Claudius the God (Penguin Modern Classics)

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The historian Suetonius describes the physical manifestations of Claudius's condition in relatively good detail. [65] His knees were weak and gave way under him and his head shook. He stammered and his speech was confused. He slobbered and his nose ran when he was excited. The Stoic Seneca states in his Apocolocyntosis that Claudius's voice belonged to no land animal, and that his hands were weak as well. [66] Claudius depicted as the Roman god Jupiter Momigliano, Arnaldo. 1934. Claudius: the Emperor and his achievement. Trans. W.D. Hogarth. Heffer, Cambridge. 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 of murdering her sister-in-law Apronia. When Urgulanilla gave birth after the divorce, Claudius repudiated the baby girl, Claudia, as the father was one of his own freedmen.

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

Suetonius and the other ancient authors accused Claudius of being dominated by women and wives, and of being a womanizer. [52] [53]He is portrayed in Season 3 of the Netflix documentary series Roman Empire, which focused on the reign of Caligula, by Kelson Henderson. The series concludes with Claudius's accession. The truth is probably more political. The attempted coup d'état by Silius and Messalina probably made Claudius realize the weakness of his position as a member of the Claudian (but not the Julian) family. This weakness was compounded by the fact that he did not yet have an obvious adult heir, Britannicus being just a boy. Agrippina was one of the few remaining descendants of Augustus, and her son Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus (the future Nero) was one of the last males of the Imperial family. Coup attempts might rally around the pair and Agrippina was already showing such ambition. It has been suggested that the Senate may have pushed for the marriage, an attempt to end the feud between the Julian and Claudian branches. [62] This article is about the Roman emperor in the 1st century. For the Roman emperor in the 3rd century, see Claudius Gothicus.

Claudius - Wikipedia

Many other senators tried different conspiracies and were condemned. Claudius's son-in-law Pompeius Magnus was executed for his part in a conspiracy with his father Crassus Frugi. Another plot involved the consulars Lusius Saturninus, Cornelius Lupus, and Pompeius Pedo. I brooded over the problem. Wasn’t it Plato who wrote that the only sound excuse that anyone can offer for ruling is that by doing so he avoids being ruled by people inferior in talents to himself? There is something in that. But I was afraid, on the contrary, that if I resigned, my place would be taken by someone superior in talents […] so that the monarchy would become stronger than ever and the Republic never be restored. In any case, the moment of tranquility had not come. I must get to work again. Despite the disdain of the Imperial family, it seems that from very early on the general public respected Claudius. At Augustus's death, the equites, or knights, chose Claudius to head their delegation. When his house burned down, the Senate demanded it be rebuilt at public expense. They also requested that Claudius be allowed to debate in the Senate. Tiberius turned down both motions, but the sentiment remained. In literature, Claudius and his contemporaries appear in the historical novel The Roman by Mika Waltari. Canadian-born science fiction writer A. E. van Vogt reimagined Robert Graves's Claudius story, in his two novels, Empire of the Atom and The Wizard of Linn.

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of the Best Robert Graves Poems Everyone Should Read". Interesting Literature. 24 November 2021 . Retrieved 2 September 2023. He was similarly appreciative of them and gave them due credit for policies where he had used their advice. However, if they showed treasonous inclinations, the Emperor punished them with just force, as in the case of Polybius and Pallas's brother, Felix. There is no evidence that the character of Claudius's policies and edicts changed with the rise and fall of the various freedmen, suggesting that he was firmly in control throughout. In 1998, the Modern Library ranked I, Claudius fourteenth on its list of the 100 best English-language novels of the 20th century. [4] In 2005, the novel was chosen by Time as one of the 100 best English-language novels from 1923 to present. [5] Novels [ edit ] Historical context [ edit ] Since these were important positions, the senators were aghast at their being placed in the hands of former slaves and "well-known eunuchs". [45] If freedmen had total control of money, letters and law, it seemed it would not be hard for them to manipulate the Emperor. This is exactly the accusation put forth by ancient sources. However, these same sources admit that the freedmen were loyal to Claudius. [44] It was becoming increasingly difficult for me now to sustain my Republican convictions. What a farcical situation- myself, the only true anti-monarchist, forced to act as a monarch!