Avera, and welcome to Emperor of Rome, a Roman history podcast from Latrobe University.

I'm your host Matt Smith and with me today is Associate Professor Rianen Evans, Head of the

Department of Language and Linguistics at Lottrobe University. This is

episode C. L.II, the Roman Empress.

We've spent many years telling you about Roman emperors and always the

Empress has been there beside him, occasionally in the spotlight but usually on the

sideline. At times we know little more about them than their name, but some were

interesting individuals in their own right, wielding real power and influence over Roman society.

For the next few episodes, we will be examining the life of some of the most notable Roman

empresses, the lives they lead, and the influence they held in the imperial household.

Here's Rianna Evans.

The role of the empress is a strange one that evolves over time.

So we might think of formal roles, monarchical roles or roles for

women in government like first ladies as being formalized. So in the US they they've only ever been male presidents and their wives

are first ladies. We've had queens, we've had empresses. These are formalized often by a constitution or by habit, by tradition.

But say when we're starting with the very first emperor, Augustus, there is no real

role for his wife, Livia. In a way you could say that she

helps to create it. So there's no formal position and really it's open to whatever the

Emperor and his wife and his court want to make of that

role and how much input she will have.

So to a degree it's kind of intriguing and that's one of the reasons we're looking at these

women is that it does depend on the

...