Basic Info:
Gaius Julius Caesar Germanicus (AKA Caligula)
3rd Roman Emperor
Ruled from 37-41AD
Wives- Milonia Caesonia, Lillian Paulina, Livia Orestilla, Junia Claudilla
Parents- Germanicus and Agrippina the Elder

Childhood:
Caligula was born in 12 A.D. on August 12, and was the third son of Germanicus and Agrippina. During the majority of his childhood, they lived at his father's post on the Rhine. His full name was Gaius Julius Caesar, after THE Julius Caesar, his famous relative.

He spent a lot of time following his father around. His parents even dressed him in a miniature military uniform.

After the death of his father in 17 A.D., all eyes turned to Caligula. They wanted him to be ruler and thought he was the most suitable out of all his siblings.

His mother and brothers were accused of treason. All of them died in prison or exile.

His grandmother looked after him, but when she died, he moved in with his great uncle, Tiberius. Caligula and his cousin, Gellemus were both adopted by Tiberius and made equal heirs.

He lived under Tiberius' care for six years and hated the man, but was reportedly very good at hiding it. At one point, he reportedly plotted to kill Tiberius in order to avenge his mother and brothers.

Rise:

Tiberius died on March 16, 37 AD. All of his estate and titles were left to Caligula and Gellemus. They were supposed to serve as joint heirs to the throne of Rome.

Caligula rose to power and was greatly loved and admired by all. The people called him "our baby" or "our star." He was loved because of who his parents were, rather than his own personality.

He granted bonuses to the military and declared that treason trials were no longer a thing. He destroyed Tiberius' treason papers and recalled he people who had been exiled. He also helped the poor people who had been harmed by the taxation system, and put on lavish and expensive gladiator shows. (Everything seems great so far, right?)

He fell ill around October of 37 AD, and some beloved he had been poisoned, but he made a quick recovery.

Turn for the Worst:
It isn't clear if Caligula was poisoned, or simply sick, but one thing was clear: the sickness changed him. No one knows if it altered something in his brain or just made him realize his own mortality, but after his recovery, Caligula became vicious.

He had Gellemus executed, outraging many people. Gellemus' grandmother was so heartbroken that she committed suicide (although some suggest Caligula poisoned her). He also executed his father in law and brother in law.

His uncle, Claudius, was spared during this bloodbath, possibly because Caligula found him to be a laughingstock.

His sister, Julia Drusilla died in 38. His other sisters were sent into exile.

He began claiming that his mother was conceived through an incestuous relationship between Augustus and Julia the Elder.

Reform:
In the year 38, Caligula focused on public reform.

He helped those who lost property in fires, removed some taxes, gave out prizes at events, and several other things.

Although he was doing some good, he was being harshly criticized for all the executions he ordered without giving proper trials. He also forced Macro, the praetorian prefect, to commit suicide.

Financial Crisis:
A crisis appeared in 39. Caligula's extravagant lifestyle was depleting the Roman's treasury. To make up for this, he fined and killed individuals in order to reclaim their estates, auctioned off gladiators, asked the public the lend him money, and taxed weddings, prostitutes, and lawsuits.

Construction:
Despite the lack of funds, Caligula ordered the construction of several projects during his time as emperor. Some of these made improvements to the kingdom, like allowing for increased imports from Egypt, however others were simply to benefit himself and his lavish lifestyle.

He built the temple of Augustus, the theatre of Pompey, expanded he imperial palace, built and amphitheater , and expanded he aqueducts.

In Syracuse, he repaired the temples to the gods and the walls around the city. He built several other temples, repaired older building and walls, and had a canal dug in Greece.

He had two very large ships constructed for his own use. (They burned in 1944 because of an attack during WWII).

Feud with the Senate and Downfall of an Emperor:
During his life, he had countless affairs with the wives of his allies and reportedly had incestuous relationships with his sisters.

He was tall and very hairy. People mocked him by calling him a goat, so much to the point that he made it a capital offense to mention a goat in his presence.

It is said that he rolled around in piles of money and drank pearls dissolved in vinegar.

Starting in 39, his relationship with the senate began to decline. They hated his lavish lifestyle and constant spending as well as his cruel and violent nature.

There were several conspiracies against him, which resulted in even more executions.

In 40 AD, Caligula focused on expanding his kingdom westward. His empire was expanded into Mauretania and he attempted to expand into Britannia as well.

He even went as far as challenging the god, Neptune, during his campaign. (However, some historians say this fact is false).

Caligula began making public appearances dressed as different gods like Hercules, Mercury, Apollo, and even Venus. He referred to himself as a god, and apparently on some papers and documents, he is referred to as "Jupiter." He had two temples built to worship him.

People began describing Caligula as selfish, insane, and violent. They stated that he was short tempered and spent too much money.

Caligula would sleep with the wives of other men and brag about it. He wasted a lot of money, resulting in the starvation of Roman citizens.

It is said that at a gladiator event, he had an entire section of the audience thrown into the arena to be eaten by the animals, just because he was bored.

Caligula had a favorite horse, called Incitatus. He spoiled this horse in order to spark outrage in the senate. Some day he invited the horse to dine with him, built a stable of marble and ivory, and even made the horse a priest. It is unknown how much of these stories are true and how much are false.

He caused even further outrage in the senate when he stated that he wanted to move to Alexandria and be worshipped as a god.

On the 22 of January in 41, Caligula was attacked by a group of his guardsmen after a sporting event. He was stabbed 30 times and he died. His wife and daughter were murdered as well.

His body was dumped in a shallow grave. His statues were destroyed in hopes of removing his memory from history.

Cool Facts:
• Caligula was only his nickname. It means "Little Boots" Or "Booties." He followed his father around everywhere when he was a child, and the troops gave him this nickname because he wore a uniform and boots called "caligae." He hated it, but it stuck.
• his mother was very involved in politics and war, and followed her husband on various military campaigns
• he was accused of incest, but some historians claim that Hess reports were made up or greatly exaggerated
• it's possible that he had temporal lobe epilepsy, hyperthyroidism, or Wilson's disease. One of these could be to blame for his insanity
• some historians claim Tiberius was really murdered. However most disagree because he was 77 at the time of his death, so it is likely that he died of natural causes

Movies, Books, and More:
He is featured in the Rick Riordan series, Trials of Apollo.

There's many nonfiction books about him.

A movie titled Caligula was released in 1979.

Quotes:
"Let them hate me, so long as they fear me."
"I have existed from the morning of the world and I shall exist until the last star falls from the night. Although I have taken the form of Gaius Caligula, I am all men as I am no man, and therefore I am a god."