Verehrt – verdammt – vergessen

Of the mothers of the more than 60 emperors who ruled the Imperium Romanum from Augustus until the final division of the empire in 395, often little more is known than their name; sometimes even this has not survived. The literary, numismatic and epigraphic sources allow us to sketch biographies of only 15 emperor mothers. They are at the centre of this book. The works of the – exclusively male – ancient historians must be read critically. Many of them obviously had problems with self-confident or even ambitious women, whom they accuse of immoral behaviour, intrigues and even murder.

English summary: This book, aimed at a broad audience, deals with the mothers of the Roman emperors from Augustus to the division of the Imperium Romanum after the death of Theodosius I in 395. 66 emperors reigned during this period. However, only 15 of their mothers are outlined in the sources. A section of this book is dedicated to their often difficult lives (only eight died of natural causes, three committed suicide or were driven to suicide, four were murdered). The sparse data on the others is summarised at the beginning of each chapter and in the chapter on the mothers of the so-called soldier emperors. Roman law excluded women from all state and public offices. Only a few emperor’s mothers attempted to cross this boundary, such as the elder Agrippina, who entered the military sphere, or her daughter, who even reached for power. But others also achieved considerable influence, such as Livia, the wife of Augustus, or women in the era of the Severan rulers. The increasing dominance of the Christian church, in which women were only expected to fulfil serving functions and works of piety, brought this development to a halt in the fourth century. Unfortunately, the literary sources provide almost only statements about the emperor’s mothers; there are hardly any statements by them. In addition, quite a few ancient authors (there were no female authors) had problems with self-confident or even ambitious women, even believing them capable of any misdeed. For this reason, the author draws on numismatic and epigraphic sources in addition to the literary sources, which he uses intensively and scrutinises critically. Numerous illustrations familiarise the reader with the people in question, while several genealogical tables make it easier to gain an overview. German description: Das vorliegende an ein breites Publikum gerichtete Buch handelt von den Muttern der romischen Kaiser von Augustus bis zur Teilung des Imperium Romanum nach dem Tod des Theodosius I im Jahr 395. In diesem Zeitraum herrschten 66 Kaiser. Doch nur 15 ihrer Mutter gewinnen in den Quellen Konturen. Ihrem oft nicht einfachen Leben (nur acht starben eines naturlichen Todes, drei begingen Selbstmord bzw. wurden in den Suizid getrieben, vier wurden ermordet) ist jeweils ein Abschnitt dieses Buchs gewidmet. Die sparlichen Daten der Ubrigen sind am Beginn der jeweiligen Kapitel sowie im Kapitel uber die Mutter der sogenannten Soldatenkaiser zusammengestellt. Das romische Gesetz schloss Frauen von allen staatlichen und offentlichen Amtern aus. Nur wenige Kaisermutter versuchten, diese Grenze zu uberschreiten, wie die altere Agrippina, die in den militarischen Bereich eindrang, oder deren Tochter, die sogar nach der Macht griff. Doch auch andere gelangten zu erheblichem Einfluss, etwa Livia, die Gattin des Augustus, oder Frauen in der Epoche der severischen Herrscher. Die zunehmende Dominanz der christlichen Kirche, in der fur Frauen nur dienende Funktionen und Werke der Frommigkeit vorgesehen waren, brachte diese Entwicklung im vierten Jahrhundert zum Stillstand. Leider liefern die literarischen Quellen fast nur Ausserungen uber die Kaisermutter, Ausserungen von ihnen sind kaum vorhanden. Hinzu kommt, dass nicht wenige antike Autoren (Autorinnen gab es nicht) Probleme mit selbstbewussten oder gar ehrgeizigen Frauen hatten, ja ihnen jede Untat zutrauten. Daher greift der Autor neben den – von ihm intensiv genutzten und kritisch hinterfragten – literarischen Quellen auch auf numismatische und epigraphische zuruck. Zahlreiche Abbildungen bringen die betrachteten Personen dem Leser naher, mehrere Stammtafeln erleichtern den Uberblick.

Gunter Aumann was Professor of Geometry/Computer Geometry at the University of Karlsruhe (TH), now the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, for over 20 years. In addition to modern developments, he was also interested in the ancient roots of geometry, which was reflected in several book publications. This relationship with antiquity was deepened by his decades-long interest in Roman coins, which has intensified since his retirement. This passion was triggered in 1972 by the acquisition of a denarius of Antoninus Pius.

• By (author) Günter Aumann