After a long day in Ancient Rome, working up a sweat while selling fish at the Forum Piscatorium or using urine to clean laundry, you might just like to visit a bathhouse. These were public baths where you could go for a dip in either the cold pool - called the frigidarium - or the warm pool – the tepidarium – and the hot pool - the caldarium.
But since these were public baths, you were bound to run into friends, neighbors, or enemies.. perhaps even an emperor! Of these imposing imperial fellows, whom should you avoid when you pop into the baths for a soak? About.com has your bathhouse 411 about just a few of the historically heinous emperors who ruled Rome.
Tiberius was Rome’s second emperor, ruling from 14-37 A.D., after his stepfather Augustus. He wasn’t terribly fond of his stepfamily – Augustus even forced him to divorce his wife to marry Augustus’s own daughter, Julia, according to ancient chronicler Suetonius in his Lives of the Twelve Caesars. But there are much deeper, darker reasons ancient bathgoers should avoid Tiberius.
For one, Tiberius was extremely licentious. Suetonius says he made his serving girls prance around nude and had massive orgies. The historian describes, “On retiring to Capri he devised a pleasance for his secret orgies: teams of wantons of both sexes, selected as experts in deviant intercourse and dubbed analists, copulated before him in triple unions to excite his flagging passions.” Tiberius even watched from a distance as pretty young things copulated – on his orders, of course.
Even fouler are Tiberius’s actions towards young boys. Suetonius gossips, “For example, he trained little boys (whom he termed tiddlers) to crawl between his thighs when he went swimming and tease him with their licks and nibbles; and unweaned babies he would put to his organ as though to the breast, being by both nature and age rather fond of this form of satisfaction.” His abuse wasn’t limited to women, either – a woman killed herself when she refused to submit to him. Whether or not Suetonius exaggerated these debaucheries, this emperor was still a vengeful man (look at how he took action against his one-time pal Sejanus and his allies). For these reasons, you should keep yourself and your loved ones away from Tiberius.More »
Although he was only emperor for seven months from 68-69 A.D., Galba made his mark on Rome. He mounted the throne soon after Nero was killed and held onto it for dear life. On the off chance you were someone in a prominent position who might make a play for the throne, Galba would be the last person you’d want to see while easing your muscles in the bath. He offed governors and important officials to save his own skin, which didn’t make him popular. Plutarch seems a bit sweet on Galba in his aptly-titledGalba from his biographical series, Lives, but don't start loving this emperor just yet.
While Suetonius admits to Galba’s noble origins, he also notes that Galba fell into greedy and cruel habits. When cities in Spain and Gaul wouldn’t ally themselves with him, rumor had it that Galba, in retaliation, punished them “by [imposing] heavier taxes and [castigated[ some even by the razing of their walls, putting to death the governors and imperial deputies along with their wives and children.” He didn’t properly reward the imperial guards and troops and even melted down a sacred gold object of one Spanish tribe to keep the precious metal for himself. So if you come into the bathhouse with any valuables, keep them away from Galba.More »
Ah, Nero. Roman emperor from 54-68 A.D., Nero is synonymous with the worst of the worst. He was born into the imperial family of Augustus, Tiberius, Claudius and co., but didn't inherit some of his kinder relatives' better traits. Although his mother, Agrippina, was Claudius’s niece, she married her uncle and positioned her son beautifully as the next heir. From an early age, he was a rotten specimen, trying to discredit his stepbrother and helping ruin his aunt, according to Suetonius.
Don’t get in Nero’s way, especially if you’re a possible heir to the throne. Nero poisoned his aforementioned stepbrother, Claudius’s son Britannicus, and killed his mother, among others, Suetonius claims. Nor did Nero stop at murder – he robbed and committed other acts of violence against innumerable people, says Cassius Dio in his Roman History. Nero also drained the treasury, so keep your coins hidden in your purse if you see him.
