Plautia Urgulanilla was the first wife of the future Roman Emperor

Claudius Tiberius Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus (; 1 August 10 BC – 13 October AD 54) was the fourth Roman emperor, ruling from AD 41 to 54. A member of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, Claudius was born to Drusus and Antonia Minor ...

. They were married circa 9 AD, when he was 18 years old. Suetonius writes that they were divorced in 24 AD on the grounds of her scandalous love affairs and the suspicion of murder.

Murder of Apronia

The murder in which Urgulanilla is supposed to have participated was that of her sister-in-law, Apronia, who was the second wife of Urgulanilla's brother, Marcus Plautius Silvanus. However, in none of the existing ancient writings is it made clear how she was involved, and the details provided by Tacitus seem to imply she could not have been personally involved at all. Plautius Silvanus was first married to

Fabia Numantina Fabia may refer to: * Fabia gens, an ancient Roman family * Fabia, the daughter of Marcus Fabius Ambustus (consular tribune 381 BC) * Fabia (given name), an Italian feminine given name derived from masculine Fabio * Fabia Arete, Roman actress * Fab ...

; however, at some time before 24 AD, they had divorced, and he had married Apronia, a daughter of

Lucius Apronius Lucius Apronius was a Roman senator and suffect consul in 8 AD. Achievements He became suffect consul in 8 AD, and was a military commander active during the reign of Tiberius. Apronius shared in the achievements of Gaius Vibius Postumus ...

. In 24 AD, Plautius Silvanus was accused of murdering Apronia "for reasons not ascertained" by throwing her out of a window in that year. Silvanus responded by claiming that he was asleep when the event had occurred, and was totally unaware of the circumstances leading to her death, saying that she had perhaps committed suicide. The murder was investigated by the Emperor Tiberius who, having investigated the couple's bedroom, discovered proof of a scuffle, and therefore referred the case to the Senate for trial, thus implying that he believed Silvanus to be guilty. However, Silvanus' grandmother,

Urgulania Urgulania (fl. 24 AD), was a prominent noblewoman during the reigns of Augustus and Tiberius, due to her friendship with the empress Livia. She was the mother of the Roman general Marcus Plautius Silvanus (consul in 2 BC), who had distinguished ...

, sent him a dagger, encouraging him to commit suicide, which he duly did. Shortly after the murder of Apronia, Fabia Numantina was "charged with having caused her husband's insanity by magical incantations and potions" but was acquitted.

Family

Urgulanilla was a member of the

Plautia gens The gens Plautia, sometimes written Plotia, was a plebeian family at ancient Rome. Members of this gens first appear in history in the middle of the fourth century BC, when Gaius Plautius Proculus obtained the consulship soon after that magist ...

. She was of Etruscan descent. Her grandmother was

, after whom Urgulanilla was named; she was a close friend of the Empress

Livia Drusilla Livia Drusilla (30 January 59 BC – 28 September AD 29) was a Roman empress from 27 BC to AD 14 as the wife of Emperor Augustus Caesar. She was known as Julia Augusta after her formal adoption into the Julian family in AD 14. Livia was the da ...

.Lily Ross Taylor, "Trebula Suffenas and the Plautii Silvani", ''Memoirs of the American Academy in Rome'', 24 (1956), p. 24 Her father was Marcus Plautius Silvanus, the

consul Consul (abbrev. ''cos.''; Latin plural ''consules'') was the title of one of the two chief magistrates of the Roman Republic, and subsequently also an important title under the Roman Empire. The title was used in other European city-states throu ...

for the year 2 BC, and a decorated general, honoured with triumphal ornaments for his successes in the

Bellum Batonianum The ( Latin for 'War of the Batos') was a military conflict fought in the Roman province of Illyricum in the 1st century AD, in which an alliance of native peoples of the two regions of Illyricum, Dalmatia and Pannonia, revolted against the R ...

Great Illyrian Revolt The (Latin for 'War of the Batos') was a military conflict fought in the Roman province of Illyricum in the 1st century AD, in which an alliance of native peoples of the two regions of Illyricum, Dalmatia and Pannonia, revolted against the Roma ...

in 12 AD. Urgulanilla had three attested siblings: * Marcus Plautius Silvanus, mentioned above. It is probable that he adopted

Tiberius Plautius Silvanus Aelianus Tiberius Plautius Silvanus Aelianus was a Roman patrician who twice served as consul, in 45 and 74 AD. He was the adopted nephew of Plautia Urgulanilla, first wife of the emperor Claudius. It is known he offered up the prayer as pontifex when ...

, who was consul in 45 AD and in 74 AD. * Aulus Plautius Urgulanius, who died at the age of nine. * Publius Plautius Pulcher, friend and companion of his nephew

Claudius Drusus Tiberius Claudius Drusus (c. AD 9/1220/27) was the eldest son of the Roman Emperor Claudius with his first wife Plautia Urgulanilla. He had one younger sister, Claudia, who was repudiated by Claudius along with Plautia. Background Tiberius Cla ...

. Quaestor to Tiberius, and

augur An augur was a priest and official in the classical Roman world. His main role was the practice of augury, the interpretation of the will of the gods by studying the flight of birds. Determinations were based upon whether they were flying ...

; governor of Sicilia. He was made a

patrician Patrician may refer to: * Patrician (ancient Rome), the original aristocratic families of ancient Rome, and a synonym for "aristocratic" in modern English usage * Patrician (post-Roman Europe), the governing elites of cities in parts of medieval ...

by Claudius. Urgulanilla had two attested children: * A son with Claudius, named

, whose betrothal to a daughter of

Sejanus Lucius Aelius Sejanus (c. 20 BC – 18 October AD 31), commonly known as Sejanus (), was a Roman soldier, friend and confidant of the Roman Emperor Tiberius. Of the Equites class by birth, Sejanus rose to power as prefect of the Praetorian ...

instilled great expectations in the prefect,Miriam Tamara Griffin, ''Nero: The End of a Dynasty'',

Psychology Press Taylor & Francis Group is an international company originating in England that publishes books and academic journals. Its parts include Taylor & Francis, Routledge, F1000 Research or Dovepress. It is a division of Informa plc, a United Ki ...

, 2000, p. 194. left unfulfilled when Drusus died in early childhood. * A daughter, Claudia, who was born five months after her divorce from Claudius. Claudius claimed that she had been fathered by his freedman Boter and thus repudiated the child and he had her laid at Urgulanilla's doorstep.

Suetonius Gaius Suetonius Tranquillus (), commonly referred to as Suetonius ( ; c. AD 69 – after AD 122), was a Roman historian who wrote during the early Imperial era The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τ� ...

. Claud. 27.

In fiction

Urgulanilla appears as a significant character in ''

I, Claudius ''I, Claudius'' is a historical novel by English writer Robert Graves, published in 1934. Written in the form of an autobiography of the Roman Emperor Claudius, it tells the history of the Julio-Claudian dynasty and the early years of the Ro ...

'' by

Robert Graves Captain Robert von Ranke Graves (24 July 1895 – 7 December 1985) was a British poet, historical novelist and critic. His father was Alfred Perceval Graves, a celebrated Irish poet and figure in the Gaelic revival; they were both Celt ...

. She was played by

Jennifer Croxton Jennifer Croxton (born 1944 in Cambridge) is a British actress. Career Croxton guest-starred as Lady Diana Forbes-Blakeney opposite Patrick Macnee in the 1969 episode of '' The Avengers'', ''Killers'', a role which remains one of her most well- ...

in the BBC TV adaptation.

References

{{Reflist 1st-century Roman women Etruscans Urgulanilla Wives of Claudius