What was the disease of Emperor Caracalla from Gladiator 2 in real life?

Just like he did in the first part, with Gladiator 2 Ridley Scott wanted to give a twist to the history of the Roman Empire by using real characters, but adding a lot of fiction to his stories. So for those of us who are interested in history but are not experts at all, it becomes a game of exploring what is real and what is not. For example, this is the case Emperor Caracalla’s illness which his brother refers to at one point in the film.

From the first minute we see that neither he nor his brother are completely peaceful people. They enjoy violence and show certain shades psychopathy. However, in the case of Caracalla, there seems to be more to it. His behavior, sometimes almost reminiscent of the behavior of a small child, suggests that he really some kind of brain state. But what is wrong with Emperor Caracalla? Did it exist in real life?

The reality is that there is no clear answer. The Roman Empire was not a time known for accurate medical diagnoses. Moreover, the publication of the emperor’s illness might place his head on a platter for his enemies, as this indicated. weakness. Therefore, we can only speculate. But we are not going to do them for the first time, since there were already scientists and historians who were interested in this long before it was filmed. Gladiator 2. Here’s what is said about it.

Did Emperor Caracalla’s illness exist?

The records of that time record the illness of Emperor Caracalla, although there is no link to which this is. For example, an inscription from Ephesus mentions the emperor traveling to various temples and resorts in Apollo along with a companion whose name is not mentioned. To the Romans, Apollo was the god of many things, including medicine and healing. Therefore, the sick worshiped him with the intention of being healed.

There is no mention anywhere of what his illness was. However, if we analyze the history of Caracalla, we can put forward some hypotheses. To begin with, most historians agree that one of the most tyrannical emperors in the history of the Roman Empire. It seems he ordered the death of his father-in-law and brother. He also caused his wife’s exile and was indirectly involved in her death. It is even believed that he tried to poison his own father, but this attempt failed.

He based his rule on terror, ruthlessly killing anyone who stood in his way. But besides that, he seemed to enjoy it all. This does not mean that he had some kind of mental illness. Even today there is a misconception that people who commit such acts have mental health problemsbut overall they are nothing more than bad people and this is not a disease.

However, many texts from the time indicate that he was mad, which is a derogatory way of referring to certain mental pathologies. Since there is various evidence beyond the Ephesian texts that he had a predilection for healing gods, many historians believe that he did have some type of mental illness, although exactly what it is is unknown.

What do we see in Gladiator 2

So far we have simply talked about the illness of Emperor Caracalla, taking into account true story. There will be minor spoilers ahead. Gladiator 2. In any case, there is nothing decisive in the plot.

In the film we see Caracalla as possessed man. He is obsessed with his pet, a monkey, to whom he assigns a very important place in the government of Rome. He’s also definitely obsessed with his brother. He goes so far as to indicate that while still in the womb, he tried to cut her umbilical cord. And he assures that he remembers it perfectly. It also has many outbursts of anger; but, unlike their brother, they are completely uncontrolled, without any justification. In fact, in one such outburst, his brother apologizes and claims that “his illness has already passed.” affected the brain” What, then, could the illness of Emperor Caracalla be?

It’s impossible to know. The brother’s statement did not mention that it was a brain disease, as it had previously allegedly affected other parts of the body. However, at that time the origin of some behaviors was not precisely known.

Perhaps it was some kind of schizophrenia. Today, people with schizophrenia can lead completely normal lives with the help of pharmacological treatment. However, at that time, logically, they did not exist. Here again, it is important to clarify that schizophrenics are not necessarily violent. Perhaps, if the illness of Emperor Caracalla was exactly like this, then this is due to the fact that He wasn’t a good person either.. All you have to do is see that his brother, without any illness, is also a tyrant. The only difference is that he knows how to disguise this tyranny through diplomacy. Fair.

In short, Caracalla may have had some kind of mental illness, but That’s not why he was a bad person.. Throughout history, there have been cases of tyrants whose behavior was associated with one pathology or another. For example, some historical documents indicate that Henry VIII He was a fair and kind man, but his tyranny developed after falling from a horse. Perhaps it was the traumatic brain injury that led to this behavior. But Caracalla was always a tyrant, like many other Roman emperors. It’s more of a social condition than a mental one.