The Last Caesar, also known as Great Caesar's Ghost, is a mystery short story by Isaac Asimov.
Part of the Union Club series, it was first published in the August 1983 issue of Gallery magazine.
Summary[]
One afternoon at the Union Club, the members begin teasing Griswold about his mysterious source of income. Amused, Griswold explains that he makes a modest living through bets and wagers, often won by applying logic and historical insight. As an example, he recounts a recent incident involving a particularly arrogant man named Barnaby Benedick, a self-proclaimed intellectual fond of showing off his erudition before the less informed.
During a public discussion, Benedick made a boastful remark about his superior knowledge of Roman history, prompting Griswold to challenge him with a simple question, “Who was the last Caesar?”
Benedick, confident in his scholarship, immediately replied that the last Caesar was Julius Caesar, the original dictator of Rome. Griswold corrected him gently, pointing out that many emperors after Julius also bore the title Caesar, including Augustus, Tiberius, and their successors.
Benedick quickly changed his answer to Romulus Augustulus, the last emperor of the Western Roman Empire. But Griswold smiled again and explained that the Eastern Empire, Byzantium, continued to exist for nearly a thousand more years, and its rulers also claimed the title Caesar. Thus, the true “last Caesar” was not a figure from antiquity but Constantine XI Palaiologos, the final Byzantine emperor, who died defending Constantinople in 1453.
The revelation silenced Benedick, whose “great intellect” had failed to account for the continuation of Rome in the East. Griswold concludes his tale with characteristic wit, saying that he not only won the wager, but also enjoyed “the sight of a man learning humility, at historical expense.”
Characters[]
- Griswold
- Club Member (the narrator)
- Jennings
- Baranov
- Barnaby Benedick
Historical Figures Mentioned[]
- Julius Caesar
- Augustus
- Tiberius
- Romulus Augustulus
- Constantine XI Palaiologos
See Also[]
List of short stories by Isaac Asimov