Julio-Claudian Emperors

by Thomas Wiedemann

Overview

'The dark, unrelenting Tiberius, the furious Caligula, the feeble Claudius, the profligate and cruel Nero..are condemned to everlasting Infamy' wrote Gibbon. This 'infamy' has inspired the work of historians and novelists from Roman times to the present.

This book summarises political events during the reigns of Tiberius, Caligula, Claudius and Nero, and the civil wars of the 'year of four emperors'. It considers too the extent to which social factors influenced the imperial household.

Assuming no knowledge of Latin and drawing on material including inscriptions and coins, literary history and the latest historical interpretations, the author presents a coherent account of the often apparently erratic actions of these emperors.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781853991172
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Academic
Publication date:	06/01/1991
Series:	Classical World Series
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	80
Product dimensions:	5.40(w) x 8.30(h) x 0.30(d)

About the Author

Thomas Wiedemann was Professor of Latin at the University of Nottingham. His books include "Adults and Children in the Roman Empire", "Emperors and Gladiators" and (for the Classical World series) "Cicero and the End of the Roman Republic".

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements vi List of Illustrations vii Stemmata ix Map xii

Sources and Subject-matter
1. Politics under the Principate 3
2. Tacitus 9
3. Other Literary and Archaeological Sources 12

Tiberius
4. The Accession 19
5. Germanicus and Drusus 23
6. Sejanus and the Power-Vacuum 28
7. The Aftermath of Sejanus: a Reign of Terror? 32

Caligula, Claudius and Nero
8. A New Gaius Julius Caesar 37
9. The Fall of Caligula 43
10. A Weak Emperor 46
11. Claudius and Agrippina 51
12. Nero’s ‘Five Good Years’ 54
13. The Fire and its Aftermath 58

The Civil Wars
14. Power Passes to Sulpicius Galba 65
15. Galba’s Failure and the Reign of Otho 69
16. A Military Coup: Vitellius 73
17. Vitellius Defeated 76
18. Legitimacy Restored: Vespasian in Control 80

Suggestions for Further Study 84
Suggestions for Further Reading 86
List of Latin Terms 92