Claudius (1 August 10 BC – 13 October 54 AD) was Roman Emperor from AD 41 to 54. He succeeded his nephew Caligula and was succeeded by his adopted son Nero. After Caligula's assassination in January AD 41—an event in which the tribune Cassius Chaerea was one of the conspirators—members of the Praetorian Guard discovered Claudius in the imperial palace and proclaimed him emperor. Claudius ruled for thirteen years, instituting judicial and administrative reforms, expanding the imperial bureaucracy, undertaking major public works, annexing provinces such as Mauretania, and initiating the Roman conquest of Britannia in AD 43. Ancient historians accuse his fourth wife, Agrippina the Younger, of poisoning him in AD 54; modern scholars note that the circumstances are uncertain and debated.
Biography[]
Early Life[]
Claudius was the son of the Roman general Nero Claudius Drusus and Antonia Minor, and was born in Lugdunum, Gaul (present-day Lyon, France). In childhood he suffered from a variety of health problems, including a limp, a tremor or twitching, a speech impediment and partial deafness; which contemporary authors say led some members of his family and Roman society to underestimate and marginalise him; as a result he was often excluded from public office in his early life.
During the purges of Emperor Tiberius and his grand-nephew Caligula, Claudius survived due to his perceived half-wittedness; he was the last man of his family by the time of Caligula's death in 41 AD. Claudius was close to his uncle Tiberius during his exile on Capri from 23 to 37; Claudius, Tiberius' grand nephew Caligula, and Caligula's stepbrother Tiberius Gemellus were Tiberius' only remaining family members.
When Tiberius was murdered by Naevius Sutorius Macro in 37 AD, Caligula became the new emperor, and he decided to feign interest in maintaining Rome's old status as a democracy by making the incapable Claudius his co-consul.
Caligula frequently humiliated Claudius but also awarded him public honours and offices, including the consulship and other distinctions; probably partly to mock him. As a result Claudius remained largely on the political sidelines during Caligula's tumultuous reign.
Caligula was assassinated in January AD 41 by a group of conspirators that included the tribune Cassius Chaerea. After the murder, members of the Praetorian Guard discovered Claudius hiding in the palace and proclaimed him emperor, a decision that was decisive for Claudius's accession.
Emperor[]
The Praetorian Guard, which assassinated Caligula in 41 AD, acclaimed Claudius as the new emperor after finding him hiding from them behind some curtains. Contrary to the low expectations of many contemporaries, Claudius proved to be an effective and energetic administrator. He reformed the imperial bureaucracy, expanded the involvement of imperial freedmen in government, and sponsored a number of legal and administrative changes.
In AD 43 Claudius ordered and partly supervised the Roman invasion of Britannia, an operation led in the field by the general Aulus Plautius and supported by legions drawn from the Rhine and Gaul. Claudius later received triumphal honours for the invasion and established Roman administration in large parts of southern Britain; the conquest, however, was a long process that continued under later emperors and provincial governors; with significant military activity continuing into the later 1st century AD.
Reforms and public works[]
Ancient authors, notably Suetonius, record that Claudius sometimes issued a large number of edicts, reportedly "as many as twenty," and placed great emphasis on judicial administration. He relied heavily on a circle of trusted freedmen (for example Narcissus and Pallas) to run much of the government; this concentration of power in imperial freedmen and Claudius's use of trials and executions to remove opponents created friction with the Roman Senate and fed negative portrayals in senatorial histories.
Claudius implemented a broad array of administrative reforms and embarked on ambitious building projects during his reign. He restructured key elements of the imperial bureaucracy, notably expanding the influence of imperial freedmen within the administrative framework. In an effort to enhance governance, he streamlined legal procedures and improved the efficiency of provincial administration. His commitment to public infrastructure was evident in his sponsorship of construction initiatives across Rome and its provinces, which included repairing aqueducts, upgrading roads and harbours, and commissioning new public monuments to reflect the empire’s grandeur.
Personal Life[]
Claudius married several times: Plautia Urgulanilla, Aelia Paetina, Valeria Messalina (mother of his son Britannicus), and finally his niece Agrippina the Younger. Agrippina's son from a previous marriage, Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus (later the emperor Nero), was adopted by Claudius in AD 50 and designated his heir, a decision that later provoked rivalry with his biological son Britannicus.
Death[]
Claudius was poisoned in October AD 54 at the instigation of his wife Agrippina the Younger, who sought to secure the succession for her son, the future emperor Nero,
Gallery[]
| Roman Emperor | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by: Caligula |
41 – 54 AD | Succeeded by: Nero |