Agrippina The Younger Analysis

). After the wedding nuptials, Agrippina must have realized that it was possible to make her new husband choose her son Lucius as an heir instead of his biological son. All she would have to do was convince Claudius to adopt him, and then show him that Lucius was a better candidate as his successor than his own biological son. Agrippina showered Lucius with the empire’s brightest tutors. She also focused her attention on the Praetorian Guard, the elite soldiers that acted as the imperial palace’s security force. She installed as a commander a soldier named Afranius Burrus whom she picked from obscurity (Agrippina the Younger.) Over the next several years she replaced the older guards with new recruits loyal to the memory of her father, Germanicus.

Whether Claudius was a passive observer of Agrippina’s scheming is up for debate. Claudius certainly recognized Agrippina’s political skills and the stability she would bring to his shaken government. Agrippina’s rising influence and power can best be illustrated by the many honors bestowed on her around this time. In AD 50 she received the title Augusta, which was the feminine form of the honorific title Augustus that was adopted by emperors. This was an honor that had rarely been granted to the wife on an emperor. While her image appeared on coins during the reign of her brother, Caligula, her image now was placed on the the reverse side of coins bearing the image of Claudius, with the designation of Augusta on them (Agrippina the Younger). This demonstrated that she was viewed as a partner of the government. Another honor bestowed on her was that of the salutation, a daily obligation to visit and pay respect to important individuals in society (Agrippina the Younger). When important clients of Emperor Claudius came to the palace each day, they were obliged to pay their respects to Agrippina as well. Most importantly, Claudius adopted Agrippina’s son Lucius in AD 50, giving him a new set of names including the name he would