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Claudius (10 BC – 54 AD), son of Nero Claudius Drusus and Antonia Minor, and great grandnephew of Augustus, survived a serious childhood illness, only to grow up disfigured, physically handicapped, and widely ostracized. Even enemies apparently shunned him, since he was spared the purging of his kinsmen. Fortuna notwithstanding, few seriously considered the ungainly Claudius a leading candidate to one day wear the purple.
Even so, it was Claudius’ destiny to enter into political life. When Claudius was in his late forties, his nephew Caligula choose him for co-consul. Evidently, the list of living male Julio-Claudians was growing quite thin. The dynastic directory decreased even further upon Caligula’s murder a few years later (41 AD), and the Praetorian Guard turned to Claudius. The latter, understandably apprehensive at his imperial appointment, proved curiously effective and popular as Rome’s leader. He commissioned new construction projects, such as roads and aqueducts, towards improving the everyday life of the Empire’s citizens. Even more impressive, Claudius substantially expanded the Empire. Among the provinces annexed were Thrace, Pamphylia, Judea, and Mauretania. Most notable of all was the conquest of Britannia, wherein Claudius himself provided reinforcements after the initial offensive.
In addition to the aforementioned domestic and foreign endeavors, Claudius was also active in presiding over Rome’s legal matters. He improved Rome’s judicial system, personally presiding over many trials, working long hours, and generating a prodigious output of daily edicts. Some were of questionable value, such as promoting flatulence for the public’s health. Many were significant, such as granting freedom to slaves who were abandoned for dead, but then recovered. Another notable example was a declaration that a master who killed a slave was committing murder.
Such programs are reflected on the verso of this ancient bronze coin wherein Libertas, the female goddess personifying liberty, stands holding a pileus (a brimless, conical cap). Freed slaves wore the pileus, dating back to ancient Greece, to proclaim their manumitted status. Along with the reverse inscription, LIBERTAS AVGVSTA, and S C (
senatus consulto or "by the decree of the Senate”), the message advertised here is that the new Emperor intends to restore liberty to the Roman people after their suffering under Caligula's tyranny and oppression.
It was also important to advertise the Emperor's strength. On this coin, with the exception of the stylistically long neck, Claudius' features are devoid of any physical abnormalities, as befitting Rome’s supreme ruler. The epithet, TI CLAVDIVS CAESAR AVG P M TR P IMP P P, provides the usual list of the Emperor’s various titles (which Claudius denied initially, preferring instead to earn them one by one). The inscription also includes Claudius’ new cognomen, Caesar, adopted to further improve his popularity. Like the reverse, the obverse engraving is exquisitely detailed, earning a prestigious "Fine Style" designation from NGC Ancients.
While Claudius' marketing campaign gained him some followers, he certainly had his fair share of enemies as well. Claudius survived a number of failed coup attempts, and in response he reportedly executed dozens of suspicious senators. In the end, however, Claudius’ greatest source of misfortune arose from his numerous wives.
After two failed betrothals (one cancelled for political reasons, the other when the bride died on the wedding day), Claudius wedded Plautia Urgulanilla, and the couple had two children: a son who died young, and a daughter who was disowned due to questionable parentage. Claudius divorced in 24 AD when Plautia was suspected in murdering her own kin (not to mention she was allegedly prone to committing adultery). Next, Claudius married Aelia Paetina, who bore him a daughter, Claudia Antonia. As he emerged into public life, Claudius divorced Paetina in order to marry the more prestigious Valeria Messalina, who bore their son, Britannicus, and daughter, Claudia Octavia. The marriage proved disastrous; Messalina was a nymphomaniac who regularly and openly enjoyed numerous paramours from slaves to noblemen. Messalina went too far in 48 AD when she publicly married her latest lover, possibly a prelude to yet another coup. In any case, Messalina was summarily executed.
On New Years Day 49 AD, Claudius married his own niece, Agrippina the Younger, one of the few remaining descendants of Augustus. This choice of partner turned out to be Claudius’ worst, and last. The scheming Agrippina aggressively promoted her own son, the future Emperor Nero, as next in line for the throne. She convinced Claudius to adopt Nero, marrying him to his half-sister Octavia. She also convinced Claudius to appoint Nero as joint heir with his younger half-brother Britannicus. Agrippina then moved to the final stage of her plans by having Claudius fed some poisonous mushrooms. The plot almost failed when Claudius started to recover. However, the resourceful Agrippina enlisted an imperial physician to put a feather dipped in poison down Claudius’ throat (under the pretext of trying to expel the poisoned food).
Like many Emperors, Claudius left a complex legacy, and biographical accounts abound, from ancient to modern, from fact to fiction, and from notable to obscure.
Additional Reading: “I, Claudius,” by Robert Graves, 1934.
Coin Details: ROMAN EMPIRE, Claudius, AD 41-54, Æ As (29mm, 11.46 g, 6h), Rome mint, Struck AD 42-43, NGC Grade: AU, Fine Style, Strike: 5/5, Surface: 2/5, Obverse: Bare head left, TI CLAVDIVS CAESAR AVG P M TR P IMP P P, Reverse: Libertas standing right, holding pileus and extending hand, LIBERTAS AVGVSTA S-C, References: Cohen 47, RIC I 113; von Kaenel Type 77.