Livilla (sister of Claudius) - Affair With Sejanus

Affair With Sejanus

Possibly even before the birth of the twins, Livilla had an affair with Lucius Aelius Sejanus, the praetorian prefect of Tiberius - later on, some (including Tiberius) suspected Sejanus to have fathered the twins. Drusus, heir apparent since the death of Germanicus in 23 AD, died in the same year, shortly after striking Sejanus in an argument. According to Tacitus, Suetonius, Cassius Dio, Sejanus had poisoned Drusus, not only because he feared the wrath of the future Emperor but also because he had designs on the supreme power, and aimed at removing a potential competitor -, with Livilla as his accomplice. If Drusus was indeed poisoned, his death aroused no suspicions at the time.

Sejanus now wanted to marry the widowed Livilla. Tiberius in 25 rejected such a request but in 31 eventually gave way. In the same year, the Emperor received evidence from Antonia Minor, his sister-in-law, that Sejanus planned to overthrow him. Tiberius had Sejanus denounced in the Senate, then had him arrested and dragged off to prison to be put to death. A bloody purge then erupted in Rome, most of Sejanus' family (including his children) and followers sharing his fate.