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| Claudius I |
Claudius, · Claudius Drew Jesús · Nero Germanicus (Tiberius Claudius Drusus Nero Germanicus, 10 BC August 1 - 54 of 10 June 13), often translated as Claudius, Claudius, or imitating Claudius I, who later European monarchs used to put numbers on, he was the fourth emperor of the Julia Claudius of the Roman Empire, AD Reigned from 41 to 54 years.
Claudius was in an accident and ascended to the throne as the head of state. After the assassination of Emperor Caligula in AD 41, the guards supported the middle-aged man of the Claudius family and were recognized by the Senate as the Roman emperor. His rule strives for harmony among all strata, adopts the golden mean in everything, repairs the broken relationship between the emperor and the senator during the Caligula period, improves the political power of provincial citizens in Rome, and builds the country's industry. Later historians believe that the centralized form of political power in the early Roman Empire was transferred peacefully into his hands
Character's life
Early experiences
Claudius in his father Drusus worked in the Gaul period in 10 BC, was born into the slave-way grid Governor of Gaul (today's French Lyon region). When Claudius was a baby, his father died. Later, his brother Germanicus was adopted by his uncle Octavian, so he inherited Claudius's family. Since his youth, Claudius has focused on reading classics and learning. He studied history under the guidance of Li Wei. He has 20 volumes of Etruscan and 8 volumes of Carthage's historical works (but they have not been passed down to this day). He also plans to write a biography of Mark Anthony, but the latter is Give up when it involves the negative material of Augustus. He also studied the language of the time and used the new Latin alphabet to meet the requirements of linguistics.Nevertheless, Claudius had obvious appearance defects in childhood and adolescence due to physical disabilities (possibly suffering from polio). It made him lack vitality both physically and mentally. His mother, Antonia, often called him "a weird man born only by nature, but not completed by nature". After he became an adult, Octavian mentioned in a letter: "...If he is sound, then what reason do we have to suspect that he should be promoted step by step like his brother? However, if we are clear knowing that his physical and mental development is not healthy, we should not give people who are accustomed to mocking and sarcasm, to provide him with a handle to insult us."
Therefore, during the tenure of the two emperors from Augustus to Tiberius, this member of the Claudius family never got an opportunity to participate in public life. Accidentally ascended to the throne
In 37 AD, Claudius served as the consul of Rome for the first time after his nephew Caligula became emperor. But this vanity did not bring him respect. As he had not been cultivated in politics in the past, Claudius could not clearly speak before the public; and Caligula also looked at the uncle's embarrassment with a mocking mentality. Therefore, people have never paid much attention to this member of the royal family and always watched his gaffes in public with a joke.
In 41 AD, Caligula, who aroused the disgust of many people in Rome, was assassinated by the commander of the Guards, who also killed Caligula's wife and daughter. The Guards found Claudius, who was 50 years old, and the soldiers called him emperor and took him to the barracks for protection. Claudius thought that the Guards rebelled and were very afraid, but the situation gradually became clear later. When the Senate learned of Caligula's death, it immediately met to discuss the future situation. Some people proposed to restore the republic. Later, everyone decided to maintain the head of state system established by Augustus, agree with the behavior of the guards, and recognize Claudius. Uth has all the power of the emperor.
Reign
After Claudius became emperor, he faced many turbulences. Asiaticus once conspired to assassinate Emperor Claudius in a party fight, but he was cracked and failed. Empress Messalina took the opportunity to expand his ties and eliminate political enemies. Dalmatian lieutenant Furius planned to start a civil war but was suppressed due to the fear of the legion within 5 days.
Despite the turbulent situation, Claudius I still left a lot of political achievements. At the beginning of his tenure, he sent troops to Britain to open up territories for the Roman Empire; during his 14-year rule, he completed some important public projects, allowing provincial nobles to enter the Senate and appoint high officials, and initially established the Roman Empire’s bureaucracy. . During his reign, the "Regional Assembly" of the Roman Empire passed laws on women's custody.
In 48 AD, Claudius I killed his queen, Mesalina, who had "brought apricots out of the wall", and married the little Agrippina the following year.
Mysterious death
On October 54th, Claudius died of food poisoning at a family dinner. It was generally suspected that it was Claudius' fourth wife, Agrippina the young, who was poisoned. Claudius was 64 years old and reigned for 14 years. After his death, he received the funeral of the king and his name was listed as a god. After Nero came to power, this honor was canceled, but Vespa first restored his "sacred" title.
