00:00Did you know a Roman emperor once appointed his horse to the Senate?
00:04In 37 A.D., Caligula shocked Rome by giving his horse Incitatus a marble stable, ivory manger, and purple blankets.
00:12The horse even had its own house and dedicated servants.
00:16But this wasn't madness. It was calculated humiliation.
00:20Senators were forced to bow to a horse during official ceremonies.
00:24Incitatus would vote by stamping his hooves while senators watched in horror.
00:30Caligula threatened to make the horse consul next.
00:33This bizarre appointment exposed how absurd imperial power had become.
00:37The Senate's dignity was destroyed by a horse wearing a jeweled collar.
00:42Eventually, Caligula's own Praetorian guard assassinated him.
00:46Sometimes the greatest insult to power is showing just how meaningless it really is.
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