senate house and another statue was planned for the Temple of Venus that would be the same size as the cult statue of Venus. Drusilla would receive the same rites accorded the goddess as New Aphrodite. She was given her own shrine with twenty priests of both sexes and was included in the oaths along with Divus Julius and Divus Augustus (Cal. 24.2; Dio 59.11). Caligula declared that Drusilla would received divine honors throughout the empire under the name Panthea (all-embracing deity), an identification with other deities that allowed the new goddess to appear with almost any attribute. The new cult spread quickly. Drusilla’s birthday was celebrated with a two-day festival held on April 4^th and 5^th coinciding with the arrival of the goddess Cybele, who protected Rome from danger during the Second Punic War.

Caligula married for the third time during 38 (Cal. 25.2; Dio 59.12.1; Pliny NH 9.117). The date is uncertain but it presumably followed the iustitium. His new wife, Lollia Paulina, was from a wealthy family and was a noted beauty. Caligula was attracted by her looks and probably by her wealth. Pliny the Elder saw her at a dinner party wearing emeralds interlaced with pearls that covered her head, neck and fingers. They were worth forty million sesterces, and she supposedly carried proof of ownership with her. She was married to Publius Memmius Regulus, who had been involved in the overthrow of Sejanus. He had been governor of Moesia, Macedonia and Achea since 35 (Ann. 12.22; Dio 58.27.5), a place for which Lollia apparently had no liking. Suetonius says Regulus was called from his province to participate in Caligula’s marriage ceremony after which he returned to Moesia where he remained until 44. Caligula is said to have later ordered Regulus to bring the famous statue of Zeus at Olympia to Rome. The governor delayed carrying out the order, which would have gotten him into trouble had Caligula not been assassinated (Dio 59.28.3-4).

Assault on the Senate

Caligula entered his second consulship at the beginning of 39, not having held office during 38. His assumption of the consulship marked the beginning of his determination to play the predominate roll in the Roman state. The events of the prior year: the suicides of Gemellus, Silvanus and Macro, the deification of Drusilla and the trial of Flaccus showed the Senate that he was not the malleable youth they had taken him for. These events were nothing compared to Caligula’s denunciation of the Senate that took place probably at mid-39 (Dio’s chronology is not clear (Dio 59.16.1-7)). The confrontation was surprising in its ferocity but there is nothing to indicate a specific event that triggered the outburst. The most likely cause was Caligula’s investigation into the trial records that were supposedly burned. What he found was new evidence that implicated many senators, probably backed up by hostile information from senators who were eager to remain in the emperor’s good graces. Caligula claimed that Tiberius had acted properly in bringing charges against senators and that the Senate, as a group, were nothing more than delatores. He took up the case of each senator who had perished under Tiberius, the prosecution of which lay with the Senate, not the emperor. Evidence was produced from the very documents that Caligula was thought to have burned. He denounced the senators for their fecklessness in having honored Tiberius and Sejanus while hiding their true feelings of hatred. He followed this line of thinking to conclude that the senators hated him (Cal. 30.2; Dio 59.4.3, 16.4) and since there was no safety for him in pleasing the Senate the wisest course was to make them fear him. He ended his speech quoting a line from the tragic poet Accius "let them hate provided they fear" (Cal. 30.1).

The resumption of maiestas trials (which required the approval of the Senate, given without apparent hesitation) was the most striking evidence of how serious relations between emperor and Senate had become. Although Caligula’s anger was probably directed at a small group of senators, the entire Senate was under threat. A senator who was singled out by the emperor’s displeasure would have no support among his colleagues, so it would be smarter to join the herd and flatter Caligula. At the next meeting of the Senate, the members heaped praise on Caligula as a pious ruler and they offered annual sacrifices to his Clemency in commemoration of his speech (Dio 59.16.10). [6]

Around the same time, Caligula divorced Lollia Paulina and married again. Suetonius and Dio claim the divorce happened shortly after his marriage to Paulina was solemnized (Cal. 25.2; 59.12.1). Lollia was divorced because Caligula had succeeded in making another woman pregnant, but Dio says the reason was he had tired of her. It is noteworthy that when Lollia was later considered as a wife for Claudius her apparent sterility was considered a plus because she would not upset the succession (Ann. 12.2.2; Dio 59.23.7). Lollia’s divorce probably occurred in the spring when Caesaonia became pregnant. Suetonius states that Caligula forbade Lollia from intercourse with a man in perpetuity, lest she should happen to conceive (Cal. 25.2). The restriction was probably not so harsh and was similar to that given to his second wife.

