Claudius the God (Penguin Modern Classics)

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Some historians have cast doubt on whether Claudius was murdered or merely died from illness or old age. [c] Evidence against his murder include his serious illnesses in his last years, his unhealthy lifestyle and the fact that his taster Halotus continued to serve in the same position under Nero. Claudius had been so ill the year before that Nero vowed games for his recovery and the year of 54 seems to have been such an unhealthy year that one sitting member of each magistracy died within the span of a few months. He may even have died by eating a naturally poisonous mushroom, possibly Amanita muscaria. [91] On the other hand, some modern scholars claim the near universality of the accusations in ancient texts lends credence to the crime. [92] Claudius's ashes were interred in the Mausoleum of Augustus on 24 October 54, after a funeral similar to that of his great-uncle Augustus 40 years earlier.

Claudius the God and His Wife Messalina Summary Claudius the God and His Wife Messalina Summary

On 24 January 41 CE, Caligula was assassinated by a broad-based conspiracy. There is no evidence that Claudius had a direct hand in the assassination, although it has been argued that he knew about the plot. In the chaos following the murder, Claudius witnessed the German guard cut down several uninvolved noblemen, [2] including some of his friends. He fled to the 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 to seek out Claudius, perhaps with his approval. They reassured him that they were not one of the groups looking for revenge. He was put under their protection.Wilfred Josephs wrote the title music. David Wulstan and the Clerkes of Oxenford ensemble provided the ( diegetic) music for most episodes. Stuart, Meriwether (1936). "The Date of the Inscription of Claudius on the Arch of Ticinum". American Journal of Archaeology. 40 (3): 314–322. doi: 10.2307/498692. JSTOR 498692. S2CID 191396418. Claudius, the god and his wife Messalina; the troublesome reign of Tiberius Claudius Caesar, emperor of the Romans (born B.C. 10, died A.D. 54)". Worldcat entry for 1st edition of Claudius the God.

Claudius the God by Robert Graves | Goodreads Claudius the God by Robert Graves | Goodreads

Aveline, John (2004). "The Death of Claudius". Historia: Zeitschrift für Alte Geschichte. 53 (4): 453–475. ISSN 0018-2311. JSTOR 4436743. Tiberius Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus [b] ( / ˈ k l ɔː d i ə s/; Latin: [tɪˈbɛriʊs ˈklau̯diʊs ˈkae̯sar au̯ˈɡʊstʊs gɛrˈmaːnɪkʊs]; 1 August 10BC – 13 October AD54) was Roman emperor, ruling from AD41 to 54. A member of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, Claudius was born to Drusus and Antonia Minor at Lugdunum in Roman Gaul, where his father was stationed as a military legate. He was the first Roman emperor to be born outside Italy.He paid special attention to transportation. Throughout Italy and the provinces he built roads and canals. Among these was a large canal leading from the Rhine to the sea, as well as a road from Italy to Germany – both begun by his father, Drusus. Closer to Rome, he built a navigable canal on the Tiber, leading to Portus, his new port just north of Ostia. This port was constructed in a semicircle with two moles and a lighthouse at its mouth, reducing flooding in Rome. Regardless of the extent of their political power, the freedmen did manage to amass wealth through their positions. Pliny the Elder notes that several of them were richer than Crassus, the richest man of the Republican era. [46] Religious reforms [ edit ] Portrait of Claudius, Altes Museum, Berlin None of the works survived, but other sources' reference to him provide material for the surviving histories of the Julio-Claudian dynasty. Suetonius quotes Claudius's autobiography once and must have used it as a source numerous times. Tacitus uses Claudius's arguments for the orthographical innovations mentioned above and may have used him for some of the more antiquarian passages in his annals. Claudius is the source for numerous passages of Pliny's Natural History. [83] As time passed, Claudius was mostly forgotten outside of the historians's accounts. His books were lost first, as their antiquarian subjects became unfashionable. In the 2nd century, Pertinax, who shared his birthday, became emperor, overshadowing commemoration of Claudius. [102] In modern media [ edit ]

