(1) Successit eī C. Caesar, cognōmentō Caligula, Drūsī, prīvīgnī Augustī et ipsīus Tiberīī nepōs, scelerātissimus ac fūnestissimus et quī etiam Tiberīī dēdecōra pūrgāverit.

(2) Bellum contrā Germānicōs suscēpit et ingressus Suēbiam nihil strēnuē fēcit.

(3) Stupra sorōribus intūlit, ex ūnā etiam nātam fīliam cognōvit.

(4) Cum adversum cūnctōs ingentī avāritiā, libīdine, crūdēlitāte saevīret, interfectus in Palātiō est annō aetātis vīcēsimō nōnō, imperiī tertiō, mēnse decimō diēque octāvō.

    Caligula Emperor, 3741 CE

    Suetonius Caligula 1; Victor Epitome 3.1–2.

    (1) eī: Tiberiō; dative object of successit (AG 370)

    C. Caesar: Gaius Caesar Augustus Germanicus was the son of Germanicus and Agrippina. He was born in the camp, probably in Germany, and he was reared among the soldiers. He received the surname of Caligula from his being arrayed in a mimic uniform and wearing a pair of caligae or soldiers' boots. At first he ruled well; but his sense of power turned his head, and the latter part of his reign was marked by excesses of all sorts (Hazzard).

    Drūsī: Drusus was Caligula's paternal grandfather. Tiberius became his grandfather by adopting Germanicus in 4 CE. He had already become Caligula's maternal step-grandfather by marrying Julia in 11 BCE (Bird).

    pūrgāverit: "excused," i.e. made them seem excusable or trivial

    (2) Bellum contrā Germānicōs: regarding Caligula’s Germanic war and invasion of Suebia, Suetonius relates the following anecdote:

    Finally, as if intending to end the war, Caligula set up his battle line on the shore of the Ocean and arranged his ballistas and siege equipment. He did what no one could have known or even imagined: he suddenly ordered his men to fill their helmets and the hem of their tunics with seashells, declaring, "These are the spoils of war from the Ocean; they belong to the Capitol and the Palatine." (Vit. Gai. 46.1; trans. K. Masters) 

    (3) Stupra sorōribus intūlit: "he sexually assaulted his sisters." sorōribus is the dative object of intūlit (LS infero I.β). According to Suetonius (Vit. Gai. 24), he committed incest with Drusilla and his other two sisters, but the daughter whom he acknowledged as Julia Drusilla was born to him by Caesonia (Bird).

    ex ūnā: supply sorōrum

    cognōvit: "recognized (as legitimate offspring)." Alternatively, the verb could mean "had sex with," which seems to be how the Greek translator Paeanius took it: καὶ τῆς ἑαυτοῦ ἐκγόνης αὖθις ἐγένετο φθορεύς ("and he in turn became the debaucher of his own daughter."). But no other ancient source mentions this crime.

    (4) interfectus: Caligula died on the Palatine Hill in 41 CE. He did not receive deification or other funerary honors. (See Smith, s.v. Apotheosis)

    Core Vocabulary | Numbers | Dates

    succēdō, ere, cessī, cessus

    to come up, advance; succeed, follow

    cognōmen, inis [con + (g)nōmen], n.

    a surname, a name added to the individual and clan names of a person, either as a title of honor, as Africānus, Māgnus, or as a nickname, as Cicerō. Cognōmina served to distinguish different families of the same gens.

    Caligula, ae, m.

    C. Caesar, surnamed Caligula, Roman emperor 37–41 A.D.

    Drusus, ī, m.

    Nerō Claudius Drusus, son of Ti. Claudius Nero, and stepson of Augustus

    prīvīgnus, ī, m. a stepson
    Augustus, ī, m.

    a title of honor given to Octavianus in 27 BC and after him to all the Roman emperors

    Tiberius, ī, m.

    Tiberius (Claudius Nerō), Roman emperor 14–37 A.D.

    nepōs, ōtis, m.

    grandson; nephew (late); pl., descendants

    scelerātus, a, um [scelus], adj. wicked, infamous
    fūnestus, a, um [fūnus], adj.

    causing death, deadly, destructive

    dēdecus, ōris [dē + decus, honor], n. disgrace, dishonor
    pūrgō, āre, āvī, ātus [pūrus + agō] to make clear; clear away, excuse
    Germānī, ōrum, pl. m. the Germans 2
    Suēvia, ae, f.

    Suēvia, the land of the Suevi, modern Bavaria and Wurtemberg

    strēnuē [strēnuus], adv., sup. strēnuissimē vigorously
    stuprum, ī, n.

    debauchery, defilement, dishonor 3

    avāritia, ae [avārus, greedy], f. greed, avarice 4
    crūdēlitās, ātis [crūdēlis, cruel], f. cruelty
    saeviō, īre, īvī (iī), ītus [saevus]

    to be fierce or cruel, rage; punish cruelly

    Palātium, ī, n.

    the Palatine Hill; the imperial palace, which was on the hill

    mēnsis, is, m. a month

     

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