Is the past a foreign country? An historical debate over the gender identity of a teenage emperor has hit the mainstream — and could reshape how we see the ancient world.
The Roman emperor who was a trans woman
Bitter end: Elagabalus was murdered by his own soldiers and replaced with his cousin. Glossary
Assassinated - Murdered for political ends. The word is thought to derive from the name given to a Shia Muslim sect based in medieval Persia, the Hashshashin, who carried out high-profile murders of important leaders.
Gender reassignment surgery - A range of surgeries that some transgender people choose to have so that their body matches the gender they identify with.
Arab - Arabia includes the countries on the coast of north Africa (from Morocco in the north-west) and the Arabian peninsula. It does not include Iran, which is in Asia but which is the most significant supporter of Shia Islam.
Syria - A Middle Eastern country that was the site of much of the fighting during the Crusades.
Vestal Virgin - Roman women who were chosen as children to tend the fire in the temple of the goddess Vesta. They had to serve for 30 years and remain virgins in that time.
Ahistorical - Lacking historical perspective or context.
Courtesans - Women who had sexual relationships with wealthy and powerful men, normally for money.
LP Hartley - A British novelist, born in 1895.
Libel - A false written statement about someone that damages their reputation.
Chauvinists - People who have unreasonable belief in the superiority of their own group, particularly men prejudiced against women.