The exact date of Caligula’s final marriage is in doubt but seems to have taken place in October or November 39. The emperor was in Rome for her birth of his daughter and also participated in a formal dedication at the Capitol. Suetonius says Caligula married Caesonia on the very day their daughter was born but Dio puts it a month earlier, adding that Caligula was pleased with his miraculous one-month baby. Dio notes after his account of the marriage that the weather was so hot that awnings had to be placed in the forum. Although this could mean that the marriage took place in the summer, it seems extraordinary that Dio would note the weather unless it was an unusual occurrence. Hot weather in October would be noteworthy. [7]  The child was named Julia Drusilla after the emperor’s late sister. On the day of her birth, Caligula carried her to the Capitol and put her on the knee of Jupiter, then on Minerva's lap commending his daughter’s education to the goddess. It has been claimed that by placing his daughter in the lap of a god, Caligula was imitating an Egyptian custom. However, even to Romans, to be in a god’s lap was a fortunate resting-place. Augustus had a dream of himself in the lap of Jupiter (Aug. 94.8). Caligula appears to have spoiled his daughter. There is a story of her fighting with her playmates and her father commenting that this was proof of his paternity (Cal. 25.4; Dio 59.28.7; AJ 19.11).

With Milonia Caesonia Caligula found his true partner. She was the daughter of Vistilia, a woman who had married six times: Caesonia was from the sixth marriage. That she had already borne three daughters was a recommendation of her fertility. Suetonius says she was neither young nor beautiful and had a reputation for high living and low morals. She was born about 5 CE and thus was about seven years older than Caligula. It was unusual among the Romans for a wife to be older than her husband. Caligula was devoted to her and took pride in her looks, supposedly showing her off nude to friends. The emperor’s contemporaries could not understand his attraction for her and put it down to Caesonia using a love potion. Magic was the usual excuse when a man showed extraordinary devotion to a woman. Some writers thought the potion was responsible for Caligula’s erratic behavior (AJ 19.193, Cal. 50.2; Juv. 6.615-8, 624).

The problems Caligula had with the Senate came to a head in September when, around the third day of the month, Caligula removed the suffect consuls from office. He claimed they had not celebrated a thanksgiving for his birthday but had celebrated a festival for the victory at Actium. Caligula declared that games would no longer be celebrated for Actium since the victory had been a disaster for the Romans (Cal. 23.1, 26.3; Dio 59.20.1). One of the consuls killed himself, perhaps indicating that there was something more serious afoot. No one filled the vacant offices for three days when Gnaeus Domitius After and Aulus Didius Gallus were selected by the emperor. [8]

Afer was an extraordinary survivor. He was a noted speaker and his witticisms were collected and published by Quintillian. Under Sejanus, Afer acted against Caligula’s family by prosecuting Claudia Pulchra. He was put in charge of erecting a statue of Caligula and added an inscription that the emperor had achieved a second consulship by age 27. This offended Caligula who thought Afer meant he was too young for the distinction: the emperor charged Afer with treason and wrote the indictment himself. Afer employed an interesting tactic to get himself off the hook. After Caligula read the charges, Afer professed to be stunned by the eloquence of the emperor and praised his oratorical skill. He made no defense, merely flattering Caligula. The emperor did not continue with the prosecution and dropped the charges after pressured by Callistus, who was a client of Afer (Dio 59.19.1-7).

Even if the story of Afer’s escape may have the ring of truth, it cannot be taken at face value. Afer was chosen consul at a precarious time in Caligula’s reign. Someone trustworthy was needed, particularly since the emperor would be absent dealing with a major conspiracy. Afer’s colleague, Aulus Didius, had been marked for office since the second half of 38 when he replaced Marcus Portius Cato as curator aquorum, an office he held until 49 (Frontinus De Aq. 102). Didius must have been an able administrator, a solid career man, who appealed to Caligula. It was this kind of reliability that the emperor was seeking in late 39.

