Dio's Rome, Volume 4: An Historical Narrative Originally Composed in Greek During the Reigns of Septimius Severus, Geta and Caracalla, Macrinus, Elagabalus and Alexander Severus: and Now Presented in English FormCassius Dio Cocceianus
History
Dio's Rome, Volume 4: An Historical Narrative Originally Composed in Greek During the Reigns of Septimius Severus, Geta and Caracalla, Macrinus, Elagabalus and Alexander Severus: and Now Presented in English Form
Cassius Dio Cocceianus
Rome -- History
[-12-] Moreover, he bade his mother behave in a similar manner, so far
as it was proper for her to do so, partly that she might imitate him and
partly to prevent her becoming overproud. She occupied a position of
great prominence, far above all women of former time, so that she could
at any time receive the senate and such of the people as so wished to
greet her in her house. This was also inscribed in the public records.
The letters of Tiberius bore for a time her name also and were written by
both with equal authority. Except that she never ventured to enter the
senate or the camps or the public assemblies she undertook to man age
everything like a sole ruler. In the time of Augustus she had had great
influence and she declared that it was she who made Tiberius emperor.
Consequently she was not satisfied to rule on equal terms with him, but
wished to assert a superiority over him. In this way many measures out of
the ordinary were introduced and many persons voted that she should be
called Mother of her Country, many others that she should he termed
Parent. Others proposed that Tiberius should receive his name from her,
that just as the Greeks were called by their father's name so he should
be called by his mother's. This vexed him and he neither ratified the
honors voted her (save a very few) nor allowed her any further unusual
freedom of action. For instance, she had once dedicated in her house
an image to Augustus and in honor of the event wished to entertain the
senate and the knights together with their wives, but he would not grant
her permission to carry out any part of this program until the senate had
voted it, and not even then to receive the men at dinner. Instead, he
entertained the latter and she attended to the women. Finally, he removed
her entirely from the public sphere, allowing her to direct affairs
within doors; then, as she was troublesome even in this capacity, he
proceeded to absent himself from the City and avoided her in every way
possible. It was chiefly on her account that he removed to Capreae.--This
is the tradition that obtains about Livia.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Dio's Rome, Volume 4: An Historical Narrative Originally Composed in Greek During the Reigns of Septimius Severus, Geta and Caracalla, Macrinus, Elagabalus and Alexander Severus: and Now Presented in English Form — John Shaqi
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