Agrippina defied the traditional Roman wife archetype by becoming the most influential woman in the Empire after marrying Claudius. She openly rejected the virtues of chastity, devotion, and selflessness expected of women. Most Romans believed that women should be quiet and submissive, only appearing in public when showing respect to their husbands and masters. Agrippina was a lady who was best avoided unless one wanted trouble.
Only two generations had passed since Emperor Augustus implemented his conservative social changes that restricted the role of women in Roman society. British queens Boudica and Cartimandua were later portrayed as being confined within this societal framework by Roman and Greek historians. To comprehend the historical accounts of British queens and other influential women, it is essential to examine the perceptions of women in Ancient Rome, as the classical world greatly influenced these narratives.
In Mediterranean civilization, women who exceeded their expected social status were viewed with distrust due to their perceived threatening sexuality, whether they were sirens or Amazons. If sex equated power, women like Agrippina, Cleopatra, Cartimandua, and Boudica could have utilized it to their advantage, challenging a culture that criticized women for being visible and daring to take the spotlight.
Augustus implemented new laws to restrict women’s freedom and place them under the authority of their husbands and fathers, with severe consequences for disobedience. Legally, all men and women were required to marry. Any woman caught committing adultery may face legal execution.
If death was averted, divorce became obligatory, resulting in the forfeiture of her riches and dowry. Women were prohibited from attending public events. To acquire the state’s permission, a woman had to bear three or more children. This achievement allowed her to wear a special garment and get other privileges, such as tax exemptions on property.
These incursions into the private realm were unwanted to most of the populace and were disregarded by the higher classes, notably Augustus’s daughter, Julia, who was known for her promiscuity. As Agrippina matured, she disregarded the rules and social norms, embodying behavior that Augustus feared would lead to the state’s demise.
Agrippina had a strong affinity for power, and the more she experienced it, the more she desired. Being Caligula’s sister, she was brought up to understand the potential of power and actively sought opportunities to attain it. After losing her first husband to an unknown illness, she poisoned her second husband in order to marry her uncle, who had become Emperor Claudius. Despite Claudius being married to Messalina, an experienced and cunning killer, managed to accomplish the task of marrying Agrippina in AD 48 without much difficulty.
From then on, Agrippina began eliminating anybody who was unable or unable to assist her in her goal of securing the throne for her son, Nero Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus, as the future Emperor of Rome. Agrippina orchestrated a series of killings, some of which she may have executed herself, that were seen as extremely immoral. Despite widespread rumors that she was involved in Claudius’s death in AD 54, no one took action against her due to her powerful position as Claudius’s wife.
In AD 54, Nero became Rome’s fifth emperor at the age of sixteen, indicating that he was still under the influence of his mother. It is difficult to determine from the surviving historical accounts which of the mother-and-son duo was more despised. Many references were written years after their deaths, making it challenging to separate the disdain for these figures from the flattering attitudes towards the writer’s contemporary powerful patrons.
Agrippina’s ambition for dominance repulsed the Romans and evoked memories of influential women from the past. Cleopatra’s significant impact was evident due to her romantic relationships with Caesar and Mark Antony throughout turbulent civil wars, serving as a clear illustration of the perceived consequences of female leadership. The combination of her legacy with Agrippina’s created a potent mix of sexuality and authority capable of causing the downfall of powerful men, empires, and entire civilizations. It was clear from the evidence that female rulers were seen as a corrupting influence, a deviation from the natural order, and a sign of impending disaster.