Opposition

Despite the popularity Caligula enjoyed on becoming emperor, it is clear there was an opposition that Macro took pains to placate and in some cases eliminate. Eventually, serious opposition to Caligula grew from more than one quarter and was met with a ruthless response. However, the names of Caligula's victims are rarely given. Dio mentions Titius Rufus, who denigrated the Senate by saying they thought one way but voted another. Caligula would probably have approved of his remark, and it was a senator who initiated his prosecution. Junius Priscus was accused of unspecified charges, the target of his accusers being his presumed wealth. He committed suicide and when Caligula learned that his wealth was only modest quipped that his death had been pointless (Dio 59.18.1-4). Dio also mentions Carrinas Secundus as being banished in 39 for delivering a speech against tyrants, the days of freedom of publication being over. He chose Athens as his place of exile and later killed himself (59.20.6).

Philo says he feared provincial commanders with large armies (Leg. 259), and it was probably in 39 when Caligula removed the single legion stationed in Africa from the senatorial governor. Some command changes were routine. Lucius Voluseues Saturninus was replaced as governor of Dalmatia around 40 but he was 73 years old and had been governor since 29. Despite his age, he was appointed as Praefectus Urbi of Rome. His replacement was Lucius Arrentius Cornellius Scribonianus, who was an adopted son of his namesake. The elder Scribonianus chose to commit suicide rather than live under Caligula: his adopted son was apparently loyal to Caligula but rebelled against Claudius in 42 (Claud. 13.2; Dio 60.15.1-2).

Lucius Vitellius was replaced in 39 by Publius Petronius as governor of Syria, a command that included four legions. According to Dio, Vitellius made Caligula suspicious and was recalled. Supposedly, Vitellius escaped with his life by prostrating himself before Caligula and worshiping him as a god. The emperor was so charmed that the governor not only survived but also prospered. Vitellius had a reputation for flattery, however, and this incident seems concocted to excuse his receiving favors from Caligula. Petronius had a family connection to Vitellius; his daughter married Aulus, Vitellius’ son and the future emperor. Petronius had also married a daughter of Vitellea so the recall was certainly routine. (Ann. 3.49, 6.32.5-7; Vit. 2.5; Dio 59.27.4-6).

One of the command changes meant to disarm his opponents was Calvisius Sabinus, who had been appointed governor of Pannonia probably in late 36. He returned to Rome in the summer of 39 and was indicted along with his wife, Cornelia. Sabinus was no stranger to trouble. He had been charged with maiestas after the fall of Sejanus but was freed through the intercession of Celsus, a tribune of the urban cohort. The charge made against Sabinus is not specified but his wife was accused of visiting the soldier’s camp dressed as a soldier and having intercourse with the guards. She was caught in the headquarters in flagrente delecto with Titus Vinius (Hist. 1.48.2-3). [9]  Officially, Sabinus and his wife were charged with sexual misconduct, but there may have been an attempt by Sabinus to suborn the Pannonian legions. Whatever the precise charges were, they were serious enough for Sabinus and his wife to commit suicide. Sabinus had been a colleague in the consulship during 26 with Cornelius Lentulus Gaetulicus, which suggests a link between the two governors in the conspiracy against Caligula.

A lesser source of opposition was the commoners. They might sit back and enjoy Caligula’s threats against the aristocrats but they were not immune from the emperor’s anger. In early 39, Dio says that Caligula no longer showed favor toward the populace (59.13.3). Later, when he granted a congiarium to the people, the gold and silver that was showered from the palace was mixed with bits of iron, mocking his own liberality. When members of the populace objected to his conduct at the circus Caligula had the offenders killed (59.28.11). When the people became the targets of Caligula’s unpredictable behavior, many of the commoners turned against their emperor. The comment Caligula made about the people having a single neck was thrown back at him by a bystander at his murder, that it was the emperor who had a single neck while the people had many hands (59.13.6,.30.1c; Cal. 30.2, Sen. On Anger 3.18.2).