If Nero's hanging about, definitely don’t go for a drink after you take a bath. He loves to incite mobs, says Dio: “He used to frequent the taverns and wandered about everywhere like a private citizen. In consequence, frequent blows and violence occurred, and the evil even spread to the theatres, so that the people connected with the stage and the horse-races paid no heed either to the praetors or to the consuls, but were both disorderly themselves and led others to act likewise.” Not exactly an ideal drinking buddy!
If you have to be around his insidious emperor, stay away from flammables. He’s said to have fiddled while Rome burned, but, in reality, that didn’t happen. Suetonius claims, though, that Nero was the one who set the city of Rome ablaze in 64 and caused unparalleled destruction. Whether or not that’s true is another thing. In his Annals, Tacitus writes, “Nero, who at the time was staying in Antium, did not return to the capital until the fire was nearing the house by which he had connected the Palatine with the Gardens of Maecenas,” - i.e., he didn't set the city ablaze. In fact, says Tacitus, Nero even helped in the relief efforts. Still, you should keep your distance from this unsavory character.More »
Co-emperor with his father from 198-211 A.D. (then sole ruler until 217), Caracalla, born Antoninus, must have loved to take baths. The emperor completed the construction of a famously beautiful bathing complex in Rome. Like many of his predecessors, Caracalla, who got his nickname from a type of cloak he wore, wasn’t big into family or friends. Dio says he killed his tutor and his family, his charioteer, and his brother, Geta, because the latter was popular with the troops. Apparently, he even tricked his own mother into giving up Geta.
Senators and non-soldiers might want to steer clear of Caracalla. Dio reports, “Now this great admirer of Alexander, Antoninus, was fond of spending money upon the soldiers, great numbers of whom he kept in attendance upon him, alleging one excuse after another and one war after another; but he made it his business to strip, despoil, and grind down all the rest of mankind, and the senators by no means least.” Greedy Caracalla demanded money from Roman society in every form, from provisions to taxes on freeing slaves. He even granted Roman citizenship to people in the Constitutio Antoniniana; this egalitarian move, Dio says, wasn't done because Caracalla was feeling generous, but was made in order to squeeze more money from a larger population of people.
Nor did Caracalla have a great sense of humor about himself. When the Alexandrians of Egypt made jokes about him, Caracalla had them massacred, says the historian Herodian in his Roman History. Eventually, the imperial general Macrinus grew tired of the making wisecracks about him and bumped Caracalla off. Still, comics aren't imperial favorites, even to this day.More »
Yes, Commodus is the name of Joaquin Phoenix’s tyrannical character in Gladiator, but the real man by that name was even more terrifying. Son of the great ruler Marcus Aurelius, Commodus was nothing like his father. He saw conspiracies—some real, some probably not—everywhere, and killed many people whom he believed to be threats to his power.
But Commodus wasn't born that way. Dio blames Commodus’s wickedness on his friends: “This man [Commodus] was not naturally wicked, but, on the contrary, as guileless as any man that ever lived. His great simplicity, however, together with his cowardice, made him the slave of his companions ...” But that didn’t stop Commodus from committing more evil acts. Indeed, Dio can’t even mention how many bad things Commodus did, commenting, “I should render my narrative very tedious were I to give a detailed report of all the persons put to death by Commodus....”
If you’re not a fan of bloody games, definitely stay out of Commodus’s path. Commodus loves to play the gladiator, killing men and animals. According to Dio, “Commodus devoted most of his life to ease and to horses and to combats of wild beasts and of men. In fact, besides all that he did in private, he often slew in public large numbers of men and beasts as well.” So, if he pops into the baths to wash off some blood, get out of the way to ensure you're not his next victim!
