Okay– I know what you’re thinking. You’re here because you’re confused and so are we, but the headline is simple: Straight men think about the Roman Empire more often than you’d think. 

Recently there has been a viral question circulating online where people ask their partners if they think about the Romans and the answer is almost always «Yeah, all the time». Wait what!? This viral craze started when @gaiusflavius (a Roman battle reenactment actor) posted a Reel challenging people to ask their man how often they think about Rome and the fall of Julius Caesar. At first, the harmless question went nowhere, but when TikTokers got a hold of it, it skyrocketed. Why do men think about Rome? It’s been more than 1500 years since our sandal-clad, toga-wearing Italians were trolloping all over the Mediterranean, but we’re still thinking about it. But does the Roman Empire think about us? Scroll onward for the hard earned truth about the Romans and the modern men that still think about it sometimes (or all the time).