Political action
Consolidated power
Caligula's many perverse actions caused the hostility of people from all walks of life towards the emperor. After Claudius I came to power, he immediately expressed his special respect for the Senate, and many administrative measures were left to the Senate to make the final decision; he also respected the subordinate political organizations of Rome-the Clan Assembly ( Curia ) and the Civic Assembly, and Do not suppress their voices with their own will. Faced with the dual problems of “the Senate’s members are not profitable” and the professional ethics of defense lawyers, Claudius stipulated that defense lawyers can receive remuneration of fewer than 10,000 castes, and elders can also earn a certain amount of income by acting as defense lawyers. He has a humble and gentle personality, and refuses to use Imperator (ie " Commander ") as a title. [2] He often attends judicial hearings and judgments in person. In order to improve his reputation in the army, he organized 27 legions and commanded them to conquer Britain, putting down the local mutiny. All these have enabled him to gain the love of the people in a short period of time.Industrial Construction
Claudius did not complete many public works, but they were all important. He dug up the "Fukinus Lake", a lagoon on the Apennine Mountains, and introduced the water to the city of Rome via a diversion channel; this project took 11 years to finally be completed and a total of 3 miles of drainage channels were built. Another major project was the expansion of Ostia, the outer port of Rome, the construction of two arc-shaped breakwaters on both sides of the port, and the construction of a wave barrier in the deepwater section at the entrance, and finally the city of Alexandria. The Falls Island lighthouse was based on a lighthouse to guide ships passing by at night. He also expanded the roads in Italy. Pay attention to provincesThe constituent members of the Roman Senate were only selected from the high-level citizens of Rome and Italy; most of the dignitaries from the Gaul province after the conquest of the Caesar era could not enter. During the reign of Claudius, after a fierce debate, he agreed to grant the nobles of the later naturalized regions of Gaul, Belgium, to be elected to the Senate. He also granted Roman citizenship to residents of the province. In addition, he also established a new province of Mauritania.
Bureaucracy
Claudius I initially established a whole set of bureaucracies: the Secretariat was in charge of internal affairs, foreign affairs, and military affairs, the Finance Department was in charge of finances, and the Judicial Department was in charge of legal affairs. Character evaluation General comment After the assassination of Caligula, Claudius quickly calmed the political and economic situation in Rome. And made a certain contribution to the stable development of the empire. From the day of Houfolawei dynasty of Vespasian, Titus, Domitian emperor's throne, etc. oath ( "happiness of the gods respect through Augustus, Tiberius, Claudius's policy ”) From the perspective of his performance, he finally received positive comments from the Romans. Historical evaluationMontesquieu, French Enlightenment thinker: Claudius finally eliminated the old order-it turned out that he gave the right to judge to his officials. The main purpose of the war between Marius and Sura was to solve the question: Who should this power belong to, whether it belongs to the elders or the knights? But the incompetent guy canceled all the powers of the two when he was happy... No one ruled after the Republic is more authoritarian than his power, because he has all the power of the people, and the people can't limit themselves. British historian Edward Gibbon: In the first century AD, the only province added to the Roman Empire was Britain. This forty-year war was started by the stupidest and ignorant emperor, and the most obscene emperor continued to support it and ended in the hands of the most cowardly emperor. (Referring to the three emperors Claudius, Nero, and Domitian respectively) Simon Bolivar, the famous "Liberator" in Latin America: For every Cincinnatus, there are a hundred Caracalla; for every Trajan, there are a hundred Caligula; for every Vespa, There are one hundred Claudius in Xi'an. American historian Stavrianos: Indeed, the four emperors after Augustus-Tiberius (reigned 14-37 AD), Caligula (reigned 37-41 AD), Claudius (reigned 41-54 AD), and Nero (reigned 54-68 AD)-were all incompetent. However, the empire withstood its tyranny.
Anecdote Late bloomers
Claudius, I was the fourth emperor of the Roman Empire. When he was a child, he did not live the life that an emperor should have. He has been lame since he was a child, with physical defects, even though his mother described him as a "freak." Claudius has been neglected and ridiculed, so he spent most of his youth drinking, playing dice, and doing academic research. He did not take up an official position until the age of 46, becoming the consul of his nephew, then Emperor Caligula. In 41 AD, Caligula was assassinated, and the Guardsmen immediately declared the elderly Claudius the new emperor of Rome, shocking the world. Many people expect that 50-year-old Claudius is a weak ruler, but with his amazing insights, he gallops into this sinister place of Roman politics. Tragic marriage
Claudius had three marriages before he came to the throne. He had an unfulfilled marriage with Emilia Lebida when he was a minor and was later engaged to Livia Midulina, but the woman died before the marriage. In the first real marriage, he married Ugulania but divorced from the latter because of the scandal and murder suspicion. He married Elina Paitina again. She gave birth to a daughter for him, but she died young. Soon they divorced due to life quarrels. Is the third marriage with the cousin's daughter Walieliya · US Sali Na marriage, succession to the United States Sali Na bore him a daughter Octavian Ya and son do not. Two years later Claudius' emperor when on, making the United States also followed Sali Na to become the queen of the empire.
