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Elagabalus Birth Name: Varius Avita Bassianus

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Elagabalus’ given birth name was Varius Avitus Bassianus who lived from 204 to 222 A.D., and he was one of Emperor Caracall’s ((211 –217 A.D.) who was a crazy man) nephews. Varius Avita Bassianus became known as Elagabalus because he was the high priest of a phallic-oriented cult at a temple in Emesa, whose deity was El-Gabal whose name means “God of the Mountain”, (Revolvy). This deity was worshiped in the form of a huge, black meteorite and there were two extremely large erect penises on each side of the entrance of the temple. Elagabalus became the Emperor of Rome in 218 at the age of 14 when “his grandmother Julia Maesa, his mother Julia Soaemias, and her lover succeeded by bribing and plotting in gaining the throne of the Roman Empire …show more content…

The Roman people were used to Emperors taking young boys for their sexual pleasure outside of their heterosexual lives, but Elagabalus was extreme and earned himself an exceedingly long lasting reputation because of it. In an account by Cassius Dio, he states that Elagabalus’ body showed the scars from his many lovers beatings and whippings. He adds that Elagabalus was a regular customer of the popular whore houses, only he would run off all of the prostitutes so he alone could be the prostitute. Not only this, but he also had a special room in the palace just for him to act out his obscene and vulgar fantasies. Stating that Elagabalus would stand “...nude at the door of the room as the harlots do” and “in a soft and melting voice he solicited the passers by”, (Bos). He also infuriated the people of Rome because he would give his plebeian lovers high ranking positions or offices. As well as it was known that he had a form of marriage with a Carian slave named Heirocles and having a number of female wives, lovers, and …show more content…

His provocations of the Roman people troubled Julia Maesa, his grandmother, and she convinced Elagabalus to adopt his cousin Alexander and to give him the title of Caesar so that he (Elagabalus) could continue pursue his endeavors uninterrupted. Eventually though, in 222 A.D., Elagabalus turned against the much liked Alexander causing a revolt that ended with Alexander being Emperor, and 17 year old Elagabalus being killed in a privy where he was found hiding. His body, along with his hated mothers murdered body, were “dragged on hooks through the city and thrown into the Tiber. Some of Elagabalus ' favorites were slaughtered by tearing out their vitals, while others were pierced up the anus, "so that their death fitted their lives" and the “El-Gabal 's black relic was sent back to Emesa”,

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