15. Augustus Caesar might have been the most powerful man in the world, but the Roman Emperor was afraid of the dark and had a fear of thunder and lightening
In Ancient Rome, the Emperor was all-powerful. And Augustus Caesar, the first Emperor of the Roman Empire, was only too ready to wield his power. Indeed, from 27 BC up until his death in 14 AD, Augustus ruled his vast empire with an iron fist. He drove some rivals into exile, while he went to war with others. He even had several close friends and allies executed in order to hold onto his position. Understandably, Augustus was often paranoid, fearing an assassin would kill him in the same way conspirators had killed Julius Caesar in the Forum. But his fear of would-be assassins was nothing compared to his fear of the dark, not to mention his fear of thunder and lightening.
It was the Roman historian Suetonius who brought the Emperor’s fears to light. In his account of this turbulent time in the Empire’s history, he noted that the top man was scarred for life by an incident that occurred during his Cantabrian campaign. According to the tale, a fork of lightening killed a slave who was walking just a few meters ahead of Augustus. The Emperor took it as a sign that he had displeased the gods, so he quickly commissioned the construction of a temple dedicated to Jupiter, God of Thunder. Even this, however, didn’t prevent him from being terrified every time it rained.
As well as his fear of storms, Augustus may also have been afraid of the dark. Again, it’s Suetonius who revealed this possible weakness of the great man. Whether or not it was a true phobia, Augustus did almost certainly hate being alone in the dark, and the fear is believed to have gotten worse over the years as his belief that the gods wanted to punish him kept growing. But then, perhaps, as some contemporary observers and historians have noted, Augustus simply hated resting at night, preferring instead to be surrounded by subservient people and awake and busy plotting his next action.