If you’re a pious person, Commodus is not your guy, either. He declared himself a dog, dubbing himself “Hercules,” among other epithets, and demanded that Rome be renamed after himself. Talk about talking himself up! Dio claims that, “in his honour a gold statue was erected of a thousand pounds weight, representing him together with a bull and a cow. Finally, all the months were named after him…” So holier-than-thou was Commodus that he demanded everyone give cash for his birthday ever year … as if he needed more money! Keep your purses locked up tight around this one.More »
But since these were public baths, you were bound to run into friends, neighbors, or enemies.. perhaps even an emperor! Of these imposing imperial fellows, whom should you avoid when you pop into the baths for a soak? About.com has your bathhouse 411 about just a few of the historically heinous emperors who ruled Rome.
1. Tiberius
Tiberius was Rome’s second emperor, ruling from 14-37 A.D., after his stepfather Augustus. He wasn’t terribly fond of his stepfamily – Augustus even forced him to divorce his wife to marry Augustus’s own daughter, Julia, according to ancient chronicler Suetonius in his Lives of the Twelve Caesars. But there are much deeper, darker reasons ancient bathgoers should avoid Tiberius.
For one, Tiberius was extremely licentious. Suetonius says he made his serving girls prance around nude and had massive orgies. The historian describes, “On retiring to Capri he devised a pleasance for his secret orgies: teams of wantons of both sexes, selected as experts in deviant intercourse and dubbed analists, copulated before him in triple unions to excite his flagging passions.” Tiberius even watched from a distance as pretty young things copulated – on his orders, of course.
Even fouler are Tiberius’s actions towards young boys. Suetonius gossips, “For example, he trained little boys (whom he termed tiddlers) to crawl between his thighs when he went swimming and tease him with their licks and nibbles; and unweaned babies he would put to his organ as though to the breast, being by both nature and age rather fond of this form of satisfaction.” His abuse wasn’t limited to women, either – a woman killed herself when she refused to submit to him. Whether or not Suetonius exaggerated these debaucheries, this emperor was still a vengeful man (look at how he took action against his one-time pal Sejanus and his allies). For these reasons, you should keep yourself and your loved ones away from Tiberius.More »
2. Galba
Although he was only emperor for seven months from 68-69 A.D., Galba made his mark on Rome. He mounted the throne soon after Nero was killed and held onto it for dear life. On the off chance you were someone in a prominent position who might make a play for the throne, Galba would be the last person you’d want to see while easing your muscles in the bath. He offed governors and important officials to save his own skin, which didn’t make him popular. Plutarch seems a bit sweet on Galba in his aptly-titledGalba from his biographical series, Lives, but don't start loving this emperor just yet.
While Suetonius admits to Galba’s noble origins, he also notes that Galba fell into greedy and cruel habits. When cities in Spain and Gaul wouldn’t ally themselves with him, rumor had it that Galba, in retaliation, punished them “by [imposing] heavier taxes and [castigated[ some even by the razing of their walls, putting to death the governors and imperial deputies along with their wives and children.” He didn’t properly reward the imperial guards and troops and even melted down a sacred gold object of one Spanish tribe to keep the precious metal for himself. So if you come into the bathhouse with any valuables, keep them away from Galba.More »
3. Nero
Ah, Nero. Roman emperor from 54-68 A.D., Nero is synonymous with the worst of the worst. He was born into the imperial family of Augustus, Tiberius, Claudius and co., but didn't inherit some of his kinder relatives' better traits. Although his mother, Agrippina, was Claudius’s niece, she married her uncle and positioned her son beautifully as the next heir. From an early age, he was a rotten specimen, trying to discredit his stepbrother and helping ruin his aunt, according to Suetonius.
Don’t get in Nero’s way, especially if you’re a possible heir to the throne. Nero poisoned his aforementioned stepbrother, Claudius’s son Britannicus, and killed his mother, among others, Suetonius claims. Nor did Nero stop at murder – he robbed and committed other acts of violence against innumerable people, says Cassius Dio in his Roman History. Nero also drained the treasury, so keep your coins hidden in your purse if you see him.
If Nero's hanging about, definitely don’t go for a drink after you take a bath. He loves to incite mobs, says Dio: “He used to frequent the taverns and wandered about everywhere like a private citizen. In consequence, frequent blows and violence occurred, and the evil even spread to the theatres, so that the people connected with the stage and the horse-races paid no heed either to the praetors or to the consuls, but were both disorderly themselves and led others to act likewise.” Not exactly an ideal drinking buddy!
