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18. “From Baldhead to Baldhead“
On one occasion, Caligula was displeased by an unruly crowd at the Circus Maximus. So he pointed out a section of the stands to his guards, and ordered them to execute everybody “from baldhead to baldhead“. On another occasion, bored at an arena when told that there were no more criminals to throw to the beasts, he ordered a section of the crowd thrown to the wild animals.
His depravities included incest with his sisters. At dinner parties, he frequently ordered guests’ wives to his bedroom, and after bedding them, returned to the party to rate the quality of their performance, berating the cuckolded husbands if Caligula thought their wives were lacking. He also turned the imperial palace into a whorehouse, staffed with the wives of leading senators and other high-ranking dignitaries. To further demonstrate his contempt for the senatorial class and the Roman Republic for which they pined, Caligula had his beloved horse made consul – the Republic’s highest magistracy.