The Accession of Claudius

Caligula's Death: The Reaction
According to Josephus, Rome reacted in many different ways to Caligula's death

• The Senate: "longed for a return to their former status, being desperate to shake off the disgrace of slavery imposed on them by the arrogance of tyrants, now that they had a chance to do so after so long"
• The People: "had no love for the senate, and realised that the emperors acted as a curb for its rapacity and were a source of protection for themselves"
• The Army: "realised that a republican government was incapable of controlling such a vast empire, and if it was established, it would certainly not govern in the interests of the army. But if one man seized power, it would be a significant disadvantage to themselves in every way if they had not helped him to achieve it"

Initial Moves: The Senate

Plans to restore order in Rome by taking steps to seize back power (Josephus)

1. Publicly denounce Caligula and praise the conspirators
2. Disband the popular assemblies who had met to investigate Gaius' death, "furious that the murderers of the emperor had still not been detected"
3. Seize the state treasury and deploy guards to stop rioting and looting
4. Send the soldiers to their barracks and promise "rewards, if they retained their traditional discipline and refrained from riotous destruction"

"Their confidence was fully restored and they were full of a sense of their own importance, since they thought that they would now be in control of government business"

Initial Moves: The Army/Praetorian Guard

• The Army did not heed the Senate's orders, and immediately decided to act by appointing their own emperor, knowing:
• "If they made him emperor, he would be likely to feel a debt towards them and repay them with gifts" (Josephus)
• Meanwhile, in the royal palace, the imperial family and their associates were terrified of the news of Caligula's death, assuming that a similar fate would soon fall on them
• Among these was Claudius, who had fled to a nearby residence to await the outcome of events
• When the soldiers came for him, Claudius famously hid behind a curtain, where he was discovered by members of the Praetorian Guard
• Expecting a similar fate to Caligula, Claudius was stunned instead to see the soldiers kneel before him and swear fealty
• Then they kidnapped the future emperor and took him to the Praetorian Camp, where Claudius promised each soldier 15,000 sesterces as a gift
• "By this act he was the first of the Caesars who resorted to bribery to secure the loyalty of the troops" (Suetonius)

Why Claudius?

"There was none who was his superior either in the distinction of his ancestry or in his commitment to his own learned studies" (Josephus)

• Claudius had been the black-sheep of the Imperial family
• He had a stutter, walked with a limp, and had a slight hunch in his back
• Augustus had advised he be deliberately kept out of the public eye to avoid bringing "familial shame"
• However, he was also highly educated, writing histories and philosophies, and was the younger brother of imperial poster-boy Germanicus

The Senate's Bluff: Josephus

• When the senate heard that the Praetorians had taken Claudius to their camp and proclaimed him emperor, they were in a state of anxiety
• They immediately sent a delegation to Claudius: "to point out to him forcibly that it was his duty to make no attempt to seize the throne by force"
• They asked instead that "He should rather defer to the senate, recognising his subordinate position as but one individual among many, and should allow the law to take responsibility for managing the state in the general interest"
• However, when the delegates began to plea with Claudius after seeing the force he now commanded in the Praetorians: "Claudius fully realised that the senate's delegation was an audacious bluff"

Final Attempts to Restore the Republic are Lost

• The Senate attempted to assert control over the Roman mob, but:
• "could not control the crowd, nor could they reach a decision on the choice of emperor, since on the one hand the troops refused to listen to them, yet on the other hand Gaius' assassins refused to allow them to give way to the soldiers demands."
• Furthermore, when Chaerea (who had allied with the Senate) demanded the soldiers under their charge bring him the head of Claudius:
• "the soldiers refused to take any notice of his words. They drew their swords, raised their standards, and marched off to join those who had sworn allegiance to Claudius"

"So they were left there, the senate without military support, and the consuls reduced to the level of any ordinary citizen" Josephus

The Emperor Claudius

• Claudius was formally declared emperor by the Senate 30 days after the death of Caligula
• Despite his unlikely rise to power, posterity would remember Claudius as a "good" emperor
• He conquered Britain
• He commissioned enormous public works in Rome, such as numerous aqueducts and the harbour at Ostia, that employed tens of thousands of Romans and improved public health
• He reformed the Principate in many positive ways to make the empire more efficient and fair

Activity

1. Bullet point the steps Claudius took as emperor following his accession
• Suetonius, Claudius, 11
1. Ordered a general amnesty - apart from executing a few of the tribunes and centurions who had plotted against Gaius (and who were now plotting against him) - this would have kept the people happy, whilst showing a firm hand and eliminating those who threatened his rule
2. He used "By Augustus" as "the most sacred and frequent of his oaths" - probably to flex and to show devotion
3. He made the senate decree his grandmother Livia divine honours and an elephant drawn carriage for her image, to match Augustus' - makes him look good
4. Annual Circus games on his father's birthday - during which the image of his mother (now posthumously given the title Augusta) was paraded in a carriage - once again a flex
5. Even honoured Mark Antony 
6. Completed marble arch near Pompey's theatre for Tiberius
7. Annulled all of Caligula's edicts, but would not allow the day of his assassination to be proclaimed a public festival - makes him look forgiving and fair (and prevents anyone thinking that he played a part in Caligula's assassination)
• Cassius Dio, C3 (pp54)
1. Immediately accepted all honours voted to him except the title 'Father of the Fatherland'
2. Waited until the 30th day to enter the Senate
3. "Exercised great caution in everything" - didn't want to make the same mistakes as those before him
4. Made everyone in his presence undergo a search to see if they were armed and always had some soldiers present at parties - to stop any assassination attempts
5. Put Chaerea and some of his associates to death - makes an example of them and eliminates the threat they pose
6. Bestowed honours and offices upon those who had "openly canvassed" for democracy or had been thought of as a worthy candidate for emperor - stops people trying to usurp him and quashes any fear they may have had about repercussions
7. Abolished the charge of maiestas - reduced people's fear and showed himself to be fair and different from Caligula