Emperor Caligula of the Ancient Roman Empire is known as one of the most tyrannical and power-hungry emperors of the Rome Empire. His reign began in 37 A.D. at the age of 25. It was rumored that he went crazy after getting seriously sick in October of 37 A.D. He would walk around his palace at night, claimed himself to be a living god, fed prisoners to wild animals, and often dressed as a woman. Once he made a temporary two-mile bridge of Roman merchant boats across the Bay of Bauli just so he could gallop back and forth on it for two days. He did this to prove that Thrasyllus’ prophecy that Caligula had no more of a chance of becoming emperor than riding a horse across the bay of Bauli was false. But perhaps is craziest act ever was appointing his beloved horse Incitatus to the Senate, and even appointing him to Consul. It was even rumored that Incitatus became a priest. A Consul was a very important position in Rome. Consuls managed the military, was head of state, represented Rome in foreign affairs, and controlled the Roman Senate.

Incitatus, which means Swift or Encouraged in Latin, was kept in a marble stable, had a collar of jewels, and had 18 dedicated servants. In the Roman empire, purple dye was incredibly rare, and only the wealthy could afford it, which meant that Emperor Caligula made sure that Incitatus slept in purple blankets. Sometimes, the emperor would hold parties in the horse’s stables where Incitatus was the host of the party. On days before races where Incitatus might be suffering from nerves, an entire cohort of the Praetorian Guard (bodyguards of the emperor) was sent to quiet down the surrounding neighborhood. Another legend claims that before races, Emperor Caligula would sleep besides Incitatus to ensure no one disturbed him. Emperor Caligula and Incitatus would often dine together, eating a “healthy” diet of barley with gold flakes, wine, squid, mussels, mice, chicken, and various other meats.

Eventually, Emperor Caligula’s lavish spending on bizarre projects drained the treasury faster than it could be refilled with taxes. In late January, 41 A.D. Emperor Caligula, his wife, and his daughter were stabbed to death by officers of the Praetorian Guard. If it weren’t for Emperor Caligula’s assassination, Incitatus would have gone down in history as the first and last animal of a parliament.