Drusus Caesar

For the son of Tiberius, see Drusus Julius Caesar.
Drusus Caesar
Possible statue of Drusus Caesar, from Roselle (Grosseto)
Bornc. AD 8
DiedAD 33 (aged approx. 25)
Burial
Mausoleum of Augustus
SpouseAemilia Lepida
Names
Drusus Julius Caesar (Germanicus)
DynastyJulio-Claudian
Father
MotherAgrippina the Elder

Drusus Caesar[i] (c. AD 8 – 33) was the grandson by adoption and heir of the Roman emperor Tiberius, alongside his brother Nero. Born into the prominent Julio-Claudian dynasty, Drusus was the son of Tiberius' general and heir, Germanicus.

Sejanus, the prefect of the Praetorian Guard, had become powerful in Rome and is believed by ancient writers such as Suetonius and Tacitus to have been responsible for the downfall of Drusus the Younger. As Sejanus' power grew, other members of the imperial family began to fall as well. In AD 29, Tiberius wrote a letter to the Senate attacking Nero and his mother, and the Senate had them both exiled. Two years later, Nero died in exile on the island of Ponza. Drusus was later imprisoned following similar charges as his brother, and remained in prison from AD 30 until his death three years later. Their deaths allowed for the ascension of their third brother, Gaius Caligula, following the death of Tiberius in AD 37.

  1. ^ ILS I, 107
  2. ^ Stuart, p. 318 n. 7.
  3. ^ Rowe 2002, p. 179, note 8.
  4. ^ Rowe 2002, p. 179.
  5. ^ Balmaceda, Catalina (2017). Virtus Romana: Politics and Morality in the Roman Historians. UNC Press Books. p. 288. ISBN 978-1-4696-3513-2.
  6. ^ Craven, Maxwell (2019). The Imperial Families of Ancient Rome. Fonthill Media. p. 102.
  7. ^ Wood, S. E. (2018). Imperial Women: A Study in Public Images. BRILL. p. 321. ISBN 978-90-04-35128-8.
  8. ^ "Drusus Julius Caesar". British Museum.


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