Relatives
Plautius was a (probably distant) relative of Claudius's first wife, Plautia Urgulanilla. Quintus Plautius, who was consul in 36, was probably his younger brother. His sister married Publius Petronius; their (adopted?) son, Publius Petronius Turpilianus, was later consul and governor of Britain.
Plautius's wife, Pomponia Graecina, after the execution of her kinswoman Julia Drusi Caesaris by Claudius and Messalina, remained in mourning for forty years in open, and unpunished, defiance of the emperor. In 57 she was charged with a "foreign superstition", interpreted by some to mean conversion to Christianity. According to Roman law, she was tried by her husband before her kinsmen, and was acquitted.
Plautius was probably the uncle whose "distinguished service" saved Plautius Lateranus from the death penalty in 48 after his affair with Messalina. By the time Lateranus was eventually executed, in 65 for his part in a conspiracy against Nero, his uncle was probably dead and could no longer help him.
Read more about this topic: Aulus Plautius
Famous quotes containing the word relatives:
“The poor in bustling towns aren’t called upon, but the rich deep in the mountains have relatives visiting them from afar.”
—Chinese proverb.
“When mother’s relatives visited,
delicacies were cooked.
When father’s guest arrrived,
mother swelled and had a fit.”
—Punjabi proverb, trans. by Gurinder Singh Mann.
“The most loving parents and relatives commit murder with smiles on their faces. They force us to destroy the person we really are: a subtle kind of murder.”
—Jim Morrison (1943–1971)