Messalina: Empress of Rome
The Ancients
History Hit
4.7 • 4.5K Ratings
🗓️ 11 May 2023
⏱️ 40 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
In this episode of The Ancients, host Tristan Hughes speaks with historian Honor Cargill-Martin about the notorious Empress Messalina, third wife of Emperor Claudius. A lot has been said about Messalina over two millennia: that she was a nymphomaniac who organised orgies and engaged in prostitution, even going so far as to work as a prostitute in the streets of Rome, or had sex with 25 men in 24 hours, are just a few examples. Cargill-Martin sheds light on the political and social climate of ancient Rome during Messalina's reign and how she was a complex figure who deserves a more nuanced understanding.
Produced by Elena Guthrie, edited by Aidan Longergan.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | It's the Entrance on History Hit. |
| 0:12.0 | I'm Tristan Hughes your host and in today's episode where we're going back to ancient |
| 0:16.9 | Rome we're talking all about one of the most slandered women from ancient Roman history. |
| 0:24.6 | I'm talking about the Empress Messulina, the third wife of the Emperor Claudius in the |
| 0:31.6 | mid-first century AD, so at the beginning of the Roman Imperial period. |
| 0:36.8 | Now to talk through Messulina's extraordinary story, I was delighted to interview honour |
| 0:42.0 | Cargill Martin, honours new book all about Messulina, well it's just been released. |
| 0:49.5 | So do go and check that out, but after you've listened to this episode today, I do really |
| 0:55.2 | hope you enjoy and here's honour. |
| 1:03.0 | Honour, it is wonderful to have you on the podcast today. |
| 1:05.1 | Thank you so much for having me. |
| 1:06.8 | You are more than welcome and we're going to the early Roman Imperial period art and Messulina, |
| 1:13.2 | the definitive bad girl of the ancient Roman world. |
| 1:16.3 | I would say so, that's what I like about her. |
| 1:18.5 | So Messulina is a Roman Empress, she reigns alongside her husband Claudius from 41 AD to 48 AD. |
| 1:28.6 | And the stories that are told about Messulina after her death, the story is particularly |
| 1:34.4 | about her sexuality and her sexual exploits are insane. |
| 1:40.5 | She has this reputation that kind of follows her through the centuries through the millennia |
| 1:45.9 | and what I'm trying to do is pick that apart and bring the historical figure back a little more. |
| 1:51.4 | So let's focus there for on these sources, you mentioned after her death, which gives us a little clue, |
| 1:55.8 | but what do we know about the nature of the sources that we have available for Messulina? |
| 2:00.1 | Okay, so our historical sources about Messulina are the same main historical sources that we have |
... |
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