After Mesalina became queen, her power and desires increased. In order to ensure the future succession of her son to the throne, she tried her best to suppress the royal family members who had the chance to inherit, including the future emperor Nero's mother Agrippina. In order to seize the mansion of Bolibius, the emperor's secretary, Mesalina found an opportunity to rebel and let Claudius kill her secretary.
In 48 AD, Mesalina took advantage of the opportunity of the emperor not in the city to hold a wedding with her lover Gaius Silius. After Claudius heard the news, in addition to his wife's infidelity, he also worried that this was a conspiracy to seize his throne. He hurried back to Rome angrily, replaced his confidant Bruce as the new guard commander, and ordered the arrest of the queen, Silius, and those attending the wedding. The impediment of Narcissus, the emperor's secretary, eliminated the opportunity for the queen to personally intercede with Claudius, thereby forcing Mesalina to commit suicide. Silius, along with many implicated elders, high-ranking officials, and military officers were killed.
The daughter of Germanicus, Agripina, entered the court as the emperor's niece to help with Claudius' housework. After the death of Mesalina, Claudius decided to marry again and was facilitated by the help of secretary Pallas. In 49 AD, Agripina married his uncle Claudius. She also let the son " Nero (previously named Domitius)" born in a past marriage pass over. However, the final death of Claudius I is still suspected to be related to his queen, and the adopted Nero also became a famous tyrant in Roman history.
Relatives
parents
Drusus: The biological father of Claudius I and the brother of Emperor Tiberius.Little Antonia: The mother of Claudius I, gave birth to Germanicus and Claudius I.
wife
Amelia Lebeda: Fiancee, because her parents are both political enemies of Augustus, Claudius gave up this marriage before marriage.
Livia Midulina: Fiancee, died on the day of the selected wedding.
Protea Ugulania: the first wife.
Elina Paitina: The second wife.
Valeria Messalina: The third wife, the first queen.
Little Agrippina: the fourth wife, the second queen.
Children
Drusus: The son with Ugurania died unexpectedly when he was approaching adulthood.
Claudia: The daughter of Ugulania, which is said to be the result of fornication between Ugulania and Claudius' release of slaves.
Antonia: With Paitina's daughter.
Octavia: With the daughter of Mesalina.
Bretanicus: with the son of Mesalina.
Nero: Adopted son, son of little Agrippina, and ex-husband.
Character dispute
In terms of personality, Claudius is described as a cowardly emperor in Tacitus's pen. This historian believes that Claudius was manipulated by his freed slaves and his wife, which is a typical example of an incompetent person. He is also lustful towards women. In terms of family life, the Roman historian Suvitonius also described many of Claudius's misdeeds. He executed the daughter's husband and daughter's fiance, where the former is in child molestation and was stabbed to death in the arms. In criminal justice, he has repeatedly expanded the scope of punishment because of fear of others’ conspiracy to seize power, and he has not refused to torture suspects and confessions, and the cruel punishment of insurgents on beasts killed. Therefore, he is in this regard. The measures are not good for future generations.
As Claudius unexpectedly became emperor in his middle age, he did not have the talents to prepare the ruling team before. So Claudius reused the freed slaves in his own family as secretary. Over time, Claudius' family became the core of state administration. Several of his secretaries: Pallas, Narcissus, Polybius, and Callistus, all of their power expanded rapidly during his administration. The historian's wealth gained from his secretary presumes that corruption in the inner court must be very serious.
As Claudius unexpectedly became emperor in his middle age, he did not have the talents to prepare the ruling team before. So Claudius reused the freed slaves in his own family as secretary. Over time, Claudius' family became the core of state administration. Several of his secretaries: Pallas, Narcissus, Polybius, and Callistus, all of their power expanded rapidly during his administration. The historian's wealth gained from his secretary presumes that corruption in the inner court must be very serious.
