Emperor Claudius Born: Rome's Unlikely Ruler Arrives
Claudius had a limp, a stammer, and a tendency to twitch — which is probably why the Julio-Claudian family kept him alive while murdering everyone else. He was seen as harmless. When the Praetorian Guard assassinated Caligula in 41 AD, they dragged Claudius out from behind a curtain where he'd been hiding and made him emperor. He turned out to be a capable administrator. He conquered Britain, expanded the empire, built infrastructure. He was likely poisoned by his wife Agrippina so her son Nero could succeed him.
August 1, 10
2016 years ago
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