CLAS 1140 Lecture Notes - Lecture 5: Praetorian Guard, Mythbusters, Strychnine
Document Summary
Today: ancients behaving badly: nero (basically like mythbusters) Nero comes to power by killing his uncle caligula. Strychnine- super bitter, and britannicus would have tasted it, so not it. Hemlock- it causes seizures, so probably this one was used. Britannicus" funeral was the next day, and it was rushed and simple. Historians believe that this means nero was trying to hide the fact that he murdered his step-brother. He supposedly rigs a boat to drop a led-weighted canopy on her head. Records say that she suffers only a shoulder injury, and that checks out since the arms of the roman couch would have stopped the lead-weighted canopy from killing her. Agrippina is killed by nero"s praetorian guard, and the next day he says he begins his rule . Nero marries his mistress and the guards suffocate and behead his wife, octavia. Nero then decides he wants to fulfill his dreams of being an actor.
