The Juliae Augustus’ “Ulcers” 2/17/17

Augustus’ Moral Agenda At the beginning of his emperorship, Augustus emphasized the return to traditional Roman values and customs He praised strong morals and stereotypical gender roles (e.g. – women should stay at home and weave all day) Thus, the standards for his family members were extremely high He exercised almost total control over his children and grandchildren Traditionally for men, they should provide for the wife, be loyal to them, and raise their children to be good Roman citizens. Society was patriarchal. Ironically, Augustus got around with the ladies. Tell story about grandsons’ handwriting.

The Augustan Family Tree Augustus Scribonia (1st wife – divorced) Julia Maior Agrippa – Augustus’ BFF Julia Minor Augustus divorced Scribonia literally the day before/on the day she was to give birth to Julia; apparently their marriage was very unhappy. She nagged him quite a bit. Livia – 2nd wife AKA the Wicked Stepmother Tiberius – Princeps #2

Julia Maior (Julia the Elder) Augustus’ daughter; taken from Scribonia and raised by the strict and wicked stepmother Livia Used to promote her dad’s political alliances – married three times (Marcellus, Agrippa, Tiberius) Augustus held so much control that Julia could only speak to people whom her father had approved He adopted Julia’s two sons as his own (to be his heirs) Julia caused her father trouble, but she was well loved Augustus had complete control over her life; Livia raised her in a strict, old-fashioned manner. From Agrippa came Julia the Younger, whom we will mention later. Agrippa was way older that Julia. She was expected to spin and weave at home all day like Cornelia. The public loved Julia – was considered very beautiful, intelligent, witty, and more. Loved art and literature. http://travelswithnancy.com/women-ancient-rome/images-ancient-roman-women/julia-dtr-augustus-altes-museum-berlin-livius.JPG

Julia’s Downfall As Julia entered adulthood, stories of her partying, promiscuity, and drinking abounded In 2 B.C., Julia was charged with adultery and treason and exiled to the island of Pandeteria She only stayed there for five years, but afterwards still could never return to Rome Some believe that Julia’s bad behavior was the reason Tiberius left Rome for self-imposed exile. While in exile, Julia was allowed to come into contact with no men. Her only visitors were those approved by Augustus. No wine either! Her mom Scribonia came with her to the island. Augustus forsook his daughter and granddaughter. Many in Rome begged Augustus to allow her to come back but he said something like, “I wish you had a daughter like her!” He even considered executing her. In addition, Augustus passed laws promoting stable marriages. Men and women legally were required to be married. If your spouse died or you divorced, you had a limited time to remarry. Adultery was punished severely. Death sentences came into play for adulterous men and divorce was mandatory if your spouse was a convicted adulterer. Women were punished less severely, but they were often banished like Augustus’ daughter. Finally, Julia allegedly died of starvation after Tiberius had become emperor. https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/97/Italy_Lazio_location_map.svg/958px-Italy_Lazio_location_map.svg.png http://www.h24notizie.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/ISOLA-Ventotene.jpg

Julia Minor (Julia the Younger) Also was raised by Augustus and Livia (since her father Agrippa died when she was very young) She was married to Paullus, a distant cousin In 8 AD, she was exiled (like her mother) for adultery She died there in exile in 28 AD and like her mother, was not allowed to be buried in the family’s mausoleum Another story about Augustus: Julia Minor built a huge country house for herself. But because Augustus hated massive houses he had it destroyed. Her island was another in the middle of nowhere; exile occurred only two or three years after marriage. She had a child after she was sent into exile, and Augustus rejected the child and allowed it to be exposed https://d1k5w7mbrh6vq5.cloudfront.net/images/cache/63/aa/5c/63aa5c5a4ff74a913e5b72c97b30c98d.jpg

Suetonius Author of De Vita Caesarum – The Life of the Caesars Tracks the rulers of Rome from Julius Caesar all the way to Domitian (12 rulers total) Lived 69-140 AD Was a close friend of Pliny the Younger Because of connection with Pliny, Suetonius worked under the emperors Trajan and Hadrian In 119 AD, he was fired for being too close with Hadrian’s wife Sabina Born in North Africa – this is the point in time in the empire when tons of notable people are born outside of Rome