Agrippina's Role Promoting The Reign Of Nero Summary

AGRIPPINA’S ROLE DURING THE REIGN OF NERO-
Agrippina was the mother of the Emperor Nero. Her influence on politics and her ambition dates back to his birth and spans till the time her powers began to decrease, and eventual assassination in 59 AD. Nero was 17 at the time he succeeded Claudius. In the early years of his reign, Agrippina held great influence over her son and political affairs. However her downfall began in his inaugural address, when she was indirectly denounced by Nero, who later began to rely on others, such as Seneca, Burrus and Poppaea Sabina.
During the first few years of Nero’s reign, Agrippina held much influence over her son and political affairs. Because Nero was 17 at the time he became Emperor, and not yet old enough to rule,
There were many threats made and violent actions carried out between the two. Once Nero was emperor, he had begun to rely on his tutors Seneca and Burrus for political advice. Nero wished to establish his own independency and came to resent Agrippina’s interference. This is referred to in Suetonius’ line “the over-watchful, over-critical eye that Agrippina kept on whatever Nero said or did proved more than he could stand”. The first example of a troubled relationship is introduced in Nero’s inaugural speech, written by Seneca, which signalled her reduced influence. An example of her loss of influence is Agrippina’s absence during the Armenian Embassy’s arrival to Rome. When Agrippina approached Nero, he greeted her as if he were paying her special respect, but did not allow her to sit beside him as she had done with Claudius when Caractactus paid homage to them, which was a clear indication to show her authority was limited. It was Seneca who instructed him to do this. During this time, Agrippina was also beginning to lose political influence, as Nero removed the freedman Pallas, who was a client and advisor for