Asiaticus Flashcards
What has happened prior to the book
*claudius has married his own cousin Messalina, they have children Octavia and Britannicus.
Poppaea Sabina is a wealthy fashionable beauty of whom Messalina is jealous
Messalina does not like Asiaticus
Messalina believed that Decimus Valerius Asiaticus, twice consul, has been Poppaea Sabina’s lover.
She also coveted the park he was beautifying with exceptional lavishness.
Who did Messalina get to prosecute
She directed Publius Suillius Rufus to prosecute both of them, he was associated in this by Britannicus’ tutor Sosibius.
What was Sosibius to do
Sosibius was to warn Claudius of another’s power with formidable resources.
And that Asiaticus had been the principal instigator of Gaius’ murder, he had admitted and claimed glory for it at an assembly meeting
and that there were Rumors of a visit to the armies of Germany as he was born in Gaul and has powerful connections with that country make it easy for him to rouse his own people’s tribes.
Asiaticus captured
Claudius sent the commander of the Guard Rufrius Crispinus with enough troops to suppress a rebellion. Found him at Baiae and took him in chains to Rome.
examination of Asiaticus
He was examined in a bedroom with Messalina present.
Suillius Rufus accused him of corrupting the army, using bribes and sexual entanglements to commit the soldiers to unbounded atrocities
Adultery with Poppaea Sabina as supplementary charge
Effeminacy (ask your sons, they will confirm my masculinity)
Asiaticus’ defence
Asiaticus’ defence moved Claudius, extracted tears from Messalina.
After Asiaticus what did Messalina do
She organised Sabina’s destruction, agent were sent to threaten her with imprisonment, terrorised her into suicide
Poppaea Sabina’s suicide
“Claudius knew nothing of this”
Claudius asked Vitellius whether Asiaticus should be acquitted
Claudius asked Lucius Vitellius whether he thought Asiaticus should be acquitted, the latter urged that he be allowed to chose the manner of his own death
His death
His friends recommended self starvation. He decided to take gymnastic exercises, bathed, dined cheerfully, inspected his pure and ordered it to be moved so that the flames should not damage the trees foliage. Remained calm to the end. Remarked that it would have been more honourable to die by the wiles of Tiberius or the violence of Gaius than by a woman’s intrigues and Vitellius’ obscene tongue (the problem) he opened his veins (an honorable Roman death)
Two more accused added
Rufus added to the list of accused two distinguished Knights of the name Petra
The real reason was the superstition of them lending their house as a meeting place for the ballet dancer Mnester and Poppaea Sabina.
But the ostensible charge was that one of them had had a dream where he saw Claudius wearing a wheaten wreath or whitening vine leaves (corn shortage/ emperor’s death in autumn)
Destroyed the brothers.
Crispinius and Sosibius’ rewards
honorary praetorship, and a large sum of money
Poppaea Sabina’s husbands response when asked for his opinion
“since I share the general view about Poppaea Sabina’s misdeeds, take it that I say what everyone says”
graceful compromise between husbandly love and senatorial compulsion
