Julius Caesar and Caligula - The Two Roman Emperors

In ancient Rome, there were rulers who had ultimate power over the empire and its people. While Rome had several rulers, there were some do did not rule for a very long. One good example is that of Julius Caesar. However, his story was very different from that of Caligula's.

During Caesar's time, the empire was rocked by several civil wars. Everyone wanted to become the emperor, but it was finally Caesar who ascended to the throne because of his feats on the battlefield. However, his opponents were not comfortable with Caesar's powers as he had total control of the empire and its working. This was the reason why he was assassinated.

During Caesar's reign, he had complete power not just over whole of Rome, but also over the people. The people could not get used to Caesar's dictatorship as they were used to living in a republic. By having a monarch, it meant returning to the days of tyranny wreaked by the monarchy. When Caesar died, it brought a golden age to Rome as Augustus ascended to the throne.

Caligula faced similar issues that Caesar faced. He ruled for 4 years, but his reign was marked with tyranny and he was not at all popular amongst his people. Caligular was born Caius Julius Caesar Germanicus to Germanicus and Agrippina. His father, Germanicus, was high ranking soldier in the Roman army and he died when Caligula was just 4 years old.

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