Kontextmaschine - TIL when kidnapped by pirates, a young Julius...

28th September 2015

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TIL when kidnapped by pirates, a young Julius Caesar basically took charge of the ship, ordered his captors around & even read them his poetry (while reminding them they'd be crucified afterwards, which the pirates found hilarious.) Once free he raised a navy, captured them, and had them crucified. • /r/todayilearned →

The funniest thing is this isn’t even my favorite story like this from Ancient Rome.

Okay, so in the 100s B.C. there was a Sicilian slave named Eunus, who was a magician. Not like a wizard, but a stage magician, though like all proper magicians he didn’t acknowledge the distinction. A guy who performed tricks in front of an audience while keeping up a charming patter.

And his master had Eunus perform for rich audiences at parties. He wouldn’t be paid, because slave, but he solicited tips from the audience. This was pretty normal - city slaves often accepted tips or hired themselves out during their free time to build up a nest egg with which to buy their freedom.

(American slavery is best known in the context of plantation agriculture, but urban slaves working in manufacturing or the service sector were often given the same opportunities, to the point where laws were passed against the practice, for fear that it would undermine the racial castehood that had not been part of the Roman system.)

Anyway, part of Eunus’ act was that he claimed the power of prophecy, and specifically that there would be a great overturning of society, he would become king, and the slaves would kill or enslave their masters.

Presumably this was wrapped in a cheekiness that rendered it more amusing than threatening, for the act ended with a solicitation for tips, with the promise that the audiencemembers who tipped him would be spared from the purge.

From 135 to 132 B.C., there was a major slave uprising in Sicily, now known as the First Servile War. Eunus led the slaves. Those who had tipped him were spared.

Tagged: history