Tiberius (Caligula)

Tiberius (Latin: Tiberius Caesar Dīvī Augustī Fīlius Augustus) was a character from the 1979 film Caligula.

Tiberius was named Emperor in 14 AD. By the mid 30s AD Tiberius had gone insane due to syphilis. Paranoid and despising the city of Rome and its people Tiberius became a brutal tyrant who put a large number of Romans to death for the most minor of reasons. He eventually left for the island of Capri, a small island off the coast of Italy. There he passed his days swimming with naked youths and forcing people - including children and disabled individuals - to perform in degrading sex shows for his amusement. He lived on Capri with his friend and adviser Nerva, his bodyguard Macro, and Gemellus - Caligula's younger half brother and the person Tiberus wanted to succeed him as Emperor.

In 37 AD Tiberius summoned the young Caligula to the island. Caligula was worried that Tiberius would have him killed upon arrival, but he summoned his courage and went anyways. There he had found just how depraved Tiberius had become.

Tiberius soon tried to poison Caligula. In response his longtime friend and adviser Nerva committed suicide in protest. Caligula tried to kill Tiberius but was stopped from doing so by Macro - who had been serving as a bodyguard to Tiberius. Proclaiming his loyalty to Caligula, Macro killed Tiberius, with both Caligula and Gmellus witnessing the death of Tiberius.

When the news came to Rome that Tiberius was dead the citizens of Rome were overjoyed at the death of the Emperor they had known as a brutal tyrant. What they didn't realize that Caligula would be a far worse man than Tiberius.