Editing I, Claudius (section)

===''I, Claudius''===
Writing in the first-person (from an unspecified time period, presumably late in his own reign as emperor), Claudius establishes himself as the author of this history of his family and insists on writing the truth, which includes harsh criticisms of the deified [[Augustus]] and especially of [[Livia]]. The narrative begins prior to his own birth, as he describes many of the events leading to the foundation of the Roman [[Principate]] and the increasingly firm emplacement of Augustus as emperor despite Augustus' own publicly expressed intention to eventually restore the former [[Roman Republic|Republic]]. During his prosperous reign, Augustus is plagued by personal losses as his favoured heirs, [[Marcus Claudius Marcellus (Julio-Claudian dynasty)|Marcellus]], [[Marcus Agrippa]], [[Gaius Caesar]], and [[Lucius Caesar]], die. Claudius reveals that these untimely deaths are all the machinations of Augustus' third wife Livia (who is also Claudius' paternal grandmother), a calculating murderess who seeks to make her son Tiberius (Claudius' uncle) succeed Augustus as the next emperor.

As these intrigues occur, the sickly Claudius is born and is immediately shunned and mocked by his family. Only his brother [[Germanicus]] and his cousin [[Agrippa Postumus|Postumus]] treat him with any kindness. He is eventually given a great tutor, the reputable historian [[Athenodorus Cananites|Athenodorus]], who fosters a love of history and republican government in the young Claudius. During these early years, Claudius is advised by his idol [[Asinius Pollio]] to play the fool to survive.

Postumus is eventually framed for raping Claudius' sister [[Livilla]] and beating his own niece Aemilia; Augustus has him banished to an island off the coast of Italy, but not before Postumus reveals the truth to Claudius. Claudius then passes this on to Germanicus, who convinces Augustus of Postumus' innocence. Augustus exchanges the exiled Postumus with a double named [[Clemens (impostor)|Clemens]] and secretly writes a will restoring Postumus as his heir, but Livia manages to discover this and poisons Augustus.

Upon Augustus' death, Tiberius is declared emperor, though his mother Livia retains her power and influence as empress. The Roman legions campaigning in Germany refuse to accept the unpopular Tiberius and begin to mutiny, instead declaring Germanicus emperor. Shocked and confused, Germanicus refuses, declaring his loyalty to Tiberius. He sends his wife [[Agrippina the Elder|Agrippina]] and youngest son [[Caligula]] away from the military frontier and asks Claudius for an enormous sum of money to pay the soldiers. Claudius agrees and pretends that they are gambling debts. With the money and the return of Caligula, Germanicus ends the mutiny and leads several successful campaigns in Germany.

In the midst of this, Claudius is informed that Postumus is alive and secretly forming a resistance group to take back his rightful place in Rome. Claudius' letters to Germanicus about Postumus are intercepted by Livia; Postumus is later captured and executed by Tiberius. Livia, recognising that Claudius is a threat, sends him to [[Carthage]] to prevent him from having contact with Germanicus. Growing to fear Germanicus' popularity more and more, Tiberius sends a hostile governor, [[Gnaeus Calpurnius Piso (consul 7 BC)|Gnaeus Calpurnius Piso]], to spy on Germanicus. Germanicus soon becomes plagued by witchcraft before dying of poison. It is later revealed that Germanicus' son Caligula was the instigator of the witchcraft.

As Tiberius becomes more hated by the public, he increasingly relies on his Praetorian Captain [[Sejanus]] to administer his edicts and punishments, who is able to manipulate Tiberius into suspecting that Germanicus' wife Agrippina and his own son [[Drusus Julius Caesar|Castor]] are plotting to usurp the monarchy. Sejanus meanwhile secretly plots with Livilla to usurp the monarchy for himself by poisoning Castor and systematically eliminating any ally of Agrippina and her sons. Agrippina only survives due to the protection of Livia, who holds vital information regarding Augustus' true opinion of Tiberius.

Livia then hosts a surprising dinner, to which Claudius and Caligula are invited. She predicts that Caligula (and not his older brothers) will become emperor and that Claudius will succeed him. She privately admits to Claudius to having ordered the poisonings and assassinations of many people, and then begs Claudius to swear to deify her as a goddess, believing it will grant her a blissful afterlife, to which he agrees. Claudius is later invited to Livia's deathbed and reveals that Caligula betrayed his promise. Claudius swears that Livia will become the Queen of Heaven, which moves Livia to declare he is no fool before she dies.

Tiberius, now free of Livia, loses all compunction and executes hundreds of influential citizens on false charges of treason. He banishes Agrippina and her son [[Nero Julius Caesar|Nero]], while Agrippina's son [[Drusus Caesar|Drusus]] is imprisoned and starved to death in Rome. Tiberius retreats from public life to the island of [[Capri]] and Sejanus is given full command of the city in his absence, becoming ''de facto'' ruler of Rome. Tiberius is soon alerted to Sejanus' treachery by a letter from [[Antonia Minor]] and allies himself with Caligula, despite his awareness of Caligula's growing wickedness and narcissism, and transfers control of Rome to the even more despotic [[Naevius Sutorius Macro]]. Sejanus is executed along with his children; Claudius survives despite being married to Sejanus' sister, whom he quickly divorces. Livilla is locked in a room by her mother Antonia and starved to death, and Antonia punishes herself for having raised Livilla by listening to her daughter die.

On his deathbed, the old and feeble Tiberius is smothered to death by Macro. Caligula is declared emperor and at first appears to be enlightened and kind. To his surprise, Claudius is recalled to Rome from his peaceful life in [[Capua]] writing history and living with his prostitute companion Calpurnia. Claudius quickly becomes the butt of many taunts and practical jokes by the Imperial Court. After recovering from a severe illness, Caligula descends into madness, his behaviour becoming ever more egomaniacal and irrational. He declares himself a god in human disguise, stages arguments and battles with other gods, bankrupts the country, and kills thousands.

The madness having reached a tempest is finally quelled by [[Cassius Chaerea]], a captain of the Praetorian Guard who plots with the other captains to assassinate Caligula, along with his wife and daughter. Horrified, Claudius hides behind a curtain and is discovered by a disgruntled Praetorian Guard. Realizing they need a new emperor, the Guards suddenly and bemusedly declare Claudius emperor. Claudius pleads that he does not want to be emperor and only wants to see the Republic restored, but the Guards ignore him. He sadly accepts for the sake of his wife and unborn child, and for the access the emperorship will give him to valuable historical documents, on a whim deciding that as emperor he will finally be able to demand that people read his books.