If you have to be around his insidious emperor, stay away from flammables. He’s said to have fiddled while Rome burned, but, in reality, that didn’t happen. Suetonius claims, though, that Nero was the one who set the city of Rome ablaze in 64 and caused unparalleled destruction. Whether or not that’s true is another thing. In his Annals, Tacitus writes, “Nero, who at the time was staying in Antium, did not return to the capital until the fire was nearing the house by which he had connected the Palatine with the Gardens of Maecenas,” - i.e., he didn't set the city ablaze. In fact, says Tacitus, Nero even helped in the relief efforts. Still, you should keep your distance from this unsavory character.More »
4. Caracalla
Co-emperor with his father from 198-211 A.D. (then sole ruler until 217), Caracalla, born Antoninus, must have loved to take baths. The emperor completed the construction of a famously beautiful bathing complex in Rome. Like many of his predecessors, Caracalla, who got his nickname from a type of cloak he wore, wasn’t big into family or friends. Dio says he killed his tutor and his family, his charioteer, and his brother, Geta, because the latter was popular with the troops. Apparently, he even tricked his own mother into giving up Geta.
Senators and non-soldiers might want to steer clear of Caracalla. Dio reports, “Now this great admirer of Alexander, Antoninus, was fond of spending money upon the soldiers, great numbers of whom he kept in attendance upon him, alleging one excuse after another and one war after another; but he made it his business to strip, despoil, and grind down all the rest of mankind, and the senators by no means least.” Greedy Caracalla demanded money from Roman society in every form, from provisions to taxes on freeing slaves. He even granted Roman citizenship to people in the Constitutio Antoniniana; this egalitarian move, Dio says, wasn't done because Caracalla was feeling generous, but was made in order to squeeze more money from a larger population of people.
Nor did Caracalla have a great sense of humor about himself. When the Alexandrians of Egypt made jokes about him, Caracalla had them massacred, says the historian Herodian in his Roman History. Eventually, the imperial general Macrinus grew tired of the making wisecracks about him and bumped Caracalla off. Still, comics aren't imperial favorites, even to this day.More »
5. Commodus
Yes, Commodus is the name of Joaquin Phoenix’s tyrannical character in Gladiator, but the real man by that name was even more terrifying. Son of the great ruler Marcus Aurelius, Commodus was nothing like his father. He saw conspiracies—some real, some probably not—everywhere, and killed many people whom he believed to be threats to his power.
But Commodus wasn't born that way. Dio blames Commodus’s wickedness on his friends: “This man [Commodus] was not naturally wicked, but, on the contrary, as guileless as any man that ever lived. His great simplicity, however, together with his cowardice, made him the slave of his companions ...” But that didn’t stop Commodus from committing more evil acts. Indeed, Dio can’t even mention how many bad things Commodus did, commenting, “I should render my narrative very tedious were I to give a detailed report of all the persons put to death by Commodus....”
If you’re not a fan of bloody games, definitely stay out of Commodus’s path. Commodus loves to play the gladiator, killing men and animals. According to Dio, “Commodus devoted most of his life to ease and to horses and to combats of wild beasts and of men. In fact, besides all that he did in private, he often slew in public large numbers of men and beasts as well.” So, if he pops into the baths to wash off some blood, get out of the way to ensure you're not his next victim!
If you’re a pious person, Commodus is not your guy, either. He declared himself a dog, dubbing himself “Hercules,” among other epithets, and demanded that Rome be renamed after himself. Talk about talking himself up! Dio claims that, “in his honour a gold statue was erected of a thousand pounds weight, representing him together with a bull and a cow. Finally, all the months were named after him…” So holier-than-thou was Commodus that he demanded everyone give cash for his birthday ever year … as if he needed more money! Keep your purses locked up tight around this one.More »