Claudius the God by Robert Graves [A Review] – We Need to Claudius the God by Robert Graves [A Review] – We Need to

a b Gradel I. Emperor worship and Roman religion. Clarendon Press. ISBN 978-0-19-927548-9 pp. 356–341, 367Murad, Ali (2010). "A Neurological Mystery from History: The Case of Claudius Caesar". Journal of the History of the Neurosciences. 19 (3): 221–227. doi: 10.1080/09647040902872775. PMID 20628951. S2CID 205664150. John Hurt said that he declined the role of Caligula when it was first offered to him. Because of the time-span of the production, the fact that Derek Jacobi would be the only actor to appear in every episode, and the subsequent commitments of the other actors, it was decided that rather than the customary "wrap party" at the end of the series, there would be a special pre-production party instead, to give the entire cast and crew the chance to meet. Hurt explained that series director Herbert Wise deliberately invited him to attend the party, hoping he would reconsider, and that he was so impressed on meeting the cast and crew that he immediately reversed his decision and took the part. When the time came to translate the novels into German, Graves, who spoke the language, decided instead to rework them into a one volume edition. He collaborated with translator Hans Rothe and they jointly produced a shortened edition which left out the many digressions which were incorporated into the English original, with the aim of presenting Claudius' story in a clearer and more effective way. The contents of the books were thus roughly cut down to a half. [15] The book is published as Ich Claudius, Kaiser und Gott ( I Claudius, Emperor and God) with Graves being styled Robert von Ranke Graves, which is how he is credited in all German editions of his works. David Chase, creator and showrunner of the acclaimed 1999 HBO series The Sopranos has spoken highly of the book, calling it one of his favorite works of fiction. [28] While Chase has stopped short of drawing a direct connection, many have compared the Machiavellian Livia Soprano to Claudius' grandmother, Livia Drusilla. [29] [30] [31] [32] [33] [34] These suspicious tend to find confirmation in the maiden name Chase selected for Livia—Pollio, one shared by Gaius Asinius Pollio, who makes a decisive appearance in I, Claudius. [35]

Claudius - Wikipedia

Graves's two books were the basis for a British television adaptation I, Claudius, produced by the BBC. The series starred Derek Jacobi as Claudius and was broadcast in 1976 on BBC2. [104] It was a substantial critical success, and won several BAFTA awards. The series was later broadcast in the United States on Masterpiece Theatre in 1977. The 1996 7-VHS release and the later DVD release of the television series, include The Epic That Never Was documentary. Charlotte Runcie (23 July 2015). "Is I, Claudius better than Game of Thrones?". The Daily Telegraph . Retrieved 18 October 2017. In 1937, abortive attempts were made to adapt the first book into a film by the film director Josef von Sternberg. The producer was Alexander Korda, who was then married to Merle Oberon, who was cast as Claudius' wife Messalina. Emlyn Williams was cast as Caligula, Charles Laughton was cast as Claudius, and Flora Robson was cast as Livia. Filming was abandoned after Oberon was injured in a serious motor car accident. Oost, Stewart Irvin (1958). "The Career of M. Antonius Pallas". The American Journal of Philology. 79 (2): 113–139. doi: 10.2307/292103. ISSN 0002-9475. JSTOR 292103.Since Claudius was the first emperor proclaimed on the initiative of the Praetorian Guard instead of the Senate, his repute suffered at the hands of commentators (such as Seneca). Moreover, he was the first emperor who resorted to bribery as a means to secure army loyalty and rewarded the soldiers of the Praetorian Guard that had elevated him with 15,000 sesterces. [21] Tiberius and Augustus had both left gifts to the army and guard in their wills, and upon Caligula's death the same would have been expected, even if no will existed. Claudius remained grateful to the guard, issuing coins with tributes to the Praetorians in the early part of his reign. [22] Lucius Cassius Dio (1927) [ c. 230]. "Books 60–61". Roman History. Translated by Earnest Cary. Loeb Classical Library. Griffin, Miriam (1990). "Claudius in Tacitus". The Classical Quarterly. 40 (2): 482–501. doi: 10.1017/S0009838800043056. ISSN 0009-8388. JSTOR 639107. S2CID 170810972. Claudius set about remodeling the Senate into a more efficient, representative body. He chided the senators about their reluctance to debate bills introduced by himself, as noted in the fragments of a surviving speech: