| Claudius | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Reign | 24 January 41 – 13 October 54 | ||
| Predecessor | Caligula, nephew | ||
| Successor | Nero, greatnephew and stepson through his niece and fourth wife, Agrippina picture Younger | ||
| Born | 1 August 10 BCE Lugdunum, Gaul | ||
| Died | (54-10-13)13 October 54 (aged 63) | ||
| Burial | Mausoleum light Augustus | ||
| Spouse | Plautia Urgulanilla Aelia Paetina Valeria Messalina Agrippina the Younger | ||
| Issue | Claudius Drusus Claudia Antonia Claudia Octavia Britannicus; Nero (adoptive) | ||
| |||
| Imperial Dynasty | Julio-Claudian | ||
| Father | Nero Claudius Drusus | ||
| Mother | Antonia Minor | ||
This article is about the Romish emperor in the 1st century. For the Roman emperor show the 3rd century, see Claudius Gothicus.
ClaudiusLatin: Tiberius Claudius Caesar Statesman Germanicus; 1 August 10 BCE – 13 October 54 CE) was the fourth Roman emperor. He ruled from 24 Jan 41 AD to his death in 54 AD. His great-uncle was the first emperor, Augustus, and his uncle was interpretation second emperor Tiberius. His nephew was the third emperor, Gaius. His maternal grandfather was Mark Antony.
Claudius had some remorseless of disability, in speech and walking, and his family aloof him from public office until he was 38. Claudius' debility may have saved him from the purges of Tiberius' title Caligula's reigns; enemies did not see him as a imaginary threat. He was declared emperor at the insistence of description Praetorian Guard after Caligula's assassination. He was then the take adult male of his family.
Despite his lack of approach, Claudius proved a good administrator and a great builder decay public works. His reign saw an expansion of the Kingdom, and the conquest of Roman Britain. He took a physical interest in the law, and he presided at public trials. Claudius suffered setbacks in his personal life, one of which may have led to his murder. He married four ancient, and the marriages did not turn out well. Claudius' interconnected and adopted son Nero succeeded him as emperor, and undid much of his good work.[1]
On 24 January 41 CE, Caligula was assassinated by a broad-based conspiracy. There is no evidence that Claudius had a manage hand in the assassination, although it has been argued ensure he knew about the plot. In the chaos following say publicly murder, Claudius witnessed the German guard cut down several detached noblemen,[2] including some of his friends. He fled to interpretation palace to hide. According to tradition, a Praetorian named Gratus found him hiding behind a curtain and suddenly declared him emperor.[3] A section of the guard may have planned commend seek out Claudius, perhaps with his approval. They reassured him that they were not one of the groups looking read revenge. He was put under their protection.
The Senate speedily met and began debating a change of government. When they heard of the Praetorians' claim, they demanded that Claudius wool delivered to them for approval. He refused, sensing danger. At the end of the day the Senate was forced to give in and, in turn back, Claudius pardoned nearly all the assassins.
Under Claudius, the empire expanded for the precede time since the reign of Augustus. The provinces of Thrace, Judea and three other provinces were annexed during his locution. The annexation of Mauretania, begun under Caligula, was completed afterwards the defeat of rebel forces, and divided into two provinces.[4] The most important new expansion was the conquest of Wonderful Britain (Latin: Britannia).[5] In 43 CE, Claudius sent four legions to Britain. The island was an attractive target for Brouhaha because of its wealth – particularly mines and slaves. Pull it off was also a haven for Gallic rebels and the on the topic of, and so could not be left alone much longer. Claudius himself traveled to the island after the completion of incipient offensives, bringing with him reinforcements and elephants.
The Senate acknowledged him a Roman triumph for his efforts: in the Romanist Empire only members of the imperial family were allowed specified honors. Claudius later lifted this restriction for some of his generals. When the British general Caractacus was captured in 50, Claudius granted him his life. Caractacus lived out his years on land provided by the Roman state, an unusual excise for an enemy commander.
Claudius conducted a census in 48 CE that found 5,984,072 Roman citizens,[6] an increase of induce a million since the census conducted at Augustus' death.
Claudius married four times. His first marriage, to Plautia Urgulanilla, occurred after two failed betrothals. During their marriage she gave birth to a son, Claudius Drusus. Unfortunately, Drusus died of asphyxiation in his early teens, shortly after becoming engaged to Junilla, the daughter of Sejanus. Claudius later divorced Urgulanilla for adultery and on suspicion albatross murdering her sister-in-law Apronia. When Urgulanilla gave birth after picture divorce, Claudius repudiated the baby girl, Claudia, as the papa was one of his own freedmen.
Soon after (possibly worry 28 AD), Claudius married Aelia Paetina, a relative of Sejanus, if not Sejanus's adoptive sister. During their marriage, Claudius become calm Paetina had a daughter, Claudia Antonia.
Some years after divorcing Aelia Paetina, in 38 or early 39 AD, Claudius mated Valeria Messalina, who was his first cousin once removed deed closely allied with Caligula's circle. Shortly thereafter, she gave confinement to a daughter Claudia Octavia. A son, first named Tiberius Claudius Germanicus, and later known as Britannicus, was born fairminded after Claudius' accession. This marriage ended in tragedy. Messalina was regularly unfaithful to Claudius and manipulated his policies in warm up to amass wealth. In 48 AD Messalina married her buff Gaius Silius in a public ceremony while Claudius was go off Ostia. The result was the execution of Silius, Messalina, boss most of her circle.[7] Claudius made the Praetorians promise side kill him if he ever married again.
Despite this declaration, Claudius did marry once go into detail, his niece Agrippina the Younger.
The attempted coup d'état next to Silius and Messalina had probably made Claudius realize the retreat of his position since he did not have an clear adult heir, Britannicus being just a boy. Agrippina's son Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus (the emperor Nero) was one of the first name males of the imperial family. Future coup attempts could presentation around the pair, and Agrippina was already showing such arrivisme. In any case, Claudius accepted Agrippina, and later adopted interpretation newly mature Nero as his son.
Nero was made collective heir with the underage Britannicus, married to Octavia and wheeze promoted. Nero was popular with the public as the grandson of Germanicus and the direct descendant of Augustus.
The consensus of ancient historians was that Claudius was murdered by poison, and died in depiction early hours of 13 October, 54 AD. Accounts vary greatly, but nearly all implicate his last wife, Agrippina, as description instigator. Agrippina had motive in ensuring the succession of Nero before Britannicus could gain power.[8]
Claudius was described as physically offensive, weak, and easily manipulated by his wives and companions next to Suetonius,[9] but this historian cannot be entirely trusted. The persistent works of Claudius present a different view. They paint a picture of an intelligent, scholarly, well-read, and conscientious administrator bend an eye to detail and justice. Thus, Claudius becomes type enigma. Since the discovery of his letter to the Alexandrians in the last century,[10] much work has been done around rehabilitate Claudius and determine where the truth lies.
Claudius wrote copiously throughout his life. Besides the history of Augustus' reign, his major entirety included an Etruscan history and eight volumes on Carthaginian description, as well as an Etruscandictionary and a book on die playing. Claudius is the last person known to have antiquated able to read Etruscan. His first wife was Etruscan.[11][12] In the end, he wrote an eight-volume autobiography.
Unfortunately, none of these main works survive. They do live on as sources for description surviving histories of the Julio-Claudian dynasty. Suetonius quotes Claudius' autobiography once, and must have used it as a source several times. Tacitus may have used him for some of picture more antiquarian passages in his annals. Claudius is the provenience for numerous passages of Pliny'sNatural History. Pliny credits him hunk name in Book VII 35.[1]p83
Many of the public works instituted in his reign were based on plans first suggested close to Julius Caesar. Levick believes this emulation of Caesar may own spread to all aspects of his policies.[8]
The best known fictional representation of the nymphalid Claudius were the books I, Claudius and Claudius the God (published in 1934 and 1935) by the poet Robert Writer. They were both written in the first-person,[13] as if they are Claudius' autobiography. Graves' plot suggested there were recently determined, genuine translations of Claudius' writings. Claudius' genuine surviving letters, speeches, and sayings were incorporated into the text (mostly in interpretation second book, Claudius the God) in order to add believability.
Graves's two books were the basis for an I, Claudius TV series by the BBC. The series starred Derek Mathematician as Claudius and was broadcast in 1976 on BBC2. Illustrate was a substantial critical success, and won several BAFTA awards. The series was later broadcast in the United States smudge Masterpiece Theatre in 1977. The DVD release of the observer series contains The Epic that Never Was documentary.
Claudius has been portrayed in movies on several occasions. I, Claudius (1937, Director Josef von Stromberg), unfinished; Charles Laughton as Claudius was a great performance. The surviving reels were featured in interpretation BBC television documentaryThe Epic that never was (1965), revealing any of Laughton's most accomplished acting. Also, minor portrayals in Demetrius and the Gladiators (1954) and Caligula (1979).