The Twelve Caesars

Because Claudius was born disfigured and with a disability that impeded his speech, he was mistreated by the imperial family, even his own mother, Augustus’s niece Antonia. Denied both political and military offices, Claudius instead became a writer and a scholar of history. Caligula finally granted Claudius a consulship, but he “remained nevertheless a butt of insults” (Section 8).

After Claudius was discovered cowering behind a curtain during the assassinations of Caligula and his wife and child, he was proclaimed emperor by the praetorian guard against the wishes of the Senate. He then secured the army’s loyalty by giving them a cash bonus, making Claudius “the first of the Caesars to win the loyalty of the soldiers with bribery” (Section 10).

As emperor, Claudius reduced the excesses established by Caligula, not holding public honors for his family and restoring some power to the Senate and the consuls. He took a personal interest in judicial cases, although Suetonius criticizes him for forming inconsistent and hasty judgments. Another accomplishment of his was the conquest of Britain, although it proved to be his only military campaign.

Although Suetonius praises Claudius’s interest in public works and the day-to-day functions of government, he also criticizes Claudius for being paranoid, sadistic, and easily influenced by his wives and freedmen.