Dear Classical Wisdom Reader,
Who was Livia Drusilla, really?
To some, she was the very embodiment of Roman virtue: a devoted wife, a dignified matron, the steady hand beside the Roman Emperor Augustus as he reshaped the ancient world. The First Empress...
But to others, especially the historians who wrote long after her death, Livia was something else entirely.
Something darker...
She was depicted as a schemer, a manipulator, a woman who, if the rumors are to be believed, cleared a path to power not with speeches or alliances, but with death.
Ancient writers like Tacitus and Cassius Dio painted her as the ultimate “evil stepmother,” a figure so ambitious that she would stop at nothing to see her son rise to the top.
And curiously, or perhaps suspiciously, those who stood in his way had an unfortunate habit of dying young.
Coincidence? Or conspiracy?
Livia’s story is one of those histories where fact is far more interesting than fiction, yet figuring out what is the truth is not an easy task. Her legacy has been shaped by the powerful forces of bias and propaganda.
Was she a loyal partner who helped build an empire?
Or a master strategist who ensured her dynasty would endure, no matter the cost?
This is what we are trying to figure out...
Today, Classical Wisdom Members can enjoy part one of our deep dive into the life of Livia. We’ll look at her story as well as the evidence both for... and against...her role in the many convenient and untimely deaths that paved the way for her dear Tiberius to come to power.
Read on and decide if the First Empress was a hero or a villain...
All the best,
Anya Leonard
Founder and Director
Classical Wisdom
P.S. History rarely hands us clear answers, especially when power, family, and ambition collide at the highest level.
What really happened inside Rome’s first imperial household? Why did so many promising heirs never reach the throne? And how much of what we “know” has been shaped by rumor, resentment, and historians writing long after the fact?
If you aren’t a member already, make sure to join to discover the full story of Livia Drusilla, part One today:
Livia Drusilla: “Mother of the Country” or “Evil Stepmother”?
By Mary Naples, author of Unsung Heroes: Women of the Ancient World
“A blight upon the nation as a mother, a blight upon the house of Caesar as a stepmother.”
Tacitus, Annals 1.10.5
Livia Drusilla (58 BCE–29 CE) was portrayed as the quintessential Roman matrona (mother)—modest, devoted, and virtuous. This image shaped imperial propaganda and earned her an extraordinary amount of public statuary as well as a considerable cult following during her lifetime, particularly in the Greek East, where she was worshipped as a goddess.
Moreover, she received unprecedented public honors, including the honorific title Augusta, significant financial independence, and awarded sacrosanctitas (inviolability) with privileges equivalent to those of the highly revered Vestal Virgins.
Considering the numerous accolades she achieved during her significant lifetime, many of her contemporaries might have been surprised to learn that Livia’s sterling reputation has become tarnished over the years.
Ancient historians, such as Tacitus, Suetonius, and Cassius Dio depicted Livia as a ruthless, power-hungry schemer, reflecting a common narrative of powerful women in antiquity. But more than that, they also accused her of poisoning potential successors to ensure that her son Tiberius would become emperor.
Indeed, it is regrettable that each time a successor emerged, he eventually met an untimely and tragic end. Was this serendipity merely a coincidence, or could someone have intervened to bring about the demise of these successors?
Although it remains impossible to definitively prove or disprove instances of poisoning in antiquity—a challenge that persists even today–perhaps by looking at the series of premature deaths among Augustus’s potential heirs we can separate fact from fiction and understand if Livia had a hand in poisoning any of them as the ancients so assiduously report…
Más info en https://ift.tt/2YOHDhm / Tfno. & WA 607725547 Centro MENADEL (Frasco Martín) Psicología Clínica y Tradicional en Mijas. #Menadel #Psicología #Clínica #Tradicional #MijasPueblo
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