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Updated Sunday 15 May, 2011 12:18 PM |
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This Day in Alternate History Blog
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JULIUS IMPERATOR
44 Julius Caesar is assassinated. His principal heir is C. Julius Caesar Octavianus. 43 Octavianus’ sister Octavia bears Marcellus. 42 Livia, wife of Tiberius Claudius Nero, bears Tiberius. 39 First POD: Octavianus’ wife Scribonia bears a son, whom he calls Julius. [OTL, this was Julia I] Three days later, Octavianus divorces Scribonia and marries Livia, who already has one son, Tiberius and is pregnant with Drusus I. Although Scribonia’s family does not have the clout of the Claudii, the presence of Octavianus’ eldest son weakens the chances of the sons of Livia and embitters Livia against Julius. [OTL: Octavianus favored Marcellus as his heir, but Tiberius and Drusus were adoptive sons. Julia I then married Octavianus’ right-hand man M. Vipsanius Agrippa (63-12 BC)] 33 Octavianus assumes the title Augustus. 23 Marcellus dies. [OTL: Julia I was the wife of Marcellus until his death]. 20 Julius and his wife Antonia Minor, daughter of Octavia and Mark Antony, have their first son, Gaius. [OTL: Antonia Minor’s husband was Drusus I]. Gaius’ birth, together with the marriage of Augustus’ son and Octavia’s daughter, effectively seals Julius’ hold on the Caesarean inheritance. 19 Julius and his wife Antonia Minor have their first daughter, Julia I [OTL: Julia II]. 17 Julius and his wife Antonia Minor have their second son, Lucius. 15 Drusus I and his wife have their eldest son, Germanicus [OTL: Drusus I’s wife was Antonia Minor]. 14 Julius and his wife Antonia Minor have their second daughter, Julia II [OTL: Agrippina I]. 13 Tiberius and his wife Vipsania, daughter of Agrippa and Pomponia, have a son, Drusus II. 12 Agrippa dies. [OTL: Upon Agrippa’s death, a complicated marriage swap happened. Augustus married Julia I to Tiberius. To do this, he forced Tiberius to divorce Vipsania, the daughter of Agrippa, Julia I’s recently deceased husband.] Julius and his wife Antonia Minor have their third son, Marcus [OTL: Agrippa Postumus]. Tiberius remains happily married to Vipsania. 11 Octavia dies. 10 Drusus I begets the idiot Claudius. 9
Drusus I dies, leaving Tiberius as the rival claimant to Julius. CE 2 Gaius, son of Julius, dies. 4 Lucius, son of Julius, dies. Marcus, who is not terribly stable, is chief Julian heir after Julius. Tiberius’ status as the Claudian heir is improved. 6 Germanicus and Julia II have a first son, Nero. 7 Germanicus and Julia II have a second son, Drusus III. 8 [OTL: Julia I and the poet Ovid are exiled] 11 Tiberius, best known for his astrological work, dies. [OTL: This would be the age at which Julia I died, adjusted for birthdate.]. Drusus II is now technically the head of the Claudian branch of the Imperial family. Germanicus, however, is married to Julia II, a daughter of Julius and a model wife. 12 Germanicus and Julia II have a third son, Gaius II [OTL: Caligula]. 14 Augustus Caesar dies. His successor is Julius/Julius II, the only surviving member of the second imperial generation. 14-16 Germanicus fights in Germany and gains a great reputation. Marcus, the remaining son of Julius, completely flips and is permanently disinherited. 19 Germanicus dies. Since Marcus is no longer in the running and Germanicus’ son Nero is thirteen years old, Drusus II, son of Tiberius, who is married to Germanicus’ sister Livilla and has twins Tiberius Gemellus and Julia III. 23 Drusus II is (falsely?) convicted of conspiracy against the emperor and is executed. This leaves Tiberius Gemellus, a child, as the Claudian claimant. Nero, son of Germanicus, is the adoptive son of the emperor and Julian claimant. 28 The exiled Julia I dies. 29 Livia, widow of Augustus, finally dies. 31 [OTL: Nero, son of Germanicus, is executed.] 33 Julia II dies. [OTL: Drusus III, son of Germanicus, is executed.] 37 Tiberius Gemellus is executed for treason, thus eliminating the Claudian line except for Claudius. Gaius II falls sick with fever. Agrippina [OTL: Agrippina II], daughter of Germanicus, and Gnaeus Domitius Ahenobarbus, son of Antonia Minor’s sister Antonia Major, have a son, Nero II [OTL: Nero]. 40 Emperor Julius II dies. By now the empire has been at peace for seven decades under two rulers. Excluding the unstable Gaius II and the simple Claudius, Julius II’s heirs are Nero, age 34, and Drusus III, 33. Their nephew, Nero II, is 3. Claudius’ wife Messalina bears Octavia II. Nero (I) adopted Nero II as his son and heir and betroths Nero II to Octavia. 41
Claudius and Messalina have a son, Drusus IV [OTL: Britannicus]. Drusus
III, who has fallen out with his brother, adopts Drusus IV as his heir and
declares himself Emperor. Gaius II conveniently dies. Civil war breaks out in
the Empire.
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