The title is a combination of Bart's early catchphrase "¡Ay, caramba!" and the book and TV miniseries "I, Claudius".
Helena speaks to Majora about the "war on Saturnalia" which is a reference to when the feast of Saturnalia became the holiday Christmas.
Emperor Quimbus appointing a horse to the senate is a reference to Caligula, who actually did appoint a horse to the senate.
The words that Roman Barney carves into the wall "Semper Fratres" roughly translates to "Forever Brothers".
Despite being set in Ancient Rome, the episode's plot is very similar to Shakespeare's 'MacBeth', with Marge in the role of Lady Macbeth, urging her husband, Homer, to kill in order to gain more power. A previous episode, Four Great Women and a Manicure (2009), featured a similar premise.